I Timothy 3:2, DIDAKTIKON

Mr. Gary S. Dykes yhwh3in1 at lightspeed.net
Fri Apr 7 04:02:37 EDT 2000


Dear (Mr.) Holmyard III,

I appreciate your comment. I view the list of adjectives in I Timothy 3:2 
as attributive, not in the predicate. I see the infinitive ("to be") as the 
subject, with "necessary" as the primary verb. Room for other diagramming 
methods exist, so I am not trying to be final or dogmatic here.

The ending of DIDAKTIKON/J identifies it as an adjective which is 
expressing a "characteristic" or "tendency" (per David A. Black). A 
reflexive notion is supplied by the nature of the active infinitive EINAI, 
"to be". The adjectives supply descriptive qualities to what one must be 
(not so much "do"). They modify the infinitive.

In English the adjectival ending -able, signifies ability, an adjective.
Thus the traditional translation as "able to teach" is acceptable, yet I 
posit that "teachable", could be accepatable here as well.

Perhaps the Holy Spirit meant both meanings here, for certainly we find 
that with "husband of one wife" -- as:

(1) not remarried

(2) one wife at a time -- OR

(3) must be married 

(4) married only once

Take your pick.

Concerning DIDAKTIKOJ, the TLG-e CD, shows 49 occurrences, far more than 
Liddel- Scott, many are post-Classical. But each needs to be investigated
before dogmatic conclusions can be reached. I searched for the accusative 
and nominative forms only, surely more exist in the other cases!

Theologically, a leader who does not grow, or who is not teachable (by the 
Holy Spirit, or others) is like a stagnant pond.

Both "able to teach" and "teachable" are fine in my book. Yet more research 
is needed. Thus, I view the traditional view and most dictionaries here 
with caution.

Mr. Gary S. Dykes
Swanson's Errata List -- http://userzweb.lightspeed.net/yhwh3in1/



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