하나님나라를 꿈꾸며(Kingdom of God)

A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, according to Shigionoth.

2  O Lord, xI have heard the report of you,

and yyour work, O Lord, do I fear.

In the midst of the years zrevive it;

in the midst of the years make it known;

ain wrath remember mercy.

3  God came from bTeman,

cand the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah

His splendor covered the heavens,

and the earth was full of his praise.

x ver. 16; [Ps. 44:1]

y Ps. 90:16

z Ps. 85:6

a [Ps. 77:9]

b See 1 Chr. 1:45

c See Deut. 33:2

 The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 합 3:1–3.

1절) 선지자 하박국이 시기오놋에 맞춘 기도이다. 

시기오놋은 그 의미가 명확하지 않은데 많은 학자들은 이것이 음악적 기호와 같은 것이라고 생각한다. 

왕이나 백성들이 모여서 비나 땅의 풍작뿐만 아니라 사회적 정치적 압제로부터의 구원을 위해서 기도하면 하나님께서 선지자를 통해서 말씀하신다. 선지자는 모든 사람의 운명을 좌지우지하는 하나님의 승리를 보고, 듣고 선포할 권한을 받았다.  

The title verse also contains the curious expression “shigionoth,” a transliteration from the Hebrew. Though the meaning of the word is unknown, scholars agree that it is most likely a musical notation.18 The final sentence of the chapter supports this supposition. Many similar terms in titles to the psalms are now thought to be names identifying hymn tunes or instructions concerning the playing of the music which apparently accompanied the psalm.

J. H. Eaton speculated concerning the original and later use of the psalm. Based on the elements found in the first and last verses (concerning musical instruments and the word “psalm”) and other elements such as selah,19 he affirmed its liturgical use, assigning it to the time of the Autumnal Festival at the preexilic temple.20 Eaton speculated specifically concerning the origin of the psalm. He viewed the king and people assembled to pray for salvation—for rain and fertility of land as well as deliverance from social and political oppression. God spoke through the prophet. “He was empowered to see, hear, and declare the life-giving victory of God which would eventually be seen to shape the destiny of all.” Eaton further questioned whether the prophet may have composed the psalm in advance or whether it came “as the spontaneous product of intense inspiration in this public setting.”21

18 Robertson (Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, 215) follows Keil and says it could refer to a kind of performance that would reflect the excitement that should accompany the celebration of a psalm with such a disturbing topic. HALAT 4:1314, list attempts to understand the term: (1) a lament as found in titles of prayers in Akk.; (2) an ecstatic poem or a song of an ecstatic, a meaning derived from שׁגה, “reel, stagger”; (3) to set something in great agitation or excitement, based on Arabic.

19 J. H. Eaton, “The Origin and Meaning of Habakkuk 3,” ZAW 76 (1964): 144–71. Eaton concluded that though the meaning of סֶלָה is “not yet agreed, its liturgical character can be safely assumed” (p. 159).

20 Ibid., 168–70.

21 Ibid., 168–69.

 Kenneth L. Barker, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, vol. 20, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 354–355.

2절) 여호와여 내가 당신에 대한 소식과 당신의 역사를 듣고 놀랐습니다. 여호와여 주는 수년안에 부흥케 하옵소서. 수년내에 그것을 알리시옵소서. 진노중에 자비를 기억하옵소서. 

하박국서 전체를 통해서 본절은 하나님께 무언가를 행하실 것을 간청한다. 나머지 기조의 부분에서는 과거에 하나님의 위대함과 하나님의 역사하심 속에 선지자가 가지는 조용한 자신감을 표현한다. 선지자의 간청은 본절에서 베 부분으로 구성되는데 첫번째는 생명을 보존할 것을, 앎을 제공할 것을 그리고 자비를 기억할 것을 요청한다. 

Of the entire chapter, only this verse takes on the form of a petition for God to do something. The remainder of the prayer describes the greatness of God in the past and expresses the prophet’s quiet confidence in the work of God. The prophet’s petition is threefold: preserve life, provide understanding, and remember mercy.24

24 Ibid., 218.

 Kenneth L. Barker, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, vol. 20, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 355.

