Makebates
What Does Makebates Mean?
The word "makebates" is an obsolete English term meaning "those who create contention" or "stirrers of strife." It appears in the marginal notes of the King James Version at 2 Timothy 3:3 and Titus 2:3 as an alternative translation for the Greek word "diaboloi." While the main KJV text renders this word as "false accusers," the margin offers "makebates" as a possible reading. Modern translations typically use "slanderers" or "malicious gossips."
The Greek Word Diaboloi
The underlying Greek term "diaboloi" is the plural of "diabolos," which literally means "one who throws across" or "accuser." This is the same word used as a title for Satan (the Devil) throughout the New Testament, where it carries the sense of an accuser or slanderer. When applied to human beings in passages like 2 Timothy 3:3 and Titus 2:3, it describes people who engage in malicious speech, false accusations, and the deliberate stirring up of conflict between others.
The Warning in 2 Timothy 3
In 2 Timothy 3:1-5, Paul warns Timothy about the characteristics of people in "the last days." The list includes lovers of self, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, and among them "diaboloi" (false accusers/makebates). This vice list describes a society where interpersonal relationships have broken down and people actively work to destroy others through malicious speech. The makebate is not merely a gossip but someone who deliberately creates enmity between people.
The Instruction in Titus 2
Titus 2:3 instructs older women in the church to behave reverently and not be "diaboloi" (slanderers/makebates). Paul contrasts this negative behavior with the positive qualities older women should model: teaching what is good, training younger women to love their husbands and children, and living lives of self-control. The prohibition against being makebates highlights how destructive malicious speech can be within a community of faith.
The Sin of Stirring Strife
The biblical concern about stirring up strife extends far beyond these two passages. Proverbs 6:16-19 lists "a person who stirs up conflict in the community" as one of the things the Lord hates. Proverbs 26:20 teaches that "without gossip a quarrel dies down." James 3:5-6 describes the tongue as a fire that can set the whole course of life ablaze. The makebate embodies this destructive potential of speech, using words as weapons to divide and destroy.
The Call to Peacemaking
In contrast to the makebate, Scripture calls believers to be peacemakers. Jesus pronounced a blessing on peacemakers, calling them "sons of God" (Matthew 5:9). Romans 12:18 urges believers to live at peace with everyone as far as it depends on them. The biblical contrast between the makebate and the peacemaker challenges every believer to consider whether their speech builds up or tears down the community.
Biblical Context
Makebates appears in the KJV margin of 2 Timothy 3:3 and Titus 2:3, translating the Greek 'diaboloi.' The main text reads 'false accusers.' The broader biblical theme of destructive speech appears throughout Proverbs, James, and the Pauline epistles.
Theological Significance
The concept of makebates warns against the destructive power of malicious speech within the community of faith. Scripture consistently teaches that stirring up strife is an offense against God's desire for unity and peace among His people. The same Greek word used for Satan is applied to those who slander and create conflict.
Historical Background
The English word 'makebate' was common in Elizabethan and early modern English, meaning one who creates quarrels between others. The KJV translators included it as a marginal alternative reflecting the nuance of deliberate strife-making. The word fell out of common usage by the eighteenth century.