Topical Encyclopedia
In biblical literature, the term "blot" is often used metaphorically to signify the removal, erasure, or obliteration of something, typically in the context of sin, guilt, or divine judgment. The concept of a "blot" is deeply intertwined with themes of purity, righteousness, and the covenant relationship between God and His people.
Old Testament UsageThe Hebrew word often translated as "blot" is מָחָה (machah), which means to wipe out, erase, or obliterate. This term appears in various contexts throughout the Old Testament, often associated with the removal of sin or the erasure of one's name from a record.
In
Exodus 32:32-33, Moses intercedes for the Israelites after they sin by worshiping the golden calf. He pleads with God, saying, "But now, if You would only forgive their sin. But if not, please blot me out of the book You have written." The LORD responds, "Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot out of My book." Here, the "book" symbolizes the record of those who are in right standing with God, and to be blotted out signifies divine judgment and exclusion from God's covenant blessings.
The concept of blotting out is also linked to forgiveness and redemption. In
Isaiah 43:25, God declares, "I, yes I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake and remembers your sins no more." This passage highlights God's mercy and willingness to erase the sins of His people, restoring them to a state of grace.
New Testament UsageIn the New Testament, the Greek word ἐξαλείφω (exaleiphō) is used, carrying a similar meaning of wiping away or erasing. This term is found in
Colossians 2:14, where Paul writes about the work of Christ: "having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross." Here, the "blotting out" of the record of debt signifies the complete removal of the charges against believers through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ.
The imagery of blotting out is also present in the eschatological context of Revelation. In
Revelation 3:5, Jesus promises, "The one who overcomes will be clothed in white garments, and I will never blot out his name from the Book of Life, but I will confess his name before My Father and His angels." This assurance underscores the eternal security of those who remain faithful to Christ.
Theological SignificanceTheologically, the concept of a blot serves as a powerful symbol of both judgment and grace. It underscores the seriousness of sin and the reality of divine justice, while simultaneously highlighting the hope of redemption and forgiveness available through God's mercy. The act of blotting out sin is a divine prerogative, emphasizing that only God can truly erase the stain of sin and restore individuals to righteousness.
In the broader biblical narrative, the idea of a blot is a reminder of the covenant relationship between God and His people. It calls believers to live in holiness and obedience, while also offering the assurance of God's willingness to forgive and restore those who repent and turn to Him in faith.
Easton's Bible Dictionary
A stain or reproach (
Job 31:7;
Proverbs 9:7). To blot out sin is to forgive it (
Psalm 51:1, 9;
Isaiah 44:22;
Acts 3:19). Christ's blotting out the handwriting of ordinances was his fulfilling the law in our behalf (
Colossians 2:14).
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
v. t.) To spot, stain, or bespatter, as with ink.
2. (v. t.) To impair; to damage; to mar; to soil.
3. (v. t.) To stain with infamy; to disgrace.
4. (v. t.) To obliterate, as writing with ink; to cancel; to efface; -- generally with out; as, to blot out a word or a sentence. Often figuratively; as, to blot out offenses.
5. (v. t.) To obscure; to eclipse; to shadow.
6. (v. t.) To dry, as writing, with blotting paper.
7. (v. i.) To take a blot; as, this paper blots easily.
8. (n.) A spot or stain, as of ink on paper; a blur.
9. (n.) An obliteration of something written or printed; an erasure.
10. (n.) A spot on reputation; a stain; a disgrace; a reproach; a blemish.
11. (n.) An exposure of a single man to be taken up.
12. (n.) A single man left on a point, exposed to be taken up.
13. (n.) A weak point; a failing; an exposed point or mark.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
BLOTblot (mum, contracted from me'um, "spot"): Occurs in the sense of scorn (Proverbs 9:7). InJob 31:7 (the King James Version) it is used figuratively of a moral defect; the Revised Version (British and American) has "spot." Blot out (machah, "to wipe out," exaleipho, "to smear out"), to obliterate or destroy: "That a tribe be not blotted out" (the King James Version "destroyed,"Judges 21:17). To blot men out of God's book is to cut them off by an untimely death (Exodus 32:32).
Figuratively: "To blot out sin" is to forgive sin fully (Psalm 51:1, 9Acts 3:19Colossians 2:14). Not to blot out sin is to reserve for punishment (Nehemiah 4:5). The names of those who inherit eternal life are not blotted out of the "book of life" (Revelation 3:5).
SeeBOOK OF LIFE;BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE; FORGIVENESS.
L. Kaiser
Greek
1813. exaleipho -- to wipe out, erase, obliterate...blot out, wipe away. From ek and aleipho; to smear out, ie Obliterate (erase tears,
figuratively, pardon sin) --
blot out, wipe away. see GREEK ek.
...3470. momos -- blame, disgrace, blemish
... 3470 -- literally, a blemish (spot,blot); (figuratively) what spoils a reputation,
causing undue blame (disgrace, censure). Word Origin a prim....
