Arrive (attain) (2658) katantao by Greek Word Studies

Attain (2658) (katantao from katá intensifier + antáo = meet) means to come to or to arrive at and literally referred to finishing a journey or arrive at one's destination (Acts 13:51, 16:1, 18:19, 24, 21:7, 25:13, 27:12; 28:13). This means easily gives way to the figurative sense of reaching a goal (attain to, arrive at) as in Php 3:11. Related Resource: 2658 καταντάω (katantaó) -- to come down to, reach The English dictionary says attain means to reach an end (achieve, accomplish), to come into possession of or to come to as the end of a progression The other figurative sense of katantao is to happen to with the implication of something definitive and final come upon as in (1Co 10:11) Paul writing that... Now these things (the divine retributions Israel suffered in the OT for sin against God - 1Co 10:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come (1Cor 10:11) NIDNTT adds that katantao... is found in secular Gk. from Polybius (2nd cent. B.C.). It meant originally to come to, and denotes movement towards a goal, primarily a place such as a town. In a metaphorical sense it denotes the attainment of an objective, or conversely something which comes to us. Use of the word in the LXX is restricted to 4 passages in 2 Macc. and 2 Sam. 3:29. But these reflect important shades of meaning. It is used lit. in the sense of coming to Jerusalem or Tyre (2 Macc. 4:21, 44). It is used metaphorically of attaining to the status of high priest and of men reaching the full measure of sin (2 Macc. 4:24; 6:14). In 2 Sam. 3:29 it translates the Heb. hûl (lit. “turn upon”), and is used of Yahweh requiting blood guilt on the head of Joab. (Brown, Colin, Editor. New International Dictionary of NT Theology. 1986. Zondervan) Katantao - 13x in 13v - Acts 16:1; 18:19, 24; 20:15; 21:7; 25:13; 26:7; 27:12; 28:13; 1Cor 10:11; 14:36; Eph 4:13; Phil 3:11. NAS = arrived(4), attain(3), came(3), come(2), reach(1). Writing to the saints at Ephesus Paul speaks of the goal of teaching, equipping and building up of the body was that... we all attain (katantao) to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:13-note) TO THE RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD: eis ten exanastasin ten ek nekron: At the outset of this section, although Philippians is generally one of Pa's simpler letters to interpret (with exception of the kenosis passage), it should be noted that the present verse is an exception and is very difficult to interpret dogmatically. Resurrection (1815) (exanastasis from ek = out of or from + anistemi = to rise up) (used only here in NT) refers to the state or condition of coming up from among the dead. Literally it is the "out resurrection" a graphic word used only here in the NT. Hall adds " rising up to experience the full-impact of resurrection, i.e. thoroughly removed from the realm of death (the grave)." (Helps Bible) Related Resource: ξανάστασις (exanastasis) -- a rising again And then Paul adds ek nekron literally "out from the dead"! So literally Paul is saying "I want to attain the out resurrection from among the dead." LITERAL OR SPIRITUAL THAT IS THE QUESTION? So now we know what the Greek text literally states. The question now is how should this text be interpreted? As a literal physical resurrection? Or as a "spiritual" resurrection? Steven Cole (his sermons are highly recommended) offers a synopsis of the "interpretative dilemma" in this passage writing... There are two possible interpretations, and it is difficult to decide between them. (1) Paul may be expressing his hope that he will fully realize what it means in this life to experience what he has just stated, namely, the resurrection life of Christ being lived out fully through him. In favor of this view is the preceding and following context, where Paul says that he has not yet attained it, but presses on. The uncertainty (“if somehow”) points to Paul’s humility and recognition of the weakness of his flesh. The problem with this view is, if Paul had not attained to this experience after 25 years as a Christian, who can? And, it’s an unusual use of the word resurrection. (2) The other view is that Paul is referring to the future resurrection of the righteous at the return of Christ, when our mortal bodies will be transformed into the likeness of Christ’s resurrection body, free from all sin. We will then share in His glory throughout eternity. “If somehow” would then not reflect uncertainty, since Paul is absolutely certain about the future resurrection (1Cor. 15:4ff), but rather the manner in which he would attain it, whether he may still be alive when Christ returned. The problems with this view are that it doesn’t seem to fit the context quite as well as the other view and the uncertainty doesn’t