overcomer41
- Feb 5, 2023
- 46 min read

Binding And Loosing

Related Bible studies:

Jubilee
Perpetual Priesthood
The Inner Tunic
The Spirit Of Antichrist
Well Pleasing
Clean People, Clean People
Unbelieving Believers
The Shame Of Nakedness
The Bent Double Woman
Freedom In Christ
The Goodness Of God
Cultivate Faithfulness
Have Grace
The Right To Possess

Psalm 105:16-20 – See the note below.

16 He called down famine on the land and destroyed all their supplies of food;

17 and he sent a man before them — Joseph, sold as a slave.

18 They bruised his feet with shackles, his neck was put in irons,

19 till what he foretold came to pass, till the word of the Lord proved [6884] him true.

20 The king sent [7971] and released [5425] him, the ruler of peoples set him free [6605].

NIV

Psalm 105:16-20

16 And He called for a famine upon the land; He broke the whole staff of bread.

17 He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave.

18 They afflicted [6031- “to afflict, oppress, humble”] his feet with fetters, He himself was laid in irons;

19 Until the time that his word came to pass, The word of the Lord tested [6884] him.

20 The king sent [7971] and released [5425] him, the ruler of peoples, and set him free [6605].

NASU

Psalm 105:20

20 The king sent [7971] and loosed [5425] him; even the ruler of the people, and let him go free [6605].

KJV

OT:6884 tsaraph (tsaw-raf')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to fuse (metal), i.e. refine (literally or figuratively):

KJV - cast, (re-) fine (-er), founder, goldsmith, melt, pure, purge away, try.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

to smelt, to refine, to test

a) (Qal)

1) to smelt, to refine

2) to test

3) to test (and to prove true)

4) a smelter, a refiner, a goldsmith (participle)

b) (Niphal) to be refined

c) (Piel) to be a refiner; a refiner (participle)

OT:7971 shalach (shaw-lakh')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to send away, for, or out (in a great variety of applications):

KJV - any wise, appoint, bring (on the way), cast (away, out), conduct, earnestly, forsake, give (up), grow long, lay, leave, let depart (down, go, loose), push away, put (away, forth, in, out), reach forth, send (away, forth, out), set, shoot (forth, out), sow, spread, stretch forth (out).

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

to send, to send away, to let go, to stretch out

a) (Qal)

1) to send

2) to stretch out, to extend, to direct

3) to send away

4) to let loose

b) (Niphal) to be sent

c) (Piel)

1) to send off or away or out or forth, to dismiss, to give over, to cast out

2) to let go, to set free

3) to shoot forth (used of branches)

4) to let down

5) to shoot

d) (Pual) to be sent off, to be put away, to be divorced, to be impelled

e) (Hiphil) to send

OT:7971 shalach (shaw-lakh') - "to send, stretch forth, get rid of." [It also means “to let loose, to shoot forth (used of branches).] This verb occurs in the Northwest Semitic languages (Hebrew, Phoenician, and Aramaic). It occurs in all periods of Hebrew and in the Bible about 850 times. Biblical Aramaic uses this word 14 times.

Basically this verb means "to send," in the sense of (1) to initiate and to see that such movement occurs or (2) to successfully conclude such an action…

OT:5425 nathar (naw-thar')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to jump, i.e. be violently agitated; causatively, to terrify, shake off, untie:

KJV - drive asunder, leap, (let) loose, make, move, undo.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

1) to start up, to tremble, to shake, to spring up

a) (Qal) to start up

b) (Piel) to leap

c) (Hiphil) to cause to start up

2) to loose, to let loose, to undo, to be free, to be loose;

(Hiphil)

a) to unfasten, to loosen

b) to set free, to unbind

OT:6605 pathach (paw-thakh')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to open wide (literally or figuratively); specifically, to loosen, begin, plough, carve:

KJV - appear, break forth, draw (out), let go free, (en-) grave (-n), loose (self), (be, be set) open (-ing), put off, ungird, unstop, have vent.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

1) to open

a) (Qal) to open

b) (Niphal) to be opened, to be let loose, to be thrown open

c) (Piel)

1) to free

2) to loosen

3) to open, to open oneself

d) (Hithpael) to loose oneself

2) to carve, to engrave

a) (Piel) to engrave

b) (Pual) to be engraved

Joseph was a slave who was falsely accused and placed in prison. While there he interpreted a dream where He remained for a while, even after the word of the Lord given to him came true, proving him right. God’s word has a way of stirring up the demonic realm, exposing the darkness and revealing where the strongholds of the enemy exist in the hearts of others.

It not only exposes the darkness in others but also within God’s servant. The Bible tells us that, “Until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him.” The Hebrew for “tested” is tsaraph (tsaw-raf'). It’s defined as “to fuse (metal), to smelt, to refine, to test (and to prove true).” From my own experience of receiving a word from the Lord, and the time in between before it comes to pass, I understand this. Thoughts of whether or not I heard from God, or myself, will run through your mind. It forced me to check my heart and decide. When I come to the point of saying no to doubt it results in my being even more determined to hold my ground and wait for the Lord’s timing.

While waiting upon the Lord, Satan will try to tempt the one who has been told something by God to bring it into existence through human effort thereby creating an Ishmael. Creating doubt of whether or not you really heard from God, or of what God really meant, has been his modus operandi since the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:4-5).

In God’s timing, a Divine opportunity occurred for Joseph to be released; “The king sent and released him, the ruler of peoples, and set him free.” If we will remain faithful through our time of testing and proving, eventually the King of kings will stretch forth His hand and loosen His faithful ones from their imprisonment. As Jesus proclaimed from Isaiah, He came “To proclaim liberty [1865- “freedom”] to captives and freedom to prisoners.” (Isaiah 61:2) (See the Bible study Jubilee.)

(For more on testing see the section Crowns In The Bible in the Bible study Perpetual Priesthood.)

Acts 16:22-26 – See the note below. (This was taken from the Bible studies Shaking, and 2020 The Dawning Of The Light.)

22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten. [NAS- “…tore their robes [outer garments] off them…”; see the Bible study The Inner Tunic]

23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison [5438- “to guard or watch, imprisonment”; a place of bondage; see Rev. 2:10], and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully [806- “securely”; see Matthew 27:65-66].

24 Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell [NAS- “inner prison”] and fastened [805- “to make firm, to make secure”] their feet in the stocks.

25 About midnight [Matthew 25:6] Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

26 Suddenly there was such a violent [3173] earthquake [4578] that the foundations of the prison were shaken [4531]. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose [447].

