[B-Greek] Third-person commands
Iver Larsen
iver at larsen.dk
Tue Nov 15 14:49:07 EST 2005
>
> Concerning what Don was asking recently about third person commands,
> an interesting case arises in John 9:21 and its transformation in
> 9:23. The question Don raised seemed to be, can a third person
> command be intended to understood as a command for a second person?
> (i.e. When Paul "commands" the unbeliever to "depart" is this
> intended to mean for the believers "not to stand in the way." The
> short answer to this question is ofcourse, it happens all the time
> and John 9:23 is an example of something very much like it. In 9:21
> the future indicative 3rd singular stands for the third person
> command. However, in 9:23 the author rephrases what the speakers had
> said as a second person command.
It doesn't happen all the time, and this is not an example of what Don was suggesting, since there is no 3rd person
imperative in the example.
>
> Thus
> .
> HLIKIAN ECEI, AUTOS PERI hEAUTOU LALHSAI
> becomes
>
> HLIKIAN ECEI, AUTON EPERWSATE
>
> Note that the author reports the second statement as a functional
> equivalent of the first,
No, the two are not equivalent.
In 9:21 the parents say:
AUTON ERWTHSATE, hHLIKIAN ECEI, AUTOS PERI hEAUTOU LALHSAI.
The first part is the command. The second and third part describe the son as old enough to answer for himself. The
parents might have used a 3p imperative in the last part, but didn't.
In 9:23 John has an abbreviated restatement, where he changes the command slightly from AUTON ERWTHSATE to AUTON
EPERWTHSATE, and also reorders the pieces. The description of the son's maturity is shortened to the first part only:
hHLIKIAN ECEI. The second part AUTOS PERI hEAUTOU LALHSAI is not repeated as it is not necessary.
Iver Larsen
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