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Doubt

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

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Concordances
Nave Topical Bible
• Doubting
Thompson Chain Reference
• Doubt Rebuked
The Topic Concordance
• Doubt
Dictionaries
Baker's Evangelical Dictionary
• Doubt
Charles Buck Dictionary
• Doubts
Spurgeon's Illustration Collection
• Doubts: Foolish
Hastings' BibleDictionary
• Doubt
Hastings' NT Dictionary
• Doubt
King James Dictionary
• Doubting
• Doubtful
• Doubted
•   (only first 3 shown)
1910 New Catholic Dictionary
• Doubt
Vines' Expository Dictionary
• Doubt, Doubtless
• Doubt, Doubtful, Doubting
Webster Dictionary
• Doubting
• Doubtfulness
• Doubtful
•   (only first 3 shown)
Encyclopedias
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
• Doubt
McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia
• Doubt
• Doubts, Dissolving of
The Nuttall Encyclopedia
• Doubting Castle
The Catholic Encyclopedia
• Doubt
Lexicons
• ܦ݁ܳܠܶܓ݂
• Aporia; or Doubt
• ἀπορέω
• διακρίνω
• διαλογισμός
•   (only first 3 shown)
• אָמְנָם
• טָרַף
• קְטַר

dout : This word, found only a score of times in the Bible, translates nevertheless about half as many different Hebrew and Greek originals with a corresponding variety of meanings.

In Genesis 37:33 "without doubt" is to be taken in the common sense of "certainly"; in Job 12:2 in the sarcastic sense of "indeed!" In Daniel 5:12 , Daniel 5:16 , it is used as a difficult problem or mystery to be explained, and these are the only cases of its employment in the Old Testament.

In the New Testament it is about equally used to translate διαπορέω , diaporéō , and διακρίνω , diakrı́nō , and their cognates. The first means "to be without resource," "utterly at a loss," "nonplussed"; and the second, "to judge diversely." For the first, see John 13:22; Acts 2:12 the King James Version; Acts 5:24 the King James Version; Acts 10:17 the King James Version; Acts 25:20 the King James Version; and Galatians 4:20 the King James Version. For the second see Matthew 21:21; Mark 11:23; Acts 10:20; Romans 14:23 . The last-named is deserving of particular attention. "He that doubteth is condemned (the King James Version "damned") if he eat," means that in a case of uncertainty as to one's Christian liberty, it were better to err on the side of restraint. In Luke 12:29 "to be of doubtful mind" ( μετεωρίζω , meteōrı́zō , literally, "to suspend"; see Thayer, under the word), means "to be driven by gusts," or "to fluctuate in mid-air."

Here, as in Matthew 14:31 , "doubt" does not indicate a lack of faith, but rather "a state of qualified faith": its weakness, but not its absence.

In John 10:24 "doubt" translates αἴρω ψυχήν , aı́rō psuchḗn , which literally means "to lift up the soul" or "to keep one in suspense"; so the Revised Version (British and American). See also DISPUTATION .