이스라엘은 어떤 신비한 경험보다는 하나님의 역사하심에 그들의 종교의 기반을 두고 있다. 하박국 선지자는 과거 하나님의 역사에 대한 그의 자신감과 간청에 기초한다. 하나님께서는 애굽에서 이스라엘 백성을 이끄심으로 희망을 제공했고 하나님은 이후에대 계속해서 일하실 것이라는 자신감을 불어넣었다. 홍해의 해변에 죽은 애굽인들을 보는 것은 하나님의 보호하심의 명백한 증거를 제공했다. 이스라엘은 결코 애굽을 탈출할 수 없었다. 오직 하나님의 개입만이 이스라엘을 구원했다. 그러나 하박국은 좋았던 옛날로 돌아갈 것을 바라지 않는다. 하지만 그는 이제 임할 최고의 것을 안다. 

Israel based its religion on the work of God rather than any mystical experience. The prophet based both his confidence and his petition on the work of God in the past. God’s leading the people of Israel out of Egypt provided hope and instilled confidence that God would continue to work in the future. Seeing the Egyptians dead on the seashore provided conclusive evidence of the protection of God. Israel could never have escaped from Egypt. Only God’s intervention saved Israel. Habakkuk does not present a desire to return to the “good old days,” however. He knows that “the best is yet to come.”26

26 W. P. Brown, Obadiah through Malachi. Westminster Bible Companion (Louisville: WJK, 1996), 95.

 Kenneth L. Barker, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, vol. 20, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 355.

하박국은 하나님의 목적이 성취되기를 원하고 하나님의 역사가 온 땅에 이루어지기를 원하고 하나님의 행하심이 역사의 구절들안에 믿음을 통해서 명확하게 보여지기를 원한다. 이 선지자는 인간이 아니라 하나님께 집중한다. 그 선지자는 하나님의 일하심에 대한 그의 경외를 선언한다. 구약에서 여호와에 대한 경외는 지혜의 시작이고 종교에 대한 동의어이다. 신명기는 ‘듣는 것과 두려워하는 것’은 하나님과의 경험에 대한 자연스러운 반응으로 간주했다. 여호와 하나님의 강력한 역사하심이 종교예식에서 암송되는 것을 들을 때 그 적절한 반응은 두려움 혹은 경외와 과거의 영광이 현재에 재연될 것에 대한 소망을 가지는 것이다. 

Habakkuk “wants God’s purpose to be fulfilled, God’s work on earth to be done, God’s actions to be seen clearly by faith in the passages of history. This prophet concentrates on God and not on human beings.”27 The prophet declared his awe at the work of God. “I stand in awe” translates the Hebrew verb yarēʾtî, “I fear.” In the Old Testament, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and a virtual synonym for “religion.”28 Deuteronomy shows that “hearing and fearing” may be regarded as the natural reaction to an experience with God.29 “When one hears Yahweh’s mighty work recited in the cult, the appropriate response is fear or awe and a desire to see those ancient marvels repeated in the present.”30

27 Achtemeier, Nahum–Malachi, 54–55.

28 D. D. Garland, “Habakkuk,” BBC (Nashville: Broadman, 1972), 264.

29 See Deut 13:12; 17:13; 19:20; 21:21; Robertson, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, 216, who says, “fear is a significant indicator of the faith of the prophet.”

30 Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah, 131.

 Kenneth L. Barker, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, vol. 20, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 356.

하박국은 과거에 행하셨던 하나님의 역사하심에 근거해서 하나님께서 수년내에, 지금 우리의 때에 그 일을 나타내실 것을 요청하고 있다. 이는 과거 애굽의  압제로부터 이스라엘을 구원하신 것처럼 지금 바벨론의 압제로부터 그들을 구원해주실 것을 요청하고 있는 것이다. 

