Truth
0225 ALETHEIA (110): truth, factual information. God's FCM (NT) contains two basic kinds of truth. Both kinds of truth express reality:
1) Physical truth which can be verified by the five senses, as in Mk.5.33 where a woman who had been healed: "...knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before him and told him all the truth" (about her physical healing). Similarly in Lk.22.59, where Peter was identified on the basis of physical evidence: "Of a truth this one (Peter) was with him (Jesus), for indeed he is a Galilean."
2) Spiritual truth; that is, factual information which is not perceptible through the five senses, but can only be discerned by a non-physical part of a human called the "spirit." Spiritual truth originates with eternal beings, and pertains primarily to the characteristics of humans, eternal beings and other spiritual beings and their relationships to each other. See "spirit" (4151 pneuma) for additional information.
"Eternal beings" are understood to be non-created beings who have neither beginning nor end. They include God (Yahweh), his Son (Jesus the Anointed One) and the Pure Spirit. A human is considered to be a created spiritual being in a physical body. Other created spiritual beings do not have physical bodies. They include messengers (angels), Satan (Adversary) and demons (evil spirits).
All spiritual truth originates with God (Yahweh); none is of human origin. God's Message, the FCM (NT) plus the AM (OT), is the only source of spiritual truth: "...truth came about through Jesus the Anointed One" (Jn.1.17), who "has spoken truth to you+ which I (Jesus) heard from God" (Jn.8.40), whose Message Jesus defined as being truth: "Purify them in the truth; your own message is truth." (Jn.17.17).
Jesus promised that the Spirit of truth (the Comforter, the Pure Spirit) would guide his learners into ALL truth (Jn.14.26 and 16.13). And God did provide "all truth" to humans through his Son, Jesus, and by the Pure Spirit through the writers of the FCM and the AM.
"All truth" includes all of the spiritual truth that God has provided to humans. However God's Message does not include spiritual truth that he chose not to reveal, such as the time of certain future events. For example: "...of that day and hour no one knows...as the days of Noah were, so will be the presence of the Son of man" (Mt.24.36-37).
Aletheia is never plural in the FCM; God's Message is not a collection of "truths." It comprises a single body of truth. Jesus said, "...if you+ remain in my message, you+ are truly (2130 alethos) my learners; and you+ will know the truth, and the truth will free you+" (Jn.8.31-32). Notice that God's message is THE source of THE truth, the whole truth and nothing but truth which a human CAN know and which CAN free him (from his wrongdoings).
In Act.6.7 "God's message" is equated to "the faith" (4102 pistis ): "And the message of God grew, and the number of learners in Jerusalem was greatly multiplied, and a great crowd of the priests obeyed the faith."
And notice that in 2Ti.3.7-8 that "the truth" refers to the same thing as "the faith": "...always learning, but never able to come to a deep knowledge of truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so also do these oppose the truth, humans with a corrupted mind, reprobate as to the faith."
So then, there is a sense in which "God's Message," "the faith," and "the truth" are equivalent to each other. So when we read in Jude 3: "...contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered unto the purified ones," we understand that "God's Message," "the faith" and "the truth" were provided to the purified ones (God's people).
Oral, written or traditional information which is of un-inspirited human origin (such as this word-study) cannot provide spiritual truth beyond what is already in God's Message. Un-inspirited information is of value only to the extent that it helps explain the truth of God's Message.
God's Message includes many examples of general spiritual truth, such as, "For as he (a human) is thinking within himself, so he is..." (Prv.23.7). That is, by comparing himself to truth, a human can know if his thoughts and acts are good or evil and what kind of a person he is. But others may not know him until they later examine his "fruit." Un-inspirited humans may develop adages having wisdom, but their wise sayings often have their origin in God's truth.
In God's AM (OT), the Hebrew word 'emeth means "truth". The usage of 'emeth sometimes includes the concepts of trustworthiness or certainty, so its meaning may be somewhat broader than that of aletheia.
God's Message reveals the importance of truth in one's relationship to the Father: "...the ones who show submission (worship) will show submission to the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is also seeking such ones who are showing submission to him." (Jn.4.23). And the "message of truth" is "the good news of your rescue..." (Gal.2.5,14, Eph.1.13, Col.1.5), which is one reason why "...you+ will know the truth, and the truth will free you+." (Jn.8.32). Jesus also pointed out, "I am the path, the truth and the life" (Jn.14.6). So then, one's actions with respect to God must be done truthfully with one's own spirit to truly be "...showing submission in spirit and truth."
