Commandment (commandments, command, instructions, orders, requirement) (1785)(entole from en = in, upon + téllo = accomplish, charge, command) - Entolerefers to some type of demand or requirement. A general injunction, charge, precept of moral and religious nature. Of the 67 uses, all but three (Lk 15:29; Col 4:10; Tit 1:14) refer specifically to divine commandments.
Entole in the plural usually refers to God's commandments (Mt 5:19 and most of the uses in the Gospels - see below) but, as determined by the context, singular usages can also refer to a divine directive. Keeping God's commandments is the way we show that we love Him (we can say it, but our actions need to authenticate our words. (Jn 14:15, 21, 1Jn 2:3).
Entole is found 14x in the same passage as agape, love. (e.g., love one another is a repeated commandment - 13.34" class="scriptRef">Jn 13:34 = described as a "new commandment", 15:12, 1Jn 3:23, 2Jn 1:5). God's commandments "flush out" sin so to speak, showing the heinous, destructive nature of sin (See Ro 7:8, 9,11, 13) Entole sometimes refers to commandments from men (not God) (Titus 1:14) Entole can sometimes mean an order authorizing a specific action (Jn 11:57).
Ralph Martin - The word commandment (entole) is featured prominently in both 1 John and 2 John (1 Jn 2:3, 4, 7, 8; 3:22, 23, 24; 4:21; 5:2-3; 2 Jn 4, 5, 6), and in every case it appears that the commandments of God rather than Jesus are intended (see esp. 1 Jn 5:2-3; 2 Jn 4). John teaches that those who truly know God keep his commandments (1 Jn 2:3-4). (Dictionary of the later New Testament and its developments).
Commandment (Webster) - a law, edict, or statute; authoritative directive; a mandate; an order or injunction given by authority; charge; precept. a divine command, esp. one of the Ten Commandments of the Old Testament. In the Bible a commandment is a prescription or requirement, usually from God; most often a reference to God's will as revealed in the laws of the Pentateuch. In the Bible commandment (entole) refers to orders or adjurations (solemn charging on oath or under the penalty of a curse) given by authorities. The plural predominantly refers to Mosaic laws.
Precept (Webster's 1828) - In a general sense, any commandment or order intended as an authoritative rule of action; but applied particularly to commands respecting moral conduct. The ten commandments are so many precepts for the regulation of our moral conduct.
Green - There are sixteen occurrences of entole in the synoptic Gospels: six in Matthew, six in Mark and four in Luke. Eleven are found in just three passages: (1) the debate over ritual defilement (Mk 7:1-23 par.Mt 15:1-20, specifically Mk 7:8-13 and Mt 15:3-6); (2) the question of a rich man to Jesus (Mk 10:17-22par. Mt 19:16-22 par. Lk 18:18-23; cf. Lk 10:25-28); (3) the question about the "?first,?" or "?great,?" commandment (Mk 12:28-34 par. Mt 22:34-40; cf. Lk 10:25-28)....Of the ten occurrences of the nounentole in John's Gospel, four refer to a "?command?" (Jn 10:18; 12:49-50) or "?commands?" (Jn 15:10b) given to Jesus by God the Father (cf. the use of the verb entellomai in 14:31). Five occurrences refer to a "?command?" (Jn 13:34; 15:12) or "?commands?" (Jn 14:15, 21; 15:10a) given by Jesus to his disciples (cf. the use of the verb in 15:14, 17). One occurrence refers to "?orders?" given by the Pharisees to inform them of Jesus' whereabouts (Jn 11:57). Nowhere in John is entole used to refer to the "?commandments?" of the Hebrew Scriptures (the verb entellomai is so used only in John 8:5, a passage not originally a part of John's Gospel). The contrast in the use of "?commandment?" between the Synoptics and John could hardly be more striking. (Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels).
Friberg (Summary) - (1) of the Old Testament law commandment, precept, ordinance (Lk 23.56); (2) of official commands edict, decree, order (Jn 11.57); (3) of authoritative but not official directions order, command (Lk 15.29)
Vine - Entole denotes, in general, "an injunction, charge, precept, commandment." It is the most frequent term, and is used of moral and religious precepts, e.g., Matt. 5:19;
MacArthur notes that in 1Jn 2:3 entole "refers not to the Mosaic law, but to the precepts and directives of Christ (cf. Mt. 28:19-20). But of course the moral and spiritual precepts the Lord taught were consistent with those revealed to Moses (cf. Matt. 5:17-18; John 5:46), all reflective of God's immutable nature. (1, 2, 3 John : MacArthur NT Commentary).
