1 Cor 12:11
Steven Craig Miller
scmiller at www.plantnet.com
Wed Oct 27 13:38:45 EDT 1999
To: David A Bielby,
<< PANTA DE TAUTA ENERGEI TO hEN KAI TO AUTO PNEUMA DIAIROUN IDIAi hEKASTWi
KAQWS BOULETAI Question: What syntax rules govern who is willing in this
verse. (How do we know BOULETAI is not referring to the ones receiving
these things instead of the one giving these things). >>
The grammatical reason is that the subjects of finite verbs are generally
found in the nominative case and not in the dative case. If Paul had wanted
to say something more about IDIAi hEKASTWi, one would expect that he would
have used a dative participle. Or he could have introduced a new subject
(in the nominative case). To construe this passage so that the subject of
BOULETAI are those referred to in the dative phrase IDIAi hEKASTWi would be
to make this passage a solecism.
-Steven Craig Miller
Alton, Illinois (USA)
scmiller at www.plantnet.com
"There are no ultimate sources of knowledge. Every source, every suggestion
is welcome; and every source, every suggestion, is open to critical
examination" (Karl Popper, "Conjectures and Refutations: The Growth of
Scientific Knowledge," 1963:27).
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