Featured Gail Riplinger

I rarely use that one, though I have it in BibleWorks. It's too hard to use for one thing, IMO.

 

Their credentials were having spent three years with Jesus--no doubt worth several grad degrees nowadays.

 

One thing that puzzles me in the writings of Ripliger and many others with her position or a similar one: Why don't they capitalize "Bible"? I've seen it over and over on KJVO websites, and am right now looking at p. 16 of New Age Bible Versions (NABV), where it is 'bible' in the middle of the page, though she has just finished quoting two people who wrote "Bible." She has "bible" on the next page also, and on many other pages.

I love the Word of God so much that I show respect by capitalizing Bible. I read and translate it every day of my life. I love it so much that I will put no other book on top of it--not commanded anywhere, just a matter of personal respect.

 

I'm bothered by the lack of proper sourcing many times in Riplinger's books. When my students write a paper for me, I count off if they haven't sourced it properly.

On p. 37 of Hazardous Materials, she writes, "Zodhiates plagiarized so much that he was even sued for it. And on it goes." This is a very serious charge. If he did plagiarize, then he loses all credibility with Christians.

Now I've known of the ministry of Spiros Zodhiates for decades, and never heard of this. If it is true, why doesn't she source it? Is she spreading rumors, or is it true? I can't find any proof of it on the Internet. (Maybe our intrepid BB researcher Jerome can find something.)

Again, even if it is true, did he lose the lawsuit? She doesn't say. If he won the lawsuit, it's all good. He didn't plagiarize. Would you like to be judged by the accusations against you rather than the actual facts? I thought not.

 

The full title is Hazardous Materials: Greek and Hebrew Study Dangers. You can get several free chapters on her website at: AVPublications - Thank you for visiting! About Zodiates, I quoted from the "Introduction," which is a long chapter, available there.

 

But I should have said, thanks for the link!

 

Right now, my Greek 101 students are taking their final exam, so I've been going through the first chapter of Hazardous Materials and looking at Riplinger's use and misuse of Scripture. Some of it is very shocking, especially the last one.

I stopped at p. 21, because for a while after that she doesn't really quote Scripture. You should be shocked and offended at how badly she twists many Scriptures. It will take several posts to get all of these listed. My comments will be underlined.

First of all:
“You are about to take a trip through the time barrier, looking behind time-closed doors where men coined counterfeit words to ‘choke the word’ and the voice of God (Matt. 13:22).” (p. 13).
This is about the spoken word of the Gospel, not the written Word of God per se.

“Lay hands suddenly on no man,” the Bible warns (1 Tim. 5:22). Some have laid their hands on Greek and Hebrew study tools without a thorough examination of the beliefs of the men who penned them.” (p. 13)
She is using a verse about ordaining church leaders to apply to those who have provided Greek and Hebrew study tools.

“According to the book of Luke, Satan comes immediately after a scripture has been given and tries to take it away. ‘Then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts’ Luke 8:12” (p. 15).
This verse is not about lexical definitions, as she would have it, but the Gospel.

 

“A man who does not ‘tremble’ at the word is not fit to teach the word (Isa. 66:5).”
This is not necessarily a misuse, but I have to say, why does she say “a man” here when she is a woman teaching God’s Word?

“The ‘fiery’ ‘serpent’ still lurks around the Greek tree of knowledge in every unpruned garden (Isa. 14:29).” (p. 16)
This passage is clearly a warning and prophecy to “Palestina,” with no reference to the serpent in the Garden of Eden. And there is no way in the world that a good exegete would then make a secondary application (through the mistaken reference to the Garden of Eden) that this refers to Greek knowledge. That is absurd.

"In Awe of Thy Word established the primacy and inspiration of the King James Bible as THE “one” interpreter of the scriptures for the English speaking people since A.D. 1611 (1 Cor. 14:27)."
This is an error in exegesis very typical of her and other writers like her. The verse says in the KJV: “If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret.” How in the world she got the English KJV out of that I’ll never know. Let me be clear: English did not exist when the NT was written, nor was it prophesied. In fact, the English speaking countries (US, England, Canada, etc.) did not even exist when the NT was written. There is no way on God’s green earth that the Bible refers in any slightest way, shape or form to the English language and any Bible translated into it.

“The perpetual temptation is to know more than God has already revealed. Even Moses said, ‘I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.’ But God replied, ‘Thou canst not see my face; for there shall no man see me, and live…thou shalt see my back parts; but my face shall not be seen’ (Exodus 33:18-23).” (p. 19)
This passage is not about further knowledge of the meaning of the Greek and Hebrew, as Gail would have it, but about the holiness of God. There is nothing in the passage about the written Word of God and the meaning of it in the original languages. If it were about the meaning of the original languages of the Bible, wouldn’t God then kill me when I looked up a word in a lexicon?