299. amomos -- amomum (a fragrant plant of India)
... 299 (an adjective, derived from 1 "not" and 3470 , "blemish") -- properly, unblemished,
without spot orblot (blight); (figuratively) morally, spiritually...
Strong's Hebrew
4229a. machah -- to wipe, wipe out... 4229, 4229a. machah. 4229b . to wipe, wipe out. Transliteration: machah
Short Definition:
blot. Word Origin a prim. root Definition
...3971. mum -- blemish, defect
... Word Origin from an unused word Definition blemish, defect NASB Word Usage
defect (1), spot (1). blemish,blot, spot. Usually muwm...
4229. machah -- to wipe, wipe out
... abolish,blot out, destroy, full of marrow, put out, reach unto, utterly,
wipe away, A primitive root; properly, to stroke or rub...
3582. kachad -- to hide
... root Definition to hide NASB Word Usage annihilated (3),blot (1), completely destroy
(1), conceal (4), concealed (2), cut off (2), denied (1), desolate (1...
Library
Marcion, who WouldBlot Out the Record of Christ's Nativity, is...
... Chapter II."Marcion, Who WouldBlot Out the Record of Christ's Nativity,
is Rebuked for So Startling a Heresy. Clearly enough...
Whether a General Confession Suffices toBlot Out Forgotten Mortal...
... OF THE EFFECT OF CONFESSION (FIVE ARTICLES) Whether a general confession
suffices toblot out forgotten mortal sins? Objection 1...
Whether Slight Contrition Suffices toBlot Out Great Sins?
... OF THE EFFECT OF CONTRITION (THREE ARTICLES) Whether slight contrition suffices
toblot out great sins? Objection 1: It would seem...
Moses' Prayer to be Blotted Out of God's Book.
... Yet now, if thou"wilt, forgive their sin; and if not,blot me, I pray they, out
of thy book which than hast written.".... Cruden's Concord. underBLOT....
Moses' Prayer to be Blotted Out of God's Book.
... this people have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if thou wilt, forgive their sin;
and if not,blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.'"....
The Divinity of the Holy Spirit is Supported by a Passage of St. ....
... And it may chance that you did the same in the past. 60. And you have indeed been
able toblot out the letters, but could not remove the faith....
The Pleading Note in Prayer
... And has he so deceived me? Hast Thou, O God, in very divine truth, said that Thou
wiltblot out and wilt not remember my sins? I shall always remember them....
The Nature of Justification
... Ps. L, 3: "Have mercy on me, O God, according to thy great mercy; and according
to the multitude of thy tender merciesblot out my iniquity."(867) Isaiah 43, 25...
How to Make Use of Christ for Taking the Guilt of Our Daily Out...
... Next, There is the stain orblot, which is called reatus culpae, whereby the soul
is defiled, and made in so far incapable of glory, (for nothing entereth in...
On the Words of the Gospel, Luke xvii. 3, "If Thy Brother Sin...
... Can weblot this verse out of our prayer? Would ye... our debtors"? Thou shalt
notblot it out, lest thou be first blotted out thyself....
Thesaurus
Blot (23 Occurrences)... Easton's Bible Dictionary A stain or reproach (Job 31:7; Proverbs 9:7). To
blot out sin is to forgive it (Psalm 51:1, 9; Isaiah 44:22; Acts 3:19).
...Erase (1 Occurrence)
... 2. (vt) Fig.: To obliterate; to expunge; toblot out; -- used of ideas in the
mind or memory. Multi-Version Concordance Erase (1 Occurrence)....
Am'alek (21 Occurrences)
... Exodus 17:14 Yahweh said to Moses, "Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse
it in the ears of Joshua: that I will utterlyblot out the memory of...
Spot (42 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) A mark on a substance or body made by
foreign matter; ablot; a place discolored. 2. (n.) A stain...
Curses (55 Occurrences)
... (WEB NAS RSV NIV). Numbers 5:23 "'The priest shall write these curses in a book,
and he shallblot them out into the water of bitterness....
Amalek (35 Occurrences)
... Exodus 17:14 Yahweh said to Moses, "Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse
it in the ears of Joshua: that I will utterlyblot out the memory of...
Cloud (119 Occurrences)
... 4. CloudsBlot Out: As the black cloud covers the sky and blots out the sun from
sight, so Yahweh promises "toblot out the sins" of Israel (Isaiah 44:22...
Blossoms (16 Occurrences)
Scroll (70 Occurrences)
... Revelation 3:5 He who is overcoming -- this one -- shall be arrayed in white garments,
and I will notblot out his name from the scroll of the life, and I will...
Memory (181 Occurrences)
... Exodus 17:14 Yahweh said to Moses, "Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse
it in the ears of Joshua: that I will utterlyblot out the memory of...
Resources
What did David mean when he asked God to “restore to me the joy of your salvation” (Psalm 51:12)? | GotQuestions.orgWhy did David ask God to “create in me a clean heart” in Psalm 51:10? | GotQuestions.orgWhy did God also destroy animals in the Flood (Genesis 6-8)? | GotQuestions.orgBlot: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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