Biblical Counseling Word Study #5: Noutheteo/Nouthesia—Part 1: Caring, Cautionary Communication to Ward Off Wandering

An Introductory Word from Bob 

There are many words in the Old Testament and New Testament that relate to one-another ministry, biblical counseling, soul care, pastoral care, shepherding, spiritual friendship, and being a soul physician. In this series on Biblical Counseling Word Studies, I’m posting about:

How we can become further equipped to counsel one another biblically by understanding and applying biblical words related to soul care.

You’re reading Post #5 in this series.

• Read Post #1 Here: Biblical Counseling Word Study #1: Parakaleo—Empathize, Encourage, Exhort, Empower.
• Read Post #2 Here: Biblical Counseling Word Study #2: Parakletos—The Holy Spirit, Our Gospel-Reminding Counselor.
• Read Post #3 Here: Biblical Counseling Word Study #3: “Parakaletic Counseling”—A Comprehensive, Compassionate Biblical Name for Biblical Counseling.
• Read Post #4 Here: Biblical Counseling Word Study #4: The Gospel-Saturated Foundation and Focus of Parakaletic Biblical Counseling.

While technically not a part of this series, here are two related posts that provide background for the modern nouthetic counseling movement:

• Jay Adams, Nouthetic Counseling, and Neuroscience.
• 3 Reasons Why Jay Adams Called His Counseling Model “Nouthetic”: A Concise History of the Launch of the Modern Nouthetic Counseling Movement.

100+ Pages of Research on the Noutheteo/Nouthesia Word Group 

Today we start a three-part series on the noutheteo/nouthesia word group.

• In Part 1, we’ll explore how Greek language experts and Bible commentators translate and explain these words, and what applications we can make to our ministries.

• In Part 2, I’ll share my in-depth biblical study of these words, how I understand them, and how they relate to one-another ministry and soul care.

• In Part 3, we’ll do a bit of compare and contrast between Parakaletic Ministry and Nouthetic Ministry.

Speaking of comparison, I mentioned in Biblical Counseling Word Study #1 that the New Testament uses the parakaleo word group (comfort, encouragement) 143 times, while using the noutheteo word group only 11 times. The New Testament uses the parakaleo word group 13 times more often than the noutheteo word group.

Yet, I have over 100 pages of research notes on noutheteo/nouthesia. Why so much research?

As I explained in my post on Jay Adams’s launch of the nouthetic counseling movement, Adams created an English form of the Greek word noutheteo to describe his noutehtic confrontation approach to counseling. So the noutheteo word group is of great importance to anyone interested in biblical counseling.

The Big Picture: Noutheteo, Nouthesia, and Nouthetic 

By way of summary:

• Noutheteo is the verb form of the word. We find it in the following 8 passages: Acts 20:31; Romans 15:14; 1 Corinthians 4:14; Colossians 1:28; Colossians 3:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:14; and 2 Thessalonians 3:15.

• Nouthesia is the noun form of the word. We find it in the following 3 passages: 1 Corinthians 10:11; Ephesians 6:4; and Titus 3:10.

• “Nouthetic” is the English version of the word coined by Jay Adams to encapsulate his approach to counseling. Adams summarized nouthetic counseling with the “3Cs” of confrontation, concern, and change. 

“The three ideas found in the word nouthesia are confrontation, concern, and change. To put it simply, Nouthetic counseling consists of lovingly confronting people out of deep concern in order to help them make those changes that God requires.”[1]

In addition to being a pastor-counselor-professor-author, Adams was a skilled student of Scripture. That’s why I spent so much time studying his understanding of nouthetic confrontation.

In collecting my research on the noutheteo word group, my purpose is neither to counter nor to mimic Jay Adams’s explanation of these words. Instead, I desire to be “a good Berean” (Acts 17:10-12) by going directly to Scripture to do my own study of its teaching—in this case of noutheteo/nouthesia.

My Research Process 

I’ve completed four types of research as I’ve studied noutheteo/nouthesia:

1. Examining resources from at least sixteen Greek language experts (theological dictionaries, lexicons, word studies, concordances, etc.).[2]

2. Consulting at least fourteen commentaries.[3]

3. Reviewing current literature on “nouthetic,” especially the primary writings of Jay Adams. You can go here for my summary of Jay Adams’s teaching on “nouthetic.”

4. Performing my own contextual, exegetical, lexical studies of each of the 11 times that noutheteo/nouthesia were used in the New Testament. This is where I expended the bulk of my time.

And the Greek Language Experts Say… 

The sixteen Greek-English language experts were quite consistent in their translation and explanation of the words noutheteo/nouthesia.

• The words come from two root words: nous meaning “mind” and tithami meaning “to put in.”

• Combined, the root sense is to put in mind, to put upon the mind, to work upon the mind, instruction designed to impart understanding in the mind, to lay on the heart, to establish mental understanding, putting sense into the minds of hearers.

Compound words are not simply the combined meaning of the root words. So these Greek language experts examined noutheteo/nouthesia in context in the LXX (Greek translation of the OT), in ancient Greek, in the New Testament, and in the Church Fathers. Again, they were consistent in the basic meaning(s) of these words.

They saw the verb form, noutheteo, to mean:

• Instruct, admonish, warn, caution, remind, exhort, soothe (Mounce, Online; TDNT, 1019; BAGD, 544).

• “The basic idea is that of the well-meaning earnestness with which one seeks to influence the mind and disposition by appropriate instruction, exhortation, warning, and correction” (TDNT, 1019).

• Putting right, not by punishment, but by working on the mind (Cremer, 441).

• “Reasoning with someone by warning (admonishing) them” (HELPS, Online).

• “Aiming to ward off and to impel” (TDNT, 1019).