 

I had to put this one be itself since it is so egregious. She wrote:

“Now, for the first time, this book’s original groundbreaking new research demonstrates the faulty nature of all tools which pretend to take the reader back to so-called ‘original’ Greek and Hebrew texts and meanings. New Age Bible Versions was milk; now the reader is ready to chew meat (1 Cor. 3:2). Jesus had cautioned, ‘I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now’ (John 16:12).” (p. 21)

Unbelievably, here she is actually putting her writings on a par with the very Word of God! She actually expects you to think of her new book, Hazardous Materials, as equivalent to the Word of God that this passage is very clearly referring to as being taught by Paul. But let’s say, what if it’s not referring to actual Scripture, but only to Paul’s teaching? Well, then, if that is true then she is putting her book on the same level as the Apostle Paul’s teaching. But wait, then she compares her book to the teaching of Jesus Christ Himself. Frankly, I don’t see how even the typical KJVO person can swallow this—but many of them do.

If any KJVO person who likes Riplinger and is reading this, please defend it, if you can. It is absolutely awful.

 

An old timer has informed me that yes, there was a plagiarism lawsuit against Zhodiates, and he lost it. He took big sections from The Theological Word Book of the Old Testament., put out by Moody. Moody made him pay royalties and acknowledge the source, but didn't make him withdraw his materials.

That being true, I still think Riplinger should have sourced it.

 

Hoping to be wrong about Gail's evangelism, I looked at this 550 page document and did some searches. "Child evangelism" occurs once on p. 109, but it is nothing she did or is recommending. The Great Commission appears nowhere.

The term "witness" occurs 43 times, but only about the JWs, witness to a certain text, witnesses in court, etc. It only occurs once about being a witness for Christ, on p. 526-527, where she writes, "The Lord knew I would witness to students, so he spread me thin, teaching 17 different college courses, including upper division courses in over six different and highly divergent majors, several in which I had no academic experience." But she doesn't tell about any getting saved, or whether we ourselves should witness.

She does talk about her witnessing on p. 26, where she says, "As a former college professor at a secular university, I must admit that college students hold a special place in my heart. My daring adventures while telling students about salvation through Jesus Christ could fill a thrilling book." Well, great! Trot out the book! I'd read it!

I have about 50 books on evangelism, and love books on folks getting saved. Read John R. Rice's I Saw These Come to Christ, or Walter Wilson's classic books on folks he led to Christ. I even have a chapter on folks I led to Christ in my little book from 1979, The Making of a Soul Winner.

I did a search in Gail's book for "evangelist," which does occur 9 times, once in reference to D. L. Moody and once to Billy Sunday, but not in connection with souls saved; otherwise mostly in connection with the Gospels. I also found this mention on p. 26, where she refers to her daughter's fiance as "an evangelist for the KJB."

Where in the Bible does it tell us to be an evangelist for a Bible translation? Never! Folks, once again, the Bible is a sword, not a lamb to be protected. I have 3 swords, and have been trained in their usage (stage fighting and Asian martial arts). If you come in my house to attack and steal, I won't say, "Don't touch my swords or I'll clobber you." I'll just stab you with one!

I have dear friends who are KJVO, and I know many others. I have great respect for the KJVO person who loves his Bible (capital "B" folks), but doesn't bother to write books about it, but just goes out to stab people with it--win them to Christ. I know some awesome printing ministries like this, that just want to print the Word of God in other languages, and get them out to the mission field. I've stood in a warehouse with millions of Bibles in other languages waiting to be sent out. Awesome! Our own Lifeline Japanese NT should be printed by one of these very soon, now that we're done with it.

Don't defend the Bible, go out and fight the Devil with it!

 

On p. 493 of this book, Riplinger calls Biblical Hebrew and Greek, "the damnation of many young men." If that be so, than until the KJV (and after), millions of young people receive damnation, including my own precious Greek students, who serve God with prayer, soul winning, and tonight with an awesome Christmas concert designed to win souls to Christ. We have several 1000 outsiders signed up for our various Christmas programs this year. The Gospel will be given over and over, as it was tonight. Check it out here: A Spectacular Christmas Festival - Experience Christmas at Falls Baptist!

I was on security for our Christmas concert tonight and will be tomorrow. (I turned 70 today, but still do my martial arts.) If you would like to see the quality of our productions, here is an example: