EXP:Sin a word study

   Taken from "The New Bible Dictionary" Second edition, by Tyndale
Press. Copied by God Rules BBS, Oxnard, CA (805)984-7183.

   I. TERMINOLOGY

   As might be expected of a book whose dominant theme is human sin and
God's gracious salvation from it, The Bible uses a wide variety of
terms in both OT and NT to express the idea of sin.

   There are four main Heb. roots. ht' is the most common and with its
derivatives conveys the underlying idea of missing the mark, or
deviating from the goal (cf. Jdg. 20:16 for non- moral usage). The vast
proportion of its occurrences refer to moral and religious deviation,
whether in respect to man (Gn.20:9), or God (la.5:7). The noun Hatta't
is frequently used as a technical term for a sin-offering (lv. 4,
passim ). This root does not address the inner motivation of wrong
action but concentrates more on its formal aspect as deviation from the
moral norm, usually the law, or will of God (Ex. 20:20; Ho. 13:12;
etc.). ps' refers to action in breach of relationship, 'rebellion',
'revolution'. It occurs in a non-theological sense, e.g., with
reference to ˙Isreals secession from the house of David (1˙ki. 12:19).
Used of sin it is perhaps the ˙profuondest OT term reflecting as it
does the insight that sin is rebellion against God, the defiance of His
Holy Lordship and rule (˙isa. 1:28; La. 3:9). '˙wh conveys a literal
meaning of deliberate perversion or 'twisting' (˙Isa 24:1; La. 3:9).
Used in relation to sin it reflects the thought of sin as deliberate
wrongdoing, 'Committing iniquity' (˙Dn. 9:5; ˙Sa. 24:17). It occurs in
religious contexts particularly in a noun form '˙awon which stresses
the idea of the guilt which arises from deliberate wrongdoing (Gn.
44:16; Is. 53:11). ˙Sagah has as its basic idea straying away from the
correct path (˙Ezk. 34:6). It is indicative of sin as arising from
ignorance,'erring','creaturely going astray' (1 ˙Sa. 26:21; ˙Jb. 6:24).
It often appears in the cultic context as sin against unrecognized
ritual regulations (Lv. 4:2). Reference should also be made to ˙rasa',
to be wicked, to act wickedly (2 ˙Sa. 22:22; Ne. 9:33); and 'amal,
mischief done to others (˙Pr. 24:2; ˙Hab. 1:13)

   The principal NT term is ˙hamartia (and cognates), which is
equivalent to ht'. In classical ˙Gk. it is used for missing a terget or
taking a wrong road. It is the general NT term for sin as concrete
wrongdoing, the violation of God's law (˙Jn. 8:46; Jas. 1:15; 1 ˙Jn.
1:8). In ˙Rom. 5-8 Paul personifies the term as a ruling principle in
human life (cf. 5:12; 6:12; 14; 7:17; 20; 8:2). ˙Paraptoma occurs in
classical contexts for an error in measurement or a blunder. The NT
gives a stronger moral connotation as misdeed or trespass (cf. 'dead
through...', ˙Eph. 2:1; ˙Mt. 6:14f.). ˙Parabasis is a similarly derived
term with similar meaning, 'transgression', 'going beyond the norm' (˙Rom.
1:18; 2 Tim. 2:16). Another term is ˙Anomia, lawlessness, a contempt
for law (˙Mt. 7:23; 2 Cor. 6:14). ˙Kakia and ˙poneria are general terms
expressing moral and spiritual depravity (Acts 8:22; ˙Rom. 1:29; ˙Lk.
11:39; ˙Eph. 6:12). The last of these references indicates the
association of the latter term with satan, the evil one, ho ˙poneros
(˙Mt. 13:19; 1 ˙Jn. 3:12). Adikia is the main classical term for wrong
done to ones neighbor. It is translated variously as 'injustice' (˙Rom.
9:14), 'unrighteousness' (˙Lk. 18:6), 'falsehood' (˙Jn. 7:18),
'wickedness (˙Rom. 2:8), 'iniquity' (2 Tim 2:19). 1 ˙Jn. equates it
with ˙hamartia (1 ˙Jn. 3:4; 5:17). Also occurring with enochos, a legal
term meaning 'guilty' (˙Mk. 3:29; 1 Cor. 11:27), and ˙ophielima, 'debt'
(˙Mt. 6:12).