fit with Paul’s certainty about the future resurrection. The strengths of the view are that the word “out resurrection” most likely refers to the future resurrection, and is intensified to distinguish it from the normal word in Php 3:10; and, if it refers to the future resurrection, then Php 3:9-11 refer to the believer’s justification (Php 3:9), sanctification (Php 3:10), and glorification (Php 3:11). So, it’s hard to pick! But whatever this verse means, other verses make it clear that the process of sanctification will be completed. We will be like Him, totally apart from sin, sharing in His glory throughout eternity (Ro 8:17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 30; 9:23)! John applies this wonderful truth, “Everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1Jn 3:2, 3- see notes 3:2 3:3). (See Pastor Cole's complete message Philippians 3:10-11 Knowing Christ & Being Like Him) Commentaries favoring physical resurrection The out-resurrection from among the dead (is) Likely a reference to the rapture of the church. (Charles Ryrie: The Ryrie Study Bible: New American Standard Translation: 1995. Moody Publishers) ><>><>><> Paul is probably not thinking of a “general resurrection” of all the dead, but of the resurrection of the faithful believers which will take place at the Parousia, that is at Christ’s second coming (1 Thes 4.16). Here the focus shifts from the participation in the life of the risen Christ here and now to the final and ultimate rising of the dead, when the believers will enter the promised state of eternal blessedness. (The United Bible Societies' New Testament Handbook Series or Logos) ><>><>><> Thomas Constable (See his explanation) favors a physical resurrection ><>><>><> The resurrection from (ek, “out of”) the dead is the resurrection of believers, not a general resurrection. (Pfeiffer, C F: Wycliffe Bible Commentary. 1981. Moody or Logos) ><>><>><> When Paul uses the word if he is not expressing a doubt about his participation in the Rapture. Rather, he is affirming that he will have part in it with great joy. Paul did not expect to attain perfection in this life; therefore, he wanted to have full participation in the coming Rapture. (McGee, J Vernon: Thru the Bible Commentary: Thomas Nelson or Logos) ><>><>><> Regarding the spiritual resurrection S Lewis Johnson writes that "It is a blessed fact that believers are identified with Christ in His resurrection; they do not gain this by good works. It comes by grace, being made the believer’s possession at the time of regeneration... There are several factors that seem to demand that Paul is referring to the rapture of the church, that aspect of the first resurrection which has to do with the living at the time of Christ’s return... It is not only a blessed hope; it is also a purifying hope, for John, speaking of His manifestation, writes, “And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure” (1John 3:3-note). F. E. Marsh used to tell the story of John Brown, the faithful attendamt of Queen Victoria of England. When her Majesty was about to visit any of the cottagers at Balmoral, in Scotland, as she was in the habit of doing, John Brown used to go on ahead and say to the person to be visited, “Feckle yersel’, the Queen’s a’ comin’.” “Feckle” meant to hustle, to get ready, to have everything in place. The believer, longing for the coming of his Lord and the rapture of the church, would do well to “feckle” himself in order that His face might be beheld with joy and confidence. (S Lewis Johnson. Bib Sac 110, Page 141, 1953) ><>><>><> The phrase the resurrection from the dead is unique in Scripture. It literally reads “the out resurrection from among the corpses.” Believers will attain to that resurrection at the Rapture.... (MacArthur, John. Philippians. Chicago: Moody Press or Logos) ><>><>><> The apostle states not a positive assurance but a modest hope. The resurrection from the dead. This is the final resurrection of the righteous to a new and glorified life. This meaning, which the context requires, is implied by the form of expression. The general resurrection of the dead, whether good or bad, is “the resurrection of the dead” (e.g. 1Corinthians 15:42); on the other hand, the resurrection of Christ and of those who rise with Christ is generally “the resurrection from the dead” (Luke 20:35; Acts 4:2; 1Peter 1:3). The former includes both the resurrection to life and the resurrection to judgment (John 5:29); the latter is confined to the resurrection to life. (Lightfoot, J. B., Philippians. Saint Paul's Epistle to the Philippians. 