NIV

NT:4531 saleuo (sal-yoo'-o)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from NT:4535; to waver, i.e. agitate, rock, topple or (by implication) destroy; figuratively, to disturb, incite:

KJV - move, shake (together), which can [-not] be shaken, stir up.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

a. properly, of the motion produced by winds, storms, waves, etc.; to agitate or shake (Matthew 11:7)

b. to shake down, overthrow, i.e. tropically, to cast down from one's (secure and happy) state (Acts 2:25)

NT:447 aniemi (an-ee'-ay-mee)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from NT:303 and hiemi (to send); to let up, i.e. (literally) slacken or (figuratively) desert, desist from:

KJV - forbear, leave, loose.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to send back; to relax; to loosen Acts 16:26

Within this passage we see why the Lord is going to shake things up. It is for the good of His people, as well as the lost who are near them, to set us free from that which has imprisoned us, that which has bound us and kept us from walking as we ought to, in the same manner as Jesus walked (1 John 2:6, Eph. 4:1, 22, Phil. 1:27, Col. 1:10, 1 Thess. 2:12).

The verses that precede these (v.14-21) reveal why Paul and Silas had been thrown into prison (see Rev. 2:10 which refers to some Christians being thrown into prison by the devil for ten days for their testing). As they were heading toward the place of prayer, a slave girl possessed by a “spirit of divination” met them. The Greek for divination is puthon (poo'-thone). Per Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words;

“…puthon (poo'-thone), (Eng., “python”), in Greek mythology was the name of the Pythian serpent or dragon, dwelling in Pytho, at the foot of mount Parnassus, guarding the oracle of Delphi, and slain by Apollo. Thence the name was transferred to Apollo himself. Later the word was applied to diviners or soothsayers, regarded as inspired by Apollo. Since demons are the agents inspiring idolatry (1 Cor. 10:20), the young woman in Acts 16:16 was possessed by a demon instigating the cult of Apollo, and thus had ‘a spirit of divination.’”

It’s interesting to see that, as she followed them, she seemed to be declaring that which was good, but something about her annoyed/troubled Paul. Her constant proclamation had become a distraction from Christ instead of an attraction to Him. There are many within the church who possess the same spirit. They’re proclaiming that Jesus is the way of salvation, but inside you sense a different spirit coming through that doesn’t sit right within your spirit. Jesus isn’t being exalted or glorified through them. I’ve learned to listen to this prompting. If I’m not sure, I’ll wait for the Lord to confirm it one way or another which He always does.

The Greek for “met” is hupantao (hoop-an-tah'-o). It’s made up of two words, one being anti (an-tee') which is defined as “over against, opposite to, instead of, in place of.” It is also used as a prefix that forms the word antichrist. What you see through this is that, even though she was proclaiming that Jesus was the way, this girl was possessed with a spirit that stood opposed to Him. It is a deceptive form of Christianity that is in actuality controlled by the spirit of antichrist.

This same word is used with similar implication in Luke 8:26-39 where Jesus cast out many demons from a man. He and His disciples had sailed to the country of the Gerasenes where they were “met [hupantao] by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs.” The spirit of antichrist that fights against the Lord, is opposite to His will and has become so prevalent in the leadership of the body of Christ has kept many from putting on the Lord Jesus Christ (see the Bible study The Spirit Of Antichrist). Most of God’s people are unaware that they are naked, uncovered and unprotected from God’s wrath at the end of this age (Rev. 3:17). They have been living in the tombs, in places of death, including dead places of worship for so long that the place of bondage has become their familiar place of comfort.

When those filled with the presence of the Lord show up they too will be met by those possessed with demons who oppose/fight against the Lord’s will. They have a form of godliness but have denied its power (which is to receive the grace of God in vain) to conform them into the image of Christ, thereby becoming a son and daughter of God and gain the right of possession of their eternal inheritance (see Jer. 32:7-8, Ezekiel 46:16-18). We are commanded by God to

“Avoid such men as these. For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses [see Exodus 7:11, 22), so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith.”

(2 Timothy 3:5-8/NASU)

Jannes and Jambres are not mentioned by name in the Old Testament but, traditionally speaking, are thought to be the magicians referred to in Exodus 7:11 who opposed Moses. The possible meaning of their names is “he who seduces” and “he who makes rebellious.” Either way, they represent those who oppose God’s truth and have been “rejected in regard to faith.”

The carefully guarded intent of the enemy of our souls, who always works in the cover of darkness, is to once again, as we were before turning to the Lord, place and keep God’s servants in the shackles of bondage within the “inner prison” of our spirit. Like Paul and Silas whose feet were fastened in the stocks, we cannot move in the will and desire of God from there. The shaking that is coming at the end of this age will be so great that it will loose those who can be loosed from alltheir bondages. This is the completion of our faith, the final perfecting of the Saints.

The great shaking will either destroy us, as in the days of Noah, or loose us. Only that which cannot be shaken, that which has been built upon the sure foundation of truth by the Spirit of God within us through our working together with Him (2 Cor. 6:1), will remain. All else will be cast down, never to rise up again.

The good news is that the enemy’s “carefully” guarded strongholds will be cast down. His chains of oppression within those of God’s people who truly desire to be fully released will once and for all be completely leveled! This is our hope of glory, of finally being loosed from the bondage of this mortal flesh, of this mortal putting on the immortality of Christ (1 Cor. 15:50-58).

At the end of this age when Christ appears, all those whose walk with God is “well-pleasing” in His sight will be translated/transformed/changed (Heb. 11:5-6). John said;

“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

(1 John 3:2-3/NASU)

Again, as what happened with Paul and Silas, there is a violent and severe shaking that is coming on earth in the midnight hour of this age (Matthew 25:5-6) that will shake the foundation of our place of bondage. It will be used to wake up God’s people that have a “spirit of deep sleep” over them, breaking them loose them from their bondage to “this body of death” that Paul refers to in Romans 7:24 (see the Bible study The Sleeping Bride which is about Jonah sleeping as he was running from God’s call), whether that be the prison of our physical body, the spiritual body we stubbornly cling to, or both if necessary. To resist this final shaking is to resist God’s last offer to the church (see my book 911; God’s Last Offer To The Church).

As it was per the first coming of Christ, we are being warned from heaven in this midnight hour through the forerunner ministry like John the Baptist to “prepare the way of the Lord” within us, purifying our hearts by faith so as to be a people made ready for the coming of the King of kings and Lord of lords. May we hear what the Spirit is saying to the church in this critical moment of history.

Psalm 130:1-4

1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord;

2 O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.

3 If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?

4 But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared.

NIV

Matthew 9:2-8 – See the note below.

2 And they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, "Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven."

3 And some of the scribes said to themselves, "This fellow blasphemes."

4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, "Why are you thinking evil in your hearts?

5 "Which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, and walk'?

6 "But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins" — then He said to the paralytic, "Get up, pick up your bed and go home."

7 And he got up and went home.

8 But when the crowds saw this, they were awestruck, and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

NASU

By saying this paralytic man’s sins were forgiven, through the authority the Son of Man has on earth, the man was loosed, or set free from that which bound him. In other words, it is through forgiveness that that which is bound is loosed. The crowds were “awestruck”, and glorified God who had given this incredible authority to men. Those upon whom Jesus gives this authority and uses it accordingly will also bring glory to God. I think this is why Jesus told those standing near Lazarus to unbind him and let him go (see John 11:44 below). He gave this authority to His followers to use like He did so as to bring glory to God. The problem is when our evil intent, whether knowingly or not, is to bring glory to us, or our “ministry” instead. It results in self-glorification, keeping others in bondage on earth with a false sense of being loosed. Instead of being “free indeed” (John 8:36), which by definition of the Greek is to be that which is “truly, in reality, in point of fact [free], as opposed to what is pretended, fictitious, false, or conjectural [“hypothetical, speculative, theoretical”]), the person lives under the domain of Satan in a false sense of freedom and security, resulting in eternal death. Only those disciples who continue in His word will know the truth that will set you free first to then loose others (John 8:31-32). We cannot give to others what we do not possess ourselves (see the Bible study Clean People, Clean People).

