BIBLE = B.I.B.L.E. ?!?
It is one thing to claim that the word “Bible” stands for “Basic Instruction Before Leaving Earth” when teaching a cradle roll class. That’s relatively acceptable/passable, (at least until they turn six!). It is however indeed quite another thing to make the same claim, in full, intended seriousness, from any other ecclesiastical “pulpit” beyond that instructional level. Indeed to hear pastors or Bible teachers use such lexical quips is really quite disappointing. At best this ‘theology by acronyms’, is gimmicky; at worst, it is quite intellectually numbing, and even Spiritually/Theologically misleading.
Case in point, the above cited, and quite popular acronym, B.I.B.L.E. So... firstly, the Bible is only “Basic Instruction?” What, and where, then is the “Advanced Instruction?” Even (e.g.,) SDA Believers who accept the Spirit of Prophecy as Inspired Biblical “Instruction” know (or should know) that the writings and counsels of Ellen White are, as repeatedly stated by herself, only a “lesser light to lead to the Greater Light of the Bible’ and ‘would not have been needed if the Bible had been carefully studied and followed.’ (See e.g.,
here).
Secondly, if this “Basic Instruction” was given “Before Leaving Earth” then that, historically/chronologically, means that it was given before (assumedly) ‘Jesus Christ left earth’ some 40 days after His resurrection (Acts 1:3, 9). So then that means that everything that took place beyond this chronological point is therefore not part of this ‘Left Behind Basic Instruction’!?!
Such a response statement would be rightly classified as “nitpicking” if it wasn’t the actual conviction, fervent exercise, and even mission, of some to seek to find such “inspired hidden meanings” (ala. The Bible Code), in words simply used in the Bible, and in the local translations no less! Indeed, any such (mis-)construed meanings almost always completely lose all of their prior meaning when applied to another language - E.g., German: Bibel; Spanish: Biblia. Even applying the above meaning to the French “homonym” Bible would require another set of stretched wording.
If anyone is still insistent on finding “spiritual” meanings in Bible words, then may I recommend acquiring and using a good Greek or Hebrew lexicon, for these original Bible languages do copiously make use of the basic meaning in names, words and even letters to formulate/express new Spiritual, and inherently Spiritually significant terms. That is indeed an enlightening, inspired and worthwhile exercise. Even post-Biblical age languages such as Latin, Norse, Old English can be used in this exercise to better understand words that are used in our modern language translations for these languages were mainly conceived out of a quite pervasive Christian backdrop. In this way one would see that when someone today asks God to BLESS him/her, they are really not asking for God to give them various riches, or even, e.g., Bestow on their Life an Endless Supply of Satisfaction, but, according to the etymology of that word, they are asking God to “to consecrate them [i.e., ‘set them apart for a holy use’] (with blood).” [From the Middle and Old English “blessen” and “bletsian/bledsian”, respectively; which all, in turn, may be cognately related to the French (homonym?): “blesser” (“to wound”).[1]
So in conclusion, there is so much serious and consequential “Instruction” yet to be ascertained and learned from the Bible, especially in prophecy, that, especially those who want to teach the Bible to others should focus on, and spend their mental faculties in ascertaining, rather than engaging in such purely arbitrary, ultimately vacuous, gimmicks. Quite cute, I’ll concede, and even surfacedly more “inspirational” at times than, e.g., the actual root meaning of Bible of: “papyrus scroll/book”; but ultimately, just as contributive as a ficklely defective compass, in Siberia, during the winter - i.e., all this time you thought you we going in the right direction when you were really turning in “circles” [2] i.e., “circular reasoning.”
[1] This root meaning throws an entirely new understanding to the quite perfunctory U.S. mantra of “God Bless America”, but that’s a topic for another time.
[2] Cf. The incredible true story of the German POW Cornelius Rost (a.k.a. Clemens Forell) and his 11,000 km escape from an Eastern Siberian Gulag.
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