The learning of truth requires one to choose between good and evil:
1) "For everyone who is practicing valueless things is disregarding the light and does not come to the light, lest his works be reproved; but the one who is doing the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be exhibited, for they are worked in God." (Jn.3.20,21). 2) Truth can be obeyed (Gal.3.1, 5.1, 1Pe.1.22) or disobeyed (Rom.2.8). Each person decides voluntarily whether or not he will trust the truth of God's message and obey it. 3) The opposite of truth is that which is false or evil (Jn.8.44, Rom.1.25, 9.1, 1Co.5.8, Jas.3.14, 1Jn.1.6,8, 2.4,21). 4) When a person does such opposite (evil) things he is "...repressing the truth in wrongdoing" and therewith invoking God's fury (Rom.1.18). 5) One can "exchange the truth of God for a lie" by "offering godly service to the thing created instead of to the one having created..." (Rom.1.25), such as was done by the homosexuals whom God gave up to their dishonorable passions (verses 26-28).
After answering Pilate's question about whether he was a king, Jesus said, "...For this I was born and for this I came into the human world, so that I might testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice." (Jn.18.37). Pilate, parroting Plato, responded, "What is truth?" (verse 38). Like Pilate, folks who do not believe that a body of truth exists which God revealed to mankind, demonstrate the same ignorance.
So then, there is a body of "truth" that God fully revealed to mankind in writing during the First Century A.D. God's Message does not fully reveal just how he would assure that "all truth" would be available to humanity through succeeding generations. But humans can know that God's truth is available to them in a sufficiently accurate form to permit each person to decide whether or not to obey him, because Jesus said, "The heaven and the earth will pass away, but my statements will not pass away" (Mk.13.31).
Translation:
TRUTH Mt.22.16. Mk.5.33; 12.14,32. Lk.4.25; 20.21; 22.59. Jn.1.14,17; 3.21; 4.23,24; 5.33; 8.32,32,40,44,44,45,46; 14.6,17; 15.26; 16.7,13, 13; 17.17,17, 19; 18.37,37,38. Act.4.27; 10.34; 26.25. Rom.1.18,25; 2.2,8,20; 3.7; 9.1; 15.8. 1Co.5.8; 13.6. 2Co.4.2; 6.7; 7.14,14; 11.10; 12.6; 13.8,8. Gal.2.5,14; 5.7. Eph.1.13; 4.21,24,25; 5.9; 6.14. Php.1.18. Col.1.5,6. 2Th.2.10,12,13. 1Ti.2.4,7,7; 3.15; 4.3; 6.5. 2Ti.2.15,18,25; 3.7,8; 4.4. Tit.1.1,14. Heb.10.26. Jas.1.18; 3.14; 5.19. 1Pe.1.22. 2Pe.1.12; 2.2. 1Jn.1.6,8; 2.4,21,21; 3.18,19; 4.6; 5.6. 2Jn.1.1,1,2,3,4. 3Jn.1.1,3,3,4,8,12.
0227 ALETHES (27): true. Used as an adjective to describe a person who is spiritually faultless (Jn.3.33, Rom.3.4), or a characteristic of a perfect person (Jn.8.16, 1Pe.5.12), or accurate information (Jn.4.18, 10.41, Php.2.8). The modified noun usually is not present. Comp. "true" (0228 alfthinqs.
TRUE Mt.22.16. Mk.12.14. Jn.3.33; 4.18; 5.31,32; 6.55,55; 7.18; 8.13, 14,16,17,26; 10.41; 19.35; 21.24. Act.12.9. Rom.3.4. 2Co.6.8. Php.4.8. Tit.1.13. 1Pe.5.12. 2Pe.2.22. 1Jn.2.8,27. 3Jn.12.
0226 ALETHEUO (2): verb form of aletheia; to speak truth. Used in the FCM to express the verbal communication of truth.
SPEAK TRUTH Gal.4.16. Eph.4.15.
0228 ALETHINOS (27): true; similar in meaning to alethes. Both words are used together in Jn.19.35: "And the [one] having watched has testified, and his testimony is true (alethinos), and that one understands that [what] he says [is] true (alethes), so that you+ too may trust." Both words also occur together in 1Jn.2.8.
TRUE Lk.16.11. Jn.1.9; 4.23,37; 6.32; 7.28; 15.1; 17.3; 19.35. 1Th.1.9. Heb.8.2; 9.24; 10.22. 1Jn.2.8; 5.20,20,20. Rev.3.7,14; 6.10; 15.3; 16.7; 19.2,9,11; 21.5; 22.6.
0230 ALETHOS (17): from 0227 alethes; in a truthful manner, really, truly.
TRULY Mt.14.33; 26.73; 27.54. Mk.14.70; 15.39. Lk.9.27; 12.44; 21.3. Jn.1.47; 4.42; 6.14; 7.26,40; 8.31; 17.8. Act.12.11. 1Th.2.13. 1Jn.2.5.