[B-Greek] Lk 15.18 "I will arise and go"

Kevin Riley klriley at alphalink.com.au
Sun Aug 13 21:25:09 EDT 2006


 
 
-------Original Message-------
 
From: George F Somsel
Date: 08/14/06 10:50:33
 
We have been having a rather frustrating discussion on the ANE-2 list with a
member who seems intent on distorting the meaning of various texts. In the
story of David and Goliath in 1 Sam 17 e.g. he asserted that David murdered
Goliath because Goliath was simply coming to him to congratulate him on a
great speech [I kid you not
! ]. His basis for saying this was that the text says that Goliath arose so
he must have been sitting respectfully and listening to David's "sermon"
[Yup, that's what he said]. 

**************************
K:  Does context mean nothing?  It is a time of war.  Goliath is coming
towards David,  cursing him in the name of his gods, and then sits down and
respectfully listens to David??!!  I don't think the rules of war ever
extended to a need to congratulate your enemy on his sermons.

**********************

Well, the Hebrew there does use the verb QWM which means to get up (when
used alone), and it follows this with a coordinated HLK which means to go or
walk. The problem is that this pair is used together on 82 occasions in the
OT and acts as an inceptive, i.e. it indicates that he starts out toward
something (in this case, David). It occured to me that there is an instance
in the NT which seems very much the same. See if you don't think that the
idea is "I'll get going."
 
 
áíáóôáò ðïñåõóïìáé ðñïò ôïí ðáôåñá ìïõ êáé åñù áõôù, ðáôåñ, çìáñôïí åéò ôïí
ïõñáíïí êáé åíùðéïí óïõ.
 
ANASTAS POREUSOMAI PROS TON PATERA MOU KAI ERW AUTWi, PATER, hHMARTON EIW
TON OURANON KAI ENWPION SOU.
 
Just for comparison, here is the Greek translation of 1 Sam 17.48
 
êáé áíåóôç ï áëëïöõëïò êáé åðïñåõèç åéò óõíáôçóéí Äáõéä.
 
 
 
 
KAI ANESTH hO ALLOFULOS KAI EPOREUQH EIS SUNANTHSIN DAUID.
 
Perhaps we should understand the Prodigal's statement is "I'll set out for
my father . . ." rather than "I will arise and go . . . "
 
 
 
 
 
george
gfsomsel
_________

I would say that "arise and go" can be understood simply as an idiom - as
you have said, meaning simply "to set out" for somewhere in every instance
where it is used in the OT and NT.  To insist in each case that the
person/people were necessarily seated when before "arising" is odd - sort of
like insisting one must be lying before one can "sit up" in English.  

Kevin Riley




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