1913) ><>><>><> Paul was not doubting his participation in the resurrection but was instead viewing it in expectation (1Cor. 15:1-34). Paul desired to be with those Christians who, through their victory in Christ, would receive special reward in the resurrection (see Heb. 11:35). (Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. The Nelson Study Bible: NKJV. Nashville: Thomas Nelson) ><>><>><> Sharing in Christ’s suffering prepares for sharing in His glory at the resurrection from the dead (Php 3:20, 21; Ro. 8:17). (Whitlock, L. G., Sproul, R. C., Waltke, B. K., & Silva, M. Reformation Study Bible, Nashville: T. Nelson) ><>><>><> Why did Paul say that he wanted to “attain” the out-resurrection from among the dead? Again, did he doubt he would be at this out-resurrection? Perhaps he was using the word “attain” for the rapture that has no predicted time frame for Christ’s return. In any case, the words “attain” means to cross the goal line. The idea is to arrive. Paul did not know if he would die before the rapture or whether the rapture would occur before his death. Paul knows that he is going to arrive in heaven. He does not know by what means. Either his body will be raptured up from among other dead bodies or his soul will go to heaven at the point of his physical death. (Richison, Grant. Verse by Verse Through the Book of Philippians) (Online Source) Commentators favoring "spiritual" resurrection... Paul lived for Christ because he died to self (Rom. 6 explains this); he took up his cross daily and followed Him. The result of this death was a spiritual resurrection (Phil. 3:11) that caused Paul to walk “in newness of life” (Ro 6:4-note). Paul summarizes this whole experience in Gal 2:20 (note), so take time to read it. (Wiersbe, Warren: Bible Exposition Commentary. 1989. Victor or Logos) ><>><>><> Paul is not speaking here of the future resurrection of the physical body of the saint. That is assured him in 1Corinthians 15. He has in mind the spiritual resurrection of the believing sinner spoken of in Ephesians 2:4-8, a resurrection out from a state in which he is dead in trespasses and sins to one in which he is alive with the divine life of God motivating his being. Paul desires the full operation of this life to surge through his Christian experience in such a manner that the fragrance of the life of his Lord may permeate his life. This is the goal to which he is striving and the goal to which he has not yet attained. Then will be realized in his experience what he longed for in his desire that he might he found by men to be in Christ, to have Him as his righteousness, to come to know Him in an experiential way, to feel the power that raised Christ from the dead surging through his being, to have a participation in His sufferings for righteousness’ sake, and to be made conformable to His death to self as spoken of in Php 2:1–8. (Wuest, Kenneth S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans or Logos) ><>><>><> Here is the culmination of all Php 3:10. He desires to arrive, by whatever it takes, to the resurrection from the dead. It seems probable that this is in reference to spiritual resurrection (Ro 6:3-note) and not physical. The primary support for this is Php 3:12 where Paul speaks of this as being in reference to perfection or maturity. He says He has not yet attained this and it would seem very strange for him to say this in regards to physical resurrection. This also would perfectly culminate Paul's great desire--to become a carbon copy of Christ. The process is described in Php 3:10 and the results are given at the end of Php 3:10 and here in Php 3:11. To live as though we were resurrected saints requires the personal, experiential knowledge of the things discussed in Php 3:10. Are we willing to pay the price for this goal and result? What we are willing to sacrifice is an unerring indicator of our life's passion. (Dwight Edwards - Philippians: Earthly Conduct of Heavenly Citizens) ><>><>><> Here Paul uses it of attaining, not to the physical resurrection (that is “of” the dead; this is ek, “from among” the dead), for that is assured to all believers hereafter (1Cor. 15:52, 53; 1Th 4:16-note), but to the present life of identification with Christ in His resurrection and its effects. This is confirmed by Php 3:12. That is to say, he desires so to live that his whole life may manifest the power of Christ as the Living One, raised from among the dead. This would be the perfect fulfillment of what he has already said, “to me to live is Christ,” and the expression of his hope “that Christ shall be magnified in his body,” even now. A life like that is an earnest of the physical resurrection to come, but that is not a matter of attainment but of grace. The apostle’s aspiration gives no support to the errors either of annihilation or of a special company who are to be raised first in a partial resurrection. Scripture elsewhere testifies against each of these erroneous theories. (Vine, W E: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. 