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[Lamentation]

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[martincisneros]

Ancient writings, other than the Scriptures, show how aion and aionios were used in the ordinary affairs of that time period. Long ago in Rome, periodic games were held. These were referred to as "secular" games. Herodian, who wrote in Greek about the end of the second century A.D., called these aionios, "eonian," games. In no sense could those games have been eternal.

In 1Enoch 10:10 there is an interesting statement using the Greek words: zoên aionion, "life eonian," or, as in the KJV, "everlasting life" (at John 3:16 and elswhere). The whole sentence in Enoch is, hoti elpizousi zêsai zoên aionion, kai hoti zêsetai hekastos auton etê pentakosia, "For they hope to live an eonian life, and that each one of them will live five hundred years." Here, eonian life is limited to five hundred years!

St. Justin Martyr repeatedly used the word aionios as in the Apol. (p. 57), aionion kolasin ...all ouchi chiliontaetê periodon, "eonian chastening ...but a period, not a thousand years." Or, as some translate the last clause: "but a period of a thousand years only." He limits the eonian chastening to a period of a thousand years, rather than to endlessness.

Josephus shows that aionios did not mean endlessness, for he uses it of the period between the giving of the law to Moses and that of his own writing; to the period of the imprisonment of the tyrant John by the Romans; and to the period during which Herod's temple stood. The temple had already been destroyed by the time Josephus was writing.

Dr. Mangey, a translator of the writings of Philo, says Philo did not use aionios to express endless duration.

Adolph Deissman gives this account: "Upon a lead tablet found in the Necropolis at Adrumetum in the Roman province of Africa, near Carthage, the following inscription, belonging to the early third century, is scratched in Greek: 'I am adjuring Thee, the great God, the eonian, and more than eonian (epaionion) and almighty...' If by eonian, endless time were meant, then what could be more than endless time?"

In the Apostolical Constitutions, a work of the fourth century A.D., it is said, kai touto humin esto nomimon aionion hos tes suntleias to aionos, "And let this be to you an eonian ordinance until the consummation of the eon." Obviously there was no thought in the author's mind of endless time.

In the Iliad and Odyssey Aión occurs thirteen times, as a noun, besides its occurrence as a participle in the sense of hearing, perceiving, understanding. Homer never uses it as signifying eternal duration. Priam to Hector says, "Thyself shall be deprived of pleasant aiónos" (life.) Andromache over dead Hector, "Husband thou hast perished from aiónos" (life or time.)

Pindar gives thirteen instances, such as "A long life produces the four virtues."(Ela de kai tessaras aretas ho makros aión.)

Sophocles nine times. "Endeavor to remain the same in mind as long as you live." Askei toiaute noun di aiónos menein. He also employs makraion five times, as long-enduring. The word long increases the force of aión, which would be impossible if it had the idea of eternity.

Hippocrates. "A human aión is a seven days matter."

Empedocles, An earthly body deprived of happy life, (aiónos.)

Euripides uses the word thirty-two times.  I'll quote three instances: "Marriage to those mortals who are well situated is a happy aión." "Every aión of mortals is unstable." "A long aión has many things to say," etc.

[martincisneros]

This quote from John W. Hanson helped me enormously my first year in the UR message.  It concerns the fact that "aion" isn't the strongest Greek Word to denote the perpetuity of the life we have in Christ Jesus.  This is from J.W. Hanson's "The Greek Word Aion" that's available on the books page of the main Tentmaker website:

But the Blessed Life has not been left dependent on so equivocal a word. The soul's immortal and happy existence is taught in the New Testament, by words that in the Bible are never applied to anything that is of limited duration. They are applied to God and the soul's happy existence only. These words are akataluton, imperishable; amarantos and amarantinos, unfading; aphtharto, immortal, incorruptible; and athanasian, immortality. Let us quote some of the passages in which these words occur:

