[B-Greek] 1 Tim. 3:16 and Greek poetry
Ted Shoemaker
tedsmath at yahoo.com
Fri Apr 23 12:53:40 EDT 2004
Hello,
1 Timothy 3:16 reads, in part:
hOS EFANERWQH EN SARKI
EDIKAIWQH EN PNEUMATI
WFQH AGGELOIS
EKHRUCQH EN EQNESIN
EPISTEUQH EN KOSMW
ANELHMFQH EN DOXH
We are told that the above-quoted parts of 1 Tim. 3:16 are poetry.
How so? I could not discern any *regular* cadence in this passage,
and I'm told that Greek poetry depends heavily on meter. The lines
come *close* to having a meter, but it appears that they closely miss
it. Or else, quite likely, I've misunderstood.
I can see that the phrases are somewhat parallel, but not in the same
way that the Psalms display parallel *clauses*. And parallelism is
more Semitic than Greek, anyway, isn't it?
So my questions are:
* What devices are used to distinguish ancient Greek poetry from
prose?
* Can you direct me to some examples of ancient Greek poetry,
whether in the NT or elsewhere, that are accessible to the beginner?
Thank you very much!
=====
Ted Shoemaker
A tantrum on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.
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