1996. Nelson) F B Meyer... THE SOUL'S QUEST Phil. 3:10-11 The Apostle in these wonderful verses twice uses the word Resurrection; and surely we must interpret it by his well-known teaching, in which he speaks of Christ's Resurrection as primarily affecting spiritual experience. In Romans 6. and Colossians 2, 3., he is not dealing with the resurrection of the body, but with that entrance into a higher state of thought and experience which centres around the risen Lord. Paul and the Resurrection of the Body. It is impossible to suppose that the Apostle had any doubt as to the resurrection of his body, whether at the coming of the Lord or afterwards. Surely it could never have entered into his mind that any excellence in Christian attainment could affect his sharing with the saints in the first resurrection, when suddenly, "in the twinkling of an eye," the great transformation will come to those who are alive and remain, whilst resurrection will come to those who have fallen asleep. The fact that he belonged to Christ, was a member of his mystical Body, and had given evidence of the depth and sincerity of his conversion, was enough to secure his enjoyment in the privileges of the first resurrection, altogether apart from the renunciations which he had described in the foregoing paragraph. Clearly then, the resurrection of the verses before us has to do with the life hidden with Christ in God, in whom we died indeed unto the world and sin, and are alive unto God through Jesus Christ. We have already seen that Paul was willing to "count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord." Here he strikes that note again, and says that he counts all things but loss if only he may win Christ. In one of his quaint poems, Quarles tells us how he loves the earth, the air, the sea, and the heavens. He calls them "the spangled suburbs of the celestial city"; but they cannot give him a satisfaction in which he can rest, and he has to strike through all these outward facts and forms to arrive at God and see them in Him. In having all things, and not Thee, what have I? Not having Thee, what have my labours got? Let me enjoy but Thee, what further crave I? And having Thee alone what have I not? I wish nor sea, nor land, nor would I be Possessed of heaven, if heaven unpossessed Thee. Such thoughts must have been in the Apostle's mind, enabling him to make nothing of his losses, and everything of his gains, when he turned from the world, its joys and hopes, its religion and righteousness, to Jesus Christ--"his exceeding Joy." Let us consider the soul's quest for the personal Christ; for the power of His Resurrection; for the fellowship of His sufferings; for the likeness of His risen glory. The Soul's Quest for the Personal Christ. "That I may know Him." We cannot be put off by a doctrine about Christ, or by the Book which from end to end speaks of Christ, or with a hearsay or second-rate knowledge of Christ, we need to press through all these anterooms, passing from one to another, to stand in the personal presence of the Living Saviour. This is the prerogative of all holy souls; they are permitted not simply to know about Him, but to know Him, not only to read of His excellency and beauty in the Book that is fragrant with the myrrh, aloes, and cassia of His presence, but to have fellowship with the Apostles, who saw, heard, beheld, and handled the Word of Life. This is the heart and essence of Christianity. Other religions are content with ornate rites, an elaborate priesthood, an intricate system of doctrine and regulations, but the Christian, taught by the Holy Spirit, refuses to rest in any of these, and in comparison with the Master counts them as so much refuse. We may know Him personally, intimately, face to face. Christ does not live back in the centuries, nor amid the clouds of heaven: He is near us, with us, compassing our path and our lying down, and acquainted with all our ways. But we cannot know Him in this mortal life except through the illumination and teaching of the Holy Spirit. Let us ask Him to shed His clear beams on the face of Jesus, so that it shall haunt our day-dreams and our nights. We must not Rest until we "Know Him." We should never rest until we know Him as we know our friend, and are able to read without speech the movements of His soul. We should know by a quick intuition what will please and what will hurt His pure and holy nature. We should know where to find Him; should be familiar with His modes of thought and methods of action; should understand and identify ourselves with His goings forth, as, day by day, He goes through the world healing and saving. What a difference there is between the knowledge which the man in the street has of some public character and that which is