Topical Encyclopedia
In biblical terminology, the concept of "slip" can be understood both literally and metaphorically, often relating to the idea of falling or failing in one's spiritual journey. The term is not frequently used in the Bible, but the underlying themes of stumbling, falling, or erring are prevalent throughout Scripture.
Literal and Metaphorical Usage1.
Literal Slipping: The physical act of slipping is mentioned in the context of losing one's footing. This can be seen as a metaphor for spiritual or moral failure. In
Psalm 73:2, the psalmist Asaph confesses, "But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold." Here, slipping is used to describe a moment of doubt and envy towards the prosperity of the wicked, which almost led him away from his faith.
2.
Moral and Spiritual Slipping: The Bible often uses the imagery of slipping to describe a departure from righteousness or a failure to adhere to God's commandments.
Proverbs 3:21-23 advises, "My son, do not lose sight of this: Preserve sound judgment and discernment. They will be life to your soul and adornment to your neck. Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble." This passage highlights the importance of wisdom and discernment in preventing spiritual slipping.
Warnings Against SlippingThe Scriptures provide numerous warnings against slipping into sin or error.
Hebrews 2:1 cautions believers, "We must pay closer attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away." This verse underscores the need for vigilance in maintaining one's faith and avoiding spiritual negligence that can lead to slipping away from the truth.
Divine Assistance in Preventing SlippingThe Bible assures believers of God's support in preventing them from slipping.
Psalm 121:3 promises, "He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber." This assurance of divine protection emphasizes God's active role in sustaining the faithful and preventing them from falling into sin or despair.
Repentance and RestorationFor those who have slipped, the Bible offers hope for repentance and restoration.
James 5:19-20 encourages believers to help those who have wandered from the truth: "My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, consider this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover over a multitude of sins." This passage highlights the communal responsibility of believers to support and restore those who have slipped.
ConclusionWhile the term "slip" itself may not be frequently used in the Bible, the concept is integral to understanding the human propensity to err and the divine provision for guidance and restoration. Through vigilance, wisdom, and reliance on God's protection, believers are encouraged to maintain their spiritual footing and support one another in the journey of faith.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
n.) To move along the surface of a thing without bounding, rolling, or stepping; to slide; to glide.
2. (n.) To slide; to lose one's footing or one's hold; not to tread firmly; as, it is necessary to walk carefully lest the foot should slip.
3. (n.) To move or fly (out of place); to shoot; -- often with out, off, etc.; as, a bone may slip out of its place.
4. (n.) To depart, withdraw, enter, appear, intrude, or escape as if by sliding; to go or come in a quiet, furtive manner; as, some errors slipped into the work.
5. (n.) To err; to fall into error or fault.
6. (v. t.) To cause to move smoothly and quickly; to slide; to convey gently or secretly.
7. (v. t.) To omit; to loose by negligence.
8. (v. t.) To cut slips from; to cut; to take off; to make a slip or slips of; as, to slip a piece of cloth or paper.
9. (v. t.) To let loose in pursuit of game, as a greyhound.
10. (v. t.) To cause to slip or slide off, or out of place; as, a horse slips his bridle; a dog slips his collar.
11. (v. t.) To bring forth (young) prematurely; to slink.
12. (n.) The act of slipping; as, a slip on the ice.
13. (n.) An unintentional error or fault; a false step.
14. (n.) A twig separated from the main stock; a cutting; a scion; hence, a descendant; as, a slip from a vine.
15. (n.) A slender piece; a strip; as, a slip of paper.
16. (n.) A leash or string by which a dog is held; -- so called from its being made in such a manner as to slip, or become loose, by relaxation of the hand.
17. (n.) An escape; a secret or unexpected desertion; as, to give one the slip.
18. (n.) A portion of the columns of a newspaper or other work struck off by itself; a proof from a column of type when set up and in the galley.
19. (n.) Any covering easily slipped on.
20. (n.) A loose garment worn by a woman.
21. (n.) A child's pinafore.
22. (n.) An outside covering or case; as, a pillow slip.
23. (n.) The slip or sheath of a sword, and the like.
24. (n.) A counterfeit piece of money, being brass covered with silver.
