Overwhelm (2666) katapino by Greek Word Studies

Devour (2666) (katapino from katá = down + pínō = to drink) means literally to drink down, and so to swallow and to swallow up completely. "Devour" means to cause something to pass through the mouth and into the stomach--to gulp down. Figuratively katapino means to cause the complete and sudden destruction of someone or something. Our enemy is seeking to bring us to spiritual ruin, to demoralize us so that we are on the "sidelines" so to speak, to weaken our faith and replace it with fear (See Fear, How to Handle It) Swindoll writes that... Apart from God’s help, we would be devoured by him (1 Pet. 5:8). In God’s strength, however, we can resist him (5:9) and “stand firm” against him (Eph. 6:11). As discussed elsewhere in this book, Satan is a defeated foe. The Lord Jesus Christ defeated him at Calvary. Proof of that is the open tomb. Christ arose triumphantly over Satan and death. The finished work of Christ is our source of victory over every snare of Satan. Therefore we need to claim victory by faith (Ed: And not just with our lips but our heart, walking in obedience which acts as a shield against the devil's deceitful slings and arrows! In other words if you "claim victory" with your lips and practice sin with your life, you will not experience victory. Faith that "works" is faith that obeys and Spirit enabled obedience will give us victory over our defeated foe.)....Never should a believer “give the devil an opportunity” (Eph. 4:27). In the immediate context of this command, anger, lying, stealing, and unwholesome talk among Christians are discussed, thereby suggesting that through these sins Satan is given opportunity to do his dirty work. (Understanding Christian theology) Katapino is used 7 times in the NAS (Matt. 23:24; 1 Co. 15:54; 2 Co. 2:7; 5:4; Heb. 11:29; 1 Pet. 5:8; Rev. 12:16) Peter's point is that this "lion" doesn't just want to paw at his victims and scratch them but he wants to "chew them up" and "swallow them down", seeking to devour them completely by destroying their faith so completely that they wholly cease from walking dynamically with God. He wants to ruin their testimony. As someone has well said, Some of you are already lying on his dinner plate, and the sound you hear is the licking of his lips. In the immediate context, the devil's plan for suffering Christians in Asia Minor would be to get them to deny Jesus Christ. (see Mark ) Richison notes that whereas Jesus came seeking sinners... the Devil seeks saints. He looks for Christians with their guard down. He could not keep Christians from becoming Christians, now he wants to make them ineffective Christians. He will do everything in his diabolical power to render them ineffective. He wants an impotent Christian and an impotent church. He will slander, hinder and handicap you. He will do everything in his power to keep you from sharing Christ with a non-Christian. He lost you but now he seeks to make sure that no one around you will come to Christ. The Devil is not interested in nibbling on us, he seeks to gulp us down. He looks for those who play into his clutches. He lurks in the spiritual bushes waiting for the Christian to come along. Do you have a spiritual mine detector? If we do not stay on the path, he will have a booby trap waiting to deform us for life. (Today's Word) Spurgeon in his sermon "The Roaring Lion" (click for full text) writes that Satan can never be content till he sees the believer utterly devoured. He would rend him in pieces, and break his bones and utterly destroy him if he could. Do not, therefore, indulge the thought, that the main purpose of Satan is to make you miserable. He is pleased with that, but that is not his ultimate end. Sometimes he may even make you happy, for he hath dainty poisons sweet to the taste which he administers to God’s people. If he feels that our destruction can be more readily achieved by sweets than by bitters, he certainly would prefer that which would best effect his end. Paul uses this verb to explain that "when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up (katapino) in victory. (1Co 15:54) (see the prophecy in Isaiah 25:8 below) In a similar use Paul declares that he could hardly wait for his glorified body writing that while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed, but to be clothed, in order that what is mortal may be swallowed up (katapino) by life. (2 Co 5:4-note) The writer of Hebrews uses katapino literally writing that By faith they passed through the Red Sea as though they were passing through dry land and the Egyptians, when they attempted it, were drowned (swallowed up). (Hebrews 11:29-note) In a somewhat similar usage John writes that when the Jews flee from Satan in the time of Jacob's