Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Refuting Shepherd's Chapel - Katabole and 3 Earth Ages

A couple of years ago I posted some videos on YouTube. In those videos I tried to show some of the errors of Shepherd's Chapel teachings. I also have a post on this blog where I briefly list and refute the false teachings of Arnold Murray. I believe more needs to be said to refute their claims more clearly. I have some posts that deal with their doctrine on Hell and Kenites (serpent seed) in more depth. In this post I want to discuss their doctrine of the Katabole and the Three Earth Ages.

One of the big oversights I can point out is how Shepherd's Chapel followers misuse the Greek word katabolē (Strongs #G2602). Using hyper-dispensationalist E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible, Arnold Murray weaves a false system of belief that there was an "earth age" before the one we live in now and in that age Satan rebelled and caused God to destroy it in what they call the "katabole" or the "destruction of the world that was".

In the New Testament, Arnold Murray claims that when the word katabolē is used in the Greek it is actually a mis-translation in the KJV and should be translated as "destroyed" or "overthrow". For example in Ephesians 1:4 when you see the word foundation (which in the Greek is the word katabolē) used in "before the foundation of the world" it should be translated as "before the overthrow (or destruction) of the world". This, to them, validates their aberrant doctrine.

In the New Testament the word katabolē is used 11 times. 10 of those times it is translated in the KJV as foundation. The other one is the most interesting to our discussion and it appears in Hebrews 11:11.
Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. (Hebrews 11:11 KJV)
The word translated as conceive in this verse is the same Greek word katabolē that Shepherd's Chapel claims should be translated "overthrow" or "destroyed". This verse shows that the proper understanding of katabole does not follow Shepherd's Chapel view but instead is consistent with the traditional renderings.

In the other uses of katabolē in the New Testament it is translated as foundation and is always in connection with the world. In Hebrews 11:11 when the word is used in connection with the birth of a child it carries the meaning of conceive. When used in the connection with the world it carries the meaning of founding or creating (conceiving the world). It does NOT carry the meaning of destruction, overthrow, destroyed, or ruin in any circumstance. The use of "laying down" or "throwing down" is only correct in the connotation of laying a foundation or creating not in the sense of destroying or judgment.

In fact the proper Greek words used for "destruction" is apōleia (#G684) and the Greek for "overthrow" is either katastrophē (#G2692) or anatrepō (#G396). In Luke 6:49 we have the Greek word rhēgma (#G4485) used for "ruin". If Paul wanted to stress some sort of judgment, satanic overthrow, or ruined state he would have used one of those Greek terms.


Also see HELPS word studies entry on the use of Katabole:
katabolḗ (from 2596 /katá, "exactly according to," down from the most general to the most specific detail, "following all the way along," and 906 /bállō, "to cast") – properly, a foundation, cast according to a blueprint (original design); the substructure which determines the entire direction (destination) of all that follows; the foundation-plan, upon which the entire super-structure is built; (figuratively) the beginning (founding) that purposefully designs all that follows.
A simple survey of how the word katabolē is used in the New Testament gives us a very clear understanding of its meaning.

All verses that use the Greek word katabolē in the New Testament:
Mat 13:35, Mat 25:34, Luk 11:50, Jhn 17:24, Eph 1:4, Heb 4:3, Heb 9:26, Heb 11:11, 1Pe 1:20, Rev 13:8, Rev 17:8 
Here are some notes concerning the supposed "gap theory" of Genesis 1:1-2:

Shepherd's Chapel students often argue that the word translated as “was” in the KJV and most English Translations of Genesis 1:2 should actually be translated “became” as in “the Earth became formless and void.” This, to them, proves the supposed katabole.

This theory of creation is commonly called the gap theory and it suffers from a number of hermeneutical problems:

Time cannot be inserted between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2 because verse 2 does not follow verse 1 in time. Verse 2 uses a Hebrew grammatical device that is called a waw-disjunctive. This is where a sentence begins with the Hebrew word for and (waw) followed by a noun such as the earth (erets). A waw-disjunctive indicates that the sentence is describing the previous one and does not follow in time. In other words, verse 2 is describing the conditions of the earth when it was first created. Hebrew grammar simply will not allow for the insertion of vast periods of time between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2 in which a supposed satanic fall took place.

Exodus 20:11 clearly teaches that everything was created in the span of six literal days. This passage  refutes any possibility of vast periods of time between any of the days of creation. This theory suffers from the problem of death and suffering long before Adam’s sin. Romans 5:12 teaches that death came by Adam’s sin. God himself said on the sixth day that creation was very good (Gen. 1:31), how could it be very good if there was sin and death before the fall of Adam?

