[B-Greek] DIAKRINW and prophets
Eric Weiss
eweiss at gte.net
Tue Apr 1 00:17:08 EST 2003
Didache 11:7 says:
KAI PANTA PROFHTHN LALOUNTA EN PNEUMATI OU PEIRASETE OUDE DIAKRINEITE*
PASA GAR hAMARTIA AFEQHSETAI, hAUTH DE hH hAMARTIA OUK AFEQHSETAI.
(I use * to represent the Greek semicolon, i.e., a raised dot.)
The similarity to Matthew 12:31 suggests that doing this might be
tantamount to the "blasphemy against the Spirit," but that's not my
question.
In I Corinthians 14:29-32, Paul writes:
29 PROFHTAI DE DUO H TREIS LALEITWSAN KAI hOI ALLOI DIAKRINETWSAN* 30
EAN DE ALLWi APOKALUFQHi KAQHMENWi, hO PRWTOS SIGATW. 31 DUNASQE GAR
KAQ' hENA PANTES PROFHTEUEIN, hINA PANTES MANQANWSIN KAI PANTES
PARAKALWNTAI. 32 KAI PNEUMATA PROFHTWN PROFHTAIS hUPOTASSETAI,
Thus, in I Corinthians Paul instructs "the others" to DIAKRINW the
prophet(s) who speak(s), but in the Didache the readers are instructed
not to DIAKRINW a prophet who speaks. Assuming the meaning of DIAKRINW
is the same in both passages (i.e., to evaluate or judge -- but see my
later comments), is there a conflict here? And, as I discuss below, how
should one translate the Didache passage? And who are hOI ALLOI in
Paul's passage?
I see a couple possibilities:
1. hOI ALLOI in I Corinthians 14:29 refers to the other prophets, and
not to the entire gathered assembly. Thus, while it may be out of line
or a great sin (per the Didache) for just any person in the church to
pass judgment on or evaluate what a prophet speaks, it is all right and
indeed expected for prophets to judge each other and be so judged by
each other.
2. LALOUNTA in the Didache verse could be translated as "while speaking"
so the sin is not one of evaluating or judging what the prophet says,
but of interruping him while he is speaking.
Another possibility, though, is that DIAKRINW in the Didache passage
means "to doubt" as in Acts 11:12 (or possibly "to criticize" -- see
Acts 11:2). Louw-Nida gives "doubt" and "criticize" as definitions of
DIAKRINOMAI, but not of DIAKRINW (per the vol. 2 glosses). A problem is
that in Acts 10:20 where the Spirit speaks to Peter, He (the Spirit)
says "MHDEN DIAKRINOMENOS" (i.e., DIAKRINOMAI), but in Acts 11:12 where
Peter recounts this event, he (Peter) says the Spirit said "MHDEN
DIAKRINANTA" (i.e., DIAKRINW) -- though UBS4 gives the Acts 11:12
reading only a {C} rating, and lists as variants DIAKRINONTA (i.e.,
DIAKRINW) and DIAKRINOMENON (i.e., DIAKRINOMAI). If the UBS4 reading is
the correct one, then there may be no distinction between DIAKRINW and
DIAKRINOMAI in terms of them both being able to mean "to doubt." And if
it does mean "to doubt" or "to criticize" in the Didache passage, then
it means that the readers are warned not to question or doubt what is
said by a true prophet who speaks by (or in) the Spirit, and it thus may
not be the same meaning for DIAKRINW that Paul has in I Corinthians 14.
- - -
Eric Weiss
http://home1.gte.net/vzn05pnm/index.htm
S.D.G.
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