Lesson 20 - The Dispensations

The Meaning of Dispensations

     The word dispensation (in the KJV) is a translation of the Greek word οἰκονομία oikonomia which means a stewardship or administration (Luke 16:2-4; 1 Cor. 9:17; Eph. 1:10; 3:2, 9; Col. 1:25; 1 Tim. 1:4), and may be generally defined as a “state of being arranged, arrangement, order, plan.”[1] The Greek word οἰκονόμος oikonomos refers to a steward who manages household affairs (Luke 12:42; 16:1, 8; Rom. 16:23; 1 Cor. 4:1-2), Pastors who supervise the local church (Tit. 1:7), and Christians who supervise their spiritual gift (1 Pet. 4:10). “A dispensation can be defined as a stage in the progressive revelation of God constituting a distinctive stewardship or rule of life.”[2] There are seven commonly identified dispensations in the Bible:

1. Innocence (Adam and Eve – Gen. 1:28-3:6).
2. Conscience (Fall to Flood – Gen. 3:6-8:22).
3. Government (Noah to Abraham – Gen. 9:1-11:32).
4. Promise (Abraham to Moses – Gen. 12:1-Ex. 19:25).
5. Law (Israel to Church – Ex. 20:1-Acts 2:1).
6. Grace (Church to Rapture – Acts 2:1-Rev. 3:22).
7. Millennial kingdom (reign of Jesus to eternity – Rev. 19:11-20:6).

     The sine qua non[3] of dispensational theology includes: 1) a doxological view of history in which the manifestation of God’s glory is primary, 2) a distinction between Israel and the Church, and 3) a consistent literal method of interpretation in which the Christian reads the Bible in a plain manner.[4]

     With each dispensation, God gave specific commands to His people that they might live in righteous conformity to His expectations. The commands God gave to Adam and Eve are different than the ones He gave to Noah, and Abraham, Moses, and the Christian. God established laws for His people in each dispensation. Sometimes there was continuity of law from one dispensation to the next (i.e. 9 of the 10 commandments are restated in the NT), and sometimes discontinuity (i.e. Christians are not obligated to keep the Sabbath). 

• "Adam lived under laws, the sum of which may be called the code of Adam or the code of Eden. Noah was expected to obey the laws of God, so there was a Noahic code. We know that God revealed many commands and laws to Abraham (Gen. 26:5). They may be called the Abrahamic code. The Mosaic code contained all the laws of the Law. And today we live under the law of Christ (Gal. 6:2) or the law of the Spirit of life in Christ (Rom. 8:2). This code contains the hundreds of specific commandments recorded in the New Testament."[5]

     Though both are the people of God, there are biblical distinctions between God’s expectations to Israel and His expectations to the Church.  For example, Israel had a priesthood that was specific to Aaron and the tribe of Levi (Num. 3:6-10), whereas in the Church age, all Christians are priests to God (Rev. 1:5-6).  Israel’s worship was tied to the Tabernacle and later the Temple (Ex. 40:18-38; 2 Chron. 8:14-16), but Christians gather locally, wherever they wish, and their body is the temple of God (1 Cor. 6:19-20; cf. Col. 4:15).  Israel was required to offer animal sacrifices to God (Lev. 4:1-35), but Christians are called to offer spiritual sacrifices (1 Pet. 2:5; cf. Rom. 12:1; Heb. 13:15).  Israelites were required to tithe from the produce of their land (Deut. 14:22-23; 28-29; Num. 18:21), but God requires no tithe from Christians, only a joyful attitude when giving, “for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7).  Under the Mosaic Law, God demanded punishment for sin and some sins were punishable by death.  Sometimes God Himself executed the punishment (Lev. 10:1-3; 2 Sam. 6:1-7), and other times it was carried out by Israel’s leaders (Ex. 32:19-28).  In the Church age, God does not call Christians to put anyone to death, but has delegated that authority solely to the governments of this world (Rom. 13:1-4), or He does it Himself (Acts 5:1-11; 1 Cor. 11:30; 1 John 5:16).

 

[1] William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 697.

[2] Lewis Sperry Chafer; John F. Walvoord; Major Bible Themes (Grand Rapids, Mich. Zondervan Publishing, 2010), 126.

[3] The sine qua non refers to that which is essential or indispensable.

[4] Plain interpretation means the Christian interprets the words and phrases of Scripture according to the normal rules of grammar, identifying the meaning of words and phrases according to their contextual and historical usage, and considering each verse in the light of its immediate context, as well as the larger context of the book and the Bible as a whole.

[5] Charles Ryrie, Basic Theology (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1999), 351.