We are His representatives. When someone is healed from the bondage and domain of sin through Jesus’ authority in one of His followers, God is glorified. In His prayer to the Father, Jesus said, “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which you have given Me to do.” (John 17:4) When we do the good works we were created for in Christ Jesus that God prepared beforehand for us to walk in (Ephesians 2:10), it brings glory to Him. If we do not do the good works He saved and created us for, it brings glory to know one, keeping others, including us, in bondage. This is the faith without works that will not save us (James 2:14). After turning to Christ and being set free from the house of bondage (i.e. Egypt in type), we can then, like the Israelites in the wilderness (actually said to be “saved” in Jude 1:5), be destroyed for unbelief. Again, this is AFTER first believing (see Hebrews 10:26-31 and the Bible study Unbelieving Believers). Hearers of the word and not doers never bring their faith to completion (James 2:22), thereby allowing them entrance into the Promised Land of our eternal inheritance in Christ.

James 2:14 says, “What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?” (NASU) The Greek for “save” is sozo (sode'-zo) which means;

to save, to keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction
universally, tina, one (from injury or peril); to save a suffering one (from perishing), e. g. one suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health (Matthew 9:22)
to save (Matthew 1:21)

Exodus 32:22-25 – See the note below.

22 Aaron said, "Do not let the anger of my lord burn; you know the people yourself, that they are prone to evil.

23 "For they said to me, 'Make a god for us who will go before us; for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'

24 "I said to them, 'Whoever has any gold, let them tear it off.' So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf."

25 Now when Moses saw that the people were out of control [6544] — for Aaron had let them get out of control [6544] to be a derision [8103- “scornful whispering (of hostile spectators)] among their enemies [6965- “to arise, to come on the scene, to be established”] —

NASU

25 And when Moses saw that the people were naked [6544]; (for Aaron had made them naked [6544] unto their shame among their enemies:)

KJV

25 Now when Moses saw that the people were unrestrained [6544] (for Aaron had not restrained [6544] them, to their shame among their enemies),

NKJV

OT:6544 para` (paw-rah')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to loosen; by implication, to expose, dismiss; figuratively, absolve, begin:

KJV - avenge, avoid, bare, go back, let, (make) naked, set at nought, perish, refuse, uncover.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

1) to lead, to act as leader

2) to let go, to let loose, to ignore, to let alone

a) (Qal)

1) to let go, to let loose

2) to let alone, to avoid, to neglect

3) to loosen

b) (Niphal) to be let loose, to be loosened of restraint

c) (Hiphil)

1) to cause to refrain

2) to show lack of restraint

3) to let loose restraints

While Moses and Joshua were on Mount Sinai receiving the law of God, Aaron had let the Israelites get out of control (Exodus 32:25). The Hebrew for “out of control” is para` (paw-rah'). It’s defined as “to loosen, to let go, to ignore, to show a lack of restraint.” They had, to their shame among their enemies, loosed themselves from all restraint in regards to their devotion to God and obedience to His law.

Ultimately, their continued rebellion would cost them their inheritance in the Promised Land. Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit uses them as an example for us today, so as not to do what they did and, after turning to Christ, to then fall away with an apostate heart to our destruction, as they did (1 Corinthians 10:1-12).

The different versions interpretation of this verse is interesting. The NKJV interprets it as “unrestrained”. The KJV says the people “were naked”, and that, as their leader, Aaron was responsible for the shame of their nakedness (see the Bible study The Shame Of Nakedness). Through this we can see that when God’s people are unrestrained in their actions, they become “naked” so to speak before Him. They loose themselves from His covering garment thereby giving the unbelievers reason to scornfully mock them and God. (See the Bible study Perpetual Priesthood to look at the zeal of Phineas in upholding the honor of God’s name with His jealousy when God’s people go astray.)

John 11:43-44 – Jesus tells those who are near Lazarus to unbind him and let him go. This is called discipleship. We come as we are to Christ, with all of our issues. At this point we have entered the school of Christ and the process of sanctification. This is a lifelong process of being loosed from the death wraps that bind us. Only those who are alive in Christ, walking in submission and obedience to Him, have the power to loose others. They have been endowed with Christ’ authority.

43 When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come forth."

44 The man who had died came forth, bound [1210] hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unbind [3089] him, and let him go."

NASU

NT:1210 deo (deh'-o)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primary verb; to bind (in various applications, literally or figuratively):

KJV - bind, be in bonds, knit, tie, wind. See also NT:1163, NT:1189.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to bind, tie, fasten

1. properly: ti, eis desmas (Matthew 13:30) with the accusative of person to bind, to fasten with chains,

to throw into chains: angelous (Rev. 9:14)

2. metaphorically,

a. Luke 13:16 [see the Bible study The Bent Double Woman]

b. to bind, i. e. put under obligation, namely, of law, duty, etc. (Acts 20:22)

c. to forbid, prohibit, declare to be illicit (Matthew 16:19; 18:18)

NT:3089 luo (loo'-o)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primary verb; to "loosen" (literally or figuratively):

KJV - break (up), destroy, dissolve, (un-) loose, melt, put off. Compare NT:4486.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

1. to loose any person (or thing) tied or fastened (Mark 1:7)

2. to loose one bound, i. e., to unbind, release from bonds, set free (Acts 22:30)

3. to loosen, undo, dissolve, anything bound, tied, or compacted together: the seal of a book (Rev. 5:2)

1 John 3:8 – Whenever the Lord reveals Himself to mankind it is to loose us from the works of the devil.

bThe Son of God appeared [5319] for this purpose, to destroy [3089] the works of the devil.

NASU

Matthew 16:15-19 – Binding and loosing. The keeper of the keys has the power to open and to shut. It denotes power and authority of various kinds. Jesus has been given this power, granting it to His trustworthy servants as well.

15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"

16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

17 And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

18 "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

19 "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind [1210- see def. above] on earth shall have been bound [1210] in heaven, and whatever you loose [3089- see def. above] on earth shall have been loosed [3089] in heaven."