   The definition of sin, however, is not to be derived simply from the
terms used in scripture to denote it. The most characteristic feature
of sin is that it is directly against God (cf. Ps. 51:4; ˙Rom. 8:7).
Any conception of sin which does not have in the forefront the
contradiction which it offers to God is a deviation from the Biblical
representation. The common notion that sin is selfishness betrays a
false assessment of its nature and gravity. Essentially, sin is
directed against God, and this perspective alone accounts for the
diversity of its form and activities. It is a violation of that which
God's glory demands and is, therefore, in its essence the contradiction
of God.

   II. ORIGIN

   Sin was present in the universe before the fall of Adam and Eve (Gn.
3:1f;cf. ˙Jn. 8:44; 2 Pet.2:4; 1 ˙Jn. 3:8; ˙Jude 6). The Bible however
does not deal directly with the origin of evil in the universe, being
concerned rather with sin and its origin in human life (1 Tim. 2:14;
˙Jas. 1:13f). The real thrust of the demonic temptation in the account
of the fall in Gn. 3 lies in its subtle suggestion of man's aspiring to
equality with his maker ('you will be like God...', 3:5). Satan's
attack was directed against the integrity , veracity, and loving
provision of God, and consisted in an enticement to wicked and
blasphemous rebellion against man's proper Lord. In this act man
snatched at equality with God (cf. phil. 2:6), attempted to assert his
independence of God, and hence to call in question the very nature and
ordering of existence whereby he lived as creature in utter dependence
upon the grace and provision of his creator. 'Man's sin lies in his
pretension to be God' (˙neibuhr). In this act, further, man
blasphemously withheld the worship and adoring love which is ever his
proper response to God's majesty and grace, and instead paid homage to
the enemy of God and to his own foul ambitions.

   Thus the origin of sin according to Gn. 3 ought not to be sought so
much in an overt action (2:17 with 3:6) but in an inward, God-denying
aspiration of which the act of disobedience was the immediate expression.
As to the problem of how Adam and Eve could have been subject to
temptation does not enter into extended discussion. However, in the 
person of Jesus Christ it witnesses to a man who, though without sin, 
was subject to temptation 'in every respect that we are' (Heb. 4:15; 
cf. ˙Mt. 4:3f; Heb. 2:17f; 5:75f; 1 Pet. 11:19f; 2:22f.). The ultimate 
origin of evil is part of the 'mystery of ˙lawlessness' (2 Thes. 2:7), 
but an arguable reason for scripture's relative silence is that a 
'rational explanation' of the origin of sin would have the inevitable 
result of directing attention away from the scripture's primary concern,
the confession of my personal guilt (cf. G.C. ˙Berkouwer, Sin, ch. 1). 
In the end, sin, by the very nature of the case, cannot be 'known' 
objectively; 'sin posits itself' (S. ˙Kierkegaard).

   III. CONSEQUENCES

   The sin of Adam and Eve was not an isolated event. The consequences
for them, for posterity and for the world are immediately apparent.

   a. Man's attitude to God The changed attitude to God on the part of
Adam indicates the revolution that took place in their minds. They 'Hid
themselves from the presence of The Lord God' (Gn. 3:8; cf. v. 7). Made
for the presence and fellowship of God, they now dreaded encounter with
Him (cf. ˙Jn. 3:20). Shame and fear were now the dominant emotions (cf.
Gn. 2:25; 3:7, 10), indicating the disruption that had taken place.

   b. God's attitude to man Not only was there a change in man's
attitude to God, but also in God's attitude to man. Reproof,
condemnation, curse, expulsion from the garden are all indicative of
this. Sin is one-sided, but its consequences are not. Sin elicits God's
wrath and displeasure, and necessarily so, because it is the
contradiction of what He is. For God to be ˙complacentr towards sin is
an impossibility, since it would be for God to cease to take Himself
seriously. He cannot deny Himself.

   c. Consequences for the human race The unfolding history of man
furnishes a catalogue of vices (Gn. 4:8, 19, 23f; 6:2-3, 5). The sequel
of abounding iniquity results in the virtual detruction of mankind (Gn.
6:7, 13; 7:21-24). The fall had an abiding effect not only on Adam but
upon all who ˙descanded from them; There is racial solidarity in sin
and evil.

   d. Consequences for creation. The effects of the fall extend to the
physical cosmos. 'Cursed is the ground because of you' (Gn. 3:17; cf.
˙Rom 8:20). Man is the crown of creation, made in God's image and,
therefore, God's ˙vicegerant (Gn. 1:26). The catastrophe of man's fall
brought the catastrophe of curse upon that over which he was given
dominion. Sin was 
 an event in the realm of the human spirit, but it
had its repercussions in the whole of creation.

   e. The appearance of death Death is the epitome of sin's penalty.
This was the warning ˙attatched to the prohibition of Eden (Gn. 2:17),
and it is the direct expression of God's curse upon man the sinner (Gn.
3:19). Death in the phenomenal realm consists in the seperation of the
integral elements of man's being. This dissolution exemplifies the
principle of death, namely, separation, and it comes to its most
extreme expression in separation from God (Gn. 3:23f.).Because of sin
death is invested with a fear and terror for man (˙Lk. 12:5; Heb. 2:15).