25. (n.) Matter found in troughs of grindstones after the grinding of edge tools.
26. (n.) Potter's clay in a very liquid state, used for the decoration of ceramic ware, and also as a cement for handles and other applied parts.
27. (n.) A particular quantity of yarn.
28. (n.) An inclined plane on which a vessel is built, or upon which it is hauled for repair.
29. (n.) An opening or space for vessels to lie in, between wharves or in a dock; as, Peck slip.
30. (n.) A narrow passage between buildings.
31. (n.) A long seat or narrow pew in churches, often without a door.
32. (n.) A dislocation of a lead, destroying continuity.
33. (n.) The motion of the center of resistance of the float of a paddle wheel, or the blade of an oar, through the water horizontally, or the difference between a vessel's actual speed and the speed which she would have if the propelling instrument acted upon a solid; also, the velocity, relatively to still water, of the backward current of water produced by the propeller.
34. (n.) A fish, the sole.
35. (n.) A fielder stationed on the off side and to the rear of the batsman. There are usually two of them, called respectively short slip, and long slip.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
SLIPAs meaning "a cutting from a plant," it is still good English. In this sense inIsaiah 17:10 for zemorah, "branch," "twig." For the phrase "slip of the tongue" compare Sirach 14:1; 19:16; 20:18; 21:07; 25:08:00.
Greek
3901. pararreo -- to flow by, henceslip away... to flow by, hence
slip away. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: pararreo Phonetic
Spelling: (par-ar-hroo-eh'-o) Short Definition: I am lost, perish, drift
...3900. paraptoma -- a false step, a trespass
... Neuter Transliteration: paraptoma Phonetic Spelling: (par-ap'-to-mah) Short Definition:
a falling away, sin Definition: a falling away, lapse,slip, false step...
3921. pareisduo -- to settle in alongside
... reality . 3921 () is only used in Jude 4 of those " to give help.". [3921 ()
means ", toslip in a side-door" (M. Vincent). This...
1593. ekneuo -- to bend the head away, to withdraw
... to turn aside, withdraw. From ek and neuo; (by analogy) toslip off, ie Quietly
withdraw -- convey self away. see GREEK ek. see GREEK neuo....
804. asphales -- certain, secure
... 804 (from 1 "not" and , "totter, cast down") -- properly, because on solid footing,
ie built on what (fall,slip); hence, "unfailing, safe, reliable...
5298. hupochoreo -- to go back, retire
... Word Origin from hupo and choreo Definition to go back, retire NASB Word
Usageslip away (1), withdrew (1). to withdraw, go away....
Strong's Hebrew
4571. maad -- toslip, slide, totter, shake... 4570, 4571. maad. 4572 . to
slip, slide, totter, shake. Transliteration: maad
Phonetic Spelling: (maw-ad') Short Definition:
slip. Word Origin a prim.
...4131. mot -- to totter, shake,slip
... 4130, 4131. mot. 4132 . to totter, shake,slip. Transliteration: mot Phonetic
Spelling: (mote) Short Definition: shaken. Word Origin a prim....
5394. nashal -- toslip or drop off, draw off, clear away
... nashal. 5395 . toslip or drop off, draw off, clear away. Transliteration: nashal
Phonetic Spelling: (naw-shal') Short Definition: remove. Word Origin a prim....
8363. shethil -- a transplanted shoot,slip
... shethil or shathil. 8364 . a transplanted shoot,slip. Transliteration: shethil
or shathil Phonetic Spelling: (sheth-eel') Short Definition: plants....
4422. malat -- toslip away
... 4421, 4422. malat. 4423 . toslip away. Transliteration: malat Phonetic Spelling:
(maw-lat') Short Definition: escape. Word Origin a prim....
8210. shaphak -- to pour out, pour
... cast up, gush out, pour out, shedder, out,slip. A primitive root; to spill
forth (blood, a libation, liquid metal; or even a solid...
2156. zemorah -- branch, twig, shoot
... vine, branch,slip. Or zmorah {zem-o-raw'} (feminine); and zmor {zem-ore'} (masculine);
from zamar; a twig (as pruned) -- vine, branch,slip. see HEBREW zamar....