NASU

KEY kleis [NT:2807]

"a key," is used metaphorically (a) of "the keys of the kingdom of heaven," which the Lord committed to Peter, Matthew 16:19, by which he would open the door of faith, as he did to Jews at Pentecost, and to Gentiles in the person of Cornelius, acting as one commissioned by Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit; he had precedence over his fellow disciples, not in authority, but in the matter of time, on the ground of his confession of Christ v. 16; equal authority was committed to them 18:18; (b) of "the key of knowledge," Luke 11:52, i. e., knowledge of the revealed will of God, by which men entered into the life that pleases God; this the religious leaders of the Jews had presumptuously "taken away," so that they neither entered in themselves, nor permitted their hearers to do so; (c) of "the keys of death and of Hades," Rev. 1:18, RV (see HADES), indicative of the authority of the Lord over the bodies and souls of men; (d) of "the key of David," Rev. 3:7, a reference to Isaiah 22:22 [see Isaiah 22:15-25 below], speaking of the deposition of Shebna and the investiture of Eliakim, in terms evidently messianic, the metaphor being that of the right of entrance upon administrative authority; the mention of David is symbolic of complete sovereignty; (e) of "the key of the pit of the abyss," Rev. 9:1; here the symbolism is that of competent authority; the pit represents a shaft or deep entrance into the region (see ABYSS), from whence issued smoke, symbolic of blinding delusion; (f) of "the key of the abyss," Rev. 20:1; this is to be distinguished from (e): the symbolism is that of the complete supremacy of God over the region of the lost, in which, by angelic agency, Satan is destined to be confined for a thousand years.

Isaiah 22:15-25 – Taking away the keys of God’s authority from those declared as the shame of their Master’s house. See the note below.

15 Thus says the Lord God of hosts, "Come, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is in charge of the royal household,

16 'What right do you have here, and whom do you have here, that you have hewn a tomb for yourself here, you who hew a tomb on the height, you who carve a resting place for yourself in the rock?

17 'Behold, the Lord is about to hurl you headlong, O man. And He is about to grasp you firmly

18 And roll you tightly like a ball, to be cast into a vast country; there you will die and there your splendid chariots will be, you shame of your master's house.'

19 "I will depose you from your office, and I will pull you down from your station.

20 "Then it will come about in that day, that I will summon My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,

21 And I will clothe him with your tunic and tie your sash securely about him. I will entrust him with your authority, and he will become a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.

22 "Then I will set the key of the house of David on his shoulder, When he opens no one will shut, When he shuts no one will open.

23 "I will drive him like a peg in a firm place, and he will become a throne of glory to his father's house.

24 "So they will hang on him all the glory of his father's house, offspring and issue, all the least of vessels, from bowls to all the jars.

25 "In that day," declares the Lord of hosts, "the peg driven in a firm place will give way; it will even break off and fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut off, for the Lord has spoken."

NASU

Shebna, who was in charge of the royal househould (a type of God’s servants who have been given charge of His house), the one whom the Lord declared as “You shame of your master’s house,” has his keys, his authority stripped from him and given to the Lord’s servant, Eliakim, whose name means “God raises,” or “God sets up,” the son of Hilkiah whose name means “My portion is Jehovah (Yahweh).” This is a picture of what God is about to do with the leaders of the church in America, of which the majority have been declared by God as “The shame of their Master’s house!” The Eliakim’s will be handed the keys of authority. Like unto verse 25, it will be the day of the great falling away from Christ of many of His followers (2 Thess. 2).

Matthew 18:15-20 – Binding and loosing in regards to a brother that has sinned against you.

15 "If your brother sins [NIV/KJV/NKJV all add “against you”], go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.

16 "But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED.

17 "If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

18 "Truly I say to you, whatever you bind [1210] on earth shall have been bound [1210] in heaven; and whatever you loose [3089] on earth shall have been loosed [3089] in heaven.

19 "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.

20 "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst."

NASU

Revelation 1:4-6 – Jesus Christ releases us, loosens us from the bondage of our sin through His blood that was shed at Calvary (Luke 22:20; Acts 20:28; Romans 3:25; Ephesians 1:7, 2:13; Col. 1:20; Hebrews 9:22; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Rev. 5:9, 12:11). Its power can only be released to those who turn to Christ in repentance and allow Him to be their Lord andSavior (see the Bible study and article Freedom In Christ based on John 1:12).

4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,

5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released [3089] us from our sins by His blood —

6 and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father — to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

NASU

(The following paragraph is from the Bible study The Goodness Of God.)

In his prayer of repentance while in the belly of the big fish, Jonah declared; “Those who regard vain idols forsake [“to leave, to loose”] their faithfulness.” (Jonah 2:8/NASU) The Hebrew for “faithfulness” is defined as “goodness, faithfulness, kindness, grace.” The NIV version of the Bible says; “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.” Spiritual idolatry is extreme admiration, love, or reverence for something other than God. When a Christian continues to stubbornly refuse the conviction of the Holy Spirit to repent and forsake their idols, they will, in the end, loose themselves from the goodness and kindness of God [i.e. His grace] shown towards them. They have insulted the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29). That which has been loosed (which means “to unbind, to undo, dissolve”) on earth through rebellion has then been loosed in heaven (Matthew 16:19, 18:18). They are covenant breakers who have, through careless neglect, dissolved their union with God.

Jonah 2:8 –This passage tells us the means by which we move away from God, loosing ourselves from His grace and mercy with an unfaithful heart. What is being described here is the condition of a covenant breaker. See the note below.

8 "Those who cling [8104] to worthless [7723] idols [1892] forfeit [5800] the grace [2617] that could be theirs.

NIV

Jonah 2:8

8 "Those who regard [8104] vain [7723] idols [1892] forsake [5800] their faithfulness [2617],

NASU

Jonah 2:8

8 They that observe [8104] lying [7723] vanities [1892] forsake [5800] their own mercy [2617].

KJV

Jonah 2:8

8 "Those who regard [8104] worthless [7723] idols [1892] forsake [5800] their own Mercy [2617].

NKJV

OT:8104 shamar (shaw-mar')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; properly, to hedge about (as with thorns), i.e. guard; generally, to protect, attend to, etc.:

KJV - beward, be circumspect, take heed (toself), keep (-erself,), mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure, (that lay) wait (for), watch (-man).

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

to keep, to guard, to observe, to give heed

a) (Qal)

1) to keep, to have charge of

2) to keep, to guard, to keep watch and ward, to protect, to save life; watch, a watchman (participle)

3) to watch for, to wait for

4) to watch, to observe

5) to keep, to retain, to treasure up (in memory)

6) to keep (within bounds), to restrain

7) to observe, to celebrate, to keep (sabbath or covenant or commands), to perform (a vow)

8) to keep, to preserve, to protect

9) to keep, to reserve

b) (Niphal)

1) to be on one's guard, to take heed, to take care, to beware

2) to keep oneself, to refrain, to abstain

3) to be kept, to be guarded

c) (Piel) to keep, to pay heed

d) (Hithpael) to keep oneself from

OT:7723 shav' (shawv); or shav (shav)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from the same as OT:7722 in the sense of desolating [see Daniel 8:13, 9:27, 11:31, Rev. 17:16]; evil (as destructive), literally (ruin) or morally (especially guile); figuratively idolatry (as false, subjective), uselessness (as deceptive, objective; also adverbially, in vain):

KJV - false (-ly), lie, lying, vain, vanity.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

emptiness, vanity, falsehood

a) emptiness, nothingness, vanity

b) emptiness of speech, lying

c) worthlessness (used of conduct)

OT:1892 hebel (heh'bel); or (rarely in the abs.) habel (hab-ale')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from OT:1891; emptiness or vanity; figuratively, something transitory and unsatisfactory; often used as an adverb:

KJV - altogether, vain, vanity.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

a vapor, a breath

a) breath, vapor

b) vanity (figurative)

as an adverb:

2) vainly

BREATH

hebel [OT:1892] - "breath; vanity; idol." Cognates of this noun occur in Syriac, late Aramaic, and Arabic. All but 4 of its 72 occurrences are in poetry (37 in Ecclesiastes).