vouchsafed to the inner circle of his home; and we must surely know Christ, not as a stranger who turns in to visit for the night, or as the exalted King of men,--there must be the inner knowledge as of those whom He counts His own familiar friends, whom He trusts with His secrets, who eat with Him of His bread (Psalm 41:9). To know Christ in the storm of battle; to know Him in the valley of shadow; to know Him when the solar light irradiates our faces, or when they are darkened with disappointment and sorrow; to know the sweetness of his dealing with bruised reeds and smoking flax; to know the tenderness of His sympathy and the strength of His right hand--all this involves many varieties of experience on our part, but each of them, like the facets of a diamond, will reflect the prismatic beauty of His glory from a new angle. The Soul's Quest for the Power of His Resurrection. The Risen Christ is full of all authority and power. We remember the two mountains of His life--the one at the beginning, the other at the end. On the first, Satan offered Him the authority and glory of the world, if only He would perform one act of homage, and so evade the experiences of the Cross and grave. It was as though he said, "Son of God, if Thou wilt do homage to me. Thou needest not sweat the bloody sweat of Gethsemane, or undergo the scourging of Gabbatha, or the shame of Calvary." But the Lord would not heed the suggestion, but descended the rugged valley path, passed by way of the Cross to the glory; and was therefore able on the other mountain--that of the Ascension--to say "All power (authority) is given to Me in heaven and upon earth." Addressing the beloved apostle, some years after, Jesus said, "I am the First and the Last, and the Living One," there was His Life in its perennial and Divine fountain,--"I became dead, and behold, I am alive for evermore," there was His Life in its victory over death,--"and have the keys of death and the unseen world," there is Life regnant over all the unseen spaces and powers. As the waters of a river, passing through various soils, take up into themselves the quality of each, so the life of Christ in its human aspect, passing through the successive scenes of His earthly ministry, acquired qualities with which it stands possessed for ever. Listen to His glorious words--"Be of good cheer, I have overcome . . ." "To him that overcometh will I give to sit with Me in My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father in His throne." Power from the Risen Lord. What power emanates from the Risen Christ! He is the Divine storage of eternal and solar forces. "In Him all fulness dwells." An electric battery just charged, is not fuller of dynamic energy than Christ is of aeonial and resurrection power; and directly the soul is united to Him by a living faith, it is as when we touch a battery with our hand, and its stored forces begin to thrill our body. This is what the Apostle meant when he spoke about the "power of His Resurrection." He meant that to the believing soul, the power of the life which resides in Christ pours into the receptive spirit, forthwith it rises from the grave of passion in which it had been imprisoned, escapes from the bondage of corruption by which it was held, and goes forth into the glorious liberty of the sons of God. Just as the Christ could not be holden by the bands of death, so the soul which trusts Him is emancipated, enthused, raised into an altogether new atmosphere, breathes the ozone of eternity, is thrilled by the powers of the unseen, and meets all appeals from the lower world with an abundance of life, which is impervious to disease, infirmity, and temptation. Just as a really healthy life may pass through the microbes of disease, which would effect the overthrow of less vigorous and buoyant health, so the soul which is infilled with the Resurrection power of Christ, is more than a conqueror in the midst of the most virulent temptation, whether arising from its own heredity or the combined power of the pit. The Quest of the Soul for the Fellowship of Christ's Sufferings. Notice the Apostle's order. He does not put the fellowship of Christ's sufferings as the first thing which the soul must seek; he does not expect that we should go about the world making death and the grave our main goal and object. His doctrine is healthier far. He says, Seek to know the Risen Lord, open your hearts to Him that the power of His resurrection life may enter and infill, and in the fulness of your joy you will not stay to count the cost of having fellowship with His sufferings. The experience of suffering will, so to speak, be forgotten in the radiancy of your exultation. As the pain of the woman in travail is forgotten amid the joy of bearing a child into the world, so will the keenest