OPISO
Behind, At One's Back, or After
By Jonathan Mitchell

We find this Greek word, opiso, in a variety of NT contexts. The subtitle to this essay offers the three basic lexical meanings. Often, used with a verb of action, it signified "to become a disciple," as in Mk. 1:

17. Then Jesus said to them, "Hither, you [two] come on behind Me (= follow after Me and join Me), and I will proceed making you to become fishers of human beings (of people)!"

However, in Mk. 1:7, it is normally considered to have the sense of "after," with the idea of time:

"And he had kept on making a loud public proclamation, as a herald, repeatedly saying, 'Behind me the One (or: After me the Man) stronger than me is progressively approaching (steadily coming) - of Whom I am not (do not exist being) of adequate size or sufficient strength to be competent to, while stooping down, loose and unfasten the strap (thong; lace) of His sandals.'"

The nuance of the preeminence of the One behind (or: after) John can be observed in Mk. 1:8,

"I myself, indeed, immerse (or: baptized) you folks within water, yet He Himself will proceed immersing and saturating (or: baptizing) you in a set-apart spirit (or: in the sphere of, and in union with, Holy Spirit}."

However, since Jesus was immersed by John, could this also be seen as Him entering into the position of being a disciple of John? In Matthew's account of this event (Mat. 3), we have an additional conversation between them, when Jesus presents Himself to John to be immersed:

14. Now John kept on trying to completely dissuade and prevent Him, repeatedly saying, "I, myself, continue having a need to be immersed (dipped; baptized) by, and under, YOU! And yet YOU are now coming to ME?!"

15. But, decidedly responding, Jesus said to him, "Let this situation flow its course and send [Me] off, right now (at present), for it is in this way fitting for us to fulfill all the flowing together of eschatological deliverance in the Way pointed out, making full 'being turned in the right direction' - into covenantal rightness." [cf Dan. 9:24]

Then he let the moment flow on, and proceeded to allow Him (or: At that point [John] yields, and then sends Him forth).

Recall Paul's statement, in Phil. 2:7,

"but to the contrary, He empties Himself (or: removed the contents of Himself; made Himself empty; or: impoverished Himself; divested Himself) upon receiving (or: in taking; then accepting) a slave's form (external shape; outward mold) in coming to be (or: by birthing Himself) in union with an effect of humanity's likeness."

And then, in Heb. 4:15, we read that He was:

"One having been tested and put to the proof, and was approved - in accord with all things (or: down with all humanity; corresponding to, and in the sphere of, all humans) [and] in corresponding likeness [to us]..."

We find opiso used by Jesus, when speaking to Peter, in Mk. 8:33,

"So Jesus, being turned about and seeing (or: looking at; perceiving) His disciples, graciously and respectfully gave instructive (or: corrective) admonition to Peter and says, 'Be habitually bringing the things pertaining to the adversary under control behind Me (or: Be continually leading under that which is adversarial [to a place] behind Me; or: Be gone, under [My] authority, and continue withdrawing behind Me [= Move out of My way], O [My] opponent {or: satan}), because you continue not having a frame of mind which is disposed to the things of God, nor are you habitually directing your intellect to the [issues and purposes] which have their source in God, but to the contrary, [your frame of mind is disposed to and your intellect is applied to] the things (= issues; purposes) from, and pertaining to, humans (or: which belong to and have their source in people).'"

John Gavazzoni offers an insight on this situation:

""What shines forth for me so clearly, considering all the possible nuances of translation, is the Lord's refusal to be understood as giving any consideration to any opposition or, in the case of Peter, the protest of a friend, to the cross which lay ahead for Him." A further thought, in regard to this "behind" idea came to mind on this verse: Was Jesus telling Peter, or the adversarial thinking in Peter, to take the proper position of an apprentice in relation to his Master? John Gavazzoni concurs with this perception of the Lord's statement to Peter/the adversary, and put it this way: "move away, get back to your position as My disciple."

Dare we consider what Jesus meant, when He used this word during His wilderness testing?

"And so, giving a decided answer, Jesus said to him, 'Go submissively (or: Sink down) behind me, adversary! It has been written, "You will continue being bowing down in homage and worship (or: doing obeisance) to [the] LORD (= Yahweh), your God, and to Him alone will you continue giving public sacred service."'" (Lu. 4:8; cf Deut. 6:13-14]

Jesus came in union with an effect of "humanity's likeness" (Phil. 2:7). Did He have the same human vulnerability that Peter had (Mk. 8:33, above)? Was this in Lu. 4:8 the first phase of Jesus' overcoming the first Adam, within Him, and thus are WE to be "habitually conquering (repeatedly overcoming; normally victorious)... in the same way as I also conquer (or: overcame)" (Rev. 3:21)? The first Adam became a living soul, and was of the earth, earthy, and we have borne that image (1 Cor. 15:45, 47, 49). Jesus came to be one of us and went through testing in the wilderness and then in the Garden of Gethsemane. The Word of God and obedience to the will of the Father were His manners of overcoming, and that pattern is for us, as well.

So, our question is: Was it "[His] old man" (Rom. 6:6; [His] first Adam) within Him that which, in His wilderness testing, He told to "go submissively BEHIND Him" - that is, to be "discipled" under the Spirit's guidance and control, within Him?

John Gavazzoni offers us this perspective:

"The question that arises, in the temptation: Was Satan to go away behind Jesus, as in "to be left behind as Jesus went on," in contrast to Andrew and Peter who were to come back behind Him to follow Him?
"When I thought along that line, it then came to me that Satan left Him only for a season, indicating he'd be coming back. Does not the whole body of scripture's presentation of the place of Satan in the economy of God, one of servitude to the purpose of God, albeit unwillingly, i.e., with negative motivation? As the servant of Yahweh, as in the story of Job, can we say that Satan's ultimate servitude is discipleship? I could argue that case. He/it (i.e., the adversary) constantly follows after Jesus journeying on, with the intent to oppose, only to end up serving all of humanity included in Jesus' journeying on.
"For me, it's that adversary in all its/his forms that is the objective of God's determined reconciliation of all oppositional attitudes and actions. Reconciliation, after all of course, is about enmity changed to devoted friendship."

A negative example of this term opiso being used in the sense of "discipleship" is found in 1 Tim. 5:15,

"for you see, already some (or: certain folks) were turned out [of the path] (or: were turned aside [from the goal]), behind that adversary (= to follow after this satan; or: = some were by their opponents turned out of the midst of the community to the adversarial counterpart [religion; sphere] which lay behind them)."

And then there is 2 Pet. 2:10,

"yet especially (or: most of all) the people continually passing from one place to another AFTER flesh (= behind aspects of the natural realm; = following after expressions or experiences of the estranged self or the human nature that has been conformed to the System) in defiling (polluting; staining) lust (over-desire; full passion), even habitually thinking disparagingly (scorning; despising; down-thinking) of lordship (ownership; constituted authority). [These are] presumptuous folks (audacious ones), self-pleasing people (willfully arrogant ones), continuously slandering (defaming; speaking injuriously about; obscuring the light of; vilifying) reputations." [cf Jude 7]

Other examples of opiso are found in Acts 5:37 and 20:30b, this latter reference offering: "to progressively drag away the disciples behind (thus: after) themselves."

Jonathan

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