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Capitalisation of διαβόλος in Ephesians 6:11

Posted: November 10th, 2019, 5:53 am
by Jacob Rhoden
I am not sure if this question is about the Greek definite article, usage of the article in English, or
lack of understanding of church tradition. 😀

πρὸς τὸ δύνασθαι ὑμᾶς στῆναι πρὸς τὰς μεθοδείας τοῦ διαβόλου·


Most translations translate "the devil", but HCSB stands out in translating it as "the Devil". If translating with a D asserts that they understand the Greek to refer to a definite specific spiritual being (Satan). What does choosing lowercase 'd' with 'the' in English assert?


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Liddell and Scott writes:
διάβολος, ον, slanderous, backbiting, Sup.; διαβολώτατος Ar.
2. as Subst. a slanderer, Arist.: the Slanderer, the Devil, N.T.
3. Adv. -λως, injuriously, invidiously, Thuc.
I assume "Subst." is substantive, but I don't know what "Arist." would be short for.

Re: Capitalisation of διαβόλος in Ephesians 6:11

Posted: November 10th, 2019, 11:08 am
by Brian Gould
Aristotle. The word appears three times in the Topics, part of the Posterior Analytics. All three occurrences are in Book 4. The first of them, in section 5, is on p. 462 of the Loeb edition:

https://archive.org/details/L391Aristot ... /page/n473

Re: Capitalisation of διαβόλος in Ephesians 6:11

Posted: November 11th, 2019, 10:07 pm
by Peng Huiguo
Don't over-read the greek (or english) article. διάβολος (note the location of the accent) is mentioned a few times in the gospels, all in reference to some supernatural being(s, numbers seem to break down in spiritual realm), so here it most probably refers to the same, especially in light of the subsequent verse.