6362. patar -- to separate, remove, set free
... dismiss, free, let shoot out,slip away. A primitive root; to cleave or
burst through, ie (causatively) to emit, whether literal...
4154. muedeth -- out of joint
... Word Origin the same as maad, qv. out of joint Feminine passive participle of
ma'ad; properly, made toslip, ie Dislocated -- out of joint. see HEBREW ma'ad....
6403. palat -- to escape
... A primitive root; toslip out, ie Escape; causatively, to deliver -- calve, carry
away safe, deliver, (cause to) escape. 6402, 6403. palat. 6404 ....
Library
Lost Earnings
... fault. The man had earned his wages, and then let what he had won by toil
slip through holes in the bag into which he put it. The...
The Lost Opportunity
... And it is also my purpose to show that as saint and sinner alike we have permitted
opportunities toslip away while we doze in weariness or give attention to...
The Edict of Banishment, 1729-1736.
... If the firstslip of paper was drawn, the Church would cease to exist; if
the second, she might still live by the blessing of God....
The Realization of Selfless Love
... Everyslip, every fall, every return to selfishness is a lesson learned, an experience
gained, from which a golden grain of wisdom is extracted, helping the...
The Design and Unity of Luke's History
... AS has been stated, a historian may make aslip in some detail without losing
claim to be trustworthy: no man and no historian is perfect....
Lenten Thoughts
... Many sins and feelings of which he ought to repentslip past him out of sight
in the hurry of life.... What chances of doing good have I letslip?...
"The Dust of the Actual"
... and more open. "May we come in?" Chorus, "Come in! oh, come in!" and in we
go. It is a tiny, narrowslip of a room. At one end there...
Directions for those who Live Together.
... It is better to be silent than to contradict, and thereby add sin to ignorance.
"Blessed," in truth, "is the man who has not made aslip with his mouth, and...
In Touch with a Planet.
... have prayed. And just there is where we have all seemed to make aslip
at times, and many of us are yet making it"a badslip. We...
The Oldest Family.
... an aristocrat. His line traced back withoutslip or break to the great house
of David, and that meant clear back to Adam. The records...
Thesaurus
Slip (22 Occurrences)... 2. (n.) To slide; to lose one's footing or one's hold; not to tread firmly; as,
it is necessary to walk carefully lest the foot should
slip.
...Lapse (9 Occurrences)
... to figurative uses. 2. (n.) Aslip; an error; a fault; a failing in duty;
a slight deviation from truth or rectitude. 3. (n.) The...
Slide (3 Occurrences)
... 1. (vt) To move along the surface of any body by slipping, or without walking or
rolling; toslip; to glide; as, snow slides down the mountain's side....
Slippery (4 Occurrences)
... 1. (a.) Having the quality opposite to adhesiveness; allowing or causing anything
toslip or move smoothly, rapidly, and easily upon the surface; smooth; glib...
Fleet (7 Occurrences)
... light substance. 3. (n. & a.) Toslip on the whelps or the barrel of a
capstan or windlass; -- said of a cable or hawser. 4. (vt...
Slipped (13 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (imp. & pp) ofSlip. Multi-Version Concordance
Slipped (13 Occurrences). John 5:13 But he who was healed...
Potter (14 Occurrences)
... When the lumps have softened they are stirred in the water until all have
disintegrated and a thin slimy mud or "slip" has been formed....
Pottery (11 Occurrences)
... When the lumps have softened they are stirred in the water until all have
disintegrated and a thin slimy mud or "slip" has been formed....
Goings (42 Occurrences)
... In Psalm 17:5 "Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footstepsslip not" becomes
in the Revised Version (British and American) "My steps have held fast to...
Sirach
... "Aslip on, a pavement is better than aslip with the tongue," so guard thy mouth
(Sirach 20:18); "He that is wise in words shall advance himself; and one that...
Resources
What does the Bible say about revenge? | GotQuestions.orgWhat are infralapsarianism, sublapsarianism, and supralapsarianism? | GotQuestions.orgHow can I receive the protection of God? | GotQuestions.orgSlip: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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