[B-Greek] 1 Cor 1:26

Carlton Winbery winberycl at earthlink.net
Thu Mar 17 08:54:12 EST 2005


>Kerry Yankowy wrote:
>
>>
>>"BLEPETE GAR THN KLHSIN hUMWN, ADELFOI, hOTI OU POLLOI SOFOI KATA 
>>SARKA, OU POLLOI DUNATOI, OU POLLOI EUGENEIS"
>>
>>The verb BLEPETE could either be in the indicative mood or in the 
>>imperative mood. Although the difference may not bear much on the 
>>meaning, I think it is important enough to at least consider.
>>
>>
>>
>/ I think it probably is simply an indicative, but the examples you 
>use below don't really seem all that imperative to me.  If they had 
>an exclamation point at the end, perhaps the translator was trying 
>to communicate an imperative idea- but as the sentences stand, they 
>don't seem different from the indicative example you gave./
>
>>But, the ESV, NASB, and NIV all translate the verb in the imperative mood:
>>
>>ESV: "For consider your calling, brothers:..."
>>NASB: "For consider your calling, brethren,..."
>>NIV: "Brothers, think of what you were when you were called."
>>
>Perhaps you could help me out by saying how these verses seem 
>imperative to you given their present punctuation.
>
>--
>Jim West


I would agree with Kerry that this context calls for the imperative 
use. The use of the vocative to address them directly, the context 
where Paul is clearly directing their attention to an observable 
fact, and the fact that the indicative would be much weaker as a 
statement than the imperative. Clearly Paul is saying, "Consider your 
own calling, brothers and sisters, how that . . ."

Carlton Winbery

-- 
Carlton L. Winbery
Fogleman Professor of Religion
Louisiana College
318-448-6103
winberycl at earthlink.net
winbery at lacollege.edu



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