BDAG at Rv 3:14 - Christ was the first creation now probable

GregStffrd at aol.com GregStffrd at aol.com
Tue Jan 23 23:22:10 EST 2001


In a message dated 01/23/2001 11:41:43 AM Pacific Standard Time, CEP7 at aol.com 
writes:

<< Any thoughts on the use of the genitive THS KTISEWS in Rev 3:14 (hH ARCH 
THS 
 KTISEWS TOU QEOU)? Possibly objective, He begins God's creation? This could 
 significantly affect the way we interpret hH ARCH.
 
 Charles E. Powell, Ph.D. >>


Dear Charles:

Such a suggestion would seem to give hH ARCH the verbal idea of "beginning," 
depicting Christ as the 'beginner' of God's creation. This would seem to 
assign a creative role to Christ in this verse, which, to me, does not seem 
to fit well with the idea expressed in TOU QEOU. 

It seems as if you are suggesting something like, "[Christ is] the beginner 
of God's creation." But as with the use of AUTOU in Col. 1:15-18, QEOU seems 
to speak of someone other than the one denoted by the head noun, in this case 
ARCH. 

So, I don't find the that idea of Christ as the 'beginner of the creation 
[that] God [created]" works very well. But if you could show an implicit 
verbal idea for ARCH in other uses of the term, I would be open to it. 

Best regards,

Greg Stafford



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