FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE AND THE LORD S SUPPER One of the very tragic conditions in the religious world is the failure to understand figurative, or symbolic language, language that is widely observed in the Scripture. Because of this, false doctrine is taught which is not pleasing to God in any way. Several examples of this might be given: For example, preachers of religious groups will make literal the VISIONS of the book of Revelation, and, as a result, will teach theories about the end of the world that the inspired apostle John, and the Lord, never intended that we believe. Second, a failure to understand figurative language is involved in the Catholic teaching of transubstantiation which says that, when the elements of the Lord s Supper are blessed, they literally become the actual body and blood of Christ. Third, even among a few churches of Christ, there are those who teach that Jesus was concerned about the literal container in the Lord s Supper, and they teach that there must be only ONE CONTAINER for the fruit of the vine. First of all, there are only a few congregations that teach the ONE CUP doctrine. In brother Mac Lynn s directory of churches of Christ in the United States in 1997, this teaching was found in only 4% of the total number of churches of Christ (Lynn, page 11). These congregations are, by their very nature, quite small, for one container would be almost impossible to use in larger congregations of hundreds of members. The average membership of these congregations using one container is 32 (Lynn, page 13). Second, we must realize that figurative language is found many times in the Bible. For example, the parables of Jesus are figurative language in which a story in the physical world is used to teach spiritual truth. When we quote Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, we must understand that You are the salt of the earth is figurative language called a METAPHOR by scholars (Matthew 5:13). We are not literal salt, but we are to have the qualities of salt. We will suggest some examples of metaphors in the New Testament. A metaphor may be defined as an expression where ONE THING is said TO BE ANOTHER THING, but the word LIKE is not used. Here are some examples: (1) Jesus said, Go and tell that fox... (Luke 13:31, 32). He was speaking of King Herod. Herod was NOT a literal animal, but he had the characteristics of a fox. This is a metaphor. (2) Jesus said, I am the bread of life (John 6:48). Jesus was NOT literal bread made from grain. This is a metaphor. Note the several examples of metaphors in this sixth chapter of John. (3) Metaphors are also found in the Lord s Supper. Jesus said, This is My body and This is My blood of the covenant... (Matthew 26:26-29). The apostles, who were reclining at the Passover with Jesus, at the time when He instituted the Lord s Supper, were aware that He was PRESENT WITH THEM IN HIS BODY, and WITH HIS BLOOD still in His body. They understood He was NOT speaking of His literal body and blood. He was stating that the bread and the fruit of the vine were memorials of His body and blood. Note Matthew 26:29. HOWEVER, there is another type of figurative language in the Lord s Supper. It is called metonymy. This is a similar situation where one word is substituted for another word or phrase. Elsewhere, for example, in the story of the rich man and Lazarus, Abraham told the rich man that the rich man s brothers had Moses and the prophets (Luke 16:28, 29). These brothers should listen to them. He meant that the man s brothers had the WRITINGS of Moses and the prophets.
Moses and the prophets had been dead for hundreds of years. This is the figure of speech called metonymy. The inspired authors are substituted for THEIR WRITINGS. There are different kinds of metonymy. We will give only a few examples of one kind. This kind is a metonymy where the container is substituted for the contents. Notice these examples. (1) In the days of Noah, the earth was corrupt... (Genesis 6:11). It was NOT the earth, or ground, the dirt itself that was corrupt, but, instead, the people ON the earth were corrupt. The container is substituted for the contents. (2) Jerusalem and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan were going out to John the Baptist and were being baptized (Matthew 3:5, 6). Everyone realizes that the houses and buildings were NOT going out, but rather the people in those houses and districts. This is metonymy. John was baptizing the PEOPLE who lived in these places. (3) Even the beautiful verse that everyone knows, John 3:16, contains this kind of language: God so loved the world... God loves the people of the world, those who inhabit the earth. This is metonymy. (4) In