suffering seem but a pin-prick compared with the eternal weight of glory. Often Christian people go through the world with a lugubrious expression on the face, much as some ancient ascetic would have done, as though looking for their graves. It is far better to tread the pathways of life, seeking to know the power of the Risen Life, for when that is within, it counts all things but loss, and even death a gain. Conditions of the Risen Life. It is inevitable that if we are to know much of Christ's Resurrection, and in proportion as we know it, we shall drink of the cup of His sufferings. Every step further into the Risen Life will involve some deeper and more poignant pang of pain. Men will misunderstand us, as they misunderstood Him, men will drop away from us and leave us alone, as they left Him, we shall be compelled to stand in the pillory of hatred and rejection. To be received by Christ into His secret, will necessarily secure our exclusion from the familiar intercourse of the world; to stand with Him in the height, will have its counterpart in our being thrust down into the depth; to have fellowship under the open heaven of God, with the voice of the Father, and the descending Dove, will certainly involve the being driven into the wilderness to meet the full brunt of temptation. But the soul that really loves Christ will not shrink from the ordeal, it will, be glad to enter into His sufferings, because it realises that to know these is to know Him, and that the very distance into which the meteor is driven in the darkness, is in proportion to the close proximity and length of its fellowship with the sun that attracts it into its inner circle. Baxter said in this connection: "A cheap religion is not usually accompanied with any notable degree of comfort. Although the person be a sincere-hearted Christian, he cannot have much peace or joy. A confirmed Christian is one that taketh self-denial for one half of his religion." How true this is! and it is absolutely certain that you may judge your heights by your depths, and gauge the amount of Resurrection Power which is within you by the depths of your sympathy with, and understanding of, the Cross of Christ. You may doubt indeed if you have been admitted into the fulness of the one, unless you have gone down into the depths of the other. The Soul's Quest after the Attainment of the Resurrection Life. The Risen Life involves the recognition of all human interests, the loving reciprocity of friendship and comradeship, the fulfilment of all the duties that devolve upon us, though performing them all from another standpoint. The Risen Lord called Mary by the familiar name, sat in the social circle with the beloved band of His apostles, went forth to minister to their physical needs,--as on the morning when He prepared fish and bread for them,--stood up from His throne in vivid sympathy with the martyr who was being stoned to his death, and came to encourage the disciple who wrought in the mines of Patmos. But there was a difference in it all. He came from another sphere to succour them. So it will be with us; the Resurrection life does not mean that we are indifferent to any human tie or call, but that we have laid hold of a new source of power by which it may be fulfilled. Or life is no longer fitful, with the spasmodic energy of our own impulse, but fed from the perennial fountains of Christ's life. Because He lives we live also; His life constrains us; His Spirit fills us; we are already in the heavenlies even as He was (John 3:13). We utilise the forces of a higher plane of being than that which other men can utilise. Discoverers, from Archimedes to Edison, may use the physical forces of the unseen. Christian science may employ its psychical forces, but we touch those spiritual forces which are resident in the Holy Spirit, and with which the nature of the Risen Lord is replete. Just as there is a distinction between the civilised man and the savage, because the former is able to use those mighty energies of which the untutored child of nature knows nothing, so there is a great difference between the man who has entered into the power of Christ's Resurrection and other men. As electricity is a higher form of power than that of water or gas, so the Christian who lives in union with the Risen Christ is able to exert a higher form of power than others. He knows the secrets of God, and obeys the laws of a life which is far removed from that which he used to live. Through death to his self-life, he has commenced to use the power of the Eternal Word, "Who was, and is, and is to come." (F. B. Meyer. The Epistle to the Philippians - A Devotional Commentary)

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Arrive (attain) (2658) katantao

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