OINOS

B. Ward Powers bwpowers at eagles.com.au
Wed Jun 14 12:49:44 EDT 2000


B-greekers all:

Last Monday I ventured to post to the list a clarification of a reference 
which Carl had made to my understanding of the scope of the meaning of OINOS.

Since then, at last count, there have been some two dozen postings to the 
list, of varying degrees of relevance, under the headings of OINOS (the 
original thread heading, from the initial query from Kevin Smith), "WINE", 
and "OK, what about grape juice?"

I have been tied up with College responsibilities and have not been able to 
respond earlier. Quite a lot can happen on this list in just three days!

At 11:26 AM 000612 -02-30, George Young wrote:
>B. Ward Powers wrote:
>
>[SNIP quote from my post]


>I'm just curious, but when/where exactly in the Bible does OINOS refer to
>grapejuice?
>
>George W. Young, PhD
>Assistant Professor of Biblical Studies
>Queen's College Faculty of Theology
>210 Prince Philip Drive
>St. John's  NF
>CANADA   A1B 3R6
>Tel. (709) 753-0116
>Fax. (709) 753-1214
>email: gwyoung at morgan.ucs.mun.ca


One of the OT Hebrew words which is usually translated OINOS  is TIROSH. 
This word occurs in Isaiah 65:8: "As the *wine* is found in the cluster 
..." (NRSV). In my copy of the LXX this word TIROSH is not rendered by 
OINOS on this occasion, but it illustrates that TIROSH can refer to 
unfermented grapejuice: here the juice while still in the grape is called 
"wine".

In Micah 6:15 we read that "you shall tread olives and not anoint 
yourselves with oil; you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine" (NRSV). 
The LXX has here
KAI OINON, KAI OU MH PIHTE: i.e. (more literally), "you shall tread olives 
... and wine, but not drink [it]." Here the word OINON refers to the 
unfermented grapejuice which is pressed from the grapes.

In Mt 9:17//Mk 2:22//Lk 5:37 Jesus refers to putting new wine, not into old 
wineskins, but into new (fresh) wineskins. What is being put into the old 
or new wineskins is called OINOS. I would think it is clear that when it is 
put in it is unfermented, and it is the fermentation which occurs in the 
skin which will burst the old wineskins.

I will aim to reply also to other contributions to the list which were in 
response to my post.

Regards,

Ward

                                 http://www.eagles.bbs.net.au/~bwpowers
Rev Dr B. Ward Powers             Phone (International): 61-2-9799-7501
10 Grosvenor Crescent             Phone (Australia): (02) 9799-7501
SUMMER HILL  NSW  2130            email: bwpowers at eagles.bbs.net.au
AUSTRALIA.                      Director, Tyndale College




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