[B-Greek] Acts 16,31

Iver Larsen iver_larsen at sil.org
Thu Apr 1 23:07:52 EST 2004


> At 5:03 PM -0800 3/31/04, Eddie Mishoe wrote:
> >hOI DE EIPAN, PISTEUSON EPI TON KURION IHSOUN, KAI
> >SWQHSHi SU KAI hO OIKOS SOU
> >
> >SU and hO OIKOS SOU are said to be compound subjects.
> >Is that open for discussion or is it grammatically the
> >only option? As compound subjects, they would both
> >modify the verb PISTEUSON, right? (The reason for this
> >question stems from the non-Greek teachers who say
> >that the jailer alone believed, but his household
> >received salvation based on his belief.)
>
> This is not exactly a "compound subject" which would normally, I think,
> call for a plural verb; I'd call KAI hO OIKOS SOU an "add-on
> subject"--i.e.
> the predicate is already stated SWQHSHi: "you will be saved"--and
> then it's
> clarified by the appended SU KAI hO OIKOS SOU, perhaps to be loosely
> conveyed, "and not only you but your household as well."

I would prefer to put the comma at a different place:

hOI DE EIPAN: PISTEUSON EPI TON KURION IHSOUN KAI SWQHSHi,
SU KAI hO OIKOS SOU

There is a logical connection between PISTEUSON and SWQHSHi: If you believe
in the Lord Jesus, you will be saved. The subject in this sentence (the
person spoken to) is marked by the verb forms.
The second part is IMO an add-on clarification to the whole sentence, not
just the second clause: This principle that "belief leads to salvation", by
the way, applies not only to you, but to your whole household (and anyone
else for that matter).

Iver Larsen




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