[B-Greek] Eph 2:8; Question about comment from Abraham Kuyper

dhoxworth at charter.net dhoxworth at charter.net
Fri May 14 11:30:33 EDT 2004


Does the following hold any water from Abraham Kuyper, "The Work of the Holy Spirit" pg. 407-414?

http://kuyper.org/kuyper/whs/vol2_c7.html

First, that the construction of a neuter pronoun with a feminine noun as its antecedent is not a mistake, but excellent Greek. 

Second, that the Church had reasons why until now she made the words ?and that not of yourselves? refer to faith. 

In regard to the first point, we refer not to a Hellenistic exception, but to the ordinary rule, which is found in every good Greek syntax, and which every exegete ought to know. 

A rule which, among others, was formulated by Kühner, in his ?Ausführliche Grammatik der Griech. Sprache,? vol. ii., I, p. 54 (Han., 1870), and which is as follows: ?Besonders häufig steht das Neutrum eines demonstrativen Pronomens in Beziehung auf ein männliches oder weibliehes Substantiv, indem der Begrif desselben ganz allgemein als blosses Ding oder Wesen, oder auch als ein ganzer Gedanke aufgefasst wird.? Which is in English: A neutral demonstrative pronoun is frequently used to refer to a preceding masculine or feminine noun, when the meaning expressed by this word is taken in a general sense, etc. 

...But it is evident that these citations upset all the quasi-learning of this defective scholarship; and that the words, ?And that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God,? just with the neutral pronoun, in purest Greek, can refer to faith; hence that all this fuss about the difference of gender, not only is without any foundation, but also leaves a very poor impression regarding the scholarship of the men who raised the objection. 

Moreover, we must also show not only that the ancient rendering of Ephes. 2: 8 may be correct, but also that it can not be anything else but correct.

Doug Hoxworth




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