John 2:23

backusfam1 at bluefrognet.net backusfam1 at bluefrognet.net
Sat Apr 6 23:10:44 EST 2002


I would like to thank all of those who responded to my question, especially 
Reverend Ben Crick, whose contribution seemed the most plausible.  He 
attributed the plural form of hIEROUSALHM to the fact that the Hebrew used the 
plural form of which the Greek, no longer using the dual in the New Testament, 
reflected the Hebrew by using the plural.  However, I felt that some did not 
understand the question.  My question in regard to Jerusalem in John 2:23 has 
to do with the fact that it occurs there in the dative plural with the definite 
article, however, previously in v.13, he used the form hIEROSOLUMA.  Since the 
LXX used hIEROUSALHM 90% of its occurrences, which is the indeclinable form, 
therefore static, then why employ the dative and genitive plural forms when 
hIEROUSALHM does not require a grammatical conformity?  Luke's gospel, for 
example, is highly consistent in using one particular form to represent the 
spelling of Jerusalem.  
   In John 2:13 & 2:23 Jerusalem is in different forms, however, there is no 
significance in the spellings, both contexts are similar in construction as 
well as to the event taking place (the Passover).  I'm not losing sleep over 
this, it's really a matter of curiosity.  I was just wondering why the author 
used a different form when hIEROUSALHM, occurring some 78 times in the NT, was 
not his choice in the verses cited above, as well as in John 5:1 and 5:2 where 
this same instance is presented again.  Actually, John's gospel shows the 
highest percentage of mixed forms(some 66% of Jerusalem's occurrence is in the 
dative and genitive).  I guess I'm trying to understand the apostle John's 
mind, or reasoning, for what seems to be a curious difference in form.


                                                 Thanks again,
                                                 Vance Backus



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