First, the word represents human "breath" as a transitory thing: "I loathe it; I would not live always: let me alone; for my days are vanity [literally, but a breath]" (Job 7:16).

Second, hebel means something meaningless and purposeless: "Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity" (Eccl 1:2).

Third, this word signifies an "idol," which is unsubstantial, worthless, and vain: "They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities..." (Deuteronomy 32:21) — the first occurrence.

OT:5800 `azab (aw-zab')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to loosen, i.e. relinquish, permit, etc.:

KJV - commitself, fail, forsake, fortify, help, leave (destitute, off), refuse, surely.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

1) to leave, to loose, to forsake

a) (Qal) to leave

1) to depart from, to leave behind, to leave, to let alone

2) to leave, to abandon, to forsake, to neglect, to apostatize

3) to let loose, to set free, to let go, to free

b) (Niphal)

1) to be left to

2) to be forsaken

c) (Pual) to be deserted

2) to restore, to repair

(Qal) to repair

TO FORSAKE

`azab [OT:5800] - "to leave, forsake, abandon, leave behind, be left over, let go." This word occurs in Akkadian and post-biblical Hebrew and Aramaic. Similar words appear in Arabic and Ethiopic. The word occurs in biblical Hebrew about 215 times and in all periods.

Basically `azab means "to depart from something," or "to leave." This is the meaning of the word in its first biblical appearance: "[For this cause] shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife..." (Genesis 2:24). A special nuance of the word is "to leave in the lurch," or to leave someone who is depending upon one's services. So Moses said to Hobab the Midianite (Kenite): "Leave us not [in the lurch] I pray thee; forasmuch as thou knowest how we are to encamp in the wilderness, and thou mayest be to us instead of eyes" (Numbers 10:31).

The word also carries the meaning "forsake," or "leave entirely." Such passages convey a note of finality or completeness…

OT:2617 checed (kheh'-sed)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from OT:2616; kindness; by implication (towards God) piety: rarely (by opposition) reproof, or (subject.) beauty:

KJV - favour, good deed (-liness, -ness), kindly, (loving-) kindness, merciful (kindness), mercy, pity, reproach, wicked thing.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

1) goodness, kindness, faithfulness

2) a reproach, shame

checed [OT:2617] - "loving-kindness; steadfast love; grace; mercy; faithfulness; goodness; devotion." This word is used 240 times in the Old Testament, and is especially frequent in the Psalter. The term is one of the most important in the vocabulary of Old Testament theology and ethics.

This passage tells us the means by which we move away from God, loosening ourselves from His grace and mercy with an unfaithful heart (see the Bible studies Cultivate Faithfulness and Have Grace). What is being described here through Jonah’s prayer of confession and repentance is the extreme danger of becoming a covenant breaker with God.

Based upon the four versions of the Bible listed above, grace, mercy, and faithfulness are all related. The five Hebrew words in this verse that Jonah spoke in his prayer while in the belly of the fish must be understood by Christians today who, like Jonah, are running from their call.

The first is shamar (shaw-mar') which is interpreted into English within these four versions as “cling”, “regard” (2x), and “observe”. It’s defined as “to hedge about, to keep, to guard, to retain.” The next two Hebrew words from Jonah reveal what exactly it is that’s being guarded, kept or retained. They’re interpreted as “worthless idols” (2x), “vain idols”, and “lying vanities” within our versions.

The Hebrew for “worthless,” “vain,” and “lying” is shav' (shawv) or shav (shav) which means “emptiness (of speech), vanity, falsehood, lying, worthlessness (used of conduct).” The other, hebel (heh'bel), is defined as “breath, vanity, idol.” It refers to something meaningless and purposeless, also as “an idol, which is unsubstantial, worthless, and vain.” From these two definitions we can understand that Jonah is praying with a repentant heart from inside the great fish about what he has come to understand, the hard way. Those of God’s people who continue to refuse to let go of falsehood or meaningless idols when convicted by the Holy Spirit, choosing instead to keep or guard them in their life, are in great danger of being chastised, severely if necessary, by their loving and impartial Father. The purpose of producing the reverential fear of the Lord in us when we go too far is to keep us from moving away from Him to destruction in unfaithfulness. As we already have seen in Hebrews 12:27, to move away from God is to be in a place where we can be shaken and overthrown, literally “to be cast down from one's (secure and happy) state.”

When understood in truth, the last two Hebrew words should produce the fear of the Lord in His followers so as to keep us from continuing to retain that which God says is worthless, whether that be in heart or conduct. Either way, it is rebellion against the Lordship of Jesus Christ over us. There are times when God will take drastic measures in order to get the full attention of His prodigal sons and daughters so as to keep them from self-destruction.

The last phrase to look at in the different versions is “forfeit the grace that could be theirs”, “forsake their faithfulness”, and “forsake their own mercy”. The Hebrew interpreted into English as “forfeit” and “forsake” is `azab(aw-zab') which means “to leave, to loosen, to forsake, to abandon, leave behind, be left over, let go.” What is it that by holding on to our meaningless idols and falsehood we are loosening ourselves from with an apostate heart? (See the Bible study Binding And Loosing.)

The next Hebrew word, checed (kheh'-sed), which we interpret in English as “grace”, “faithfulness”, and “mercy” is defined as “loving-kindness, steadfast love, grace, mercy, faithfulness, goodness, devotion.” Jonah is saying that we, by refusing to let go of that which He says is not from Him, can actually loosen ourselves from and let go of God’s grace granted to those who have turned to Him!

You might say, “Yes, but Paul said in the New Testament, ‘Who shall separate us from the love of God?’” (Romans 8:35-39) You have to look at the verses preceding this verse to understand why he was encouraging us with this statement.

In the first verse of this chapter Paul says, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”(NASU) The KJV says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” That last phrase is often dismissed among Bible teachers. It’s stated in all the versions in verse 4;

“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

(Romans 8:2-8/NASU)

A Christian can, and does to one degree or another at different times, live according to the leading of the flesh (i.e. our fallen natures that oppose God). In this state of mind we “cannot please God” (see the Bible study Well Pleased to see what will happen to those who willfully continue in the flesh and are not pleasing to God).

What we see in this passage is that even when we let go of the Lord, forfeiting the grace that is ours, His love reaches out to us. Per the word of God, therefore, the only thing that CAN separate us from Him is us, not any outside force. It is our not letting go of sin that results in our not being adopted, receiving through perseverance the redemption of our body at the end of this age (v.18-25). This is what it means to “receive God’s grace in vain” (2 Corinthians 6:1).

