ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον (John 20.7)

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Andrew Chapman
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ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον (John 20.7)

Post by Andrew Chapman »

6) ἔρχεται οὖν καὶ Σίμων Πέτρος ἀκολουθῶν αὐτῷ καὶ εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸ μνημεῖον, καὶ θεωρεῖ τὰ ὀθόνια κείμενα, (7) καὶ τὸ σουδάριον, ὃ ἦν ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ, οὐ μετὰ τῶν ὀθονίων κείμενον ἀλλὰ χωρὶς ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον.

I had understood the σουδάριον to have been wrapped or folded at the time of the resurrection - and (put) in one place. Campbell Morgan says that this is an 'entirely mistaken interpretation' [The Gospel according to John, 2nd ed. 1934, p. 309], and that the cloth had been wrapped around the head of Jesus when His body was prepared for burial - and then subsided into its place when He rose from the dead. Is this possible? It seems more natural to me to take the εἰς with ἐντετυλιγμένον wrapped/folded (and put) somewhere. On the other hand it is true that ἐντυλίσσω is used for the wrapping of the body of Jesus with the σινδών in Luke 23.53 and Matthew 27.59.

Andrew
Tony Pope
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Re: ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον (John 20.7)

Post by Tony Pope »

From what you say, Andrew, Campbell Morgan appears to hold the rather popular view that when Jesus rose from the dead his body dematerialized and passed through the grave clothes and then rematerialized again. Then the σουδάριον would have been seen lying in exactly the place it had been before. It would be slightly separate from the ὀθόνια, which on that view are supposed to have covered the rest of the body.

To my mind this scenario does not explain the wording of the text, in particular χωρίς and εἰς ἕνα τόπον (hardly appropriate for an object that is supposed to have been at most only a few centimetres away from the objects with which it is contrasted). I prefer the view that on coming back to life Jesus stood up (as Lazarus had done), and then removed the σουδάριον and placed it separately from the ὀθόνια. There is a useful discussion of this in J. A. T. Robinson, The Priority of John, 1987 p. 292. Robinson understands the ὀθόνια to include a shroud which covered the head, such that the σουδάριον would have previously been inside it. This view gives more point to the mention that Peter found it lying in a separate place.
Jonathan Robie
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Re: ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον (John 20.7)

Post by Jonathan Robie »

Andrew Chapman wrote:It seems more natural to me to take the εἰς with ἐντετυλιγμένον wrapped/folded (and put) somewhere.
I do think that's a very natural reading. It's the way I read it.
Andrew Chapman wrote:Campbell Morgan says that this is an 'entirely mistaken interpretation' [The Gospel according to John, 2nd ed. 1934, p. 309], and that the cloth had been wrapped around the head of Jesus when His body was prepared for burial - and then subsided into its place when He rose from the dead. Is this possible?
I'm trying to understand how he reads the text ... can you help me with this?
ἐξίσταντο δὲ πάντες καὶ διηποροῦντο, ἄλλος πρὸς ἄλλον λέγοντες, τί θέλει τοῦτο εἶναι;
http://jonathanrobie.biblicalhumanities.org/
Andrew Chapman
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Re: ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον (John 20.7)

Post by Andrew Chapman »

Tony, thanks for the further point about χωρίς - and one might add the οὐ μετά - certainly in English, if it were a few centimetres away it would still be 'with'. And thank you for the reference - I will look it up next time I am in the library.

Jonathan, I think Morgan reads it as:

Πέτρος ... θεωρεῖ ... τὁ σουδάριον ... ἐντετυλιγμένον (having been wrapped, previously, before burial) εἰς ἕνα τόπον (in one place).

He cites research by Henry Latham in 'The Risen Master', says that 'the wrapping of the head was never a part of the wrappings of the body, but was separate', and that there was slightly elevated place for the head, so that the 'napkin about the head was thus always separate from the wrappings of the body.' (Morgan, p.310)

So, in this view, both the ὀθονία and the σουδαρίον stayed in the same location as they had been when Jesus was lying dead - except that they would have just subsided by gravity down to the ground.

Andrew
Jonathan Robie
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Re: ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον (John 20.7)

Post by Jonathan Robie »

Andrew Chapman wrote:Tony, thanks for the further point about χωρίς - and one might add the οὐ μετά - certainly in English, if it were a few centimetres away it would still be 'with'.
Yes, that seems right to me.
ἐξίσταντο δὲ πάντες καὶ διηποροῦντο, ἄλλος πρὸς ἄλλον λέγοντες, τί θέλει τοῦτο εἶναι;
http://jonathanrobie.biblicalhumanities.org/
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