MEANINGFUL BIBLICAL REPENTANCE
(Shared from International Standard Bible Encyclopedia)
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Repentance
rḗ-pen´tans:
I. OLD TESTAMENT TERMS
1. To Repent - “to Pant,” “to Sigh”
2. To Repent - “to Turn” or “Return”
II. NEW TESTAMENT TERMS
1. Repent - “to Care,” “Be Concerned”
2. Repent - “to Change the Mind”
3. Repent - “to Turn Over,” “to Turn
Upon,” “to Turn Unto”
III. THE PSYCHOLOGICAL ELEMENTS
1. The Intellectual Element
2. The Emotional Element
3. The Volitional Element
LITERATURE
To
get an accurate idea of the precise New Testament meaning of this highly important
word it is necessary to consider its approximate synonyms in the original
Hebrew and Greek The psychological elements of repentance should be considered
in the light of the general teaching of Scripture.
I. Old Testament Terms.
1. To Repent - “To Pant,” “To Sigh”:
The Hebrew word נחם, nāḥam, is an onomatopoetic term which implies difficulty in
breathing, hence, “to pant,” “to sigh,” “to groan.” Naturally it came to
signify “to lament” or “to grieve,” and when the emotion was produced by the
desire of good for others, it merged into compassion and sympathy, and when
incited by a consideration of one's own character and deeds it means “to rue,”
“to repent.” To adapt language to our understanding, God is represented as
repenting when delayed penalties are at last to be inflicted, or when
threatened evils have been averted by genuine reformation (Gen_6:6; Jon_3:10).
This word is translated “repent” about 40 times in the Old Testament, and in
nearly all cases it refers to God. The principal idea is not personal relation
to sin, either in its experience of grief or in turning from an evil course.
Yet the results of sin are manifest in its use. God's heart is grieved at man's
iniquity, and in love He bestows His grace, or in justice He terminates His
mercy. It indicates the aroused emotions of God which prompt Him to a different
course of dealing with the people. Similarly when used with reference to man,
only in this case the consciousness of personal transgression is evident. This
distinction in the application of the word is intended by such declarations as
God “is not a man, that he should repent” (1Sa_15:29;
Job_42:6; Jer_8:6).
2. To Repent - “To Turn” or
“Return”:
The term שׁוּב, shūbh, is most generally employed to express the Scriptural
idea of genuine repentance. It is used extensively by the prophets, and makes
prominent the idea of a radical change in one's attitude toward sin and God. It
implies a conscious, moral separation, and a personal decision to forsake sin
and to enter into fellowship with God. It is employed extensively with
reference to man's turning away from sin to righteousness (Deu_4:30; Neh_1:9;
Psa_7:12; Jer_3:14).
It quite often refers to God in His relation to man (Exo_32:12; Jos_7:26).
It is employed to indicate the thorough spiritual change which God alone can
effect (Psa_85:4). When the term is
translated by “return” it has reference either to man, to God, or to God and man
(1Sa_7:3; Psa_90:13
(both terms, nāḥam and shūbh; Isa_21:12; Isa_55:7). Both terms are also sometimes
employed when the twofold idea of grief and altered relation is expressed, and
are translated by “repent” and “return” (Eze_14:6;
Hos_12:6; Jon_3:8).
II. New Testament Terms.
1. Repent - “To Care,” “Be
Concerned”:
The term μεταμέλομαι, metamélomai, literally signifies to have a feeling or care, concern
or regret; like nāḥam, it expresses the emotional aspect of repentance. The
feeling indicated by the word may issue in genuine repentance, or it may
degenerate into mere remorse (Mat_21:29,
Mat_21:32; Mat_27:3).
Judas repented only in the sense of regret, remorse, and not in the sense of
the abandonment of sin. The word is used with reference to Paul's feeling
concerning a certain course of conduct, and with reference to God in His
attitude toward His purposes of grace (2Co_7:8
the King James Version; Heb_7:21).
2. Repent - “To Change the Mind”:
The word μετανοέω, metanoéō, expresses the true New Testament idea of the spiritual
change implied in a sinner's return to God. The term signifies “to have another
mind,” to change the opinion or purpose with regard to sin. It is equivalent to
the Old Testament word “turn.” Thus, it is employed by John the Baptist, Jesus,
and the apostles (Mat_3:2; Mar_1:15; Act_2:38).
The idea expressed by the word is intimately associated with different aspects
of spiritual transformation and of Christian life, with the process in which
the agency of man is prominent, as faith (Act_20:21),
and as conversion (Act_3:19); also with
those experiences and blessings of which God alone is the author, as remission
and forgiveness of sin (Luk_24:47; Act_5:31). It is sometimes conjoined with
baptism, which as an overt public act proclaims a changed relation to sin and
God (Mar_1:4; Luk_3:3; Act_13:24;
Act_19:4). As a vital experience,
repentance is to manifest its reality by producing good fruits appropriate to
the new spiritual life (Mat_3:8).
3. Repent - “To Turn over,” “To
Turn upon,” “To Turn Unto”:
The word έπιστρέφω, epistréphō, is used to bring out more clearly the distinct change
wrought in repentance. It is employed quite frequently in Acts to express the
positive side of a change involved in New Testament repentance, or to indicate
the return to God of which the turning from sin is the negative aspect. The two
conceptions are inseparable and complementary. The word is used to express the
spiritual transition from sin to God (Act_9:35;
1Th_1:9); to strengthen the idea of
faith (Act_11:21); and to complete and
emphasize the change required by New Testament repentance (Act_26:20).