Trouble, "the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and drank up (katapino) the river which the dragon poured out of his mouth." (Revelation 12:16-note) Evidently the earth (the physical ground) will assist the Israelites in escaping from the enraged Serpent, the Devil, who himself certainly desires to "swallow them down"! In the past the ground swallowed the Egyptians ("Thou didst stretch out Thy right hand, the earth swallowed (LXX = katapino) them." Ex 15:12) and later Korah, Dathan, and Abiram (the Septuagint [LXX] uses katapino in each of the following OT references > Nu 16:28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33; 26:10; Deut. 11:6; Ps. 106:17). Writing again to the Corinthians regarding a church member who had become repentant, Paul exhorted them that instead of further rebuke, now they should turn and graciously forgive and comfort him, lest somehow such a one be overwhelmed (KJV = "swallowed up" = katapino) by excessive sorrow. (2Cor 2:7) What a picture of the meaning of katapino - here it is used as an idiom for a person being so overcome with grief as to despair or give up completely. The Greek verb katapino was used in Greek writings to describe engulfing waves. Thus Paul’s image in 2 Corinthians was of the disciplined person drowning in sadness. Isn't this a picture of how Satan sometimes "swallows" saints? Sadly he can work through members of a local body who want revenge more than restoration. Forgiveness should always follow the correction, lest the corrected one become so "swallowed up" by discouragement that he won’t be able to recover. Note that it is not that you have to come into contact with the personal Devil individually to fall prey because he commands a whole realm of demonic beings and he orchestrates and controls the whole world's system for John records that "the whole world lies in the power of the evil one." (1Jn 5:19) Paul records that even believers "formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience." (Ephesians 2:2 - note) so from Satan's seat as prince of the world he orchestrates an environment which in and of itself can devour us. John MacArthur has his usually insightful thoughts on the devil constantly prowling and seeking to devour writing that in the book of Job we see "the Lord said to Satan...Job 1:8...Have you considered My servant Job?" You want to try to chew on him, see if he'll go down? You want to try to devour Job? "There's no one like him on earth, a blameless upright man fearing God and turning away from evil. And Satan says, Let me have him and I'll show you how strong his faith is. So God said, All right, have at it." And you know the story, no matter what happened in Job's life Satan couldn't devour him. And Job said, "Thou He slay me yet will I trust (hope in) Him. (Job 13:15) And Job said, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD. Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God." (Job 1:21, 22) And the Lord took everything away from him, everything he owned, his property, took away all of his children, took away all of his wealth, all of his animals. The only thing the Lord left was his wife and I think there were some days when he would gladly have traded her for somebody else because she was always telling him to curse God and die. ("Then his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!" 10 But he said to her, "You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips." Job 2:9-10) But even she as an instrument of Satan couldn't bring him to do that. But, you see, that's Satan's ploy, to move through the world to find somebody he can consume. The prowling roaring lion is a symbol of viciousness in Scripture. I would just commend to you Psalm 22:12, that Messianic Psalm talking about how the bulls of Bashan have encircled me ("Many bulls have surrounded Me. Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me"), referring to Christ being encircled by those who hated Him at His cross. "They opened wide their mouth at Me like a ravening and a roaring lion." (Psalm 22:13) That's a picture of viciousness, of maliciousness. That same expression is used elsewhere in the Psalms with the same intent of one who would be vicious. Psalm 104:21, "The young lions roar after their prey." So, Satan is going after his prey. He's going out to consume. He's going out to chew someone up. That's his goal." (from Dr MacArthur's sermon entitled "Fundamental Attitudes for Spiritual Maturity" on 1Peter 5:8) Although the verb is not used in this passage, the idea inherent in Peter's description is certainly present. Ezekiel records God's indictment of Israel's leaders (in Judah) declaring that There is a conspiracy of her prophets in her midst, like a roaring lion tearing the prey. They have devoured lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in the