Heb. vii:15, 16, "And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchizedek there ariseth another priest, who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless (akatalutos, imperishable) life." 1 Pet. i:3, 4, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, (aphtharton,) and undefiled, and that fadeth not (amaranton) away." 1 Pet. v:4, "And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory thatfadeth not (amarantinos) away." 1 Tim. i:17, "Now unto the King eternal, immortal, (aphtharto,) invisible, the only wise god, be honor and glory forever and ever, Amen." Rom. i:23, "And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man." 1 Cor. ix:25, "Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible." 1 Cor. xv:51-54, "Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, (aphthartoi,) and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, (aphtharsian,) and this mortal must put on immortality (athanasian). So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, (aphtharsian,) and this mortal shall have put on immortality, (athanasian,) then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory." Rom. ii:7, "To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, (aphtharsia,) eternal life." 1 Cor. xv:42, "So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption (aphtharsia)." See also verse 50, 2 Tim i:10, "Who brought life and immortality (aphtharsian) to light, through the gospel." 1 Tim. vi:16, "Who only hath immortality (athanasian)."

  Now these words are applied to God and the soul's happiness. They are words that in the Bible are never applied to punishment, or to anything perishable. They would have been affixed to punishment had the Bible intended to teach endless punishment. And certainly they show the error of those who declare that the indefinite word aiónion is all the word, or the strongest word in the Bible declarative of the endlessness of the life beyond the grave. A little more study of the subject would prevent such reckless statements and would show that the happy, endless life does not depend at all on the pet word of the partialist critics.

[Tony N]

Is the word aion and its derivatives used elsewhere outside of Scripture, in Greek literature etc. to validate that it means age as opposed to eternity?

Plato used aiwn/aion in his Timaeus written about 360 B.C. Some translations of that work give the improper translation of "eternal" for "aion." However, Plato was writing about time and cycles etc. not about unending things.
Under the heading of KRONOC (cronos) or "TIME" is where Plato's thesis is that time came into being when the heavens were created and the bodies (planets etc.) were created. These heavenly bodies mark out kronoc or time and the eons. I believe it definately shows the non-eternalness of the aions.

Here is just a short rendition of Plato's Timaeus:

Plato's use of Aionios, aion, aidios

When the father creator saw the creature which he had made moving and living,
the created image of the imperceptible (aidion) gods, he rejoiced, and in his joy determined to make the copy still more like the original; and as this was eonian, (aionios) he sought to make the universe so far as might be of a like kind. Now the nature of the ideal being was [the] eons (or periods of time or cycles), (aionos plural form or aion) but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was impossible. Wherefore he  resolved to have a moving image of eonian (aionios), and when he set in order the heaven, he  made this image the eons (or periods of time or cycles (aionos)) but moving according to number, while eonian (aionion) itself rests in  unity; and this image we call time. [Tony's reply: Since the image is time (he just said so) and since that which is "eternal" is *non-time* therefore that which is eonian is that which deals with time and not eternity. Plato got it right.  I have put the correct transliteration in bold above to correct the problem. This is about "time" not "eternity."
Tony
Plato timaeus 37d

[Pierac]

Here's a great booklet from our site too.... Make note of the Greek Classics section

http://www.tentmaker.org/books/Aion_lim.html

BTW, Martin sleeps in front of his computer   :laughing7:


Paul

[Tony N]

BTW, Martin sleeps in front of his computer   :laughing7:


Paul

With one eye open, I s'pose  :thumbsup:

[Paul Hazelwood]

When the father creator saw the creature which he had made moving and living,
the created image of the imperceptible (aidion) gods, he rejoiced, and in his joy determined to make the copy still more like the original; and as this was eonian, (aionios) he sought to make the universe so far as might be of a like kind. Now the nature of the ideal being was [the] eons (or periods of time or cycles), (aionos plural form or aion) but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was impossible. Wherefore he  resolved to have a moving image of eonian (aionios), and when he set in order the heaven, he  made this image the eons (or periods of time or cycles (aionos)) but moving according to number, while eonian (aionion) itself rests in  unity; and this image we call time. [Tony's reply: Since the image is time (he just said so) and since that which is "eternal" is *non-time* therefore that which is eonian is that which deals with time and not eternity. Plato got it right.  I have put the correct transliteration in bold above to correct the problem. This is about "time" not "eternity."
Tony
Plato timaeus 37d

Hi Tony,

Wondering if you can elaborate more on Timaeus.

From your post

Now the nature of the ideal being was [the] eons (or periods of time or cycles), (aionos plural form or aion) but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was impossible.

Below is the text that I have found so far in english translations.