the same way, when Jesus instituted the Lord s Supper, concerning the fruit of the vine, He spoke of the CUP (Matthew 26:26-29). We DO NOT drink the CONTAINER, but, rather, we drink the CONTENTS. This is figurative language called metonymy. PLEASE NOTE; WE BELIEVE IN DRINKING ONLY ONE CUP! But, that CUP is NOT the container, but rather the CONTENTS. We believe in ONLY ONE CUP which is the FRUIT OF THE VINE. This important point is seen very clearly also in Paul s writing to the church at Corinth. The Greek text, as well as the English, of I Corinthians 11:26 says, For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord s death until He come. Paul said that we drink the cup. We DO NOT DRINK THE CONTAINER! But, we DRINK THE CUP! Here, very clearly, the word CUP refers to the CONTENTS, the fruit of the vine. This one verse should be sufficient to show that the cup in the teaching of Paul IS THE CONTENTS, the fruit of the vine. In the same way, in I Corinthians 10:16, 17, the inspired apostle Paul said, Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing (communion) in the blood of Christ? The container is NOT a sharing in Christ s blood. It is truly the CONTENTS, the fruit of the vine that is the sharing in the blood of Christ! There is no doubt that the cup is the CONTENTS. Again, Paul said, You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons: you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons (I Corinthians 10:21). Once more, it must be emphasized that WE DRINK THE CUP which, of course, is the CONTENTS, and NOT the CONTAINER. PLEASE NOTE: Jesus DID NOT PLACE any significance in the container, but He placed great meaning, great significance, and great importance in the CONTENTS, the fruit of the vine which is a MEMORIAL of the blood of the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Let us always be certain that we place great importance EXACTLY WHERE JESUS PLACED IMPORTANCE! The container is NOT important. The CUP, the contents are very important as a memorial. We MUST recognize this importance! Brothers, LET US NOT CAUSE DISSENSION AND CHURCH DIVISION OVER CONTAINERS! God HATES DIVISION! (Proverbs 6:16-19).
ADDITIONAL RESEARCH ON THE CUP IN THE LORD S SUPPER Brother Ken Wilkey has examined the writings of various scholars concerning the Passover, and the CUP as it was used in the Passover. This also has a very important place in a study of the LORD S SUPPER. Here are quotations from various scholars: On the evening of 13 th Abib all leaven was sought out. On the 14 th the Passover was offered by indiscriminate companies of 10 to 20 people. It was slain in relays at the Temple, and the blood thrown before the altar by the priests [Edersheim in his book on The Temple, chapter XI on the Passover graphically describes this offering of the lamb, KJW]. The lamb was then dressed, and the fat offered, while the Levites chanted the Hallel (Psalm 113-118). The lambs were taken home and roasted; each of the guests brought 4 cups of red wine [emphasis mine, kjw], and the meal was eaten with bitter herbs and unleavened cakes. The posture at the meal was recumbent (as a token, according to the Pharisees, of the rest which God had given His people). A blessing was said over the first cup (perhaps implied in Luke 22:17ff.). Then followed the washing of hands and offering a prayer. At the second cup came the son s question as to the significance of the feast, and the father s explanation. This was followed by the singing of Psalm 113 and 114. Grace was said over the third cup, and with the fourth came the singing of Psalm 115-118. p. 684, Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, by A.W. F. Blunt in Dictionary of the Bible edited by James Hastings. BROTHER WILKEY MADE THIS COMMENT: Edersheim says the cup was always red wine mixed with water: 1 part wine plus 2 parts water. Each of the four cups must contain at the least a fourth of a quarter of an hin (the hin = one gallon two pints). [ p. 238, Edersheim on The Temple]. Thus one can calculate the typical cup each guest drank four times at this feast. A hin = 1 gal + 2 pints or 10 pints. A pint is 16 fluid ounces. Thus one hin plus two pints = 10 pints X 16 ounces or 160 ounces. A fourth of a fourth = 160 4 = 40. 