midst of her. (Ezekiel 22:25) False prophets had conspired to take advantage of the people like a wild lion tears its prey. They had eaten up people’s lives and had stolen their possessions. They had even been responsible for the deaths of many men and for many women becoming widows. In short we as believers need to understand Peter's picture in his description of the devil as one who "prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" Peter is painting an ugly portrait of an Adversary with malicious intent moving around wanting to rip your life to shreds. His goal is to devastate and to destroy. Although the Devil cannot take away your salvation, he can destroy your life and your testimony, wreaking havoc and devastation in your lives. See Related Topics: Wayne Barber's Series on Spiritual Warfare Ephesians 6:10: SPIRITUAL WARFARE - 1 Ephesians 6:11: SPIRITUAL WARFARE - 2 Ephesians 6:14: SPIRITUAL WARFARE - 3 Ephesians 6:15-16 SPIRITUAL WARFARE - 4 Ephesians 6:17: SPIRITUAL WARFARE - 5 Ephesians 6:12-13 SPIRITUAL WARFARE - 6 Ephesians 6:18: SPIRITUAL WARFARE - 7 Name of God - Jehovah Nissi - Role in Battling the Amalekites Katapino is used 36 times in the Septuagint (LXX). One the early uses in Exodus depicts the confrontation of Pharaoh's magicians with Moses and Aaron, Moses recording that each one threw down his staff and they turned into serpents. But Aaron's staff swallowed up (LXX = katapino) their staffs. (Ex 7:12) One of God's prophets in the OT was literally gulped down for the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow (LXX = katapino) Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights. (Jonah 1:17) So katapino can refer to an animal swallowing its victim. What a picture of what the adversary continually seeks to do to saints (figuratively speaking of course). In one of the great prophetic promises of all of Scripture Isaiah records that God He will swallow up (LXX = katapino) death for all time, and the Lord God will wipe tears away from all faces, and He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; For the LORD has spoken." (Is 25:8) In Psalm 124 dealing with Jehovah's deliverance of Israel from danger of extinction notice how similar David's description of the danger is to that by Peter in (1Peter 5:8). David records "Had it not been the LORD who was on our side," Let Israel now say, Had it not been the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us; then they would have swallowed (LXX = katapino) us alive. When their anger was kindled against us; then the waters would have engulfed us. The stream would have swept over our soul; then the raging waters would have swept over our soul." Blessed be the LORD, Who has not given us to be torn by their teeth. Our soul has escaped as a bird out of the snare of the trapper. The snare is broken and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the LORD, Who made heaven and earth." (Ps 124 - Spurgeon's notes) Is not Psalm 124 depicting Israel's physical battles, but a picture of a believer's spiritual battles engineered by our Adversary, the Devil? And is not the source of deliverance and ultimate victory the same in both the Old and New Testaments --"Jehovah Who made heaven and earth?" Beloved let this great truth comfort your heart in the midst of the fray, though it might look for the moment that the enemy is winning. C H Spurgeon commenting on Ps 124 writes that our enemies "were so eager for our destruction that they would have made only one morsel of us, and have swallowed us up alive and whole in a single instant... The cruel world would make a full end of the godly were it not that Jehovah bars the way. When the Lord appears, the consuming fire cannot destroy; it is only because the Lord liveth that his people are alive... Rising irresistibly, like the Nile, the flood of opposition would soon have rolled over our heads. We should have looked in vain for escape. The rushing torrent would have drowned our soul, our hope, our life. In the great water-floods of persecution and affliction who can help but Jehovah? We have experienced seasons in which the combined forces of earth and hell must have made an end of us had not omnipotent grace interfered for our rescue... Had not God been with us our disdainful enemies would have made nothing of us, and dashed over us as a mountain torrent sweeps down the side of a hill, driving everything before it. Not only would our goods and possessions have been carried off, but our soul, our courage, our hope would have been borne away by the impetuous assault, and buried beneath the insults of our antagonists. Let us pause here, and as we see what might have been, let us adore the guardian power which has kept us in the flood, and yet above the flood. In our hours of dire peril we must have perished