Answers | To Your Questions About the Bible, Theology and Christian Living

First John 5:7 in the King James Version is such a great proof-text for the Trinity. Why is it not found in newer versions?

When you read 1 John 5:7 in the KJV it does seem like a great proof-text for the Trinity. It reads, “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.”

Newer versions omit that wording.

So why would Christians omit wording that helps prove the Trinity? (1) Those words are not authentic, and (2) There is plenty of proof for the Trinity without them. We don’t need to use spurious words to authenticate the doctrine.

Scholar F.F. Bruce explained it well in his excellent book History of the Bible in English:

They [the words of 1 John 5:7 as found in the KJV] first appear in the writing of a Spanish Christian leader named Priscillian, who was executed for heresy in A.D. 385. Later they made their way into copies of the Latin text of the Bible. When Erasmus prepared his printed edition of the Greek Testament, he rightly left those words out, but was attacked for this by people who felt that the passage was a valuable proof-text for the doctrine of the Trinity. He replied (rather incautiously) that if he could be shown any Greek manuscript which contained the words, he would include them in his next edition. Unfortunately, a Greek manuscript not more than some twenty years old was produced in which the words appeared: they had been translated into Greek from Latin. Of course, the fact that the only Greek manuscript exhibiting the words belonged to the sixteenth century was in itself an argument against their authenticity, but Erasmus had given his promise, and so in his 1522 edition he included the passage. (Today one or two other very late Greek manuscripts are known to contain the passage; all others omit it.)

[New York: Oxford University Press, 1978 (third edition), pp. 141-2]

Ken Horn

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When was the first publication of red letters for the words of Jesus Christ? Why are the words of the Lord God, the Holy Spirit, or the Angel of the Lord in the O.T. not also given a special color?

In 1899, Louis Klopsch, editor of The Christian Herald read Luke 22:20 and was struck by the words “This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.” Because of the symbolism of the blood, Dr. Klopsch wondered if the words of the Lord might effectively be printed in red: “Why not a red-letter Bible with the red words to be those of our Lord?” He sought counsel from his pastor, T. DeWitt Talmage, of Brooklyn Temple. Talmage encouraged him and the first red-letter New Testaments were printed in 1901.

Red was applied to all the words of Jesus, including those quoted by others in the Bible, but not in the Old Testament theophanies (or appearances of Christ before He came to earth in flesh).

The first printing quickly sold out and red-letter Bibles have been immensely popular ever since.

Ken Horn

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I have heard that the name Salome, who was responsible for the beheading of John the Baptist, is in the Bible but I can’t find it.

Yes, the name Salome is in the Bible … but not that Salome.

The infamous Salome was the daughter of Herodias and stepdaughter of Herod Antipas, who ruled Galilee. She plotted with her mother, Herodias, to dance for her stepfather, Herod Antipas, gain his favor, and ask for John’s head. Herodias was the divorced wife of Philip, half brother of Antipas. Herod had imprisoned John for speaking out against this, but feared going further, since John had such a large following.

Herodias shared her husband’s hatred of John, but not his fear, so she put her daughter up to the scheme to get her weak husband to promise John’s death to his seductive stepdaughter. John was beheaded and his head put on display.

But Salome is not named in the Matthew 14 or Mark 6 accounts. Instead she is named by the extrabiblical Jewish historian Josephus.

But there is a Salome mentioned in the Bible. She was with Jesus in Galilee (Mark 15:40-41) and was present at the crucifixion (Mark 15:40), and was at the tomb of Jesus on the resurrection morning (Mark 16:1-2). Matthew 27:56 identifies her as the wife of Zebedee and, thus, the mother of James and John, the “Sons of Thunder.”

Ken Horn

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Where does the Pentecostal church stand on women preachers/teachers?

One of the great privileges I have had since I have been with Today’s Pentecostal Evangel is the international travel that is a part of our coverage for the World Missions Edition of the magazine. In viewing the works of God among His people on five continents, one of the things that stand out to me is this: Wherever there is a powerful move of God, I have seen women actively and significantly involved. In some places it has been clear that without the ministry of women the church would not be experiencing the spiritual prosperity it is. This is clearly the case in the world’s largest church, Yoido Full Gospel Church, in Seoul, South Korea.

The story of women in missions is more than that of female nationals. A glance at both the history of missions and current missions outreach proves that the ministry of female missionaries, single and married, is of inestimable value. The history of Pentecost also reveals the crucial role women have played, and continue to play, in the movement.

But more than experience speaks for the importance of women. So does God’s Word. Though the role of women in the church has been a hotly debated topic for many years, it is clear that Christianity has always valued women more highly than other worldviews have. In the gospels, Jesus clearly elevated the status of women above that day’s cultural norm. The apostle Paul continued to promote that reality in the epistles he wrote. His statement in Galatians 3:28 is the biblical magnum opus of male/female spiritual equality: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (NIV). And though it was Paul who said, “Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:22), his statement (often ignored) about husband/wife relationship in the verse just prior to that was trailblazing: “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

The Assemblies of God, based on the teaching of God’s Word and not simply on experience, has come to the following conclusion:

We are aware that the ministry and leadership of women are not accepted by some individuals, both within and outside the Christian community. We condemn all prejudice and self-promotion, by men or women. The existence in the secular world of bigotry against women cannot be denied. But there is no place for such an attitude in the body of Christ. We acknowledge that attitudes of secular society, based on long-standing practice and tradition, have influenced the application of biblical principles to local circumstances. We desire wisely to respect yet help redeem cultures which are at variance with Kingdom principles. Like Paul, we affirm the Great Commission takes priority over every other consideration. We must reach men and women for Christ, no matter what their cultural or ethnic customs may be. The message of redemption has been carried to remote parts of the world through the ministry of dedicated, Spirit-filled men and women. A believer’s gifts and anointing should still today make a way for his or her ministry. The Pentecostal ministry is not a profession to which men or women merely aspire; it must always be a divine calling, confirmed by the Spirit with a special gifting.