40 in turn divided by 4 would equal 10 fluid ounces. If Blunt is correct, then each guest would bring 4 cups of wine. Since the wine was mixed with water in a proportion of 1 wine to 2 water the amount of wine to be purchased would not be 40 ounces but ⅓ of that or 13.3 ounces, or a little less than a pint. In progression of history the Passover meal at which Jesus instituted His Supper was a religious meal described in the Old Testament. No command concerning wine is contained there but it was an addition, yet by the time of Christ it was a major part of the meal marking the transition from part to part. Since Christians met weekly in what was called in Jude 1:12 your love feasts. Paul had to address abuses in 1 Corinthians 11:20-21 20 When you meet in one place, then, it is not to eat the Lord's supper, 21 for in eating, each one goes ahead with his own supper, and one goes hungry while another gets drunk. (NAB) In time the Lord s Supper was no longer a common meal of diverse foods during which bread and wine were noted as a memorial, but the meal ceased and the two elements became themselves minute parts symbolic of what Jesus wanted them to make us recall. According to a number of sources from 10 to 20 persons only could assemble for the Pascal meal in one home. Each of these persons drank four glasses of wine. Luke notes two of the cups of the Jewish Passover feast. Luke 22:17-20 17 And he received a cup, and when he had given thanks, he said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: 18 for I say unto you, I shall not drink from henceforth of the fruit of the
vine, until the kingdom of God shall come. 19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and gave to them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. 20 And the cup in like manner after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood, even that which is poured out for you. Jesus gave them two commands: labete touto kai diamerisate eis eautous ( 1. Take this, and 2. Share it among yourselves. Was he holding a bowl or large container that was handed around so they might pour themselves a cup of wine? Our thinking is molded by seeing a minister with a chalice and a cloth giving a sip of wine to kneeling parishioners. It may be molded by our own practice of taking a small amount of un-fermented grape juice in some manner. Note the following quotation as to what the physical container may have been: The cup used at the Last Supper was probably an earthenware bowl, sufficiently large for all to share (Mt. xxvi. 27). Throughout the Bible, cup is used figuratively as containing the share of blessings or disasters allotted to a man or nation or his divinely appointed fate (Psalm xvi. 5, cxvi.13; Isaiah li.17; Mt. xxvi.39ff; John xviii.11). p. 283 A.R. Millard, Cup, (J.D. Douglas, Editor, The Bible Dictionary, London: Inter- Varsity Fellowship, 1962) (Underlining by editor). A QUOTATION FROM THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPEDIA concerning the use of the word CUP in the New Testament: Cup (Most frequently,,כּוס ko ṣ; four other words in one passage each; ποτήριον, pote ŕion): A vessel for drinking from, of a variety of material (gold, silver, earthenware), patterns (Est_1:7) and elaboration. Figurative: By ordinary figure of speech, put sometimes for the contents of the cup, namely, for that which is drunk (Mat_26:39). In both Old Testament and New Testament applied figuratively to that which is portioned out, and of which one is to partake; most frequently used of what is sorrowful, as God's judgments, His wrath, afflictions, etc. (Psa_11:6; Psa_75:8; Isa_51:17; Rev_14:10). In a similar sense, used by Christ concerning the sufferings endured by Him (Mat_26:39), and the calamities attending the confession of His name (Mat_20:23). In the Old Testament applied also to the blessedness and joy of the children of God, and the full provision made for their wants (Psa_16:5; Psa_23:5; Psa_116:13; compare Jer_16:7; Pro_31:6). All these passages refer not only to the experience of an allotted joy and sorrow, but to the fact that all others share in this experience. Within a community of those having the same interests or lot, each received his apportioned measure, just as at a feast, each cup is filled for the individual to drain at the same time that his fellow-guests are occupied in the same way. The Holy Supper is called the cup of the Lord (1Co_10:21), since it is the Lord who makes the feast, and tenders the cup, just as the cup of demons with which it is contrasted, refers to what they offer and communicate. In 1Co_11:25, the cup is called the new covenant in my blood, i.e. it is a pledge and seal and means of imparting the blessings of the new covenant (Heb_10:16 f) - a covenant established by the shedding of the blood of Christ. The use of the word cup for the sacrament shows how prominent was the part which the cup had in the Lord's Supper in apostolic times. Not only were all commanded to drink of the wine (Mat_26:27), but the very irregularities in the Corinthian church point to its universal use (1Co_11:27). Nor does the Roman church attempt to justify its withholding the cup from the laity (the communion in one form) upon conformity with apostolic practice, or upon direct Scriptural authority. This variation from the original institution is an outgrowth of the doctrines of transubstantiation and sacramental concomitance, of the attempt to transform the sacrament of the Eucharist into the sacrifice of the Mass, and of the wide separation between clergy and laity resulting from raising the ministry to the rank of a sacerdotal order. The practice was condemned by Popes Leo I (died 461) and Gelasius (died 496); but gained a firm hold in
