EXHORTATION vs EXTORTION

There are two words in the English Language that sound very much alike. These words are:

EXTORTION and EXHORTATION

One is bad, and the other is good.

Let us look at a few verses which mention these words:

EXTORTION:

Ezek 22:12 In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by EXTORTION, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord GOD.

Mat 23:25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of EXTORTION and excess.

EXHORTATION:

Luke 3:18 And many other things in his EXHORTATION preached he unto the people.
Acts 13:15 And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of EXHORTATION for the people, say on.
Acts 20:2 And when he had gone over those parts, and had given them much EXHORTATION, he came into Greece,
Romans 12:8 Or he that exhorteth, on EXHORTATION: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness.
1 Corinthians 14:3 But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and EXHORTATION, and comfort.
2 Corinthians 8:17 For indeed he accepted the EXHORTATION; but being more forward, of his own accord he went unto you.
1 Thessalonians 2:3 For our EXHORTATION was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile:
1 Timothy 4:13 Till I come, give attendance to reading, to EXHORTATION, to doctrine.
Hebrews 12:5 And ye have forgotten the EXHORTATION which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
Hebrews 13:22 And I beseech you, brethren, suffer the word of EXHORTATION: for I have written a letter unto you in few words.

Notice, if you will, that the Bible speaks more of EXHORTATION than it does of EXTORTION. Why is this important to note? Because we live in a day of much extortion, and very little godly exhortation.

Notice too in the verses above that Jesus is the one exhorting the people and telling his disciples to do the same, while it is the Pharisees who are guilty of the malicious and godless act of extortion. This should give you a great illustration of the difference between Jesus Christ and false religion (i.e. between true disciples of Jesus, and those false disciples who claim the name of Jesus for financial gain only.)

Before going further, and applying this study to our day and age, let's define from the 1828 dictionary exactly what the words Exhort and Extort mean. Let's begin with the bad word and then look at the good word.

EXTORT:

1. To draw from by force or compulsion; to wrest or wring from by physical force, by menace, duress, violence, authority, or by any illegal means. Conquerors extort contributions from the vanquished; tryannical princes extort money from their subjects; officers extort illegal fees; confessions of guilt are extorted by the rack. A promise exorted by duress is not binding.

2. To gain by violence or oppression.

EXTORTION:

1. The act of extorting; the act or practice of wresting any thign for a person by force, duress, menaces, authority, or by any undue exercise of power; illegal exaction; illegal compulsion to pay money, or to do some other act. Extortion is an offense punishable at common law.

2. Force or illegal compulsion by which anything is taken from a person.

EXHORT:

To deliver exhortation; to use words or arguments to incite to good deeds.

EXHORTATION:

1. The act or practice of exhorting; the act of inciting to laudable deeds; incitement to that which is good or commendable.

2. The form of words intended to incite and encourage.

3. Advice; counsel.

As we look at these two definitions, we find some interesting things which you might never have thought about before. EXTORTION is a very bad thing. It is an act that someone does which defraudes another. It's not always forcing a person to PAY money, but can also be forcing someone to PERFORM an action against their will (like, say, forcing someone to buy Health Insurance whether they want to or not, upon penalty of fines. But I digress.)

Further, to EXTORT someone is to take something from them, whether it be money, freedom, virtue, or dignity. And according to the definition, extortion is a CRIME, punishable by law.

Also, according to the Bible, extortion is something that God hates, and is something he will punish people for harshly. Just look at the following verses:

Psa 109:11 Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour.
Psa 109:12 Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.

1 Cor 5:11 But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.
1 Cor 5:11 But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

1 Cor 6:9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
1 Cor 6:10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

These verses tell us to not have company with, eat with, or have anything to do with extortioners, for they shall not inherit the things of God. Nor should we show them any mercy, for they are sinful, wicked, and ungodly.

Contrast this now with the EXHORTATION. As extortion embodies all that is evil, exhortation seems to embody all that is good. To exhort others is to use words to incite others to good deeds, and to counsel and encourage people to do right. Notice how exhortation allows a person the free will to do as they please, while extortion takes away their right to freedom of choice. EXHORTATION lets one decide their course of action, while EXTORTION demands a person's compliance, often upon threat of unwanted and unmerited punishment.

Just looking at the definitions alone show us that we should desire to be Exhorters, and not Extorters. But in our world today, there are very few who practice exhortation. Rather, they are busy planning, plotting, and scheming new ways of extortion. Why is this?

It really all boils down to one verse in the Bible. In Philippians 2:3, we are instructed to: "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves."

According to this verse, we see that everyone is commanded to care more about others than themselves. A practice that is not popular, nor widely taught in our world today. Most people care only about themselves and what they can get out of life. They are sensusal and selfish and care only about pleasure and profit. And because of this, they learn at an early age how to get what they want - they then become masters at the game of extortion and hone their skills to the fullest for their own selfish gain.

But what ever happened to exhortation? It used to be all around us, as there were people always there to instruct us and teach us how to live. Parents, grandparents, teachers, bosses, friends, and more all practiced exhorting us to work hard, scrimp and save, treat others fairly, and do good unto others. But where are those principles now and where are those people?

Today, instead of the mantras of days gone by like: "Respect your elders," and "Be kind to others," and "Treat others as you'd like to be treated," people's attitude is "Me first, you next - maybe!" Why is this? I believe it's because no one has been there to exhort them to do right. Instead, they've been left alone and learned how to get by on their own through wicked, sinful means.

Instead of being raised by their parents, many latch-key kids are raised on the streets. Instead of school teachers who are upstanding citizens and role models for their pupils, we find professors who are radical leftist communists who incite young people to violence. Instead of churches preaching and teaching the importance of abstaining from sexual vices, libations, revelings, and depravity, churches have become social clubs which have allowed the world to entire their doors and poison the minds of the youth with rock music, worldly movies, and secular practices.

The simple fact is Extortion has birthed forth into the monster that is today because of the lack of Christian Exhortation.

Sadly, Christians are to blame. For we find this like practice of exhortation not only in the world, but also in churches today, in which ministers spend their time fleecing their flocks and pressuring them to give financially out of necessity, instead of simply teaching and preaching the word of God and allowing their congregations to give out of love for the things of God.

In closing, let me ask you a question. Are you an Exhorter or an Extorter? And, if I may be so bold, might I ask you another question, "Do you care more about yourself and what you can get from others, or do you care enough about others to encourage them to do right?"

The choice is yours. But I'm convinced the world would be a much better place with less extortion and more exhortation. And let me add to that by saying, "The Church of God needs to be the example, and follow the word of God by EXHORTING others to live for God and follow the scriptures in their daily lives."

For the simple fact of the matter is apostasy breeds extortioners, while revival births exhortationers. Which are you?