마지막 구절에서는 진노와 긍휼을 대조하고 있다. 진노라는 단어는 ‘흔들리다’, ‘떨다’라는 의미이고 긍휼은 자궁이라는 단어와 연관이 있다. 이는 하박국이 여호와 하나님께 요청한 연민과 민감함을 가리킨다. 이 구절은 먼저 이스라엘에 대한 그분의 진노가운데서 긍휼을 보이실 것을 또한 하나님께서 이스라엘의 대적자들에 대해 진노를 발하실 때조차도 이스라엘에게 긍휼을 보이실 것을 의미한다. 하나님께서는 당신의 약속에 근거해서 악한 자들을 심판하실 것이다. 말하자면 그들에게 진노를 발하실 것이다. 선지자는 바로 그 순간에도 하나님의 긍휼과 자비를 잊지 말라고 요청하고 있는 것이다. 지금 바벨론에게 임한 심판의 순간속에서 과거 애굽을 탈출할때 베푸셨던 하나님의 구원의 은혜를 기억하며 그와같은 은혜를 베푸실 것을 요청하는 것이다. 

3절) 하나님께서 데만으로부터 오시며 그 거룩하신 분이 바란 산으로부터 오신다.(셀라) 그의 광채가 하늘을 덮었고 온땅에 그의 찬송이 가득했다. 

본절은 구약에서 신현, 하나님의 임재에 대한 가장 광대하고 아름다운 표현이다. 이러한 신현은 하나님께서 크신 능력과 영광중에 임하시는 것을 묘사하는 것이다. 이는 시내산에서 율법을 수여하실 때 보여졌다.(출 19)

히브리어의 동사의 지세는 번역자에게 그 구절의 중요성을 이해하도록 도전합니다. 신현을 표현한 대부분의 동사는 완료시제이며 대개 과거의 맥락에서 사용되었다. 개역개정은 본절에서 신현의 표현을 현재로 했지만 대부분의 영역에서는 과거형으로 표시하고 있다. 그렇다면 이것이 과거의 사건을 묘사하는가 아니면 미래의 어느 시점에 임할 것을 묘사하는가? 완료시제를 사용하는 한가지 방법은 '예언적 완료’나 ‘자신감의 완료’이다. 이 방법은 어떤 것을 매우 확실하게 묘사하는 방법으로 선지자가 마치 이미 성취된 것처럼 말하는 것이다. 이는 그 사건들이 미래에 일어날 것을 묘사하면서 그 발생의 확실성을 강조하는 것을 의미한다. 번역가들이 과거인지 현재인지를 결정할 수 있는지에 관계없이 하나님께서는 하박국의 기도에 응답하셨고 그분의 주권적인 목적에 따라 역사하셨다. 하박국은 하나님의 역사에 대한 확실성을 느꼈다. 신현의 결론으로 그 선지자는 하나님의 구원을 기다리는 것으로 결심했다.(합 3:16) 로버트슨은 말하기를 “심판은 전능하신 하나님과 하바국의 대화의 핵심이었다. 그러나 그 전체적인 요점은 심판의 맥락속에서 하나님 자신에 의한 구원이었다.”

The verb tenses in the Hebrew challenge the interpreter to understand the significance of the passage. Is the passage future, present, or past? Verb tenses in Hebrew do not give past, present, or future time as much as aspectual distinctions.40 Most of the verbs in the theophany are in the perfect tense, usually used in past time contexts. The NIV, following the KJV and RSV, translates the verbs in the past tense. Does this describe an event in the past or one coming at some point in the future?