had not our Preserver prevailed for our safe keeping. David compares the adversaries of Israel to wild beasts who desired to make the godly their prey. Their teeth are prepared to tear, and they regard the godly as their victims. The Lord is heartily praised for not permitting his servants to be devoured when they were between the jaws of the raging ones. It implies that none can harm us till the Lord permits: and that our loving Lord will never do....Fowlers have many methods of taking small birds, and Satan has many methods of entrapping souls. Some are decoyed by evil companions, other are enticed by the love of dainties; hunger drives many into the trap, and fright impels numbers to fly into the net. The birds see not the snare so as to avoid it, and they cannot break it so as to escape from it. Happy is the bird that hath a deliverer strong, and mighty, and ready in the moment of peril; happier still is the soul over which the Lord watches day and night to pluck its feet out of the net. What joy there is in this song, Our soul is escaped. Escaped from our natural slavery; escaped from the guilt, the degradation, the habit, the dominion of sin; escaped from the vain deceits and fascinations of Satan; escaped from all that can destroy. What a miraculous escape that we who are so easily misled should not have been permitted to die by the dread fowler’s hand. The Lord has heard the prayer which he taught us to pray, and he has delivered us from evil. The snare is broken, and we are escaped. The song is worth repeating. The snare may be false doctrine, pride, lust, or temptation or despair; what a high favor it is to have it broken before our eyes, so that it has no more power over us. We see not the mercy while we are in the snare; perhaps we are so foolish as to deplore the breaking of the Satanic charm; the gratitude comes when the escape is seen, and when we perceive what we have escaped from, and by what hand we have been set free. Then our Lord has a song from our mouths and hearts....The glorious Lord became our ally; he took our part, and entered into treaty with us. If Jehovah were not our protector where should we be? Nothing but his power and wisdom could have guarded us from the cunning and malice of our adversaries; therefore, let all his people say so, and openly give him the honor of his preserving goodness." Our help for the future, our ground of confidence in all trials present and to come. Is in the name of the Lord. Jehovah’s revealed character is our foundation of confidence; his person is our sure fountain of strength. Who made heaven and earth. Our Creator is our preserver. He is immensely great in his creating work; he has not fashioned a few little things alone, but all heaven and the whole round earth are the works of his hands. When we worship the Creator let us increase our trust in our Comforter. Did he create all that we see, and can he not preserve us from evils which we cannot see? He has rendered us help in the moment of jeopardy. He will to the end break every snare. He made heaven for us, and he will keep us for heaven; he made the earth, and he will succor us upon it until the hour comes for our departure. Every work of his hand preaches to us the duty ><>><>><> Twinkle, Tinkle, Tattle - A man was repeatedly robbed by burglars who entered his house through a window while he was asleep. He finally solved his problem by using three things. He called them a twinkler, a tinkler, and a tattler. The twinkler was a candle that he kept burning in the window all night. The tinkler was a bell attached to the window. And the tattler was a small, noisy dog. Because of these, the burglars were kept away. Every Christian lives in a house that Satan seeks to burglarize. We too need a twinkler, a tinkler, and a tattler. The twinkler is the candle of God's Word. Its truths provide light that exposes Satan's lies. Daily attention to the Word keeps the lamp bright. The tinkler is the bell of our testimony. Keep it ringing as you tell others of the Savior, and Satan will be frustrated. The tattler is the life of prayer. When the enemy comes, send up the warning that you are telling Jesus about it all. Yes, twinkle your light, tinkle your testimony, and bark the enemy away by prayer. A godly woman, when asked the secret of her victory, replied, "Whenever the devil raps at my door, I just say, 'Jesus, You go to the door and take care of him.'" Twinkle, tinkle, and tattle! —M. R. De Haan, M.D. (founder of RBC Ministries) (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) The only way to overcome Temptations that we face Is to be focused on the Lord, Who strengthens by His grace. —Sper If you would master temptation, let Christ master you. ><>><>><> Climbing Higher -- Pastor Dale Kurtz laughed so hard that his sides ached. He