2 Chronicles 29:1-6 – The unfaithful (see the Bible study Cultivate Faithfulness) turn their face away from God, they have forsaken [5800] Him which means “to loose, to leave, to depart, to let go, to abandon.” The unfaithful loosethemselves from the Lord. They let go of him (Jer. 17:9).

1 Hezekiah became king when he was twenty-five years old; and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah.

2 He did right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.

3 In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the Lord and repaired them.

4 He brought in the priests and the Levites and gathered them into the square on the east.

5 Then he said to them, "Listen to me, O Levites. Consecrate yourselves now, and consecrate the house of the Lord, the God of your fathers, and carry the uncleanness out from the holy place.

6 "For our fathers have been unfaithful [4603] and have done evil in the sight of the Lord our God, and have forsaken [5800] Him and turned their faces away from the dwelling place of the Lord, and have turned their backs.

NASU

OT:4603 ma`al (maw-al')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; properly, to cover up; used only figuratively, to act covertly, i.e. treacherously:

KJV - transgress, (commit, do a) trespass (-ing).

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

to act unfaithfully, to act treacherously, to transgress, to commit a trespass (Qal) to act unfaithfully or treacherously

1) against man

2) against God

3) against devoted thing

4) against husband

OT:5800 `azab (aw-zab')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to loosen, i.e. relinquish, permit, etc.:

KJV - commitself, fail, forsake, fortify, help, leave (destitute, off), refuse, surely.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

1) to leave, to loose, to forsake

a) (Qal) to leave

1) to depart from, to leave behind, to leave, to let alone

2) to leave, to abandon, to forsake, to neglect, to apostatize

3) to let loose, to set free, to let go, to free

b) (Niphal)

1) to be left to

2) to be forsaken

c) (Pual) to be deserted

2) to restore, to repair

(Qal) to repair

TO FORSAKE

The word also carries the meaning "forsake," or "leave entirely." Such passages convey a note of finality or completeness…

John 18:33-40 – The Jewish people made a choice to bind the One that came to set them free. In so doing, they remained bound in their sin. Matthew tells us, “Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus to put Him to death; and they bound Him, and led Him away and delivered Him to Pilate the governor.” (Matthew 27:1-2/NASU)

33 Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?"

34 Jesus answered, "Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?"

35 Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?"

36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm."

37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, "So You are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."

38 Pilate said to Him, "What is truth?" And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, "I find no guilt in Him.

39 "But you have a custom that I release [630] someone for you at the Passover; do you wish then that I release [630] for you the King of the Jews?"

40 So they cried out again, saying, "Not this Man, but Barabbas." Now Barabbas was a robber.

NASU

NT:630 apoluo (ap-ol-oo'-o)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from NT:575 and NT:3089; to free fully, i.e. (literally) relieve, release, dismiss (reflexively, depart), or (figuratively) let die, pardon or (specially) divorce:

KJV - (let) depart, dismiss, divorce, forgive, let go, loose, put (send) away, release, set at liberty.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to loose from, sever by loosening, undo

1. to set free (Luke 13:12)

2. to let go, dismiss

a. a suppliant to whom liberty to depart is given by a decisive answer (Matthew 15:23)

b. to bid depart, send away (Matthew 14:15,22 f)

3. to let go free, to release

a. a captive, i. e. to loose his bonds and bid him depart, to give him liberty to depart (Luke 22:68)

b. to acquit one accused of a crime and set him at liberty (John 19:12)

c. indulgently to grant a prisoner leave to depart (Acts 4:21,23)

d. to release a debtor, i. e. not to press one's claim against him, to remit his debt (Matthew 18:27)

4. used of divorce (Matthew 1:19)

5. Middle voice apoluomai, properly, to send oneself away; to depart

Matthew 18:23-35 – In this parable, Jesus taught about forgiveness. He told of a slave who owed a king much money. After threatening to sell the man and his family, the king forgave his debt when he pleaded with him to have mercy. The man then went out and would not forgive the debt of a fellow slave that was owed to him

27 "And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released [630] him and forgave him the debt.

28 "But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe.'

29 "So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.'

30 "But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed.

31 "So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened.

32 "Then summoning him, his lord said to him, 'You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.

33 'Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?'

34 "And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him.

35 "My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."

NASU

Jeremiah 17:4 – God is declaring to Judah the result of their sin against Him. The Hebrew definition for “let go” is “to release, to let drop or loose or rest or fall.” He said to His own people who knew Him, but were not obeying Him and had gone after other gods, that by their own fault they would release themselves, or loose themselves from their inheritance in Him. The KJV says, “And thou, even thyself, shalt discontinue from thine heritage that I gave thee…” (***See Acting Wickedly Toward The Covenant in the Bible study Holding Fast To The Lord. in regards to loosing and letting go.)

4 And you will, even of yourself, let go [8058] of your inheritance That I gave you; And I will make you serve your enemies In the land which you do not know; For you have kindled a fire in My anger Which will burn forever.

NASU

Jeremiah 17:4

4 Through your own fault you will lose [8058] the inheritance I gave you. I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you do not know, for you have kindled my anger, and it will burn forever."

NIV

OT:8058 shamat (shaw-mat')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to fling down; incipiently to jostle; figuratively, to let alone, desist, remit:

KJV - discontinue, overthrow, release, let rest, shake, stumble, throw down.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

to release, to let drop or loose or rest or fall

a) (Qal) to let drop or fall

b) (Niphal) to be made to fall down, to be thrown down

c) (Hiphil)

1) to cause to let drop

2) to release, to let drop

Romans 1:28 – See the note below, and the Bible study Acknowledging God.

28 And just as they did not see fit [1381] to acknowledge [2192/1922- ?] God any longer, God gave them over [3860] to a depraved [96] mind, to do those things which are not proper,

NASU

Romans 1:28

28 Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain [2192] the knowledge [1922] of God, he gave them over [3860] to a depraved [96] mind, to do what ought not to be done.

NIV

Romans 1:28

28 And even as they did not like [1381] to retain [2192] God in their knowledge [1922], God gave them over [3860] to a debased [96] mind, to do those things which are not fitting [“i.e. forbidden, shameful”];

NKJV

NT:2192 echo (ekh'-o)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

including an alternate form scheo (skheh'-o); used in certain tenses only); a primary verb; to hold (used in very various applications, literally or figuratively, direct or remote; such as possessions; ability, continuity, relation, or condition):

KJV - be (able, hold, possessed with), accompany, begin to amend, can (+-not), conceive, count, diseased, do eat, enjoy, fear, following, have, hold, keep, lack, go to law, lie, must needs, of necessity, need, next, recover, reign, rest, return, sick, take for, tremble, uncircumcised, use.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to have