There is great difficulty in
expressing the true idea of a change of thought with reference to sin when we
translate the New Testament “repentance” into other languages. The Latin
version renders it “exercise penitence” (poenitentiam agere). But
“penitence” etymologically signifies pain, grief, distress, rather than a
change of thought and purpose. Thus Latin Christianity has been corrupted by
the pernicious error of presenting grief over sin rather than abandonment of
sin as the primary idea of New Testament repentance. It was easy to make the
transition from penitence to penance, consequently the Romanists represent
Jesus and the apostles as urging people to do penance (poenitentiam agite).
The English word “repent” is derived from the Latin repoenitere, and
inherits the fault of the Latin, making grief the principal idea and keeping it
in the background, if not altogether out of sight, the fundamental New
Testament conception of a change of mind with reference to sin. But the
exhortations of the ancient prophets, of Jesus, and of the apostles show that
the change of mind is the dominant idea of the words employed, while the
accompanying grief and consequent reformation enter into one's experience from
the very nature of the case.
III. The Psychological Elements.
1. The Intellectual Element:
Repentance is that change of a
sinner's mind which leads him to turn from his evil ways and live. The change
wrought in repentance is so deep and radical as to affect the whole spiritual
nature and to involve the entire personality. The intellect must function, the
emotions must be aroused, and the will must act. Psychology shows repentance to
be profound, personal and all-pervasive. The intellectual element is manifest
from the nature of man as an intelligent being, and from the demands of God who
desires only rational service. Man must apprehend sin as unutterably heinous,
the divine law as perfect and inexorable, and himself as coming short or
falling below the requirements of a holy God (Job_42:5,
Job_42:6; Psa_51:3;
Rom_3:20).
2. The Emotional Element:
There may be a knowledge of sin
without turning from it as an awful thing which dishonors God and ruins man.
The change of view may lead only to a dread of punishment and not to the hatred
and abandonment of sin (Exo_9:27; Num_22:34; Jos_7:20;
1Sa_15:24; Mat_27:4).
An emotional element is necessarily involved in repentance. While feeling is
not the equivalent of repentance, it nevertheless may be a powerful impulse to
a genuine turning from sin. A penitent cannot from the nature of the case be
stolid and indifferent. The emotional attitude must be altered if New Testament
repentance be experienced. There is a type of grief that issues in repentance
and another which plunges into remorse. There is a godly sorrow and also a
sorrow of the world. The former brings life; the latter, death (Mat_27:3; Luk_18:23;
2Co_7:9, 2Co_7:10).
There must be a consciousness of sin in its effect on man and in its relation
to God before there can be a hearty turning away from unrighteousness. The
feeling naturally accompanying repentance implies a conviction of personal sin
and sinfulness and an earnest appeal to God to forgive according to His mercy (Psa_51:1, Psa_51:2,
Psa_51:10-14).
3. The Volitional Element:
The most prominent element in the
psychology of repentance is the voluntary, or volitional. This aspect of the
penitent's experience is expressed in the Old Testament by “turn”, or “return,”
and in the New Testament by “repent” or “turn.” The words employed in the
Hebrew and Greek place chief emphasis on the will, the change of mind, or of
purpose, because a complete and sincere turning to God involves both the
apprehension of the nature of sin and the consciousness of personal guilt (Jer_25:5; Mar_1:15;
Act_2:38; 2Co_7:9,
2Co_7:10). The demand for repentance
implies free will and individual responsibility. That men are called upon to
repent there can be no doubt, and that God is represented as taking the
initiative in repentance is equally clear. The solution of the problem belongs
to the spiritual sphere. The psychical phenomena have their origin in the
mysterious relations of the human and the divine personalities. There can be no
external substitute for the internal change. Sackcloth for the body and remorse
for the soul are not to be confused with a determined abandonment of sin and
return to God. Not material sacrifice, but a spiritual change, is the
inexorable demand of God in both dispensations (Psa_51:17;
Isa_1:11; Jer_6:20;
Hos_6:6).
Repentance is only a condition of
salvation and not its meritorious ground. The motives for repentance are
chiefly found in the goodness of God, in divine love, in the pleading desire to
have sinners saved, in the inevitable consequences of sin, in the universal
demands of the gospel, and in the hope of spiritual life and membership in the
kingdom of heaven (Eze_33:11; Mar_1:15; Luk_13:1-5;
Joh_3:16; Act_17:30;
Rom_2:4; 1Ti_2:4).
The first four beatitudes (Mat_5:3-6)
form a heavenly ladder by which penitent souls pass from the dominion of Satan
into the Kingdom of God. A consciousness of spiritual poverty dethroning pride,
a sense of personal unworthiness producing grief, a willingness to surrender to
God in genuine humility, and a strong spiritual desire developing into hunger
and thirst, enter into the experience of one who wholly abandons sin and
heartily turns to Him who grants repentance unto life.
Literature.
Various theological works and commentaries Note
especially Strong, Systematic Theology, III, 832-36; Broadus on Mat_3:2, American Comm.; article “Busse”
(Penance). Hauck-Herzog, Realencyklopadie fur protestantische Theologie und
Kirche.