One way of using the perfect tense is the “prophetic perfect” or “perfective of confidence,” a way of describing something so certain that the prophet could speak of it as already accomplished.41 A modern phrase which captures the essence of the “prophetic perfect” is to say that “it’s money in the bank,” that is, “you can count on it, it’s sure to happen.” This would mean that the events described would occur in the future while emphasizing the certainty of the occurrence.42 Achtemeier argues exegetically and theologically for a present interpretation of the theophany, saying that the tradition saw the coming at the Exodus when Israel proclaimed God as their king (Exod 15:18), while “this time he comes as King over all the earth: His glorious manifestation so illumines the heavens that all the earth responds in praise (cf. Ps 48:10).”43

Whether or not the interpreter can determine past or present, God answered the prayer of Habakkuk and acted according to his sovereign purpose. Habakkuk felt the certainty of God’s work. At the conclusion of the theophany, the prophet determined to wait for God’s redemption (Hab 3:16). As Robertson notes, “Judgment had been central to Habakkuk’s dialogue with the Almighty. But the whole point had been salvation for God’s own in the context of judgment.”44

40 For a thorough discussion see Waltke and O’Connor, IBHS §29–31. For a more concise explanation see D. W. Bailey and J. O. Strange, Biblical Hebrew Grammar (New Orleans: Insight, 1985), 51–53.

NIV New International Version

KJV King James Version

RSV Revised Standard Version

41 Waltke and O’Conner, IBHS § 30.5.1e.

42 Roberts says that the prophet has changed the perspective of his ancient models such as Deut 33:2–5; Judg 5:4–5; Ps 68:8–9; Exod 15:14–16, which portray God’s theophany as a past event. “Habakkuk portrays God’s march as though it were happening in the present, before his very eyes” (Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah, 151).

43 Achtemeier, Nahum–Malachi, 56.

44 Robertson, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah, 219.

 Kenneth L. Barker, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, vol. 20, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 358–359.

데만은 에돔 지역으로 남부 유다에 위치한 곳이다. 데만은 비옥한 지역이고 중요한 무역로들이 교차하는 지역이었다. 이 문맥에서 데만은 에돔 지역 전체를 나타내는 것으로 보인다. 바란은 시나이 반도의 유다 남서쪽의 산악지역이다. 이 두 지역은 과거 하나님의 임재를 표현다. 율법을 주시고 광야를 통해 이스라엘 백성을 인도하셨을 때. 그러므로 이 구절은 청자나 독자들로 하여금 과거 하나님의 일하심과 그분의 능력을 상기하게 했다. 본문의 하나님은 ‘엘로하’인데 오래전 하나님께서 족장들을 그 땅을 통해 인도하셨고 그 백성을 광야를 통햇 인도하신 하나님의 역사하심에 대한 기억을 이끌어냈을 것이다. 이러한 표현은 적대자들의 관점으로 그들은 이스라엘의 언약의 하나님으로서의 여호와가 아니라 창조자로서의 엘로하를 보았다. 

The name for God, ʾĕlôah, used in this instance is a rare and archaic name which probably evoked memories of the work of God in ancient times when he led the patriarchs through the land and the people through the wilderness.51 Patterson sees this usage as demonstrating the enemies’ perspective. They saw God “not as Yahweh, Israel’s covenant God, but as Eloah, the Creator (Deut 32:15) and the Lord of the earth (Pss 18:31; 114:7).”52

51 אֱלוֹהַ is found fifty-seven times in the Old Testament, forty-one times in the Book of Job, with most of the occurrences found in the dialogue. See H. Ringgren, “אֱלֹהִים ʾeōlōhîm,” TDOT 1:272.

52 Patterson, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, 232.

 Kenneth L. Barker, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, vol. 20, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 360.

• 긍휼(스플랑크나 오이크티르모우, compassionate hearts) : 스플링크나는 사람의 가장 내밀한 부분에서 느껴지는 고통을 나타낸다. 창자가 끊어지는 고통을 의미하는 단어인데 이 단어와 타인에 대한 공감을 나타내는 단어가 조합된 것이다. 
• 자비(크레스토테스, kindness)는 선함, 너그러움이라는 의미로 친절, 자비로 번역되었다. 이 친절은 타인을 향한 그리스도적인 태도이다. 
• 겸손(타페이노프로시네, humility)는 자기 자신을 향한 그리도적인 태도로 그리스도가 하나님의 아들로서의 지위를 포기하시고 성육신 하심으로 십자가에 죽으시기까지 복종하심으로 보이신 그 덕목이다.(빌 2:5-11)
• 온유(프라우테스, meekness) : 그저 힘이 없는 유약함이 아니라 통제된 힘이라는 의미로 본문에서는 타인에게 접근할 때 필요한 부드러운 겸손의 산물이라고 할 수 있다. 
• 인내(마크로티미아, patience)는 타인의 반응에 대처하는 겸허한 친절, 자비의 산물이다. 

