[B-Greek] Re: Gal 4:8: TOIS MH OUSIN QEIOS

moon at mail.sogang.ac.kr moon at mail.sogang.ac.kr
Mon Apr 26 00:31:50 EDT 2004


Perhaps, my previous message was unreadable. I am sending again.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
Moon


> 
> 
> I recently read Gal 4:8-9, and found out something that look
> unfamiliar to me. 
> 
> ALLA TOTE MEN OUK EIDOTES QEON EDOULEUSATE TOIS FUSIS MH OUSIN QEIOS.
> NUN DE GNONTES QEON MALLON DE GNWSQENTES  hUPO QEOU.
> 
> 
> (1) In this context, TOIS MH OUSIN QEIOS refer to other gods they were serving.
>     Then, it implies that TW WN QEOIS would refer to Yaweh, the only true god. 
>     Then it implies that QEIOS is a property that can be attributed only to 
>     Yaweh the only true god, not to other gods.
> 
>     But the above interpretation of word QEIOS seems to be againt the common
>     usage of word QEIOS, which would be used to describe gods less than Yaweh
>     the only true god. 
> 
>     I wonder if TOIS MH OUSIN QEOS would better serve Paul's purpose here, or
>     my understanding of QEIOS is wrong.
> 
>     I ask this question because some say that John in 1.1c did not write
>     QEIOS HN hO LOGOS but QEOS HN ho LOGOS, and think that the two convey
>     quite different meanings.
>  
>     
> (2) EIDOTES QEON, GNONTES QEON:
> 
>    The context certainly implies that they came to know Yaweh, the only
>    true god, the god of Jesus Christ, the god of Abraham and Issac and Jacob.
>    But I wonder why Paul did not write TON QEON in this context. I searched
>    for QEON in NT, and found out 150 matches.  I searched for the cases
>    where QEON is used as the direct object of a verb. I excluded PP + QEON
>    (It is well known
>    that after prepositions, nouns are typically without articles). Also I 
>    excluded the cases where QEON is used as a predicate noun (e.g. John 10.33,
>    2. Thess 2.4). In most of the remaining cases, TON QEON is used rather than QEON.  
> 
>    The exceptions are
> 
>     John 1:18: QEON OUDEIS EWRAKEN PWPOTE.
>     2John 1:9: PAS hO PROAGWN KAIMH MENWN EN TH DIDACH TOU CRISTOU QEON OUK EXEI.
>     Titus 1:16 QEON hOMOLOGOUSIN EIDENAI, TOIS DE ERGOIS ARNOUNTAI.
>     2 Thess 1:8: DIDONTOS EKDIKHSIN TOIS MH EIDOSIN QEON
>     Gal 4.8,9.
> 
> Paul is able to write GNONTES TON QEON (Rom 1:21) instead of GNONTES QEON (Gal 4:8).
> So, I wonder if the two phrases have different nuances or no difference at all.
> 
> Sincerely
> Moon
> 
> Moon Ryul Jung
> Sogang Univ, Seoul, Korea
> 
>  
> 
> 
>   
> 
> 
> Moon R. Jung
> Associate Professor
> Dept of Media Technology
> Graduate School of Media Comm
> Sogang Univ, Seoul, Korea
> 
> 
> 


Moon R. Jung
Associate Professor
Dept of Media Technology
Graduate School of Media Comm
Sogang Univ, Seoul, Korea





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