As is usually the case, I received my early ideas on baptism by heredity and environment, so far as I had any ideas on the subject. The religious people with whom I was associated in my early life taught and practiced sprinkling and infant baptism, and, of course, I assumed that they must be right in the matter. Although I read the Bible through several times, I did not see its teaching on this subject, as I was not particularly interested in it. For reasons explained in previous chapters—that we look through colored glasses—multitudes of people daily read their Bible who never see what is in it; but imagine, as a matter of course, that it teaches what they bring to it through hereditary and preconceived ideas.
As already stated, I was first led to think on this subject while I studied New Testament Greek under President Cary, of the Meadville Theological School. When we came to the word baptizoo, Dr. Cary told the class that all Greek scholars of note agree that the meaning of the word in the mouth of Jesus was to immerse. This statement was a great surprise to me, and I decided to discover for myself whether this was the fact or not. This was the beginning of my investigation of the subject of baptism. I found that Dr. Cary was correct in his statement. What influenced me greatly was the fact that the German rationalists, who are recognized as among the best scholars of the world, and who are perfectly impartial on this subject, as they do not care what the Bible teaches about baptism, all say that baptism is immersion, without ever hinting at a possibility for difference of opinion. I investigated the matter for several years, as I found opportunity, until there was not the shadow of a doubt left in my mind that immersion is New Testament baptism.
While a student at Oberlin Theological Seminary, I found that all the authorities they used in New Testament Greek, taught immersion, while their churches practise sprinkling. In studying Hebrews in the Greek, we used Dr. Westcott's commentary. When we came to Heb. 10:22, "having our bodies washed with pure water," Dr. Westcott said this referred to the "laver of regeneration" or the primitive practice of immersion. When we studied Romans in Greek, we used Dr. Sanday's International Critical Commentary. The professor told us it was the very best and probably would be for years to come. When we came to Rom. 6:4, "buried with him through baptism," Dr. Sanday never raised a doubt about the meaning, but in eloquent words spoke about the beautiful representation of burial and resurrection with Christ in baptism. This astonished me very much, as Drs. Westcott and Sanday were noted Episcopalian scholars, and the Episcopal churches practise sprinkling. We used Dr. Thayer's New Testament Greek lexicon, which the professor informed us was the very best in the English language. This lexicon defined baptizoo as meaning to dip, and never hinted that sprinkling or pouring might be its meaning. As I said above, I found Dr. Cary correct in claiming that all Greek scholars of note agree that the meaning of the word in the mouth of Jesus was to immerse, and I have never been able to get hold of a single New Testament lexicon that defines baptizoo as ever meaning to sprinkle or pour.
The following chart and facts will help us to get at the truth about the meaning of the Greek word baptizoo without quoting from a long list of lexicons:
[Illustration: A STUDY IN MEANING OF WORDS.]
You notice in the chart that we have three separate and distinct words in the Greek for immersion, sprinkling and pouring; and these words have their primary or proper, secondary or tropical meanings, all of which must be differentiated. The primary or proper meaning has reference to specific acts, the secondary meaning refers to things done by means of these specific acts, while the tropical or metaphorical meaning departs from the specific meaning of the words and therefore cannot have reference to the specific outward acts indicated by the words. For this reason it is a law of language, recognized by all scholars, that you must give a word its primary or proper meaning when it is employed in commanding an outward act, unless the context demands another meaning.
Notice the English words shoot, hang and poison. These express specific outward acts; and, then, in their secondary meaning, they mean to kill, but always to kill in the way indicated by the primary meaning of the word. A man can be hung, shot or poisoned without being killed; but if it is reported that he was hung, shot or poisoned, we would all understand that he was killed. However, you cannot conceive of words so changing their meaning, that when it is said a man was hung, it means that he was shot, or when it is said he was poisoned, it means he was hung. No more is it conceivable that when the Greek word baptizoo (to immerse) was used, it meant to cleanse by sprinkling (rantizoo), or when the word rantizoo (to sprinkle) was used, it meant to cleanse by immersing (baptizoo). These words refer primarily to separate and distinct outward acts. It is true they may meet in their secondary meaning in the idea to cleanse; but they always refer to cleansing in the way indicated by the primary meaning of the word used. When they travel so far from their primary or proper meaning, which has reference to specific outward acts, that their meaning is said to be tropical or metaphorical, they lose their specific idea and have no longer any reference to the specific acts denoted by the words.
It is true that words can and do often change or enlarge their meaning. But this is always to supply a need created by the lack of a proper word to express an associated idea. Now, both the specific and general ideas with reference to the application of water are so copiously supplied with words in the Greek, that they preclude the necessity of changing the meaning of a word like baptizoo to supply such a need. We have louoo, to wash or bathe the body; niptoo, to wash a part of the body, as the hands, feet, face, etc.; plunoo, to wash clothes; brechoo, to wet, to rain; katharizoo, to cleanse; ekcheoo, to pour; rantizoo, to sprinkle; baptizoo, to immerse, etc.
Thus we have a threefold guard to keep baptizoo to its primary or proper meaning of to dip or immerse. First, an abundance of Greek words to express every general and specific idea about the application of water, except that of immersion; second, the fact that a tropical meaning of a word cannot refer to the specific outward act indicated by the word; and third, the law of interpretation which demands that a word be given its primary or proper meaning in commandments, or plain narrative, unless the context expressly demands a different meaning.
The above definitions of the word baptizoo are taken from Dr. Thayer's "New Testament Greek Lexicon." In reply to letters inquiring about Dr. Thayer's "New Testament Greek Lexicon," the following answers-were received. It is the "best" (Professor Hodge, of Princeton); it is the "very best" (Dr. Alexander, of Vanderbilt University); "nothing can compare with it" (Dr Hersman, president of the Southwestern Presbyterian University). This opinion is practically made unanimous from the fact that Dr. Thayer's Lexicon is used at all of the leading schools in the country.