TDNT - entole outside the NT. (1). entole in the General Usage of the Greek and Hellenistic World. The meaning is "command," "commission," a. as the command of a king or official, b. as the instruction of a teacher, c. as a commission, and d. as authorization. (2). The Specifically Religious Reference to the entolai of the Law in the LXX and Hellenistic Judaism. The term acquires a solemn religious sense in the LXX (Hebrew mostly miswa, sometimes piqqudim) when used for specific requirements of the law. Josephus and Philo, however, rarely use it in this sense, preferring nomos or nomoi. (3). The Stoic Truncation of the entole Concept in Philo. Philo avoids the term because he finds it too official and historical. He is less concerned with the content of the law than with its ethical substance and its agreement with natural or cosmic law. Like the Stoics, he links entole with a lower form of morality. The voluntary act is higher than the commanded act. Commands are given only to the earthly Adam. The true sage knows and practices virtue without them. Commands may be tolerated only for the immature and uneducated.
Commandment - Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology
Commandment - International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Commandment - Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament
Entole 67x in 61v - 13x in 1John - NAS Usage: command(2), commanded*(1), commandment(38), commandments(23), instructions(1), orders(1), requirement(1).
Matthew 5:19 "Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 15:3 And He answered and said to them, "Why do you yourselves transgress thecommandment of God for the sake of your tradition?
Matthew 19:17 And He said to him, "Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments."
Matthew 22:36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?"
Matthew 22:38 "This is the great and foremost commandment.
Matthew 22:40 "On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets."
Mark 7:8 "Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men."
Mark 7:9 He was also saying to them, "You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.
Mark 10:5 But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you thiscommandment.
Mark 10:19 "You know the commandments, 'DO NOT MURDER, DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, DO NOT STEAL, DO NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS, Do not defraud, HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER.'"
Mark 12:28 One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, "What commandment is the foremost of all?"
Mark 12:31 "The second is this, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
Luke 1:6 They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandmentsand requirements of the Lord.
Luke 15:29 "But he answered and said to his father, 'Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;
Luke 18:20 "You know the commandments, 'DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, DO NOT MURDER, DO NOT STEAL, DO NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS, HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER.'"
Luke 23:56 Then they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. And on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
John 10:18 "No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father."
John 11:57 Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it, so that they might seize Him.
John 12:49 "For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak.
John 12:50 "I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me."
John 13:34 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
John 14:15 "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
John 14:21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him."
John 15:10 "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.
John 15:12 "This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.
Acts 17:15 Now those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left.
Romans 7:8 But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead.
Romans 7:9 I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died;
Romans 7:11 for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.
Romans 7:12 So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.
Romans 7:13 Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful.
Romans 13:9 For this, "YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET," and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."
1 Corinthians 7:19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but what matters is the keeping of the commandments of God.
1 Corinthians 14:37 If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord's commandment.
Ephesians 2:15 by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace,
Ephesians 6:2 HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise),
Colossians 4:10 Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you his greetings; and also Barnabas's cousin Mark (about whom you received instructions; if he comes to you, welcome him);
1 Timothy 6:14 that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Titus 1:14 not paying attention to Jewish myths and commandments of men who turn away from the truth.
Hebrews 7:5 And those indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest's office have commandmentin the Law to collect a tenth from the people, that is, from their brethren, although these are descended from Abraham.
Hebrews 7:16 who has become such not on the basis of a law of physical requirement, but according to the power of an indestructible life.
Hebrews 7:18 For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness
Hebrews 9:19 For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the Law (at the inauguration of the "10 Commandments"), he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people,
2 Peter 2:21 For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them.
2 Peter 3:2 that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and thecommandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles.
1 John 2:3 By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.
ESV Study Bible - Assurance of salvation is possible (see 2Pet 1:10 - ESV Note = Good works are evidence of and give assurance of salvation, though they are never the basis for it. Peter's wording does not imply that true followers of Christ can ever apostatize; those who do so were never really "called," "elected," or born again). First John gives numerous means of self-diagnosis (cf. 1John 1:7;2:5; 3:14; 4:13; 5:2). Here the test is ethical: do professing Christians have a changed life andkeep the Lord's commandments? Obedience to God does not bring about justification (which comes by faith alone), but obedience as a pattern of life does give evidence that one has been born again. To know him involves a personal relationship that transforms practical behavior. (Ed: "Amen or O my!")
