Now when all things
are made subject to Him,
then the Son Himself
will also be subject
to Him who put all
things under Him,
that God may be all
in all.
Otherwise, what will
they do
who are baptized for
the dead,
if the dead do not
rise at all?
Why then are they
baptized
for the dead? And why do we
stand in jeopardy
every hour?
1 Corinthians 15: 28
-- 30
Over many years that the men studied the Scripture and none have any more numerous
interpretations as verse 29. So we must
ask the question: "what is baptism for the dead that is mentioned in 1
Corinthians 15: 29? These numerous
explanations that have been offered for this verse range from the metaphorical
explanation for the most insane explanation.
The Mormon Church claims that this verse supports their view of baptism
for the dead. A Mormon who goes to be
baptized with the dead is said to represent or adopt the name of the person
that has died then that person, a Mormon, is baptized in water for the deceased
person. Why? They believe that by this the dead person has fulfilled their
requirement for salvation in the afterworld and then could enjoy the spiritual
benefits that is offered in the spiritual realm. Are they correct? What is
Paul talking about when he mentions baptism in this verse a baptism for the
dead? Remember as we attempt to
translate and interpret Scripture we must never forget that it is, context,
context, and context. Chapter 15 of
First Corinthians, and the first 19 verses Paul is detailing a fact, that
Christ rose from the dead. In verses 20
-- 23 Paul then speaks about the order of Resurrection. And if you remember that Jesus Christ was
the first one raised, not just from the dead, as others were raised from the
dead, Lazarus comes to mind, no, Paul is speaking about the resurrection in a
glorified body, and when He returns for His church, on the last day. Those given to Him (John Chapter 17)
will also be glorified; in a body that is immortal. Then in verses 24 -- 29 Paul outlines the reign of Jesus Christ
and the abolition of death. Now comes
the verse that has been so controversial, verse 29. When a person either forgets, or has never had, a good
understanding of history, then it is difficult for them to understand what a
person in the past wrote; and why he wrote the way that he did. This problem exists today whereby many of
our young school children have little or no knowledge of the history of the
United States. So let's look at some
historical facts: North of Corinth was a city named Eleusis and in the city a
pagan religion was located there were by baptism in the sea was a practice to
guarantee to be one baptized that they would have a good afterlife. Corinth was only some 25-30 miles away and also Corinth was a religious center with the worship of Athena, and Apollo, among others. Located in West Attica,
Greece.
It is situated about 18 km northwest from the center of Athens.
It is best known for having been the site of the Eleusinian Mysteries, one of the most
famous religious events of the ancient Greek religion, From as early as
1700 BC up to the 4th century AD, Eleusis was the site of the Eleusinian Mysteries, or the Mysteries of Demeter
and Kore.
These Mysteries revolved around a belief that there was a hope for life after
death for those who were initiated. Such a belief was cultivated from the
introduction ceremony in which the hopeful initiates were shown a number of
things including the seed of life in a stalk of grain. Today, the city has
become a suburb of Athens. From as
early as 1700 BC up to the 4th century AD, Eleusis was the site of the Eleusinian Mysteries, The Romans referred
to Demeter as Ceres. The Roman cult of Ceres was initially served by Greek priestesses,
according to Cicero in his Pro Balbo oration. This religion was mentioned by
Homer in Hymn to Demeter 478-79.1 The Corinthians were
known to be heavily influenced by other customs. After all, they were in a
large economic area where a great many different people frequented. It is probable that the Corinthians were
being influenced by this mysterious religious practice of baptism for the
dead. Take this fact and those that were
going from congregation to congregation preaching doctrine that the dead do
not rise, that there is no resurrection, and Paul had need to address this
heresy. Now we must not admit that the
Corinthian church was practicing of this heretical practice of the baptism for
the dead for Scripture is clear that Paul was speaking about the pagans who
were doing such and by speaking about this was ensuring that this heresy is not
to invade the church. Paul was speaking
rather simply on this point: the Resurrection is a reality and it will occur
when Jesus returns on the last day.
Think about this, even pagans believe in a resurrection, otherwise they
would not have been baptized for the dead. Well let's take a look at a Greek studies because there still is
some controversy over the word "they" and some they say that it is not in
the Greek. The Greek word is: ποίήσουσιν;
this word is in the third person, plural, future, indicative and active: therefore
being a plural third person when we translate this word we must translate it
with the English word "they."
This ends that argument! The
literal translation of the Greek is clear since what shall they do who are
baptized for the dead if at all the dead are not raised? Why also are they baptized for the
dead." The issue here is the word, "baptizontai"--"they are
baptized." It is the present, passive, indicative, 3rd person,
plural. In other words, it is THEY ARE BEING BAPTIZED or THEY ARE BAPTIZED. The "they" are the pagans.
We should
never just except carte blanc whatever is told to us without investigation and
study for if we do not then we may be easily led into that which is
erroneous. The Mormons certainly have
been led into that which is nothing more than heresy and are taken from Greek
mythology. But what are we to expect
from a so-called religion they cannot even answer the five major questions,
were of a gold plates and kill them if you have them, why is the DNA before
1492 does not have any Jewish DNA but does have the DNA of the Chinese from
northern China, and why do not the animals and the vegetation is listed in the
book of Mormon exists or ever existed in the United States, and where are all
the metal swords and carriages and shields that were said to be part of the
Army of the 2 million who died and they say they know where that place as, and
lastly why cannot we find any of the cities listed in the book of Mormon? You see error begets error! Please take time to study even those things
that I speak about it I just except: that is folly!
Then I saw that wisdom excels folly
as light
excels darkness.
The wise man's eyes are in his head,
but a fool
walks in darkness.
Ecclesiastes 2: 13 – 14a
Pray for guidance by the Holy Spirit
Richard L. Crumb
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