Another argument you may encounter when dealing with Shepherd's Chapel students is they will claim Isaiah 45:18 substantiates their view:
For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else. (Isaiah 45:18 KJV)
The word in vain is the same Hebrew word tohu as used in Geneses 1:2 "without form". Shepherd's Chapel students will claim that God didn't create the earth tohu but it became tohu (that is it became tohu "vian / without form" by the Katabole). But we must look at the context. The context here requires us to translate tohu as "in vain" instead of "without form". Isaiah's point here is that God did not create the earth without a purpose; He formed the earth to be inhabited by man. Genesis chapter one goes on to tell us how God formed the earth and created man and living creatures to fill the earth. Genesis chapter one records for us the whole act of creation and it was not completed until after the 6th day. Isaiah is not saying that God didn't originally create the earth tohu "without form" on the first day, as Genesis 1:2 states, but that he didn't create it without a purpose. God didn't let the earth stay tohu but had a purpose and formed the earth for that purpose. The whole act of creation (from day 1-6) had a purpose and was not vain "tohu".

The word tohu is used in several places in the Old Testament and it is translated 10 different ways in those places. In the Hebrew language it depends on the context as to how to precisely translate a word. Tohu is no exception. In Genesis 1:2 the context shows that the earth had no form to it yet so tohu is use to describe this state. In Isaiah 14:18 tohu is use to show that the whole act of creation had a purpose and was not in vain. There is no contradiction and this verse does not prove there was an earth age prior to this one.



*updated 8/28/2015


Soli Deo Gloria! 

38 comments:

  1. EHHHH wrong! The origin definition of Katabole is Kataballo which, means to throw down (another word for overthrow).

    G2598


    Original: καταβάλλω

    Transliteration: kataballō

    Phonetic: kat-ab-al'-lo

    Thayer Definition:

    to cast down
    to throw to the ground, prostate
    to put in a lower place
    to lay (down) a foundation
    Origin: from G2596 and G906

    TDNT entry: None

    Part(s) of speech: Verb

    Strong's Definition: From G2596 and G906; to throw down: - cast down, lay

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    2. Hello, You are simply ignoring the context and semantic domain of the Greek. It can can mean to 'throw down' or 'lay down' as in laying or putting down a foundation. It is never used in the Greek for judgment or destruction. You cannot ignore context like that. You still cannot explain your usage of Katabole in Hebrews 11:11 where it is used for conception. That is the same way it is intended to be used in Ephesians and other places where it means the conception or, like the KJV and most translations, foundation of the world. It is quite simple to see in the text that it is talking about creation not destruction in those verses.

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    3. katabolḗ (from 2596 /katá, "exactly according to," down from the most general to the most specific detail, "following all the way along," and 906 /bállō, "to cast") – properly, a foundation, cast according to a blueprint (original design); the substructure which determines the entire direction (destination) of all that follows; the foundation-plan, upon which the entire super-structure is built; (figuratively) the beginning (founding) that purposefully designs all that follows.

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    4. Guess you forgot one day is as a thousand days with the Lord. kinites will always deny or change Gods word.

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  3. I see no real issue with referring to katabole as overthrow (actually it would be better translated breaking down and renewal). So your hypothesis is proven false.

    katabole Is just they biochemical process of catabolism. I.e. - the female breaking down the male sperm in order for a woman to conceive, her body must be able to breakdown the male's sperm in order to conceive. That is why the word is used in Heb 11:11 for pregnancy. Birth of a new age (old age destroyed and new one created).

    Nice try though on attacking Pastor Murray...

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    1. Thank you James for your comment! You are unfortunately importing your preconceived notions into the term "Katabole" It is not talking about breaking down sperm in the greek. It is referring to conception and birth. There is no way to have the concept of breaking down and renewing unless you import that preconceived idea into the text.. You are not allowing the Text of Scripture to speak for itself.

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  4. Funny that you would think yourself a better scholar than E.W. Bullinger. He spent his entire life bringing forth the true Word Of God. The structure to the bible he wrote is, in itself, a miracle. The man was blessed by Almighty God and NOTHING he has written is without "Context". His whole life was dedicated to making SURE student includes "Context". Gooood luck.

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    1. I do not, nor did I claim that I was a "better" scholar than Bullinger. Do you agree with everything Bullinger wrote? He believed in Pre-trib rapture do you? No scholar is perfect and neither was Bullinger. There are many scholars of the caliber and better than Bullinger who strongly disagree with many of his assertions.

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    2. Who are these better scholars? That way I won't waste my time on them

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  5. Pastor Murray was is the best Bible, Hebrew scholar since Paul, and I'll leave it at that

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    1. Hello Blue sky. Murray's false usage and even mispronouncing of Hebrew showed he knew little more then a cursory knowledge of Hebrew. He would try and use Strong's concordance to pick and choose his definitions and simply ignore the semantic domain of Hebrew and Greek. He has showed no evidence that he knew how Greek or Hebrew syntax even functioned. He used the common "Root Falacy" that a true scholar would know not to do.

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    2. "True scholar?" You mean like a "True Scotsman?" Ha-ha--busted!

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    3. I'll stick with Pastor Murray

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    4. I will stick with pastor murry myself as well.7 yrs of studying with him has blessed me.

