John 12:7

Carl W. Conrad cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu
Mon Dec 6 06:30:11 EST 1999


At 11:39 AM +0100 12/6/99, Wieland Willker wrote:
>What is the meaning of the words:
>"ina eis thn hmeran tou entafiasmou mou thrhsh auto."
>in John 12:7?
>
>She should keep it? - She has already used it. Not all?
>or, She has kept it? - it's not the day of burial, but it should mean just
>that?
>
>What would you consider to be the best translation of this?

I've puzzled over this from time to time myself and I've wondered whether
there might not be a linguistic conflation here between two senses of the
word THREW: (1) observe, keep (as a commandment) and (2) retain in custody,
keep in hand. My gut sense (which I trust more than I have a right to do)
is that what is meant here is that this is in fact a Johannine formulation
of the same tradition expressed in Mark 14:3-9, where the comparable words
of Jesus are: hO ESCEN EPOIHSEN: PROELABEN MURISAI TO SWMA MOU EIS TON
ENTAFIASMON. That is to say, I am inclined to think that the Johannine
passage should be understood to mean: "So that she may make this
(anointment with oil) her observance for my day of burial."


Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics/Washington University
One Brookings Drive/St. Louis, MO, USA 63130/(314) 935-4018
Home: 7222 Colgate Ave./St. Louis, MO 63130/(314) 726-5649
cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu
WWW: http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/



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