[B-Greek] Gal 4:2 steward

Byron & Linetta Knutson byronk at open.org
Fri Nov 7 02:08:46 EST 2003


I guess I didn't make myself clear.  What I wanted was examples of non-biblical occurances, i.e., extrabiblical examples of stewards (plural).  While I know that the word occurs in the plural many times, I wanted to know if there were examples of someone actually having more than one steward at a time.  I was not concerned with how the word was used in the plural, just if there were any examples of someone have two or more stewards at a time.  I am not concerned with the metaphorical use of the word.

Byron Knutson
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Carl W. Conrad 
  To: Byron & Linetta Knutson 
  Cc: B-Greek 
  Sent: Thursday, November 06, 2003 2:33 PM
  Subject: Re: [B-Greek] Gal 4:2 steward


  At 1:18 PM -0800 11/6/03, Byron & Linetta Knutson wrote:
  >I Gal 4:2 the word OIKONOMOUS is plural. I was wondering if there are any cases in the ancient world where a household had more than one steward at a time? I can conceive of having plural stewards if one died and another took his place, thus a child would have been under stewardS, but did they ever serve concurrently and if so what were the cercumstances?
  >
  >Also, what were the differences in job discription between STEWARDS/OIONOMOUS and TUTORS or GUARDIANS/EPITROPOUS?

  You mustn't get hung up on the word in its primary sense; it appears in the plural elsewhere in the GNT in 1 Cor 4:1 and 4:2 and in 1 Pet 4:10. In addition to senses #1 and #2, BDAG has #3:

  3. one who is entrusted with management in connection with transcendent matters, administrator (Aristot., Rhet. 3, 3 p. 1406a, 27; Tat. 9, 3. of the administrators of divine things ( ParJer 7:2; of an office in the Serapeum UPZ 56, 7 [160 BC]; religious associations also had OIKONOMOI.Ú OGI 50, 12; 51, 26): the apostles are OIKONOMOI MUSTHRIWN QEOU administrators of God’s secret counsels/plans 1 Cor 4:1. So the overseer of a Christian community must conduct himself as a QEOU OIKONOMOS Tit 1:7. But Christians gener. are also QEOU OIKONOMOI (KAI PAREDROI KAI hUPHRETAI) IPol 6:1 or KALOI OIKONOMOI POIKILHS CARITOS QEOU v good administrators of God’s varied grace 1 Pt 4:10 (cp. X., Mem. 3, 4, 7 hOI AGAQOI OIKONOMOI).—JReumann, JBL 77, ’58, 339–49 (pre-Christian), ‘Jesus the Steward’, TU 103, ’68, 21–29.—New Docs 4, 160f. DELG s.v. ne÷mw. M-M. EDNT. TW. Spicq. Sv.


  Carl W. Conrad
  Department of Classics, Washington University (Emeritus)
  1989 Grindstaff Road/Burnsville, NC 28714/(828) 675-4243
  cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu
  WWW: http://www.ioa.com/~cwconrad/


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