I. Transitively

1. to have equivalent to hold

a. to have (hold) in the hand (Revelation 1:16)

b. in the sense of wearing of garments, arms and the like (Matthew 3:4; 22:12)

c. tropically, to have (hold) possession of the mind

d. to hold fast, keep (Luke 19:20)

e. to have (in itself or as a consequence), comprise, involve (James 1:4; 2:17)

f. to regard, consider, hold as

2. to have equivalent to own, possess

a. external things such as pertain to property, riches, furniture, utensils, goods, food, etc. (Luke 21:4)

b. Under the heading of possession belongs the phrase echein tina as commonly used of those joined to

anyone by the bonds of nature, blood, marriage, friendship, duty, law, compact, and the like:

c. of attendance or companionship (Matthew 15:30)

d. to have a thing in readiness, have at hand, have in store (Matthew 14:17)

e. a person or thing is said echein those things which are its parts or are members of his body:

f. one is said to have the diseases or other ills with which he is affected or afflicted:

g. one is said to have intellectual or spiritual faculties, endowments, virtues, sensations, desires,

emotions, affections, faults, defects, etc. (Revelation 17:9)

h. of age and time:

i. echein ti is said of opportunities, benefits, advantages, conveniences, which one enjoys or can make

use of:

j. echein ti is used of one on whom something has been laid, on whom it is incumbent as something to

be borne, observed, performed, discharged:

k. echein ti is used of one to whom something has been entrusted:

l. in reference to complaints and disputes the following phrases are used:

m. phrases of various kinds:

n. echoo, with an infinitive

1. with the subjunctive, equivalent to be able (Matthew 18:25)

2. is used of what there is a certain necessity for doing:

II. Intransitively

a. to hold oneself or find oneself so and so, to be in such or such a condition:

b. impersonally (1 Timothy 5:25)

III. the middle voice to hold oneself to a thing, to lay hold of a thing, to adhere or cling to; to be closely

joined to a person or thing

NT:1922 epignosis (ep-ig'-no-sis)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from NT:1921 [“to become thoroughly acquainted with, to know accurately, know well, recognize, to understand”]; recognition, i.e. (by implication) full discernment, acknowledgement:

KJV - (ac-) knowledge (-ing, -ment).

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

precise and correct knowledge (Phil. 1:9)

NT:3860 paradidomi (par-ad-id'-o-mee)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from NT:3844 and NT:1325; to surrender, i.e yield up, intrust, transmit:

KJV - betray, bring forth, cast, commit, deliver (up), give (over, up), hazard, put in prison, recommend.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to give over

1. properly, to give into the hands (of another)

2. to give over into (one's) power or use: tini ti, to deliver to one something to keep, use, take care of,

manage (Matthew 11:27)

3. equivalent to to commit, to commend (Acts 14:26)

4. to deliver verbally: commands, rites (Mark 7:13)

5. to permit, allow: absolutely hotan paradoo or paradoi ho karpos, when the fruit will allow, i. e., when

its ripeness permits (Mark 4:29)

NT:96 adokimos (ad-ok'-ee-mos)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from NT:1 (as a negative particle) and NT:1384; unapproved, i.e. rejected; by implication, worthless (literally or morally):

KJV - castaway, rejected, reprobate.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

not standing the test, not approved

In this passage, Paul speaks of those who suppress the truth in unrighteousness (v.18), who knew God but did not honor Him as God in their life (v.21), who exchanged the glory of God and the truth of God for a lie (v.22-25), and were then given over to a depraved mind “since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God,” or “to acknowledge God any longer.”

To acknowledge is “to have, to hold fast, keep, own, possess.” It is the right to possess given only to those who receive Christ as their Lord and Savior that is relinquished due to not continuing in obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit (see the Bible study The Right To Possess). This is also part of the right to become children of God in John 1:12 that is forfeited (see the Bible study and article called Freedom In Christ.)

By definition of the Hebrew words, to not acknowledge is to not keep in hand, to not hold fast but to let go. It is to not recognize Jesus Christ as Lord in your life. According to Merriam Webster, to “recognize” is “to acknowledge formally, to acknowledge or take notice of in some definite way such as; to acknowledge with a show of appreciation; to acknowledge acquaintance with.”

To be given over is “to be given into the hands, or power, of another.” In this reprobate state (see the Bible study Reprobate), they have a “depraved mind” which is defined as being “unapproved, not standing the test” (see the Bible study The Test). As with those in Jeremiah 17:4 (see below), they have loosed themselves from God, which means he is referring to a person who was bound to God originally but through continued rebellion against His Lordship has now been given over (loosed) into the hands of the devil.

You cannot be loosed from that which you were not bound to at one time. Paul is saying they did not keep (retain) God in themselves and have become rejected which, by implication, means “worthless (literally or morally)” (see the Bible study Holding Fast To The Lord). Paul refers to this same type of person in his letter to Titus when he declares, “To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled. They profess to know God, but by their deeds [“works”] they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed.” (Titus 1:15-16/NASU)

You might say, “See, they are unbelievers. Paul is not referring to Christians in this passage.” The Bible tells us, though, that a believer can revert back to being an unbeliever. Using the example of the children of Israel in the wilderness, the writer of Hebrews warns us, saying;

“See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. As has just been said: ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.’ Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?”

(Hebrews 3:12-16/NIV)

The Old Testament type of this is found in two passages that refer to the Israelites journey out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. Exodus 14:31 says, “When Israel saw the great power which the Lord had used against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in His servant Moses.” (NASU) Later, the same “believing” Israelites would have a different heart. The Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people spurn Me? And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst?” (Numbers 14:11/NASU) These unbelieving-believers would be denied entrance into the inheritance in Christ. Their dead bodies would be strewn across the desert for their desertion.

(The following insight is from the Bible studies The Bent Double Woman and The Appearing And Perfecting.)

Luke 13:10-17- Jesus heals a woman in the synagogue, on the Sabbath, who was “bent double” by a spirit for 18 years.

10 And He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.

11 And behold, there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness [769] caused by a spirit; and she was bent double [4794], and could not straighten up [352] at all.

12 And when Jesus saw her, He called her over [4377- prosphoneo- “to address by calling, to call to oneself, to summon”] and said to her, "Woman, you are freed [630- apoluo- [ap-ol-oo’-o]-“to free fully, to let go, dismiss, to detain no longer”~ KJV/NKJV- “…you are loosed”] from your sickness [769]."

13 And He laid His hands [5495- cheir- [khire]- “figuratively, God’s might, activity, power”] upon her; and immediately she was made erect [461] again, and began glorifying God.

14 And the synagogue official, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the multitude in response, "There are six days in which work should be done; therefore come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day."

15 But the Lord answered him and said, "You hypocrites, does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the stall, and lead him away to water him?

16 "And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound [1210- deo- [deh’-o]- “to bind”] for eighteen long years, should she not have been released [3089-luo- loo’-o- “to loosen; to dissolve anything bound, tied, or compacted together”] from this bond on the Sabbath day?"

17 And as He said this, all His opponents were being humiliated; and the entire multitude was rejoicing over all the glorious things being done by Him.