   IV. IMPUTATION

   The first sin of Adam had unique significance for the whole human
race (˙Rom. 5:12, 14-19; 1 Cor. 15:22). Here there is sustained
emphasis upon the one trespass of the one man as that by which sin,
condemnation and death came upon all mankind. The sin is identified at
'the transgression of Adam', 'the trespass of one', 'one trespass',
'the disobedience of the one', and there can be no doubt that the first
trespass of Adam is intended. Hence the clause 'because all men sinned'
in ˙Rom. 5:12 refers to the sin of all in the sin of Adam. It cannot
refer to the actual sins of all men, far less to the hereditary
depravity with which all are afflicted, for in v. 12 the clause in
question clearly says why 'death spread to all men', and in the
succeeding verses the 'one man's ˙trsespass' (v.17) is stated to be the
reason for the universal reign of death. If the same sin were not
intended, Paul would be affirming two different things with reference
to the same subject in the same context. The only explanation of the
two forms of statement is that all sinned in the sin of Adam. The same
inference is to be drawn from 1 Cor. 15:22, 'in adam all die'. If all
die in Adam, it is because all sinned in Adam.

   According to Scripture, the kind of solidarity with Adam which
explains the participation of all in Adams sin is the kind of
solidarity which Christ sustains to those united to Him. The Parallel
in ˙Rom. 5:12-19; 1 Cor. 15:22, 45-49, between Adam and Christ
indicates the same type of relationship in both cases, and we have no
need to posit anything more ultimate in the case of Adam and the race
than we find in the case of Christ and His people. In the latter it is
representative headship , and this is all that is necessary to ground
the solidarity of all in the sin of Adam. To say that the sin of Adam
is imputed to all is but to say that all were involved in his sin by
reason of his representative headship.

   While the imputation of Adam's sin was immediate according to the
evidence of the relevant passages, the judgement of condemnation passed
upon Adam, and hence upon all men in him, is in Scripture seen as
confirmed in its justice and propriety by every man's subsequent moral
experience. Thus ˙Rom. 3:23 'all have sinned' is amply proved by
reference to the specific, overt sins of Jews and gentiles (˙Rom. 1:18
- 3:8) before Paul makes any reference whatever to imputation in Adam. 
In similar vein Scripture universally relates man's ultimate judgement 
before God to his 'works' which fall short of God's standards (cf. 
Mt. 7:21-27; 13:41; 25:31-46; ˙Lk. 3:9; ˙Rom. 2:5-10; Rev. 20:11-14).

   Rejection of this doctrine betrays not only failure to accept the
witness of the relevant passages but also failure to appreciate the
close relation which exists between the principle which governs our
relation to Adam and the governing principle of God's operation in
salvation. ˙The parallel between Adam as the first man and Christ as
the last Adam shows that the accomplishment of salvation in Christ is
based on the same operating principle as that by which we have become
sinners and the heirs of death. The history of mankind is finally
subsumed under two complexes, sin - condemnation - death and
righteousness - justification - life. The former arises from our union
with Adam, the latter from our union with Christ. These are the two
orbits within which we live and move. God's government of men is
directed in the terms of these ˙relationships. If we do not reckon with
Adam we are thereby excluded from a proper understanding of Christ. All
who die die in Adam; All who are made alive are made alive in Christ.

   V. DEPRAVITY

   Sin never consists merely in a voluntary act of transgression. Every
volition proceeds from something that is more deep-seated than the
volition itself. A sinful act is the expression of a sinful heart (cf.
7:20-23; ˙Pr. 4:23; 23:7). Sin must always include, therefore, the
perversity of heart, mind, disposition and will. This was true, as we
saw above, in the case of the first sin, and it applies to all sin. The
imputation to posterity of the sin of Adam must, therefore, carry with
it involvement in the perversity apart from which Adam's sin would be
meaningless and its imputation an impossible abstraction. Paul states
that 'by one man's disobedience many were made sinners' (˙Rom. 5:19).
The depravity which sin entails and with which all men come into the
world is for this reason a direct implicate of our solidarity with Adam
in his sin. We come to be as individuals by natural generation, and as
individuals we never exist apart from the sin of Adam reckoned as ours.
Therefore the psalmist wrote, 'Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother ˙concieve me' (Ps. 51:5) and our Lord said,
'That which is born of flesh is flesh' (˙Jn. 3:6)

