[B-Greek] DESPOTA, DESPOTHS
George F Somsel
gfsomsel at yahoo.com
Fri Aug 11 13:51:37 EDT 2006
I think you meant to write "vocative" rather than "imperative." Since äåóðïôçò (DESPOTHS) is a noun and not a verb, it cannot be an imperative.
Lk 2.29
íõí áðïëõåéò ôïí äïèëïí óïõ, äåóðïôá,
êáôá ôï ñçìá óïè åí åéñçíç.
NUN APOLUEIS TON DOULON SOU, DESPOTA,
KATA TO hRHMA SOU EN EIRHNHi
Acts 4.24
ïé äå áêïõóáíôåò ïìïèõìáäïí çñáí öùíçí ðñïò ôïí èåïí êáé åéðáí, äåóðïôá, óõ ï ðïéçóáò ôïí ïõñáíïí êáé ôçí ãçí êáé ôçí èáëáóóáí êáé ðáíôá ôá åí áõôïéò,
hOI DE AKOUSANTES OMOQUMADON HRAN FWNHN PROS TON QEON KAI EIPAN, "DESPOTA, SU hO POIHSAS TON OURANON KAI THN GHN KAI THN QALASSAN KAI PANTA TA EN AUTOIS.
These are true vocatives. Luke has been characterized as writing a better class of Greek than most of the NT authors and thus uses the vocative correctly.
Re 6.10
êáé åêñáîáí öùíç ìåãáëç ëåãïíôåò, åùò ðïôå, ï äåóðïôçò ï áãéïò êáé áëçèéíïò, ïõ êñéíåéò êáé åêäéêåéò ôï áéìá çìùí åê ôùí êáôïéêïõíôùí åðé ôçò ãçò
KAI EKRACAN FWNHi MEGALHi LEGONTES, hEWS POTE, hO DESPOTHS, hO hAGIOS KAI ALHQINOS, OU KRINEIS KAI EKDIKEIS TO hAIMA hHMWN EK TWN KATOIKOUNTWN EPI THS GHS?
This is NOT, in fact, a vocative but a nominative being used as a vocative. This is a tendency which began already with Homer and became more prominent as history progressed. Also, the Apocalypse is not noted for its sterling Greek. Blass, Debrunner, Funk, _A Greek Grammar of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature_ note in § 147
147. Nominative instead of vocative. Even where the nominative is still formally distinguished from the vocative, there is still a tendency for the nominative to usurp the place of the vocative (a tendency observable already in Homer). In the NT this is the case (1) generally with adjectives used alone or without a substantive where the vocative is clear; (2) with additions of all kinds to the vocative (Attic óõ ï ðñåóâõôáôïò, Ðñïîåíå êáé ïé áëëïé [SU hO PRESBUTATOS PROCENE KAI hOI ALLOI]), especially with participles (§412(5)) which hardly ever form the vocative. (3) Attic used the nominative (with article) with simple substantives only in addressing inferiors, who were, so to speak, thereby addressed in the 3rd person (Aristoph., Ra. 521 ï ðáéò, áêïëïõèåé [hO PAIS, AKOLOUQEI]). The NT (in passages translated from a Semitic language) and the LXX do not conform to these limitations, but can even say ï èåïò, ï ðáôçñ [hO QEOS, hO PATHR] etc., in which the arthrous Semitic
vocative is being reproduced by the Greek nominative with article.
Blass, F., Debrunner, A., & Funk, R. W. (1961). A Greek grammar of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (81). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
___________
Michael Hinton <guyanimal at mac.com> wrote:
Why is there a difference in Luke's imperative form of DESPOTA used
in Luke 2:29 and Acts 4:24, and in John's DESPOTHS found in Rev 6:10?
Also I do not understand why it is capitalized only in Acts in UBS4.
Thanks,
Michael Hinton
GNT student
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george
gfsomsel
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