hOTI for GAR?
Carl W. Conrad
cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu
Fri Aug 30 13:29:54 EDT 2002
At 10:04 AM -0400 8/30/02, Eric S. Weiss wrote:
>> Hi Eric,
>>
>> From the various lexica, it would appear that GAR and hOTI are fairly
>> interchangeable in this regard. Nevertheless, I think I see your point.
>> If GAR had been used, it certainly would have been clearly intended to
>> mean "because." On the other hand, hOTI often introduces speech or
>> quotations. Is Jesus quoting someone prior? In paraphrased quotations,
>> hOTI can be translated "that." Note the use of ESTIN, which can be used
>> as a predicate to what exists.
>>
>> Matthew 6:13c seems to be saying "don't leave us struggling, but protect
>> us from the bad guy that {hOTI} yours BE (emphasis) the kingdom, power
>> and glory for ever, so be it". It appears to be a situational contrast,
>> more than a reason. If left to our own devices to lean on our own
>> strength and will, we are vulnerable, even though the Father IS in
>> charge. So, as the Father aids us and protects us, then we ARE in his
>> kingdom.
>
>I would think that if hOTI were to be translated as meaning "that" or
>"[so] that", the author would have used a different word, e.g., hWSTE. But
>you raise an interesting possibility, i.e., hOTI introducing a quotation
>(perhaps based on I Chronicles 29:11 or similar verses). I.e.:
>
>"And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from [the] evil [one],
>that: 'YOURS be the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen'"
>
>This, however, does not solve the problem of what this doxology refers to
>-- i.e., merely the deliverance from evil, or ALL the petitions and acts
>described in the prayer.
For what it's worth (and perhaps that isn't very much), I think that when
hOTI has the sense of "because," it's very much like Latin QUOD: it's a
relative pronoun with an elliptical sense: (TOUT' ESTIN) hOTI = "that is:
..." or like French "c'est que ..." We might as well English it, "The fact
IS ..." Notice that here too the SOU as a predicate genitive is out in
front: hOTI SOU ESTIN hH BASILEIA KAI hH DUNAMIS KAI hH DOXA EIS TOUS
AIWNAS: "The truth is that YOURS is the kingship and the power and the
glory forever." And this need not understood solely as a coda or
explanation simply of the petition of vs. 13 but rather with reference to
the entire prayer, which also begins with an address to the Father and a
concern for His kingdom and His will.
--
Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Emeritus)
Most months:: 1647 Grindstaff Road/Burnsville, NC 28714/(828) 675-4243
cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu OR cwconrad at ioa.com
WWW: http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/
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