• Paul was fully aware of the devastating consequences of pride in any group of believers. So he cautioned the Christians at Rome not to think of themselves more highly than they ought (v. 3), reminded them that they were all members of the one body (vv. 4–5), and encouraged them to utilize their individual gifts for the benefit of the entire church (vv. 6–8).15
• 15The view that these verses are directed exclusively toward leaders in the church cannot be sustained. Although those in positions of authority may be especially prone to pride, the need for humility extends to every member of the church.
•  Robert H. Mounce, Romans, vol. 27, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 233.  

• Since their minds have been renewed, their judgmentmust be changed as well. If they are conformed to this world (v. 2) they will think … more highlyof themselves than they ought,but if the Spirit has transformedthem (v. 2), they will think with sober judgment.As Moo points out (1996:760), the meaning of thinkis not so much the intellectual process itself as the way one views something. It connotes the way the Christians consider themselves with respect to others in the church. So to think too highly is to have an overly inflated view of our own importance. To think soberly is to have the divine perspective—we are slaves to God (Rom 6:16, 18, 22) and to one another (Gal 5:13), so we place ourselves under others rather than above them (compare Phil 2:3–4).
•  Grant R. Osborne, Romans, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 323.

• The basis of this proper estimate of ourselves is the measure of faith God has given(literally, “God has measured the measure of faith”). There are two ways of looking at this. The measurecould be the “standard” by which we judge ourselves, namely, our shared faith; thus we look at ourselves on the basis of that common faith God’s grace has allotted to each of us (so Cranfield 1979; Wilckens 1982; Morris 1988; Fitzmyer 1993b; Harrisville 1980; Moo 1996). On the other hand, it could be that different “measure” or “apportionment” given to each believer as God wills and as accepted by faith(so Michel 1966; Murray 1968; M. Black 1973; Käsemann 1980; Dunn 1988b; Schreiner 1998). It is a difficult decision, for faith(as that given equally to all believers) favors the first and measure(referring to the different things apportioned) favors the second. The answer must be found in the context, specifically in verses 4–8 and the spiritual gifts given to each believer. Murray shows (1968:118–19) how this relates to “distinct endowments distributed among the members of the Christian community,” called “the measure of faith in the restricted sense of the faith that is suited to the exercise of this gift.” This makes best sense of the whole context: different members in the church having different gifts(vv. 4–6) provides a good parallel with the measure of faithsufficient for each to discover his or her gift and therefore function(v. 4) in the community. This is also in keeping with the near parallel in 2 Corinthians 10:13 (“the field God has assigned to us”; cf. 1 Cor 7:17; 12:7–11, all texts written near the time when Romans was composed). So Paul is saying that we will have a proper humility when we examine ourselves in keeping with the different gifts God has apportioned to us. There can be no pride, for all gifts are equally important to God and must be received by faith.
•  Grant R. Osborne, Romans, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 323–324.