the 12th century, and was enacted into a church regulation by the Council of Constance in 1415.... (ISBE, Volume 2, page 766) (Underlining by Editor). TWO DEFINITIONS OF THE GREEK WORD FOR CUP ( poterion ) From The Greek Lexicon By Robinson 1. A drinking vessel, a cup. The Lexicon then gives Scriptures such as Matthew 10:42, Mark 7:4; 14:23; Luke 11:39; etc.. One meaning is a LITERAL CONTAINER. 2. Meton. (Abbreviation for metonymy Editor) A cup for the contents of a cup, cup-full, e.g. a cup of wine... The Lexicon then gives passages such as I Corinthians 11:25; 10:16; 10:21; 11:26, 27, 28 (Edward Robinson, Greek and English Lexicon of the New Testament. New York: Harper and Brothers, Publishers, 1855) (Underlining by Editor) THE SAME DEFINITIONS FROM ARNDT AND GINGRICH GREEK LEXICON It is defined as cup, a drinking vessel (A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament by Arndt and Gingrich, page 702). Here is the LITERAL CONTAINER. Then, this Lexicon gives the following SPECIFIC MEANINGS of the word CUP 1. Lit. (abbreviation for literal ). Such literal passages as Mark 7:4, and Luke 11:39 are given. This is the literal use, referring to the CONTAINER. 2. THEN, the Greek Lexicon states that the word CUP is used as a figure of speech called metonymy. It states, The cup stands, by metonymy, for what it contains. (page 702). This Lexicon then lists the Scriptures, I Corinthians 11:25, 26; and 10:21, etc. The cup is the CONTENTS! 3. After that, this Lexicon also gives another FIGURATIVE, BIBLICAL use of the word CUP ( poterion ). It states, In the OT (Old Testament Editor) poterion is an expr. for destiny in both good and bad senses. It is used for drinking a cup of suffering. An example is Isaiah 51:17, 22. We all realize that Jesus used the word CUP in this way to describe His suffering (John 18:11, Mark 10:38, 39, etc.). Jesus would drink the cup of suffering. The cup is the suffering He would endure. A literal container is NOT being discussed (Underlining by Editor) THE SAME DEFINITIONS FOR THE GREEK WORD POTERION CUP as found in Thayer s Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament, page 583. 1. Thayer gives a literal definition of the word when it is used for the ACTUAL CONTAINER. He affirms that it means, a cup, a drinking vessel. Scriptures such as Matthew 23:25; 26:27, and Mark 7:4 are given. 2. BUT, Thayer points out that the word CUP is also used in a figurative sense. This Lexicon states that it means, by meton. (abbreviation for metonymy Editor), of the container for the contained, the contents of the cup, what is offered to be drunk. He then gives such Scriptures as Luke 22:20; I Corinthians 11:25; 10:21; 11:27. Again, it is noted that the CUP is the CONTENTS, the fruit of the vine.
3. Thayer, like other Lexicons, also shows that the word CUP is used with another figurative meaning. He says it refers to one s lot or experiences, whether joyous or adverse, divine appointments, whether favorable or unfavorable, are likened to a cup which God presents one to drink. Several Old Testament passages are given, and then the suffering of Christ is stated as an example of this figurative use of the word cup. Scriptures such as Matthew 26:39; Mark 14:36; Luke 22:42 and John 18:11 are given. Therefore, BOTH the LITERAL and the FIGURATIVE meanings of the CUP are found in the New Testament. However, it must be emphasized that scholars agree that the word CUP, with reference to the Lord s Supper, emphasizes the CONTENTS, the fruit of the vine and its significance, and NOT the CONTAINER. A SUMMARY: Two very important principles have been emphasized in this short writing: (1) The Scriptures clearly teach that the CUP in the Lord s Supper is the fruit of the vine, NOT the container in which the CUP is poured. (2) Over and over again, Biblical scholars emphasize that the word CUP in the Scriptures is used LITERALLY in some passages to mean a drinking container, BUT, that, in the LORD S SUPPER, and elsewhere, the word CUP is used as a FIGURE OF SPEECH to mean the CONTENTS of the container, that is, The fruit of the vine. SUGGESTED READING: Hermeneutics by D. R. Dungan, Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, (No date), pages 226-345.