Now the nature of the ideal being was everlasting, but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was impossible.

I guess I am looking for various sources to clear this up.  Are the translators in what I have found also rendering the word wrong?

[Tony N]

When the father creator saw the creature which he had made moving and living,
the created image of the imperceptible (aidion) gods, he rejoiced, and in his joy determined to make the copy still more like the original; and as this was eonian, (aionios) he sought to make the universe so far as might be of a like kind. Now the nature of the ideal being was [the] eons (or periods of time or cycles), (aionos plural form or aion) but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was impossible. Wherefore he  resolved to have a moving image of eonian (aionios), and when he set in order the heaven, he  made this image the eons (or periods of time or cycles (aionos)) but moving according to number, while eonian (aionion) itself rests in  unity; and this image we call time. [Tony's reply: Since the image is time (he just said so) and since that which is "eternal" is *non-time* therefore that which is eonian is that which deals with time and not eternity. Plato got it right.  I have put the correct transliteration in bold above to correct the problem. This is about "time" not "eternity."
Tony
Plato timaeus 37d

Hi Tony,

Wondering if you can elaborate more on Timaeus.

From your post

Now the nature of the ideal being was [the] eons (or periods of time or cycles), (aionos plural form or aion) but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was impossible.

Below is the text that I have found so far in english translations.

Now the nature of the ideal being was everlasting, but to bestow this attribute in its fulness upon a creature was impossible.

I guess I am looking for various sources to clear this up.  Are the translators in what I have found also rendering the word wrong?

Yes, it is improper to translate "aion" as "everlasting."  "Everlasting" in the Authorized Version always has aionios (the adjectival form of aion) as its Greek word. In the passage you bring up in Timaeus the word behind "everlasting" is aionas (the plural form of aion) which is not aionios.

The main point is concerning *time*.
When (according to Plato's philosophy above) he (the creator) made a moving image of [that which is] eonian (pertaining to the eons) I believe Plato is talking about the sun, moon, stars and planets which mark out the times and cycles or the eons.

Here is more of Timaeus on KRONOS (time):

Wherefore he resolved to have a moving image of eonian, and when he set in order the heaven, he made this image eons but moving according to number, while eonian itself rests in unity; and this image we call time. For there were no days and nights and months and years before the heaven was created, but when he constructed the heaven he created them also. They are all parts of time, and the past and future are created species of time, which we unconsciously but wrongly transfer to the imperceptible (aidion) essence; for we say that he "was," he "is," he "will be," but the truth is that "is" alone is properly attributed to him, and that "was" and "will be" only to be spoken of becoming in time, for they are motions, but that which is immovably the same cannot become older or younger by time, nor ever did or has become, or hereafter will be, older or younger, nor is subject at all to any of those states which affect moving and sensible things and of which generation is the cause. These are the forms of time, which imitates aionos (eons) and revolves according to a law of number. Moreover, when we say that what has become is become and what becomes is becoming, and that what will become is about to become and that the non-existent is non-existent-all these are inaccurate modes of expression. But perhaps this whole subject will be more suitably discussed on some other occasion.

Time, then, and the heaven came into being at the same instant in order that, having been created together, if ever there was to be a dissolution of them, they might be dissolved together. It was framed after the pattern through the eons (diaiwnias) nature, that it might resemble this as far as was possible; for the pattern exists from the entire eon, and the created heaven has been, and is, and will be, in all time. Such was the mind and thought of God in the creation of time. The sun and moon and five other stars, which are called the planets, were created by him in order to distinguish and preserve the numbers of time; and when he had made-their several bodies, he placed them in the orbits in which the circle of the other was revolving-in seven orbits seven stars. First, there was the moon in the orbit nearest the earth, and next the sun, in the second orbit above the earth; then came the morning star and the star sacred to Hermes, moving in orbits which have an equal swiftness with the sun, but in an opposite direction; and this is the reason why the sun and Hermes and Lucifer overtake and are overtaken by each other.

According to Plato, since God IS not was or will be, He cannot properly mirror the eons since He does not have a cyclic nature.

The best way for God to make a moving image of the eons was to create the sun, moon and stars which mark out time and seasons, cycles. Plato said when these celestial bodies were created that time began.