Mk 8:35-37, YUCH

Joe A. Friberg JoeFriberg at email.msn.com
Sat Dec 18 22:31:01 EST 1999


Paul Dixon wrote:
> Surely one would think that in the same immediate context the nuance of
> YUCH would
> be the same, but rendering it as life in v. 35, then as soul in verses 36
> and 37 seems
> to suggest otherwise.

In v35, YUCH is something that can be both lost and saved at the same time;
hence there are two levels or types of YUCH referenced in this verse:
- a lower and higher life, or
- temporal vs. eternal life, or
- present life only vs. life continuing to afterlife.
This alternation is in itself a play on words.  We do not use the term
'soul' in such a bifurcated manner, but as an indivisible organic whole,
possessing continuity.  Hence none of the translations cited have used
'soul' in this verse.

In v36-37, YUXH is limited to the second category found in v35: the
higher/eternal life.  When viewed in continuity with the current life, this
is closer to our wholistic conception of 'soul', which is why a number of
translations choose to switch to this term at this point.

Note that the contrast is not between vv36-37 and v35, but is found within
v35 itself, while v36-37 merely settle on one of the senses found in v35.

God Bless!
Joe A. Friberg








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