[B-Greek] Acts 16:5

waldo slusher waldoslusher at yahoo.com
Thu Apr 1 14:31:25 EST 2004


Dony:

In each of the citations below you provide, you will
find that the "local body of believers IN A PARTICULAR
LOCATION" is referenced. That is why I highlighted the
OF THE SAINTS in my example. Each time you find
churches in the plural you can substitute it with
"local assemblies/congregations." Within the one city
of Corinth, there were numerous CHURCHES, each
representing a different locale. But all the CHURCHES
together represented the body of Christ (His Church).

Here's two of your examples with my clarifications
added:

1 Corinthians 16:19 The churches (the various local
assemblies) of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla
salute you much in the Lord, with the church (the one
local assembly) that is in their house.

Note, the physical structures are not saluting, but
the members of those local churches.

and...

1 Corinthians 16:1 Now concerning the collection for
the saints (the individual believers), as I have given
order to the churches (local assemblies) of Galatia,
even so do ye.

These local assemblies were groups of believers
meeting in various house-churches or buildings. I
think you will find that you can substitute "local
churches" in each of your references below.

Waldo






"Dony K. Donev" <dony at cupandcross.com>
wrote:============= In responce of ==========

You will find references like this quite often: 1 Cor
14

As in all the churches of the saints, the women should
be silent in the churches...

Churches in the plural will generally reference the
meeting places OF THE SAINTS. They most often met in
house-churches, but occasionally met in "buildings" as
you see later in Acts. 

The easiest way to research this would simply be to
look up all the plurals of church. This shouldn't take
but a few minutes. There's not that many. I got 33
hits when I searched for "houses" in the NET Bible
search engine, and many of these were located in the
footnotes.

Waldo

=======================================

Can I safely assume that "quite often" doesn't mean
always? I found the following uses of the plural of
EKKLESIAH which do not sound like places, house
churches or buildings, but rather actual
people/congregations:

Acts 15:41 And he went through Syria and Cilicia,
confirming the churches.



Acts 16:5 And so were the churches established in the
faith, and increased in number daily



1 Corinthians 16:1 Now concerning the collection for
the saints, as I have given order to the churches of
Galatia, even so do ye.



1 Corinthians 16:19 The churches of Asia salute you.
Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with
the church that is in their house.



2 Corinthians 8:19 And not that only, but who was also
chosen of the churches to travel with us with this
grace, which is administered by us to the glory of the
same Lord, and declaration of your ready mind: {grace:
or, gift}



2 Corinthians 8:24 Wherefore shew ye to them, and
before the churches, the proof of your love, and of
our boasting on your behalf.



2 Corinthians 12:13 For what is it wherein ye were
inferior to other churches, except it be that I myself
was not burdensome to you? forgive me this wrong.



Revelation 2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that
overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life,
which is in the midst of the paradise of God.





Revelation 2:11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh
shall not be hurt of the second death.



Revelation 2:17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that
overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and
will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new
name written, which no man knoweth saving he that
receiveth it.



Revelation 2:29 He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches.



Revelation 3:6 He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches.



Revelation 3:13 He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches.



Revelation 3:22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches.





Dony K. Donev
http://cupandcross.com/







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