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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadInternational Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Temper
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tem´pẽr: The word is used in the King James Version to render different Hebrew words. In for “temper†(רסס, raÌ„sÌ£asÌ£) the Revised Version (British and American) substitutes “moisten.†In Song () a noun from the same stem means “dew-drops.†In the King James Version we read “cakes unleavened, tempered (בּלל, baÌ„lal, literally, “mixedâ€) with oil,†the Revised Version (British and American) “mingled.†The word denotes “rough-and-ready mixing.†In the recipe for the making of incense given in Ex () occur the words “tempered together,†מלח, maÌ„lahÌ£ (literally, “saltedâ€; hence, the Revised Version (British and American) “seasoned with saltâ€). The word occurs in two interesting connections in The Wisdom of Solomon 15:7 (the Revised Version (British and American) “kneadâ€) and 16:21. In it occurs in English Versions of the Bible as a rendering of the Greek word συγκεÏαÌννυμι, sugkeraÌnnumi, which meant to “mix together.†Paul is arguing in favor of the unity of the church and of cooperation on the part of individual members, and uses as an illustration the human body which consists of various organs with various functions. It is God, argues the apostle, who has “tempered,†“compounded†or “blended,†the body. Each member has its place and function and must contribute to the welfare of the whole frame. The same Greek word occurs in . The author urges the necessity of faith in regard to the gospel. The unbelieving Israelites had derived no benefit from their hearing of the gospel because their hearing of it was not “mixed†with faith.