Basic HTML Version
$
(
$ "
, 3886), lit., “to loose from the side,” hence, “to set free,” is used in
the passive voice of “being enfeebled by a paralytic stroke, palsied,” Luke 5:18,
RV
,
“palsied” (
KJV
, “taken with a palsy”); 5:24 (ditto), in the best mss.; Acts 8:7 (ditto); 9:33,
RV
, “he was palsied” (
KJV
, “was sick of the palsy”); Heb. 12:12,
RV
, “palsied (knees),”
KJV
, “feeble.” See
FEEBLE
.¶
For
PANGS,
Acts 2:24
,
RV
, see
PAIN
For
PAPS
see
BREAST
PAPER
(
1$
, 5489), “a sheet of paper made of strips of papyrus” (whence Eng.,
“paper”), Eng., “chart,” “charter,” etc.; the word is used in 2 John 12.¶ The papyrus reed
grew in ancient times in great profusion in the Nile and was used as a material for
writing. From Egypt its use spread to other countries and it was the universal material for
writing in general in Greece and Italy during the most flourishing periods of their
literature.
The pith of the stem of the plant was cut into thin strips, placed side by side to form a
sheath. Another layer was laid upon this at right angles to it. The two layers were united
by moisture and pressure and frequently with the addition of glue. The sheets, after being
dried and polished, were ready for use. Normally, the writing is on that side of the
papyrus on which the fibers lie horizontally, parallel to the length of the roll, but where
the material was scarce the writer used the other side also (cf. Rev. 5:1). Papyrus
continued to be used until the seventh cent., A.D., when the conquest of Egypt by the
Arabs led to the disuse of the material for literary purposes and the use of vellum till the
12th century.
PARABLE
1.
(
$ )
, 3850) lit. denotes “a placing beside” (akin to
, “to
throw” or “lay beside, to compare”). It signifies “a placing of one thing beside another”
with a view to comparison (some consider that the thought of comparison is not
necessarily contained in the word). In the NT it is found outside the gospels, only in Heb.
9:9 and 11:19. It is generally used of a somewhat lengthy utterance or narrative drawn
from nature or human circumstances, the object of which is to set forth a spiritual lesson,
e.g., those in Matt. 13 and Synoptic parallels; sometimes it is used of a short saying or
proverb, e.g., Matt. 15:15; Mark 3:23; 7:17; Luke 4:23; 5:36; 6:39. It is the lesson that is
of value; the hearer must catch the analogy if he is to be instructed (this is true also of a
proverb). Such a narrative or saying, dealing with earthly things with a spiritual meaning,
is distinct from a fable, which attributes to things what does not belong to them in nature.
Christ’s “parables” most frequently convey truths connected with the subject of the
kingdom of God. His withholding the meaning from His hearers as He did from the
multitudes, Matt. 13:34, was a divine judgment upon the unworthy.
Two dangers are to be avoided in seeking to interpret the “parables” in Scripture, that
of ignoring the important features, and that of trying to make all the details mean
something.
2.
(
$ &
, 3942) denotes “a wayside saying” (from
, “by the
way”), “a byword,” “maxim,” or “problem,” 2 Pet. 2:22. The word is sometimes spoken