I CORINTHIANS 16:22

Even those who have been able to cruise through the KJV of I Corinthians almost to the end without much trouble in understanding it, will probably grind to a halt with this verse, which contains two puzzling foreign words which are not translated into English at all, but merely transliterated:

    “If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha.”

There are at least four key words in this short verse worth considering in more detail.

This verse provides an excellent example of the great value of a good Greek-English word-book in helping us understand the background and meaning of the the original words in the New Testament, whatever English translation we may prefer using. Thus, in this case, I am limiting my citations to articles found in (a) Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, a very popular but older, one-volume resource and The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, a more recently published three-volume scholarly work edited by Colin Brown.

The Setting

There is some disagreement among scholars regarding the original context for the comments in this verse, and the answer has some bearing on the use of the four words given below.

Although some liberal Bible scholars have argued that the title 'Lord' (kyrios) for Jesus arose in a latter Hellenistic setting, “in favor of a Palestinian [origin] is the Aramaic formula maranatha...The ascription of lordship to Christ in this Aramaic formula indicates that Jesus was already called Lord in Palestinian Christianity at an early date.” (Bietenhard)

If the above is true, then what is the specific early setting in which these words were originally used? Below is Kloppert's reasoning on this subject.

“Parts of the introductory liturgy to the celebration of the primitive Christian meal are to be found in 1 Cor. 11:26ff; 16:20-23; and Rev. 22:17-21. Paul concludes 1 Cor. with a series of liturgical phrases – the invitation to the holy kiss (1 Cor. 16:20; Rom. 16:16). The anathema at the beginning of the celebration of the meal excluded the unworthy from the Lord's Supper (1 Cor. 16:22b). To strengthen this there followed the Maranatha (1 Cor. 16:22b), which called upon the kyrios to be present ('Our Lord, come!'; cf. Rev. 22:20). Even if the church with this call 'our Lord, come!' was praying for the Lord's eschatological coming, this did not exclude the presence of the exalted Lord at the Lord's Supper, but rather assumed it. The achri hou elthe ('until he comes') of 1 Cor. 11:26 clearly reflects the Maranatha of the Lord's Supper liturgy...”

But Colin Brown has more to say on this subject, beginning with: “Several writers have seen the possibility of an alternative or complementary setting to that of the Lord's Supper.” Among these he includes a context of cursing, “an invocation that the Lord would soon come in judgment to redress wrong and establish right;” and “the first Christian prayer group looking back to Matt. 18:30.”

“love”

“Phileo is to be distinguished from agapao in this, that phileo more nearly represents tender affection. The two words are used for the love of the Father for the Son; for the believer; both of Christ's love for a certain disciple...Yet the distinction between the two words remains, and they are never used indiscriminately in the same passage; if each is used with reference to the same objects, as just mentioned, each word retains its distinctive and essential character. (Vine)

Gunther and Link: “In 1 Cor. 16:22 phileo is clearly used of love for the Lord Jesus...By contrast, agape and agapao are used in nearly every case in the NT to speak of God's relationship with man...”

“Lord”

Vine states, “Kurios, properly an adjective, signifying power (kuros) or authority, is used as a noun.” He then gives biblical examples illustrating the seven different types of people to which this term can refer, including: owner, master, Emperor or King, idols (in an ironic sense), father, husband, stranger, God, and Jesus. He does not, however, specifically indicate which of these applies to its use in I Corinthians 16:22, but from the context it is obviously the last listed possibility

See Mundle's comments below concerning maranatha for more concerning the meaning of “Lord.”

“Anathema”

Vine: “Anathema, transliterated from the Greek, is frequently used in the Sept[uagint], where it translates the Heb. cherem, a thing devoted to God, whether (a) for His service...or (b) for its destruction, as an idol...Later it acquired the more general meaning of the disfavor of Jehovah, e.g. Zech. 14:11. This is the meaning in the N.T. It is used of (a) the sentence pronounced, Acts 23:14..; (b) of the object on which the curse is laid...Rom. 9:3; I Cor. 12:3; 16:22, Gal. 1:8,9...”

“The LXX uses anathema regularly to translate the Heb. herem, ban, what is bound...What is banned (person or things) is directly given up to God...Paul takes over a restricted use of anathema from the LXX: the cursed thing, what has been dedicated to destruction...As G. Bornkamm has shown convincingly, the curse formula in 1 Cor. 16:22, like the remaining formulae at the end of 1 Cor. stems from the liturgy of the Lord's Supper. The anathema calls upon those participating to test their faith – which finds expression in their love to the Lord – before the meal so that before the partaking of it the unworthy may be excluded (cf. 1 Cor. 11:28). The formula eto anathema ('let him be anathema;' RSV 'accursed') is not a 'disciplinary order' of some human court to prosecute an unworthy person. Rather it pronounces for a specific case the sentence that comes from God and delivers the offender to the punishment of God.” (Aust and Muller)

“Maranatha”

Vine explains this as “an expression used in I Cor. 16:22.., the Greek spelling for two Aramaic words, formerly supposed by some to be an imprecatory utterance or 'a curse reinforced by a prayer,' an idea contrary to the intimations conveyed by its use in early Christian documents...Certain Aramaic scholars regard the last part as consisting of 'tha,' and regard the phrase as a ejaculation, 'Our Lord, come,' or 'O Lord, come.' The character of the context, however, indicates that the Apostle is making a statement rather than expressing a desire or uttering a prayer.”

“Its precise meaning is disputed...Either we take it as a perfect (maran 'atha), i.e. our Lord has come, or as an imperative (marana ta), i.e. our Lord come! Other meanings are unlikely...most expositors still regard the Jerusalem church as the most likely source of the phrase. Moreover, if this is so, it suggests that the term Lord is to be understood against a Jewish raather than a syncretistic background.” (Mundle)

And in another article, Mundle says that “the certainty that Jesus will come again in power and glory belongs to the Easter message...The strength of this hope which fills the whole NT is shown by the prayer-cry maranatha (I Cor. 16:22) which was an early Aram. expression meaning 'Our Lord, come!' It is reflected in the prayer at the end of Rev.: 'Come, Lord Jesus!' (22:20).”

Conclusion

Aust and Muller combine three of these key terms together in the following statement: “The anathema means a call to self-examination...Cf. maranatha which with its reference to the heavenly Lord further emphasizes the anathema.”