The Misused Passages: 1 Corinthians 2:9, Eye Hath Not Seen, Nor Ear Heard

This will be the first of an ongoing series on the blog dealing with biblical texts that I repeatedly hear ripped out of context and misused. I have previously dealt with Jesus’ words, ‘Judge not, lest ye be judged‘ (though I had not conceived of a series at that point).

In this installment we consider 1 Corinthians 2:9:

• But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

Some years ago this verse, by itself, was our theme verse for a semester at chapel at a school I attended. And it was used, as it is typically used, to encourage Christians that they cannot imagine the things that God has prepared for them in heaven. Perhaps you’ve used it that way. So, what’s the problem?

Perhaps it is the ripping of this verse out of context that has led to the recent slough of bestselling books dealing with the afterlife. People are just dying, yes that’s a pun, to know what heaven is like. They want to know if the family pet will be there. They want to know what giant pearls look like. They want to know that everything really will be alright in the end. And so you get small children going to heaven and coming back to tell the story. You get ‘Close Encounters of the God Kind.’ You get guys with no interest in the Bible coming into my workplace telling me that he died and rose from the dead and wants to tell me what Jesus is really like.

The problem is that 1 Corinthians 2:9 should never be quoted without including 1 Corinthians 2:10. This is the reason the ESV actually inserts a hyphen at the end of 2:9:

• ⁹ But, as it is written,’What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined,what God has prepared for those who love him’ —

So what does verse 10 say?

• ¹⁰ these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.

The glories of heaven will be just that – glorious. Human imagination could not truly conceive of the majesty of life in the immediate presence of God. But, this reality, and many of its actual elements, have be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit through Scripture.

Do you remember the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus from Luke 16? The Rich Man heads to Hades and gets to have a conversation with Abraham. He asks to be sent back to the earth so that he can declare the truth of the afterlife to his family. If someone rose from the dead to tell them, surely then they would believe! Abraham’s reply, told by Jesus himself in Luke 16:29, is:

• But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’

These things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. We need to fix our minds on things above. And God has given us one means of doing so – his own revelation – the Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.

Myths About the Bible: Was the Eye of the Needle a Gate?

• Matthew 19:24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” 26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

I’ve heard this myth propagated several times. Once I even had a coworker come and share it with me in an attempt to show her cleverness. But, alas, it misses the whole point.

No, Jesus was not talking about a literal gate in Jerusalem called ‘the eye of the needle’ that camels had to squish their way through. I’ve checked and rechecked the evidence on this one, and there is no proof that there ever was such a gate.

The idea of Jesus talking about a small gate that was very difficult to get through is quite convenient for us. It means that though it is not easy, and you may have to unload a few things along the way, it is possible to get into the kingdom if you’re willing to make the necessary sacrifices. But this is not Jesus’ actual point at all. He meant what he said. He was being hyperbolic, he was being somewhat humorous – the thought of a camel going through the eye of a little needle is preposterous – it’s impossible. Do you see that? Then you have his point.

It’s like an elephant springboard diving into a cup of water, like a giraffe doing the limbo under a three-foot-high stick, like a Clydesdale getting into the driver’s seat of a Smart Car. Get it?

It’s not possible for a rich man to save himself. In fact, it’s not possible for any man to save himself. You can’t make enough sacrifices, you can’t unload enough baggage to squeeze in. The disciples understood precisely what he meant. That’s why they immediately asked, ‘Who then can be saved?’

Jesus’ answer implies that it takes the working of a divine miracle for a sinner to make it into the kingdom. We call this miracle the new birth – impossible with man, but possible with God.

The gospel of Jesus Christ declares that salvation is a miraculous act of God. That is why he gets all the glory. So instead of trying to work your way into the kingdom, trust in this miracle working God who sends his Son to redeem us and Spirit to convert us.

Edit: For those wondering whether the ‘camel’ of this text should actually be translated ‘thick rope,’ see HERE. Also note the the Greek word ‘kamelos’ (κάμηλος) is used in the versions of the ‘eye of the needle’ stories recounted in the other synoptic gospels (Mark 10:25, Luke 18:25).

 

For other posts on common misrepresentations of the Bible, read these:

Judge Not

Was Noah Mocked?

B.I.B.L.E. ‘Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth’

Judge Not

I envision a lost man standing before Jesus Christ at the final judgment, having a strong sense of the fate that awaits. He cries out, ‘Judge not Jesus! You said it yourself! I read it in red!’

I then imagine that Jesus goes on to explain to the man that he has misinterpreted Jesus’ words: ‘Did you not also read that you are to remove the log from your own eye so that you can see clearly to take the splinter out of your brother’s? I have no log in my eye. My eye is clear, and I see you as you are. I judge accordingly, and my judgment is true and right.’

In my imagination, Jesus continues, ‘Did you not read that I told my disciples not to cast pearls before the swine? Did I not mean that they had to be able to judge a swine when they saw one? Clearly you do not understand my words.’

To which the man replies: ‘Judge not Jesus! You said it yourself! I read it in red, you hypocrite!’

And he goes to hell, continuing to justify himself for eternity, still thinking that Jesus is the judgmental one.

Myths About the Bible: Noah was Mocked?: The Fight Against Apathy

I’ve seen someone mention it in a Facebook post. I’ve heard more than one famous preacher pound the point:

‘There was Noah, in faith, building the ark. The world was mocking, “What are you doing Noah? You’re crazy Noah!” Noah was being ridiculed and laughed at, but he just kept on building.’

The problem is that you won’t find this anywhere in the Bible – not a whiff. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that Noah was mocked.

I remember several years ago, after hearing a very famous preacher hammering away about Noah being mocked and relating it to persecution, and how everyone who obeys God will be mocked, I got out of my car, went straight into the house, pulled up BibleWorks, and did an exhaustive word search on ‘Noah.’ I couldn’t find one mention of him being mocked. I’ve read the Bible cover to cover many times since then and still haven’t found it.

In fact, if you consider Jesus’ words about Noah, this was likely not the case at all:

• Matthew 24:37 As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

The fact of the matter is that the people of Noah’s day didn’t realize what was happening. They were too busy with other things to really care even if they did. That’s the point of Christ’s words. And so it goes with the ungodly. They continue not to care.

Now there are those who are mocking God’s people to be sure. But the fact that they were not mocking in the days of Noah should be an encouragement to us in some sense. As a preacher, this is encouraging. There was Noah, setting Christ before the world in the form of a type or shadow in the ark. And the world was indifferent. Preachers learn quickly that it is apathy, rather than ridicule, that gets to you. You can fight ridicule. It is hard to fight apathy. Indifference is one of our great enemies, and it has always been this way.

• Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

If we are to get a ‘moral’ from Noah, it is that we must persevere through apathy. Will we be mocked as Christians? I don’t doubt it. But more often people just won’t care. We must stand, even if we stand alone and no one cares, or even notices, that we are standing. God cares, and that is what matters. The world doesn’t care if we are becoming heirs of the righteousness that comes through faith. Yet we stand forgiven.

B.I.B.L.E. = Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth?

Put this one in the myths about the Bible category:

You might have heard this one before: Bible = Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth

I’ve actually discussed this little phrase more than once with people in one-on-one conversations, but it came to mind recently in two situations. First, one of my teachers entitled a course syllabus as the ‘Course Bible.’ Second, one of my textbooks is known as ‘the Bible of _______.’  These two uses of the word propagate a false view of the Bible. That false view is epitomized in the ‘Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth’ idea.

So, what’s wrong with these uses of the word Bible? They portray the Bible as a book primarily of instructions, advice, and proverbs. But isn’t that what the Bible is? The Bible contains instructions and proverbs to be sure, but this is not what the Bible is.

The Bible is the story of creation, fall, redemption, and restoration. The Bible is the story of how a holy God reconciles a sinful people to himself, and will ultimately restore the entire creation to perfection, through the person and work of Jesus Christ. The Bible is about Jesus – it is his story. The creation points you to him, the characters point you to him, the law points you to him, the proverbs point you to him, the prayers point you to him, the prophecies point you to him, the gospels declare him openly, the epistles apply his person and work to our lives, and Revelation encourages us to persevere in assurance that he is coming back, and bringing heaven with him when he comes.

The Bible is God’s revelation of his character, purpose, and plan, lived out in real history, told through story, applied to those to whom it is given. The Bible is God’s very Word, breathed out by him. The Bible is the revelation of the Savior of the world. It is not a handbook, it is a cosmic drama with real-life players. It is full of glory, and sacrifice, and blood, and betrayal, and failure, and redemption. So much for Basic Instructions…

If you use that phrase, I’d encourage you to reconsider your view of this great book. It is no syllabus. It is no manual. It is no handbook. It is God’s revelation of himself, and it is glorious. Can your textbook live up to that?

•  Psalm 138:2 I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.