Knowing the meaning of the terms of Scripture is essential to understanding the divine revelation which God has put in our hands—the Bible. Without a basic understanding of these doctrinal terms and phrases, we will surely miss what God intends for us to learn from His Word.
Looking at Christendom in general, it seems that doctrinal accuracy is not ranked very high in importance with most Christians. As a result, many of them have not taken the time to acquaint themselves with the meanings of the terms and expressions in Scripture. This has left them quite unintelligent as to these things. Relatively few today are “grounded and settled” and “stablished in the faith” (Col. 1:23; 2:7), and many are being “tossed to and fro, and carried about by every wind of doctrine” that comes along (Eph. 4:14).
One of the problems among those who do have an interest in knowing the meanings of the terms of Scripture is that they attempt to understand them through the modern usage and meanings of words in the English language. They don’t seem to realize that the Bible is its own interpreter. This being the case, as a rule, when seeking to understand a particular term, we must look within the covers of the Book itself to learn how God uses that term in order to know what is meant in a certain passage.
Another thing that is common is the “homogenizing” of the terms of Scripture. Many terms are generalized and assumed to be synonymous when they are not. Sadly, much has been lost by handling the Word of God in this way. God, however, is not redundant in His use of terms. If He uses a different word in a passage, it is because there is a different meaning that is being conveyed.
Realizing the need among Christians of understanding these terms in Scripture, a number of books have been produced by various authors in an effort to help people to understand their Bibles better. This is commendable. However, with most of these endeavours the writers themselves are not clear on many of the doctrines in Scripture, and what they have put forth, in many cases, has caused confusion. Commenting on this dilemma, F. B. Hole said, “Christian teaching...all too frequently has seized upon the terms used in God’s revelation, the Bible, and then, having emptied them of their Scriptural meaning, has filled them with another meaning to their own purposes” (Paul’s Epistles, vol. 2. pp. 100-101). Hence, if we rely on the explanations that are currently being taught in Christendom, we may not get the truth.
Since there are variances among Christian teachers as to what these doctrinal terms of Scripture mean, a fair question to ask is, “Which author or book should a person read to insure that he is getting the truth?” It is our conviction that Christians seeking the truth in its purest form (with the most accuracy) ought to adhere as closely as possible to the teachings of those who were connected with a movement of God to recover much truth in the 1800s. This would be spiritual and insightful men such as: J. N. Darby, J. G. Bellett, G. V. Wigram, C. H. Mackintosh, W. Kelly, F. G. Patterson, F. W. Grant, C. Stanley, A. P. Cecil, E. Dennett, T. B. Baines, A. Miller, W. Scott, J. A. Trench, W. T. Turpin, W. W. Fereday, H. H. Snell, W. J. Hocking, W. T. P. Wolston, S. Ridout, H. Smith, etc. These men were nearest to the fountain when God re-opened it and brought back to the Church much precious truth that had been lost for centuries. As a result, their writings present the truth in unequaled brightness. Much of the work of unraveling the mistaken ideas that have been in the Christian world for years has been done for us by these men.
The aim of this book is to help believers on the Lord Jesus Christ to a better understanding of the divine revelation of Christian truth by providing a condensed version of the doctrinal truth that was recovered in the 1800s. It is by no means an exhaustive exposition of what was brought out at that time, but we believe that what is presented in this book is a fair and accurate representation of what those men held and taught. Our concern throughout has been to present the truth in language that our present generation can understand, but at the same time to not lose any of its depth.
It is our conviction that every Christian needs to take time to learn the meaning of the doctrinal terms and phrases of Scripture so as to ensure a sound understanding of the truth conveyed in the Word of God. We cannot hold fast “the faithful Word” (Titus 1:9) if we don’t know what it is! The good news is that we don’t need to enroll in a Bible school or a seminary to learn these things. A simple book, such as this very volume, can serve that purpose. We believe that an intelligent understanding of the divine revelation will increase our appreciation for the truth and for the Lord Himself and His finished work on the cross. It will also help us to order our lives on earth practically more closely to the mind and will of God.
We believe that this handbook will aid the believer in his study of the Scriptures, and therefore, can be used as a companion to the Bible.