Over the years, we continue to see that God’s commands are stable and dependable for our standard of living, while culture, because of its continual changes is not. Here is one great example to use to measure stability as we study the Bible. The history of some words shows that it takes on different meaning as culture changes…take BULLY for example. When the word originated it meant “sweetheart.” Several centuries later “blusterer/someone full of hot air and empty threats,” and finally, the one we are familiar with “harasser of the weak.” This word is considered an auto-antonym; words with opposing meaning like “cleave,” that means to cut apart” or “to bind together.” Wouldn’t it have been easier and less confusing to add another word to the dictionary?
This proves that our current dictionary should never be the only tool we use as we study the scriptures. Defining the words correctly is twofold, that means understanding the culture of that time, and finding out what the word meant in that era, which brings us to the all changing versions of the Bible. To make an easier read, bible words are redefined by our current dictionary. And as we see, those definitions continue to change base on the culture, resulting in some cases, in a change to the original message and its intent.
A decade from today, there would be much more auto-antonyms and as we continue to update the language of the bible to that current lingo, the bible will take on new and different forms from its origin. Therefore, as we study, the principle of defining the bible based on the Bible culture and era, should never ever be changed.