Gal 4:4 (Some thoughts on a new NA)

Iver Larsen iver_larsen at sil.org
Sat Jul 13 07:10:25 EDT 2002


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Glen L Naftaniel [mailto:glensmail at juno.com]
> Sent: 13. juli 2002 02:47
> To: Biblical Greek
> Subject: [b-greek] Re: Some thoughts on a new NA
>
>
> Dear B-Greeker's, I have a question regarding the order of events
> in Gal 4:4.
>
> The verse is: But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent
> forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, (Gal 4:4 KJV)
>
> hOTE DE HLQEN TO PLHPWMA TOU CRONOU EXAPESTEILEN O QEOS TON hUION
> AUTOU GENOMENON EK GUNAIKOS, GENOMENON hPO NOMON (Gal 4:4 N-A)
>
> Now, my question is does "EXAPESTEILEN" occur prior to
> "GENOMENON"? Also, how do we know?
>

As Carl has said an aorist participle regularly, but not always denotes an
action prior to the main verb. In this case, I would take the two parallel
clauses with participles as further explaining the event of the main verb.
All the events are semantically narrative past tense and therefore use the
aorist as the default narrative tense. So I see the function of the
participles as subordinating these events to the main verb and the function
of the aorist as denoting completed aspect (and past tense). How did God
sent his Son from Heaven to earth? First, he was born as a human being - not
sent as a full grown man who suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Second, he
was born into a Jewish family and was taught to live under the Jewish
religious laws, the Torah, as any other Jewish boy.

One could say that the "sending" covers a unified set of events: Jesus being
born, his upbringing, his ministry, death, resurrection and ascension. If
so, the two participles would be the initial events of his birth and
upbringing, but it does not make sense to me to think of his birth as having
occurred prior to his being sent forth. That would entail a restriction of
the meaning of "sending forth" to his public ministry which I don't think is
supported by the context.

It is of interest that Paul uses the present participle of GINOMAI only once
and that this is in a situation where there is strong emphasis on the
uncompleted and ongoing aspect of the event being referred to (Eph 5:12). He
uses the default narrative past aorist participle 8 times apart from Gal 4:4
(Rom 1:7; 7:3; 2 Cor 1:8; Gal 3:13; Phil 2:7,8; 3:6; 2 Tim 1:17). Generally
speaking, the aorist form is much more common (102 times in the GNT) than
the present from (17 times).

Iver Larsen




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