   The witness of Scripture to the pervasiveness of this depravity is
explicit. Gn. 6:5; 8:21 provides a closed case. The latter referance
makes it clear that this indictment was not restricted to the period
before the judgement of the flood. There is no evading the force of
this testimony from the early pages of divine revelation, and later
assessments are to the same effect (cf. ˙Je. 17:9-10; ˙Rom. 3:10-18).
From whatever angle man is viewed, there is the absence of that which
is well-pleasing to God. Considered more positively, all have turned
aside from God's way and have become corrupted. In ˙Rom 8:5-7 ˙Peul
refers to the mind of the flesh, and flesh, when used ethically as
here, means human nature directed and governed by sin (cf. ˙Jn. 3:6).
Further, according to ˙Rom. 8:7, 'the mind that is set on the flesh is
hostile to God'. No stronger condemnatory judgement could be arrived
at, for it means that the thinking of the natural man is conditioned
and governed by ˙emnity directed against God. Nothing less than a
judgement of total depravity is the clear implication of these
passages, i.e. there is no area or aspect of human life which is
absolved from the ˙sombre effects of man's fallenness, and hence no
area which might serve as a possible ground for man's justification of
himself in the face of God and His law.

   Depravity however is not registered in actual transgression to an
equal extent in all. There are multiple restraining factors. God does
not give over all men to uncleanness, to a base mind, and to improper
conduct (˙Rom. 1:24, 28). Total depravity (total, that is, in the sense
that it touches everything) is not incompatible with the exercise of
the natural virtues and the promotion of civil righteousness.
Unregenerate men are still endowed with conscience, and the work of the
law is written upon their hearts so that in measure and at points they
fulfill its requirement (˙Rom. 2:14f.). The doctrine of depravity,
however, means that these works, though formally in accord with what
God commands, are not good and well-pleasing to God in terms of the
full and ultimate criteria of love to God as the animating motive, the
law of God as the directing principle, and the glory of God as the
controlling purpose (˙Rom. 8:7; 1 Cor. 2:14; cf. ˙Mt. 6:2, 5, 16: ˙Mk.
7:6-7; ˙Rom 13:4; 1 Cor 10:31; 13:3; Tit. 1:15; 3:5; Heb. 11:4, 6).

   VI. INABILITY

   Inability is concerned with the incapacity arising from the nature
of depravity. If depravity is total, i.e. affecting every aspect and
area of man's being. then inability for what is good and well-pleasing
is likewise comprehensive in its reference.

   We are not able to change our character or act differently from it.
In the matter of understanding, the natural man cannot know the things
of the Spirit Of God because they are spiritually discerned (1 Cor.
2:14). In respect of obedience to the law of God he is not only subject
to the law of God but he cannot be (˙Rom. 8:7). ˙They who are in ˙the
flesh cannot please God (˙Rom. 8:8). A corrupt tree cannot bring forth
good fruit (˙Mt. 7:18). The impossibility in each case is undeniable.
It is our Lord that affirms that even faith in Him is impossible apart
from the gift and drawing of The Father ˙Jn. 6:44f., 65). This witness
on His part is to the same effect that apart from the supernatural
birth of The Spirit no-one can have intelligent appreciation of, or
entrance into, the Kingdom of God (˙Jn. 3:3, 5f.,8; cf. ˙Jn. 1:13; 1
˙Jn 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18).

   The necessity of so radical and momentous a transformation and
re-creation as regeneration is proof of the whole witness of Scripture
to the bondage of sin and the hopelessness of our sinful condition.
This bondage implies that it is a Psychological, moral and spiritual
impossibility for the natural man to ˙recieve the things of the spirit,
to love God and to do what is well-pleasing to Him, or to believe in 
Christ to the salvation of his soul. It is this enslavement which is 
the premise of the Gospel, and the glory of the gospel lies precisely 
in the fact that it provides release from the bondage and slavery of 
sin. It is the gospel of grace and power for the helpless.

   Since sin is against God, He cannot be complacent towards it or
indifferent with respect to it. He reacts inevitably against it. This
reaction is specifically His wrath. The frequency with which Scripture
mentions the wrath of God compels us to take account of its reality and
meaning.

