[Greek] παρακοή (parakoē), [Latin] disobedentia, [Latin] diffidentia: disobedience, inattention, unwillingness to hear, hearing amiss; Acts 7:5, Rom.5:19, 2Cor.10:6, Heb.2:2
Background information:
Greek Hellenism: This term, rarely found, means hearsay, misunderstanding, hearing defect, disobedience, and unwillingness. Polybius’ The Histories 3.15 states “The Romans gave a strong injunction for Hannibal to leave Sagantum. Hannibal, with his long standing hatred of Rome, seized the opportunity to put some of the leading citizens to death. He declared that the Carthaginians would not allow the Saguntines to be thus treacherously dealth with.” Plato’s Letters 341b states “For he claimed that he himself knew many of the most important doctrines and was sufficiently informed owing to the version he heard from his teachers. But of all this I know nothing.”
New Testament: This term, not found in the Old Testament, means disobedience and unwillingness to hear (“bad hearing”). Stephen, inspired by the Holy Spirit, accuses the Jews of being like their persecuting ancestors. These furious Jews, unwilling to hear of Stephen’s scandalous words, covered their ears. Jesus, the obedient one made righteous, is contrasted to the evil one who sows disobedience. Paul speaks with military language using weapons not of flesh against every disobedience. The exhortation of faithfulness will overcome disobedience.
Scripture:
“But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon Stephen together.” Acts 7:57
Stephen, inspired by the Holy Spirit, accused Jews of being like their past Jewish persecutors. These Jews covered their ears, refusing to hear Stephen’s ‘scandalous’ words.
“For just as through the disobedience of one person the many were made sinners, so through the obedience of the one the many will be made righteous.” Rom.5:19
The evil one, sowing disobedience, is contrasted to Jesus, the obedient servant. Jesus’ followers will be made righteous.
“And we are ready to punish every disobedience, once your obedience is complete.” 2Cor.10:6
Paul uses military language. Paul will use weapons, not of the flesh to conquer disobedience.
Diffidence: This term conveys the sense of lacking confidence or trust in someone or something. Diffidence is a distrust or doubt in one’s ability, worth, or fitness. Confidence is the opposite meaning of diffidence. The modern sense of this term now means retiring, lack of confidence, and modesty.
Etymology: This term consists of a preposition (para-) meaning against or besides and the verb (akouo) meaning to hear. Essentially, this term hearing amiss, contrary hearing, or failing to hear. The modern word acoustics derives from akouo.
Conclusion:
Acoustics, diffidence, disobedience
In the Greek Hellenistic era, it was interesting to discover that this term also refers to hearsay and misunderstanding. It seems that this term conveys both willful and unintentional acts.
The Jews viewed Stephen’s inspired words as scandalous or blasphemous. This in turn prompted them to stone Stephen. It is significant to note the stark contrast between the evil one (disobedience) and Jesus (obedience). Essentially, the prevailing message of the evil one is “I will not serve.” In contrast, Jesus call each of us to serve others.
Diffidence, although not commonly used, means distrust, lack of confidence in others, and mistrust. The modern sense of this term means retiring, lack of confidence in oneself, and modesty.
Update: Election aftermath: There continues to be so much distrust and animosity from both sides of the political spectrum. One side believes that our nation has a new President-Elect, believing that there is no evidence of electoral fraud. This side for three years has questioned the election of President Trump. They do not want to hear the other sides’ concerns about potential irregularities and fraud claims (There is nothing to see here folks. Move along.). As a result of this unprecedented use of mail-in ballots (during this pandemic), there are many who are very concerned about the legitimacy and fairness of this election. It seems reasonable to let the lawsuits and litigation play out (to their inevitable conclusion one way or the other) to ascertain the integrity of this voting process. However, there are now many voters who still have concerns about these election results. So it is not surprising that one side’s call for unity falls on deaf ears with Trump supporters.
I think we can all agree that these feelings and arguments will not be easily settled. I hear you!