• The human body is composed of many membersthat do not all have the same function.The body is a whole mechanism and yet depends on each one of its members to function properly. If all the body parts tried to function other than the way they were intended, the body would be crippled. And also if any one member failed to function properly, the body would be crippled. That is exactly Paul’s point. The church as a body parallels this exactly. We,the manymembers of the church, do indeed form one body,*and as such are dependent on each other. Yet together each member belongs to all the others.There is unity and diversity in the church. We are not meant to be “rugged individualists”; rather we are intended to think of ourselves as part of one body.Vertically, we are “not our own” but belong to Christ (1 Cor 6:19–20). Horizontally, we belong to each other. This is the principle of the many and the one. We are many members but form one body and so are interdependent. Our different gifts*are the way we blend into one body. That is, each of us has a critical part to play in the oneness that is the church; we need each other. In the eyes of God no one gift is more important than any other; there is no place for pride, for none of us can function properly without the whole. Studies have shown that in the average church, 15 percent are truly active both in terms of working in the church and in terms of giving. If only 15 percent of our body parts functioned, we would be virtually comatose. In the same way, our churches are crippled by the unwillingness of so many members to use their gifts to minister to each other (Eph 4:12). Yet this is only possible when we recognize we are one body… in Christ.It is only in union with him that we can gain the humility and the strength to function in unity.
• *12:4–5Dunn (1988b:722–23) gives valuable insight into the background of the bodyconcept: (1) It flows out of the corporate expression of the gospel, that is, the communal character of salvation. (2) There may be some background in the Hellenistic idea of the polis(city) as a “body” or in the concept of Christ as the “eschatological Adam” (cf. 5:12–21) or the eucharist as a communal celebration, but the major origin/background must be the experience of community in worship and fellowship as a whole. (3) Therefore, the major point is not its origin but its meaning in the experience of the church as the body of Christ (v. 5; cf. Eph 1:22–23; Col 1:18).
• *12:6There is some question whether the first half of verse 6 is part of the sentence in verses 4–5 (so nrsv; Dunn 1988b), making the list of gifts that follows purely descriptive (“if serving, on their service”), or whether it begins a new sentence (so nasb; niv; njb; nlt; Sanday and Headlam 1902; Murray 1968; Barrett 1957; Cranfield 1979; Fitzmyer 1993b), making the list of gifts imperatival (“if serving, let them serve”). The latter makes more sense, for Paul is exhorting the believers throughout this section.
•  Grant R. Osborne, Romans, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 324–325.

• 1. Prophesying.It is popular today to link this with preaching or teaching, but that was not its use in the early church (note that teachingis the third on the list here and thus a different gift). This was one of the important offices in the early church (second on the lists in 1 Cor 12:28; Eph 4:11 after apostles). Prophets were the divinely chosen means by which God gave specific revelations to the church regarding specific needs (so Cranfield 1979; Käsemann 1980; Grudem 1982; Dunn 1988b; Moo 1996; Schreiner 1998). It is important to realize that these revelations are not canonical but occasional, as in the case of Agabus, whose two revelations are in the canon only because Luke wrote them down in Acts 11:28 and 21:10–11. Prophets are to exercise their gift in proportion to [their] faith,meaning either according to the standards established by true doctrine (“the faith” as the content of our faith; so Cranfield 1979; Morris 1988; Stott 1994; Fitzmyer 1993b; Moo 1996) or according to the faith God has given them to use their gift properly (so Sanday and Headlam 1902; Barrett 1957; Murray 1968; Dunn 1988b; Schreiner 1998). On the basis of the discussion regarding “measure of faith” in verse 3, the latter is more likely. Paul is then saying that they must use their prophetic gift to serve God and the church rather than to serve themselves.
•  Grant R. Osborne, Romans, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 326.

• Thus Paul spotlights three attitudes necessary in exercising particular gifts: (1) those who have a special gift of helping others financially should never give grudgingly but always generously; (2) those who lead often have no one to whom they are accountable, and hence they must beware of laziness; (3) those who show mercy to the hurting must not grow weary but continue to minister with gladness.
•  Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible(Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2179.

