To begin with, however, a tent is simply a tent. The first word we shall look at is, in fact, a very junior member of the family, a compound noun, ‘skenopoios’, meaning ‘a tent-maker’. This word occurs only once, in Acts 18.3, and refers to Paul and his host in Corinth, Aquila. Even this usage, however, is not quite as simple and straightforward as the word itself suggests. Commentators have argued that the basic skill required for tent-making – stitching leather – could well be used for other commercial purposes, and that the urban environment of Corinth might well require such diversification. Still, Paul, as all Jewish rabbis were required to do, practised a manual trade, and used his skills to earn a living during the week so that he could “discuss and persuade” every Sabbath in the synagogue. When Silas and Timothy arrived with a monetary gift from the generous churches of Macedonia (2. Cor 8. 1-2), he was able to “devote himself exclusively to preaching” (v. 5, NIV); but in Ephesus it seems that he returned to his tent-making, for in his moving farewell to the Ephesian elders he calls them to witness that “these hands supplied my needs and the needs of those with me” (Acts 20.34). The tents Paul made, then, were simply tents, literal and of leather. But his practice of plying a trade and using his professional expertise to support his gospel ministry has provided a pattern for modern missionary practice in countries where ‘missionaries’ cannot get visas, but people with professional qualifications can. Such forms of evangelism have come to be known as ‘tent-making ministries’, and have even inspired a book titled “Today’s Tentmakers”. So even here a tent is more than a tent – it is a type. And the fact that Paul was, literally, a tent-maker adds point to his symbolic use of ‘tents’, which we will come to in due course.
Tuesday, 20 December 2011
SKENE 1: Tent-maker - Paul
To begin with, however, a tent is simply a tent. The first word we shall look at is, in fact, a very junior member of the family, a compound noun, ‘skenopoios’, meaning ‘a tent-maker’. This word occurs only once, in Acts 18.3, and refers to Paul and his host in Corinth, Aquila. Even this usage, however, is not quite as simple and straightforward as the word itself suggests. Commentators have argued that the basic skill required for tent-making – stitching leather – could well be used for other commercial purposes, and that the urban environment of Corinth might well require such diversification. Still, Paul, as all Jewish rabbis were required to do, practised a manual trade, and used his skills to earn a living during the week so that he could “discuss and persuade” every Sabbath in the synagogue. When Silas and Timothy arrived with a monetary gift from the generous churches of Macedonia (2. Cor 8. 1-2), he was able to “devote himself exclusively to preaching” (v. 5, NIV); but in Ephesus it seems that he returned to his tent-making, for in his moving farewell to the Ephesian elders he calls them to witness that “these hands supplied my needs and the needs of those with me” (Acts 20.34). The tents Paul made, then, were simply tents, literal and of leather. But his practice of plying a trade and using his professional expertise to support his gospel ministry has provided a pattern for modern missionary practice in countries where ‘missionaries’ cannot get visas, but people with professional qualifications can. Such forms of evangelism have come to be known as ‘tent-making ministries’, and have even inspired a book titled “Today’s Tentmakers”. So even here a tent is more than a tent – it is a type. And the fact that Paul was, literally, a tent-maker adds point to his symbolic use of ‘tents’, which we will come to in due course.
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