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Bible Dictionaries
Acceptance
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
or ACCEPTANCE denotes the being in favour with any one. In EV [Note: English Version.] the noun is found only in Isaiah 60:7 , but ‘accept’ and ‘acceptable’ are used frequently both in OT and NT to express the acceptance of one man with another ( Genesis 32:20 , Luke 4:24 ), but above all the acceptance of man with God. In OT the conditions of acceptance with God are sometimes ceremonial ( Exodus 28:38 , Psalms 20:3 ). But of themselves these are insufficient ( Genesis 4:5; Genesis 4:7 , Amos 5:22 , Jeremiah 6:20; Jeremiah 14:10; Jeremiah 14:12 ), and only moral uprightness ( Proverbs 21:3 , Job 42:8 ) and the sacrifices of a sincere heart ( Psalms 19:14; Psalms 119:108; cf. Psalms 40:6 ff., Psalms 51:15 ff.) are recognized as truly acceptable with God. In NT the grounds of the Divine acceptance are never ceremonial, but always spiritual ( Romans 12:1 , Philippians 4:18 , 1 Peter 2:5 ). Jesus Christ is the type of perfect acceptance ( Mark 1:11 ||, Hebrews 10:5 ff.). In Him as ‘the Beloved,’ and through Him as the Mediator, men secure their religious standing and fundamental acceptance with God ( Ephesians 1:6 ). In serving Him ( Romans 14:18 ), and following His example ( 1 Peter 2:20-21 ), they become morally acceptable in the Father’s sight.
J. C. Lambert.
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Hastings, James. Entry for 'Acceptance'. Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hdb/a/acceptance.html. 1909.