The Assemblies of God has been blessed and must continue to be blessed by the ministry of God’s gifted and commissioned daughters. To the degree that we are convinced of our Pentecostal distinctives–that it is God who divinely calls and supernaturally anoints for ministry–we must continue to be open to the full use of women’s gifts in ministry and spiritual leadership.

Read the full position paper here.

Ken Horn

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Who were the “sons of God” mentioned in Genesis 6:4?

“Sons of” in the Bible is used in a variety of ways. Often it means “having the character of” (compare “sons of thunder” in Mark 3:17). Because “sons of God” in Job 1:6 are angels, some people jump to the conclusion that these in Genesis 6:4 were fallen angels. However, angels are spirit beings. God sometimes gives His angels human form temporarily. But Satan cannot create. Further, if they were fallen angels they and their children would all have perished in the flood.

When we compare Genesis chapters 4 and 5 we see a pattern. In chapter 4 the Cainite line ends in immorality and violence. In chapter 5 the godly Sethite line includes spiritual giants. Kenan means “hymn singer.” Mahalalel means “the praise of God.” Jared means “one prostrating himself” (in prayer). But by the time of Noah and his sons they were the only ones still serving God. What happened? The best explanation is that sons of the godly Sethite line intermarried with daughters of humankind dominated by the Cainite line until the conditions arose that caused God to send the flood.

Thus we can conclude “sons of God” in this context means they were godly human beings.

Stanley M. Horton

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I have heard that the Second Coming of Christ is divided into two stages. Is this true and, if so, what are they?

The Second Coming of Christ in evangelical theology is often divided into 2 phases: (1) the Second Coming for the Church (the Rapture); (2) the Second Coming to reign.

The Blessed Hope of the Church is clearly the Rapture (see Titus 2:13). Assemblies of God theologians see this as the first phase of the Second Coming. The Assemblies of God perspective is presented in this excerpt from Bible Doctrines by William W. Menzies and Stanley M. Horton:

The definition of the term “Second Coming” is broad, used in at least two different ways. Sometimes this term is used of the total end-time drama, encompassing both the rapture of the Church and the revelation of Christ in triumphant glory (2 Thessalonians 1:7), when He will stand on the Mount of Olives (Zechariah 14:4). Sometimes the term is used specifically of the revelation of Christ, in distinction to the Rapture, which precedes it. The first phase of the Second Coming, then, used in this broader sense, refers to the rapture of the Church.

William W. Menzies and Stanley M. Horton, Bible Doctrines (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1993), p. 216.

Ken Horn

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My professor says it is a fact that the Bible is full of errors and contradictions. Why should I read such a faulty book?

My Harvard professor said Exodus 37:17-24, which describes sevenfold lamps, was in error because such lamps did not exist in Moses’ time. Later I took part in an archaeological expedition in Dothan in Israel and watched workmen uncover a sevenfold lamp dating from 1400 B.C., right from Moses’ time.

Critics once said the Hittites never existed because the Greeks and Egyptians didn’t mention them. Then a whole Hittite civilization was discovered. The Greeks and Egyptians did mention them but got the name so twisted no one recognized it. The Bible had it right.

That did not satisfy the critics. They said, “That may be true, but the Horites are fiction.” Others said Sargon never existed. Some even said King David never existed. But Horites were proved to be the same as Hurrians. Sargon’s palace has been excavated. Recently, an ancient inscription was discovered that mentions David’s name and kingdom.

Again and again the Bible has been proved true. It is the critics who are in error due to their unbelief and insufficient knowledge.

Other supposed errors include chronological difficulties caused because the Babylonians, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans all used different systems of measuring time or dating. One cause of apparent contradictions is that one passage may use round numbers; another may give the exact figure, depending on the purpose of the writer.

Most of the errors critics talk about are copyists’ errors. Because the books of the Bible were copied by hand it was easy to make spelling mistakes, misread a word, or leave out a word or a line. By comparing the many ancient copies that have been discovered, scholars can determine the original reading in the vast majority of cases. These cases where we can’t be sure are mostly differences in spelling or word order. None of them affect the teachings of the Bible in any way.

Remember also that the Bible uses everyday language because it was written for the common people, not for scientists. Actually, scientific language did not develop until modern times. Most of us still use the language of appearance, just as the Bible does. Who says, “What a beautiful earthset,” even though we know that it is the earth’s turning that causes the sunset?

The Bible is a wonderful revelation of God and His plan. It will not lead us astray.

For more on this subject, see Bible Doctrines by Menzies and Horton (Logion Press). Visit the original Web page.

Stanley M. Horton

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