(NAS)

769 astheneia (as-then'-i-ah)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from 772; feebleness (of mind or body); by implication, malady; morally, frailty:

KJV-- disease, infirmity, sickness, weakness.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

lack of strength, weakness, infirmity; used of the body

1) its native weakness and frailty

2) feebleness of health or sickness; used of the soul

3) lack of strength and capacity requisite:

a) to understand a thing

b) to do things great and glorious

c) to restrain corrupt desires

d) to bear trials and troubles

4794 sugkupto (soong-koop'-to)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from 4862 [see definition right below- similar to “koinania”] and 2955 [see definition right below]; to stoop altogether, i.e. be completely overcome by:

KJV-- bow together.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to bend completely forward, to be bowed together

4862 sun (soon)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

a primary preposition denoting union; with or together (but much closer than 3326 or 3844), i.e. by association, companionship, process, resemblance, possession, instrumentality, addition, etc.:

KJV-- beside, with. In composition it has similar applications, including completeness.

2955 kupto (koop'-to)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

probably from the base of 2949; to bend forward:

KJV-- stoop (down).

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to stoop down, to bend forward, to bow the head

352 anakupto (an-ak-oop'-to)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from 303 (in the sense of reversal) and 2955; to unbend, i.e. rise; figuratively, be elated:

KJV-- lift up, look up.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

to raise or lift oneself up

a) one's body

b) one's soul

to be elated or exalted

461 anorthoo (an-orth-o'-o)

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

from 303 and a derivative of the base of 3717 [see definition right below]; to straighten up:

KJV-- lift (set) up, make straight.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

1) to set up, make erect; used of a deformed person

2) to rear again, to build anew

3717 orthos (or-thos')

(Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)

probably from the base of 3735; right (as rising), i.e. (perpendicularly) erect (figuratively, honest), or (horizontally) level or direct:

KJV-- straight, upright.

(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)

straight, erect

a) upright

b) straight, not crooked

Luke 13:10-17 tells when Jesus loosed a woman whom Satan had bound for quite a long time. Verses 11-13 say, “And behold, there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent double, and could not straighten up at all. And when Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, ‘Woman, you are freed from your sickness.’ And He laid His hands upon her; and immediately she was made erect again, and began glorifying God.”

This woman in a synagogue could not “straighten up” (rise up, stand up) because of the evil spirit that bound her. We all have something that the enemy uses to keep us “bent double,” of which one meaning is “to be completely overcome by.” It is taken from the Greek word “sun” which is defined as “denoting union; with or together, i.e. by association, companionship, process, resemblance, possession.”

She had it amongst those with whom she was associating, in fellowship with. Bondage through fellowship with demons (see the Bible study Fellowship With Demons), individually or corporately with others, keeps us from rising up in Christ. This is why the Lord must reach out and touch those who have been bound in the religious systems of man. They have become a great hindrance to His people, holding them in bondage since the deception in the Garden of Eden. While in the company of “hypocrites” she could never get set free. That union must be dissolved in order for the saints to rise up.

(The following insight is from the Bible study The Right To Possess.)

Numbers 33:50-56 – The law of possessing the land (see the note below).

50 Then the Lord spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho, saying,

51 "Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When you cross over the Jordan into the land of Canaan,

52 then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured stones, and destroy all their molten images and demolish all their high places;

53 and you shall take possession of the land and live in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it.

54 'You shall inherit the land by lot according to your families; to the larger you shall give more inheritance, and to the smaller you shall give less inheritance. Wherever the lot falls to anyone, that shall be his. You shall inherit according to the tribes of your fathers.

55 'But if you do not drive out [3423] the inhabitants of the land from before you, then it shall come about that those whom you let remain of them will become as pricks in your eyes and as thorns in your sides, and they will trouble [6887]you in the land in which you live.

56 'And as I plan to do to them, so I will do to you.'" [See the section The Unfaithful Children Of God; From Savior To Enemy in the Bible study Cultivate Faithfulness.]

NASU

OT:3423 yarash (yaw-rash'); or yaresh (yaw-raysh')

(Strong’s exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to occupy (by driving out previous tenants, and possessing in their place); by implication, to seize, to rob, to inherit; also to expel, to impoverish, to ruin:

KJV - cast out, consume, destroy, disinherit, dispossess, drive (-ing) out, enjoy, expel, without fail, (give to, leave for) inherit (-ance, -or) magistrate, be (make) poor, come to poverty, (give to, make to) possess, get (have) in (take) possession, seize upon, succeed, utterly.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

to seize, to dispossess, to take possession off, to inherit, to disinherit, to occupy, to impoverish, to be an heir

a) (Qal)

1) to take possession of

2) to inherit

3) to impoverish, to come to poverty, to be poor

b) (Niphal) to be dispossessed, to be impoverished, to come to poverty

c) (Piel) to devour

d) (Hiphil)

1) to cause to possess or to inherit

2) to cause others to possess or to inherit

3) to impoverish

4) to dispossess

5) to destroy, to bring to ruin, to disinherit

OT:6887 tsarar (tsaw-rar')

(Strong’s exhaustive Concordance)

a primitive root; to cramp, literally or figuratively, transitive or intransitive (as follows):

KJV - adversary, (be in) afflict (-ion), beseige, bind (up), (be in, bring) distress, enemy, narrower, oppress, pangs, shut up, be in a strait (trouble), vex.

(Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon)

1) to bind, to be narrow, to be in distress, to make narrow, to cause distress, to besiege, to be straitened, to be bound

a) (Qal)

1) to bind, to tie up, to shut up

2) to be scant, to be cramped, to be in straits

b) (Pual) to be bound, to be tied up

c) (Hiphil)

1) to make narrow for, to cause distress to, to press hard upon

2) to suffer distress

2) to show hostility toward, to vex

a) (Qal)

1) to show hostility toward, to treat with enmity, to vex, to harass

2) a vexer, a harasser (participle)

All the inhabitants within our hearts must also be driven out. If not, they too will become “as pricks in your eyes and as thorns in your sides”, bringing us much “trouble” in our Christian walks. To take possession of the land the Israelites had to fight against those who currently possessed the land. Victory was guaranteed as long as they obeyed the Lord. Our inner victory over the strongholds of the enemy has been guaranteed for us through Jesus’ death on the cross. His victory is ours ONLY when we walk in obedience, just as the Israelites were commanded to do.

The definition for the Hebrew word we interpret as “trouble” is “to show hostility toward, to vex, to harass.” It can also mean “to bind, to be narrow, to be in distress, to make narrow.” That which we do not remove from within, and without us per the Holy Spirit’s lead, will result in our remaining bound, harassed and oppressed by our enemy. The Lord cannot fully possess what we do not make room for within us.

After giving the church in Corinth instructions from the Lord on what to do so as to be welcomed by the Father, becoming His sons and daughters (see 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1 below), Paul says to them, “Make room for us in your hearts.” (2 Corinthians 7:2) We have to do the same for the Lord. Having been given the right to become the sons of God (John 1:11-12; see the Bible study Freedom In Christ), which is also the right of possession, we must then submit to the Lord, obeying His commands so as to bring it to fruition. This is what James refers to as “faith brought to completion” (James 2:22). We hear the word of the Lord, then do what He says, and it will be manifested.

Binding And Loosing

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