FAMOUS CHURCH LINGOS 4 – AMEN

AMEN means SO BE IT.

Many have fallen into the error of re-translating this to "so shall it be." That's actually very wrong.

This error is as a result of the assertion of the word "be" in "so be it" to be future tense; it is rather present tense. The right substitute for this word here is "is", just like 2 Corinthians 5:17 that says, “If any man be in Christ.” It means, “If any man is in Christ.”

AMEN actually means SO IT IS denoting a present reality rather than a futuristic implication. It denotes a fulfilment. See this:

2 Corinthians 1:20-22(NKJV)

[20] For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.

[21] Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God,

[22] Who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.

This means all of God's promises aforetime find their fulfillment in Christ Jesus, and this fulfilment is established upon the giving of the Holy Spirit. Reading from verse 15 downwards, you'd realize that Paul was teaching about certainty in God which supersedes uncertainty in the flesh.

The word Amen is an expression of strong agreement. When used during prayer, it is to show agreement with the words said (it is so), NOT to make the words come to pass. It means it is so; verily; truly. This is why it is used in thanksgiving as well.

Nehemiah 8:6(NKJV)

And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. Then all the people answered, "Amen, Amen!" while lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

Can you see that? “So shall it be” does not fit into this context. Paul the apostle used a similar expression in 1 Corinthians 14:16 showing that Amen is an appropriate response to giving of thanks.

I can't say “God is wonderful!” and expect “so shall it be” as a response, right?

You would notice such consistency in its use to show a present reality, like in the ending of Mark's gospel.

Mark 16:20(NKJV)

And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.

That's just like the way Matthew, Luke, and John ended theirs as well.

So Amen can rightly be used in prayer but it is not a prayer in itself; it is an expression of agreement with the words.

Notice its use below:

Revelation 1:18(NKJV)

I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.

Jesus wasn't praying here, right? This is not a prayer but a statement of fact, not of something to come but of something that already is.

So Amen does not mean "so shall it be" but rather "so it is".

I trust you've been blessed by this series?

Blessings!

Victor Ibosiola © 2019

Edited (2022)