Rom. 1:4 EN DUNAMEI adverbial or adjectival
dalmatia at eburg.com
dalmatia at eburg.com
Mon Jul 13 12:29:08 EDT 1998
Carl W. Conrad wrote:
> (1) Paul's interpretation of the phrase which he cites from Hab 2:4 as hO
> DE DIKAIOS EK PISTEWS ZHSETAI--and which I think ought properly to be
> construed by taking EK PISTEWS with ZHSETAI--certainly appears to be
> understood by Paul in Rom 1:17ff in such a way that EK PISTEWS functions
> adjectivally with hO DIKAIOS.
When a modifier lies between two terms like this [here between the
subject and the verb], I have always taken it to 'distribute' to
[modify] both, unless otherwise contraindicated. Why does it have to
be one or the other? The subject is united with the action of the
verb, and the prepositional phrase [EK PISTEWS] modifies that unity.
Are we imposing an understanding of either-or that is not appropriate
to the Greek usage?
> All of which is to say, I don't really THINK that the prepositional phrase
> EN DUNAMEI ought, in ordinary Greek syntax, to be construed with a noun,
> but I certainly don't feel overwhelming confidence about the situation in
> Rom 1:4.
Yes, it seems to be right in the middle of everything in this verse,
and might well be understood to modify the whole of it. It feels
formulaic here, a part of the greeting, and perhaps should not be
approached as a 'normal' sentence syntactically.
Is it important to link it with one word in the sentence only?
George
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