spiritual life and shown that 'the effectual word' is the seed or germ of the

new life.  Let us do this now:

'Of His own will begat He us with the word of truth' (Jas. 1:18).

'Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by

the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever' (1 Pet. 1:23).

The word used by James for 'beget' is apokueo, which word occurs but twice in

the New Testament, namely, James 1:15 and 18 'bring forth' and 'beget'.  The

word used by Peter for 'being born again' is anagennao, which word occurs but

twice in the New Testament, namely, 1 Peter 1:3 'begotten again' and 1 Peter

1:23 'being born again'.  Where the Authorized Version reads 'to be born

again' in John 3:3, the original reads gennethe anothen, literally 'born or

begotten from above'.  Anothen is translated 'from above' in John 3:31 and

19:11.  While it is true that Paul does not use these words, we must not jump

to the conclusion that 'rebirth' is entirely foreign to the ministry of Paul,

for the following reasons:

Every believer is a child of God, and has the right of addressing

the Almighty as 'Father'.

Paul uses the word palingenesia 'regeneration' as an extension of

salvation by grace (Tit. 3:5).

To one trained as Paul had been in the tradition of his fathers,

he would know that the Rabbis used the expression 'a new

creature' to indicate the change from idolatry to truth, etc.,

and so this expression must not be unduly stressed so as to

exclude re -birth.  Rather, both new birth and a new creation are

These things however are by the way.  We are not discussing the

question 'Does the new birth apply to some, or to all, who believe?' but

considering 'the effectual Word' and its place in this life -giving process.

Let us consider occurrences of the two words apokueo and anagennao in James

and 1 Peter:

'When lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth (tikto) sin: and sin, when

it is finished, bringeth forth (apokueo) death' (Jas. 1:15).

The Revised Version preserves the distinction between tikto and apokueo

in this verse, rendering the former 'beareth', and the latter 'bringeth

'Of His own will begat (apokueo) He us with the word of truth, that we

should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures' (Jas. 1:18).

The power that 'brought us forth' from the death of sin unto life and light,

is 'the Word of Truth'.  Elsewhere, new birth is ascribed to the Spirit, and

to the power of the Resurrection, but the one great fundamental cause of

newness of life is 'the Word of Truth'.

The two references to 'begetting' in 1 Peter 1, link the hope of future

resurrection with the present enjoyment of new birth, and both with the Word

of truth:

'Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which

according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again (anagennao) unto