1 John 2:4 The one who says, "I have come to know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
1 John 2:7 Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard.
1 John 2:8 On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true Light is already shining.
1 John 3:22 and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.
1 John 3:23 This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us.
1 John 3:24 The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.
1 John 4:21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
1 John 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe Hiscommandments.
1 John 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandmentsare not burdensome.
2 John 1:4 I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, just as we have receivedcommandment to do from the Father.
2 John 1:5 Now I ask you, lady, not as though I were writing to you a new commandment, but the one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another.
2 John 1:6 And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is thecommandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.
Revelation 12:17 So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
Comment: Note the descriptive definition of a believer by John - those "who keep the commandments of God." He is not saying they keep them perfectly, for only one Man accomplished that feat! The verb keep (tereo) is a present participle indicating that the general "direction" of these individuals is toward obedience, so that keeping God's commandments is their lifestyle, their habitual practice. As I like to teach my young disciples, the authentic Christian life is about "direction" not "perfection" (until we are glorified of course!) The sad fact is that there are prominent names in evangelicalism today who teach one is saved by faith alone (which is 100% true) but that the new life in Christ and the new possession of the indwelling Holy Spirit does not necessarily influence one's behavior! In other words (they teach) one can go on sinning as their habitual practice and still claim to be a saint (holy, set apart) in the eyes of the Holy God! This is 100% false! And many of these individuals have doctorates of theology. We do well to remember that none of the apostles had doctorates and yet they were theologically accurate, because they had been with Jesus. For example,Zane Hodges even goes so far as to state that the list of sins in 1Cor 6:9-10 and Gal 5:19-21actually describe true believers, and that they will just forfeit their reward because of their sin. Hodges even makes the incredible assertion that Paul was describing believers in Titus 1:16! Do you think that sounds like a description of a genuine born again individual? Great caution is advised for anything written by Zane Hodges and sadly Hodges has authored the books of Hebrews, and 1-3 John in the otherwise excellent Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC). Caveat emptor! (In "The Gospel Under Siege") In the BKC, Ronald Blue writing the section on James sounds the clear warning that "Merely claiming to have faith is not enough. Genuine faith is evidenced by works....Workless faith is worthless faith." (BKC, Volume 2, Page 825)
John Piper's Comments are pertinent - I have referred several times to a contemporary movement of evangelicalism that offers assurance of salvation to professing Christians who go on living in sin. Who am I talking about? Here is an example. Zane Hodges, who teaches at Dallas Seminary, has written a book entitled "The Gospel Under Siege" (Redencion Viva, 1981). His position is the very opposite of mine: (Ed: Hodges writes) "An insistence on the necessity or inevitability of works fundamentally undermines assurance" (p.13). That is, "if good works are really . . . an essential fruit of salvation," we cannot be sure of our eternal salvation (p. 9). Therefore, "works have nothing to do with determining a Christian's basic relationship to God." "There is not even a single place in the Pauline letters where he expresses doubt that his audience is composed of true Christians." (p. 95)." Apart from the fact that 2Corinthians 13:5 contradicts his last statement, 1 John remains an insuperable obstacle. His interpretation will not stand. Consider for yourselves what he says concerning 1 John 3:14 ("We know that we have passed from death to life because we love the brothers."). Here assurance of passing out of death into life is the product of loving our fellow Christians. How will he escape it? He tries to escape it by saying that the verse has "no reference to conversion as such." He says that there is a sphere of light and a sphere of darkness within the Christian life. "If anyone does not love his brother he is out of touch with God. He is not living as a true disciple of his Master" (p. 63). But he is still a child of God because eternal security has nothing to do with whether you are a loving person or not." This will not stand scrutiny. The one other place where John uses the same Greek phrase ("We have passed from death to life") is John 5:24, where he says, "Truly, truly I say to you that the one who hears my word and believes the one who sent me has eternal life and does not come into judgment but has passed from death into life." Therefore it is grasping at a straw to say that "passing from death to life" in 1 John 3:14 refers to two states within Christian life. It plainly means: passing from lostness to eternal life. I appeal to you, judge for yourselves, does John's assurance in 1 John 3:14 come from loving the brothers or not? Bowing before the Word with you, Pastor John (Who Am I Talking About- - Desiring God)
Revelation 14:12 Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.
