Philippians 1:9-11
Carlton Winbery
winberyc at popalex1.linknet.net
Sun Sep 19 23:43:08 EDT 1999
Carl Conrad responded to the following;
>At 2:31 PM +0100 9/19/99, Michael Haggett wrote:
>>> >3. How would you classify the use of the participle TA DIAFERONTA and its
>>> >function in this sentence?
>>>
>>> I wouldn't classify it at all. Since it has an article, it is clearly
>>> substantival; since DIAFERW, among its common senses, means "be better
>>> than," this has to mean in this instance, "what is better."
>>
>>HAS TO MEAN? I'm not at all sure that DIAFERW ever means "be better than"
>>except by a tortuous route.
>
>Sorry about the loose language with my "has to mean"--I really did NOT
>mean that someone couldn't interpret it otherwise. But I guess I'm willing
>to go that tortuous route and I would still maintain that this is
>essentially the meaning >in this context--'the way which is better than
>the way which is deficient'.
In light of the emphasis in this passage on what love can lead to
(knowledge, insight, etc), I think that this participle can mean the
"things that really matter." It is substantival ptc functioning here as
receiver of the action (object) of the infinitive. "That you may approve
the things that really matter."
Dr. Carlton L. Winbery
Foggleman Professor of Religion
Louisiana College
winbery at andria.lacollege.edu
winberyc at popalex1.linknet.net
Ph. 1 318 448 6103 hm
Ph. 1 318 487 7241 off
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