was watching a frustrated squirrel trying to climb the metal pole supporting a bird feeder. The squirrel repeatedly got part way up, then slowly slid down the pole in a heap. In an describing this incident, Kurtz wrote, "What the squirrel didn't know was that I had greased the pole!" Kurtz then pointed out that "greasing the pole" is one of Satan's tactics to hinder Christians in their spiritual climb. The "grease" he often uses is our own pride, complacency, and self-sufficiency. How he must laugh! In today's Bible reading (1Peter 5:5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11), Peter listed four things that will help us continue in our spiritual climb and not slide back: 1. Submitting to one another (1 Pet. 5:5). 2. Humbling ourselves before Almighty God (1Pe 5:6). 3. Casting all our care on our caring Lord (1Pe 5:7). 4. Disciplining ourselves and being watchful (1Pe 5:8). These four actions and attitudes enable us to resist Satan's attacks (v.9) and allow God's grace to strengthen us and cause us to be established in our faith (v.10). Satan wants to keep us from making progress in our spiritual life. With the Lord's help, though, we can keep on climbing. --J E Yoder (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) Onward and upward your course plan today, Seeking new heights as you walk Jesus' way; Heed not past failures, but strive for the prize, Aiming for goals fit for His holy eyes. --Brandt To avoid sin's tragedy, learn Satan's strategy. (click for related study of Satan's schemes = methodeia) ><>><>><> Slapton Sands - On the southern shores of England is Slapton Sands. This beautiful beach area carries a tragic memory from its past. On April 28, 1944, during World War II, Allied soldiers were engaged in Operation Tiger, a training exercise in amphibious beach landings in preparation for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Suddenly, enemy gunboats appeared and killed over 700 American servicemen in a surprise attack. Today, a monument stands on Slapton Sands to commemorate the sacrifice of those young men who died while training for battle but were never able to enter the conflict. This tragedy is a metaphor that warns the believer in Christ. We too are involved in combat with an enemy who is powerful and deceptive. That is why the apostle Peter warned: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1Peter 5:8). Like the soldiers on Slapton Sands, we face an enemy who desires our undoing. In the service of our King, we must be on the alert. The call to be effective in battle (2Ti 2:3, 4-note) challenges us to be ready for the surprise attacks of our spiritual enemy—so that we can endure to serve another day. — Bill Crowder (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) The devil’s tactic is surprise To stop you in your tracks, So keep on guard and trust God’s Word; Resist his strong attacks. —Branon Satan’s ploys are no match for the Savior’s power. ><>><>><> Wake Up Call - A few months after our family had moved to a rural area of central Texas, I thought all the snakes must have packed up and gone away. People living nearby said they hadn't seen a snake in a long time, and that was just fine with me. One afternoon, though, I opened the door of the toolshed and saw a poisonous copperhead coiled in the corner. I called my wife and daughter to point out our need for alertness, then I killed the snake with a hoe. That toolshed encounter with a copperhead served as a valuable wake-up call. I had become careless, mistakenly believing that an age-old threat had disappeared. The Bible tells us to be alert to the presence of our spiritual enemy, the devil. "Be sober, be vigilant," 1 Peter 5:8 reminds us, "because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." As we move through each day, we must neither pretend that Satan doesn't exist, nor should we become paralyzed by fear of his presence. Knowing his destructive potential, we must depend on God's power to "resist him, steadfast in the faith" (v.9). Be careful and alert! That's a wake-up call we need every morning. — David C. McCasland (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) "Copy and paste the address below into your web browser in order to go to the original page which will allow you to access live links related to the material on this page - these links include Scriptures (which can be read in context), Scripture pop-ups on mouse over, and a variety of related resources such as Bible dictionary articles, commentaries, sermon notes and theological journal articles related to the topic under discussion." http://www.preceptaustin.org/1_peter_58-14.htm#Devour%20(2666)%20katapino

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Overwhelm (2666) katapino

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