Vol 03 - Abba, Father

Abba, Father Ἀββᾶ (Abba) occurs but three times in the New Testament.

"And he said, Abba, Father," Mark 14:36.

"whereby we cry, Abba, Father." Romans 8:15.

"into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father." Galatians 4:6. In all three of which occurrences, it is, evidently, an invocation, and has the Greek word which is equivalent to it placed immediately after it. The passage in Mark is in the narration of the agony in the garden: "Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless, not what I will, but what thou wilt." The citation from Romans 8:1-39 is from the epitome of Christian privileges presented in that blessed portion: "Ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption (υἱοθεσίας), whereby we cry, Abba, Father." The third occurrence is in the labored argument of the apostle to recover certain Galatians from error. After urging, Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus" (chap. 3:26, [1:e. the present standing of acceptance in the family of God to all that have faith]), he goes on to show the result of this in them; for there was, "I in you" to those to whom "ye in me " (of John 14:1-31) was made good; and so he says, "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father."

It is a blessed truth, that our " Lord and God," who has called us "Brethren," as the sons, by adoption, of God, thus puts into our hearts (as in Galatians) the power which leads us in daily habitual communion (as in Romans) towards His Father; according to the title, Abba, even that by which He, the only begotten Son, addressed Him. The word Abba is not Greek, nor Hebrew, but appears to be Chaldee, and to be in what is called the status emphaticus. In the little Chaldee which exists in the Bible, we do not meet with it; but it exists in the Talmud (Furst says) frequently אַבָּא. It may be as well to observe, that while each of the occurrences is an invocation, the vocative vccrep is not the form which is used after it, but δ πατὴρ, that is, the nominative.

W.