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  6. I don't believer you reached hundred of thousand people a day like he did... I checked out all he said ,like you I did not believe what he said BUT I checked and NEVER found a mistake in his preaching...Many other scholars think like he did and proved it in the word...Bullinger of the 1800 knew God word better than most people of this time.Arnold Murray reached millions of people I could find no wrong in him...:)

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  7. I am a scholar at CalBaptist University and I must say that the so called "root fallacy" is common because it is not a fallacy. It is just your opinion. Many true scholars commonly use prime roots so they can communicate more effectively, Dr. Arnold Murray was a great communicator and very effective.he truly was a scholar of scholars and you pick on the small stuff, shame on you. I hope you post this and not hide a fellow scholars opinion.

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    1. There is no evidence that Murray understood Greek or the semantic domain of Greek grammar. Also it's Primitive root not Prime root. What exactly are your Greek credentials?

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    2. Also it is a fallacy to use the Primitive root of the Greek to try and get a "true" meaning of the word. Murray utilized primitive roots yet ignored semantic domain, morphology, and context. All of which are necessary to get the accurate meaning of a Greek word in a given context. Using the Strong's primitive roots does not give all the information one needs. I've never once seen Murray interact with Greek verb tenses, or morphology.

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    3. There is alot I don't understand in this world but I still find them useful, amazing & sometimes obscene. I'm glad for Pastor Murray. If he brought you closer to God & even to prove him wrong, how is that a bad thing? I'm not a great speller but I have a fair vocabulary & I work with people who always say "wow, how do you spell that word?" I do my best, get it right most of the time, then they say "well I was taught never to use a word unless I know how to spell it" I ask them "how does your one year old spell, Dada?"

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    4. With what is being taught in schools and colleges these days I'll stay with KJV and Arnold Murry

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  8. I am just going to say this. God is perfection, and the earth was made that way. Now it wobbles, why?, most likely because God destroyed the first earth age.I look at it simply like this, God and His angels had to dwell somewhere, that being here in the first earth age. God destroyed the earth as it was, and we are living in the second earth age. The third and last will be with Jesus. God bless!

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    1. Or it wobbles because the foundations were broken up during the Great Food. One theory is just as good as another barring definitive proof.

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  9. Pastor Murray`s explanation of the 1st earth age is right on point of what happened and Gods plan for him to be born into the world to finally destroy Satan for what he did in that age. Heb.2.14 Christ would come through that seed line of Heb.11.11 and be our lord and savior "if" you believe. I have no problem with his teachings at all, he has brought me closer to the truth than any other person in the whole world and I am totally grateful of that. All I see you doing is trying to destroy his work to build up your false teaching.

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    1. Thank you for your post. You however did not deal with any of my objections to Murray's teachings that I presented in the article. Yes Jesus came through the seedline of Sarah but that has nothing at all to do with the doctrine of 3 earth ages. Hebrews 2:14 is the culmination of the argument for Christ's divinity and incarnation. If you look at vs 7 you see that Christ is in view as being the one that was born flesh from before. Mankind was simply created in the flesh and have no preexistance "see Zech. 12:1".

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    2. Our souls where with God and placed in us to be returned to our father.

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  10. Maybe he means the great food court @ the mall, spoiler.. all the food is guilty

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  11. When did god hate Esau? Romans 9:11-13. For the children being not yet born... Is that not in the first earth age? He loved Jacob and hated Esau.

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  12. Just delete the comments on the ones you dont agree with... 🤣🤣🤣😂😂😂 I dont watch Shepard's Chapel but my friend does, and he is spot on... so reread and pray my friend the 3rd heaven age is coming after the 6th trump whether you believe ot not!!!
    Be of and peace, Peace and love... shalom, ahava... Ma shalmha?? Ani besseder!!!

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  13. no wonder there is so much confusion about religion when readers can't even get pass or agree on the first three verses of the Bible

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  14. I want to know what the manuscript says I want to know the truth no matter who is right or wrong I would appreciate the truth as the original before interpreting in kjb

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  15. I have stuyed over 7 yrs with Arnold Murry and his teaching has blessed my life.It opens your eyes to truth. Its amazing what God is saying to us.Remember not all are suppose to understand the Holy Word.they will be taught in the millennium.If your determine you will discover the truth and know it when you hear it if you study with Arnold Murry or his son at Shepherds Chapel.Stay focused.

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  16. The fact is that none of us can speak with absolute certainty regarding a language that we don't have firsthand knowledge of. We are all grasping at straws to some extent. I would love to see the day when we could all agree that our main focus isn't finding out who is right or wrong but how our diverging viewpoints can bring us closer to the truth. There might be more to the truth of the matter than meets the eye. When the main focus is that someone has to be wrong for me to be right, we've all lost a measure of dignity. At that point, we've ceased to become a witness for Christ, and we've lost the central message of the Bible: salvation through Jesus Christ. If we get lost in the debate of issues that are not relevant to that message, we really have no truth to offer.

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