   Various terms are used in the OT. In Heb., '˙ap in the sense of
'anger', and intensified in the form ˙har“n '˙ap to express the
'fierceness of God's anger' is very common (cf. Ex. 4:14; 32:12; Nu.
11:10; 22:22; Jos. 7:1; Jb. 42:7; Ps. 21:9; Is. 10:5; Na 1:6; Zp. 2:2);
hema is likewise frequent (cf. Dt. 29:23; Ps. 6:1; 79:6; 90:7; Je.
7:20; Na. 1:20); 'ebra (cf. Ps. 78:49; Is. 9:19; 10:6; Ezk. 7:19; Ho
5:10);and qesep (cf. Dt. 29:29; Ps 38:1; Je. 32:7; 50:13; Zc. 1:2) are
used with sufficient frequency to be worthy of mention; za'am is also
characteristic and expresses the thought of indignation (cf. Ps. 38:3;
69:24; 78:49; Is. 10:5; Ezk. 22:31; Na. 1:6). It is apparent that the
OT is permeated with references to the wrath of God. Often more than
one of these terms appear together in order to strengthen and confirm
the thought expressed. There is intensity in the terms themselves and
in the constructions in which they occur to convey the notions of
displeasure, fiery indignation and Holy vengeance.

   The Gk. terms are orge and thymos, the former frequently predicated
of God in the NT (cf. Jn. 3:36; Rom. 1:18; 2:5; 8; 3:5; 5:9; 9:22; Eph.
2:3; 5:6; 1 Thes. 1:10; Heb. 3:11; Rev 6:17), and the latter less
frequently (cf. Rom. 2:8; Rev. 14:10, 19; 16:1, 19; 19:15; see zelos in
Heb. 10:27).

   The wrath of God is therefore a reality, and the language and
teaching of Scripture are calculated to impress upon us the severity by
which it is characterized. There are three observations which
particularly require mention. First, the wrath of God must not be
interpreted in terms of the fitful passion so commonly associated with
anger in us. it is the deliberate, resolute displeasure which the
contradiction of His holiness demands. Secondly, it is not to be
construed as vindictiveness but as holy indignation; nothing of the
nature of malice attaches to it. It is not malignant hatred, but
righteous detestation. Thirdly, we may not reduce the wrath of God to
His will to punish. Wrath is a positive outgoing of dissatisfaction as
sure as that which is pleasing to God involves complacency. We must not
eliminate from God what we term emotion. The wrath of God finds its
parallel in the human heart, exemplified in a perfect manner in Jesus
(cf. Mk. 3:5; 10:14).

   The epitome of sin's liability is , therefore, the holy wrath of
God. Since sin is never impersonal, but exists in, and is committed by,
persons, the wrath of God consists in the displeasure to which we are
subjected; We are the objects. The penal inflictions which we suffer
are the expressions of God's wrath. The sense of guilt and torment of
conscience are the reflections in our consciousness of the displeasure
of God. The essence of final perdition will consist in the infliction 
of God's indignation (cf. Isa. 30:33; 66:24; Dn 12:2; Mk 9:43, 45, 48).

   VII. THE CONQUEST OF SIN

   Despite the somberness of the theme, The Bible never completely
loses a note of hope and optimism when dealing with sin; for the heart
of the Bible is witness to God's mighty offensive against sin in its
historical purpose of redemption centered in Jesus Christ, the last
Adam, his eternal son, the saviour of sinners, through the whole work
of Christ, His miraculous birth His life of perfect obedience,
supremely His death on the cross and ressurection from the dead, His
ascension to the right hand of The Father, His reign in history and His
glorious return, sin has been overcome. Its rebellious, usurping
authority has been vanquished, its absurd claims exposed, its foul
machinations unmasked and overthrown, the baleful effects of the fall
in Adam counteracted an undone, and God's honour vindicated, His
holiness satisfied and His glory extended.

   In Christ, God has conquered sin; such are the great glad tidings of
the Bible. Already this conquest is demonstrated in the people of God,
who by faith in Christ ands His finished work are already delivered
from the guilt and judgement of sin, and are already experiencing, to a
degree, the conquest of sin's power through their union with Christ.
This process will be culminated at the end of the age when Christ will
return in glory, the saints will be fully sanctified, sin banished from
God's good creation and a new heaven and earth brought into being in
which righteousness will dwell.

   The preceding text was taken from "The New Bible Dictionary, Second
edition" by Tyndale press.

   Thank you for reading this and may The Lord bless you in all your
studies of His Word.