Linguistic question someone gave me today, the meaning of "Christ is the end of the law"

Canada
September 8, 2016 8:29pm CST
This is a question I got today from a Messianic believer, they were asking me re. the meaning of Romans 10:4 "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness for everyone that believth"-KJV. They wanted to know if "end" (Greek telos) means an end like in English, or a goal. And the probable meaning in this case is the latter-notice again, I say probable, because in reality, telos can and does mean both...I will touch on that at the "end" of the post. But it probably does not mean "end" like in Modern English, but rather in a pregnant sense, and the use of telos within Romans, and other related passages which use telos in this manner, is in harmony with this meaning. But beyond that one must also ask the question, if it meant end as in Modern English, what possible meaning could that have? To put it in other words, it would be thus rendered "Christ is the termination of the law for righteousness everyone that believes"-certain groups which try to make telos mean that, are often forgetting that other half of the verse "for righteousness for everyone who believes"-and that is, well, it's problematic as far as meaning goes. Like, if the verse simply said "Christ is the end of the law", that would make sense and really could go both ways...but that isn't the entire verse and does not allow for the complete statement. To be sure, in the New Testament the idea of there being a completion or fulfillment to the Law DOES exist-and a concept of a New Covenant "not like the old", but that is probably not what this passage is saying, as is clear from the context of St. Paul speaking of the role of the Law. Paul is probably saying that the very "goal" to which the Law was pointing toward, was Christ and salvation in Him, and that in Christian life, the Law finds it's fulfillment there...and even if we did want to render it as "end", we should still do it with this pregnant sense of a goal. But after all...goals tend to be endings as well...the 2 have related meaning.
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1 response
@Drosophila (16571)
• Ireland
10 Sep 16
The fulfilment of the law in Christ makes great sense, it also answers a number of theological questions where breaking of a law required sacrifice to "take away the sins". If the laws are fulfilled in Christ, then he became the lamb of God that take away all the sins. So that humans are in good standing with law and God again. I wonder if this is right?
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• Canada
10 Sep 16
Yes, and that is how the bulk of Commentators within the Church have understood this:)
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@Drosophila (16571)
• Ireland
11 Sep 16
@HebrewGreekStudies I think this also answers the popular theological questions.. "so now Jesus is in town, does that mean, the laws no longer apply". It's a popular argument that some use to un-surface what they see as "contradiction of Christianity".
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