• 2. Serving.This could be the kind of servingassociated with the specific ministry of a deacon (so Cranfield 1979; Moo 1996). But more likely this refers to ministry in general, not just the purview of the pastoral office but of all believers. In Ephesians 4:12, the pastors “prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” This would refer to a wide range of services, like discipleship, youth work, children’s ministry and so on. Paul is saying that those called to ministry are to give themselves wholly to that task, realizing that it is a high calling and a privilege to serve the church in any way.
• 3. Teaching.This gift is also mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:28 and Ephesians 4:11 (cf. also Acts 2:42, where it is one of the four pillars of the early church). In the pastoral epistles the teaching office is stressed more than any other thing as the essential component of church ministry. In 1 Timothy 3:2 one of the criteria for leadership is “able to teach,” and in 2 Timothy 2:2 the proper process is passing on the sound doctrine to others who also “teach others.” Teachers are different from prophets in the sense that they explain the traditional biblical truths while prophets give specific messages from God. Like prophets, teachers are to dedicate themselves to their ministry. The pastor is also a teacher according to Ephesians 4:11 and the pastorals. It was a critical area in the early church because of the problem with false teachers, and it is even more critical today (there are now thousands of cults worldwide). Studies have shown that biblical illiteracy is on the rise in churches, and theology is on the wane. We desperately need to ground people in the Word and turn them into Berean Christians who “examine the Scriptures every day” (Acts 17:11) and care deeply for biblical truth.
• 4. Encouraging.This is better translated “exhorter” because of its place after teaching,and in keeping with its use in 12:1, where niv translates it as urge(contra Morris 1988; Stott 1994). Of course, exhortation includes comfort and consolation but cannot be restricted to these ministries (the word means “exhort, encourage” and even “admonish” [my preference for Heb 3:13]). It refers to the practice of verbal care in general. Cranfield (1979:623–24) says the purpose of teaching was to instruct or explain truth while that of exhortation was “to help Christians to live out their obedience to the gospel.” So it concerns the “pastoral application” of these truths to the practical lives and needs of believers.
• 5. Contributing to the needs of others.The steward of this gift could be one who shares his own possessions with others (so Godet 1969; Murray 1968; Cranfield 1979; Dunn 1988b; Morris 1988) or an official who distributes the church’s resources (as in Acts 6:1–7; so Calvin 1979; Käsemann 1980). Yet the more common use of the language would favor the former. Paul is asking those who give to the needy to do so generouslyor perhaps “simply” in the sense that there should be no self-serving ulterior motives (so Godet 1969; Cranfield 1979; Moo 1996). When Christians give to help others, the goal is simply to provide for their needs rather than to gain credit from others or from God (cf. Acts 2:44–45; 4:32–34).
• 6. Leadership.It is interesting that this category appears so far down the list. One would expect it to be near the prophets and teachers at the head of the list. However, it is doubtful that Paul has any hierarchy of gifts in mind, so it is not necessary to try to read the term in a secondary (but possible) sense of someone who “comes to the aid” of others (as do Michel 1966; Cranfield 1979; Dunn 1988b, based on its placement between the one who gives to the needy and the one who shows mercy). Everywhere else in Paul’s writings (and commonly elsewhere in literature) the Greek word refers to leadership (see 1 Thess 5:12; 1 Tim 3:4–5, 12; 5:17; Tit 3:8, 14), and that is more likely here. The concept may be broader than just church leadership and include managing the home (so 1 Tim 3:4–5, 12), but in this context of church ministry it more likely refers to those in charge of the church. Still, in the modern framework this would fit many aspects of church leadership, not just the pastoral staff. At any rate, they are to govern diligently,meaning with “zeal” or “eagerness.” Leadershipdemands a willingness to work hard, to give our best effort.
• 7. Showing mercy.Most agree that this is a general category of caring for people in difficult circumstances, whether it be economic troubles, illness, old age, depression or any other misfortune. This is very close to contributing to the needs of others,though that probably implies financial aid while this is helping others in any way. Those “able to help others” (1 Cor 12:28) should do it cheerfully,a term used in 2 Corinthians 9:7 in the phrase “cheerful giver.” In short, those who help the needy must never do so in a grudging or gloomy manner but must feel the joy of the Lord in their hearts, recognizing the great privilege of helping others. Cranfield (1979:627) says it well—this comes “naturally to one who knows the secret that in those needy and suffering people whom he is called to tend the Lord is himself present (cf. Mt 25:31ff), for he will recognize in them Christ’s gracious gift to him and to the congregation … of an opportunity to love and thank Him who can never be loved and thanked enough.”
•  Grant R. Osborne, Romans, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 326–329.