• To warn, to remind and advise, in order to guard against and ward off wrong (Cremer, 442).

Greek language experts saw the noun form, nouthesia, to mean:

• Instruction, admonition, cautioning, warning, exhortation (Mounce, Online; TDNT, 1020).

• “Nouthesia is ‘the training by the Word,’ whether of encouragement, or if necessary, by reproof” (Vines, 13).

• “Establishing of understanding. Education by nouthesia is adapted “to create understanding” (TDNT, 1020).

Of the sixteen lexical sources I consulted, unless I missed it after several readings and re-readings, none of them highlighted confront/confrontation as a meaning of this word group. However, a few did have the related concepts of reproof or correction.

None of the sixteen Greek language experts explicitly used the word counseling. However, a few used the words advise/advice.

And the Commentaries Say… 

The fourteen commentaries looked not only at the meaning of the words noutheteo/nouthesia, but more so at the usage of the words in their biblical context. Among the consistent areas of emphasis are:

• Admonishing the mind with deep feeling and interest in the person’s welfare (Barnes, Acts 20:31). 

• Cautioning in the most tender and affectionate manner (Poole, Acts 20:31).

• Instruction with kindness, not with harshness (Barnes, Romans 15:14).

• Putting a Christian in mind in a mild and tender way as a father with a beloved child (Benson, 1 Corinthians 4:14).

• Instilling wisdom into the mind, not with a severe spirit of rebuke, not to overwhelm with shame, but in a kind, tender, affectionate manner (Barnes, 1 Corinthians 4:14).

• Bringing all the claims of the gospel to one’s attention (Barnes, Colossians 1:28).

• Mutually encouraging one another with the gospel of Christ’s grace in natural daily relationships, conversations, and communion as the outcome of the abundant indwelling of the gospel (Meyer’s, Colossians 3:16).

• Teaching and admonishing are dual aspects of Paul’s preaching, with noutheteo focused on lovingly warning Christians who might be tempted to stray. The goal is to present everyone mature in Christ (Moo, Colossians 1:26, pp 160-161).

• Admonishing, or warning one another, is the result of a life overflowing with the Word of Christ. It produces not only information but emotion—generating a heart of worship and thankfulness (MacArthur, Colossians 3:16, pp 316-317).

• Admonishment is also a parental ministry done with gentleness and forbearance, guiding children when they are tempted to go astray (Calvin, Ephesians 6:4).

In summary, commentators envision noutheteo/nouthesia as:

• Christ-centered, caring, compassionate cautionary instruction grounded in humility, gentleness, tenderness, familial love, kindness, and grace.

• Instructive communication derived from Christ-centered wisdom seeking to disciple the mind to stay focused on Christ.

• Humble, gentle, loving warnings not to stray from Christ, along with wise discipleship of the mind on how to stay on the path of a mind stayed on Christ.

A Preview of What’s to Come… 

In our next post, we’ll transition from how Greek language experts and commentators see noutheteo/nouthesia to how I see these words based upon my examination of the 11 New Testament passages that use them.

Since Jay Adams alliterated his view of nouthetic counseling with 3 “C” words (confront, concern, change), here are two previews of my “C” word alliterations of noutheteo/nouthesia:

• Cautionary, caring, charis (grace-soaked), Christ-saturated, cognitive, contextual-instruction focused on Christlikeness.

That one is somewhat brief. I can also alliterate my view of noutheteo/nouthesia with 24 “C” words!

• Christ-centered communal conversations characterized by cautionary cognitive catechism centered on concern for a continual course toward change into Christlikeness communicated by compassionate, caring, committed caregivers characterized by Christian conviction/content and charis. 

Don’t worry, in my next post, I won’t have a 24-point outline! In fact, here’s my very succinct, non-alliterated description of nouthetic ministry:

• Cautionary Instruction.

Homework for Biblical Counselors: 5 Assessments of Our Noutheteo/Nouthesia Biblical Soul Care 

1. Since noutheteo/nouthesia focus on the mind, how can you focus your cautionary instructions not just on behavior, but more so on the mind, mind renewal, the heart, the inner person?

2. In your care for people, when you find the need to confront a counselee or a brother or sister in Christ, to what extent do you do it humbly, lovingly, and out of deep concern?

3. When you see a brother or sister being tempted to stray from the path of truth and love, what does it look like for you to share mutual preventative caring instruction of the mind that warns, cautions, and encourages them to stay on the path toward Christlikeness?

4. Do what degree is your cautionary instruction grounded in humility, gentleness, tenderness, familial love, kindness, and grace? How could you grow in these Christlike character traits?

5. How can you grow as a soul care giver who offers cautionary, caring, charis (grace-soaked) cognitive, contextual-instruction focused on Christlikeness?

Notes

[1] Adams, Jay. What Is Nouthetic Counseling? ND. Accessed June 11, 2023. https://nouthetic.org/about/what-is-nouthetic-counseling/.

[2] Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT; BAGD; Cremer, Biblico-Theological Lexicon of New Testament Greek; Earle; Word Meanings; Liddell-Scott-Jones; Moulton and Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek NT; Mounce, Complete Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words; New American Standard Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible/Hebrew-Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries; Robertson, Word Pictures; Strong, Concordance; TDNT; Thayer Newer; Thayer Older; Vincent, Word Studies; Vines, Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words; Wuest.

[3] Barnes Notes on the Bible, Benson Commentary, Calvin, Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers, Expositor’s Greek New Testament, Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible, Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary, MacArthur/Col/Phil, Matthew Poole’s Commentary, Meyer’s NT Commentary, Moo/Col/Philemon, Morris/1 and 2 Thessalonians, Pulpit Commentary.