Entole - 245" class="scriptRef">45" class="scriptRef">45 uses in 13.9.19.6" class="scriptRef">6" class="scriptRef">6.18" class="scriptRef">18" class="scriptRef">183v in the non-apocryphal Septuagint - 160x entole translates Hebrew miswa which is usually translated into English as command or commandments - Ge 26:5; 7" class="scriptRef">17" class="scriptRef">Ex 12:17; 15" class="scriptRef">15" class="scriptRef">15.26" class="scriptRef">15:26; 16" class="scriptRef">16" class="scriptRef">16.28" class="scriptRef">16:28;24:12; 13" class="scriptRef">Lev 4:13, 22" class="scriptRef">22, 27; 5:17; 6:2; 31" class="scriptRef">31" class="scriptRef">22:31; 26:3, 15; 34" class="scriptRef">34" class="scriptRef">27:34; Num 15:22, 31, 39f; 36.13" class="scriptRef">36:13; Deut 4:2, 40" class="scriptRef">40; 29" class="scriptRef">5:29,31; 6:1f, 17, 25" class="scriptRef">25; 7:9, 11" class="scriptRef">11; 8:1f, 6, 11; 10" class="scriptRef">10.13" class="scriptRef">10:13; 11:8, 13, 22, 32" class="scriptRef">32" class="scriptRef">27f; 13:4, 18; 15:5; 16:12; 19-Deut.17.20" class="scriptRef">17:19f; 19:9; 26:13,18; 27:1, 10; 28:1, 13, 15, 45; 30:8, 10f, 16; Josh 5:6; 22:3, 5; Jdg 3:4; 1 Sam 13:13; 1 Kgs 2:3, 43; 14" class="scriptRef">3:14;8:58, 61; 9:4, 6; 11:11, 38; 21" class="scriptRef">13:21; 2 Kgs 17:13, 16, 19, 34, 37; 18:6, 36; 21:8; 23:3; 1 Chr 28:7f; 29:19; 2 Chr 7:19; 8:13ff; 12:1; 14:4; 17:4; 19:10; 24:20f; 29:15, 25; 30:16; 34:31; 35.10" class="scriptRef">35:10, 15f; Ezra 7:11; 9:10, 14;10:3; Neh 1:5, 7, 9; 9:13f, 16, 29, 34; 10:29, 32; 11:23; 12:24, 45; 13:5; Ps 19:8; 78.7" class="scriptRef">78:7; 89:31; 103:18;111:7; 112:1; 119:4, 6, 10, 15, 19, 21, 32, 35, 40, 45, 176" class="scriptRef">47f, 60, 63, 66, 69, 73, 78, 86f, 96, 98, 100, 104,110, 115, 127f, 131, 134, 143, 151, 159, 166, 168, 172f, 176; Prov 2:1; 4:5; 6:23; 7:1f; 10:8; 13:13; 15:5;19:16; Eccl 8:5; 12:13; Isa 48:18; Jer 35:16, 18; Ezek 18:21; Dan 3:12; 9:4f; Mal 2:1, 4 - Note
Wuest comments that entole means "an order, command, charge, precept. The precepts (commandments) are those given by our Lord either personally while on earth or through His apostles in the New Testament Books. Thus, a solicitous (meticulously careful, concerned) guarding of the precepts of Christ, a consuming desire that they be honored, a passionate determination that they always be kept, is a proof gained from experience, that that person has come to an experiential knowledge of the Lord Jesus and is at present in that state of knowing Him. This experiential knowledge is in contrast with and opposed to a mere theoretical knowledge of His Person. (Word Studies from the Greek New Testament)
William Barclay has an interesting comment - "Here was John's problem. In the Greek world, he was faced with people who saw God as part of an intellectual exercise and who could say 'I know God' without being conscious of any ethical obligation whatever. In the Greek world, he was faced with people who had had an emotional experience and who could say: 'I am in God and God is in me,' and yet who did not see God in terms of commandments at all. John is determined to lay it down quite unmistakably and without compromise that the only way in which we can show that we know God is by obedience to him, and the only way we can show that we have union with Christ is by imitation of him. Christianity is the religion which offers the greatest privilege and brings with it the greatest oblig
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Greek Word Studies ( - )
Read freely Greek Word Studies from the Austin Precept text commentary of the Bible in text and pdf format. Precept Austin is an online free dynamic bible commentary similar to wikipedia with updated content and many links to excellent biblical resources around the world. You can browse the entire collection of Commentaries by Verse on the Precept Austin website.We have been "bought with a price" to be "ambassadors for Christ" and our "salvation is nearer to us than when we believed" so let us "cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" "so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming." (1Cor 6:20, 2Cor 5:20, Ro 13:11, 2Cor 7:1, 1Jn 2:28)