εὐαγγελίζω (euaggelizo)
“to announce the Good News of victory in battle”
“to announce the Good News of victory in battle”
“And they were astonished (ἐξεπλήσσοντο, exeplessonto)
at his teaching,
for he taught them as one who had authority,
and not as the scribes.
All were amazed (ἐθαμβήθησαν, ethambhthesan)
and asked one another,
“What is this? A new teaching with authority.
He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.” ”
at his teaching,
for he taught them as one who had authority,
and not as the scribes.
All were amazed (ἐθαμβήθησαν, ethambhthesan)
and asked one another,
“What is this? A new teaching with authority.
He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.” ”
θεωρέω (theoreo)
(“to perceive, discover, ponder a deeper meaning”)
(“to perceive, discover, ponder a deeper meaning”)
As reactions go, to be astonished and to be amazed are not common, every-moment-of-the-day responses. For the ‘Eagles of Philadelphia,’ to cite but one example, the astonishment and amazement of Philly! Philly! heading to Minneapolis has charged the air of the City of brotherly love and sisterly affection with energized excitement. Who would have thought September’s opening kick-off would boot us to February’s match up despite the season ending injury of the ‘governor’ of Wentzelvania. But such a reality expresses another dimension of astonishment and amazement – there are subjective and temporary dimensions to consider. Let’s face it, not everyone is astonished and amazed with the teams heading to Minnesota – and – no matter the outcome, the present excitement will no doubt fade, at least until the start of the next year’s season.
While the people of Capernaum were probably not heading to local retailers to get a ‘Jesus jersey,’ their lives were charged with an astonishment and amazement that deeply transformed their lives. The ‘wow moment’ of both the content and the manner of Jesus’ teaching ‘hammered’ their lives. While that might sound strange or even a bit overboard, in antiquity the Greek verb ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso) described the work of the blacksmith pounding, hammering and working with hot metal to forge a new reality. In so doing, ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso) expressed power and energy and quite a bit of both in order to shape something new from what seemed so ordinary and perhaps even dull. It is no wonder the ancient world eventually came to use this verb to describe events that ‘hammer’ or ‘pound’ on the heart to produce a change, a change that is often surprising and unexpected.
ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso), however, is not necessarily automatic. Recall situations that may have astonished you but not the other person. Even in the case of being astonished, how long did the ‘wow moment’ last? What lasting affect and effect did the astonishing event have on life? Did that which surprised you cause you to change? The scripture scholar Georg Bertram comment that often in the Synoptics Gospels (Mark, Matthew and Luke), ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso) is a precursor to faith – and I will add, a precursor to faith if one permits such to happen. Whatever astonished the qahal (Hebrew, assembly) in that small synagogue at Capernaum did not automatically, in-and-of-itself draw a person into communion with Jesus. ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso) is a grace, a gift that if gratuitously accepted can draw one into communion with the Person, Jesus and not simply follow Him as a guru with a different, nice-sounding ideology. Often times, communion demands the ‘pounding’ or ‘hammering’ into shape, a work known as metanoia.
ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso), however, is not necessarily automatic. Recall situations that may have astonished you but not the other person. Even in the case of being astonished, how long did the ‘wow moment’ last? What lasting affect and effect did the astonishing event have on life? Did that which surprised you cause you to change? The scripture scholar Georg Bertram comment that often in the Synoptics Gospels (Mark, Matthew and Luke), ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso) is a precursor to faith – and I will add, a precursor to faith if one permits such to happen. Whatever astonished the qahal (Hebrew, assembly) in that small synagogue at Capernaum did not automatically, in-and-of-itself draw a person into communion with Jesus. ἐκπλήσσω (ekplesso) is a grace, a gift that if gratuitously accepted can draw one into communion with the Person, Jesus and not simply follow Him as a guru with a different, nice-sounding ideology. Often times, communion demands the ‘pounding’ or ‘hammering’ into shape, a work known as metanoia.
