[B-Greek] Acts 5.18 and 4:3
Iver Larsen
iver_larsen at sil.org
Sun Dec 31 03:37:09 EST 2006
Thank you, Father James,
If I understand you correctly, you are suggesting that the holding place in Acts 4:3 is a different
place than the jail in 5:18. This sounds very plausible to me and might explain the addition of the
descriptive adjective which makes THRHSIS DHMOSIA (v. 18) equivalent to FULAKH in v. 19 and
DESMWTHRION in v. 21. By using 3 different words pointing to the same facility, Luke seems to
clarify that this was in fact a regular jail rather than a temporary detention cell.
In 4:3 we have EQENTO EIS THRHSIN EIS THN AURION
I like the way that RSV renders this "put them in custody" until the next day. In this case it was
only Peter and John, so a small place would be enough.
Acts 5:18 is much later, and when Luke says EQENTO AUTOUS EN THi THRHSEI DHMOSIAi, this would
probably refer to a bigger jail outside the Temple precincts. After all, we now have 12 apostles,
and this may well have been too much for the Temple holding facility. This "public jail" would
probably have had stronger gates and locks and more guards, and Luke may be setting up such
expectations since the prison guards feature prominently in v. 23.
Since the apostles got a reputation as jail breakers, Herod put Peter in the maximum security prison
(FULAKH) in chains and with extra guards in chapter 12.
I know we cannot get this from the words alone, but I am curious to know if there is historical or
archaeological evidence for different kinds, sizes and locations of detention cells and jails. Such
knowledge helps in understanding the chosen wording and the intended references.
Best wishes and happy New Year,
Iver Larsen
----- Original Message -----
From: <frjsilver at optonline.net>
Dear Friends --
It seems to me that 'public' or 'common' work well enough for two reasons.
First, these are on the Occam's razor side of possible renderings without getting editorial.
Second, it's clear from the text that the Apostles were arrested by Temple guards at the behest of
the Kohen ha Gadol and the Tsadiqqim for *religious* offenses.
Since the Temple, as well attested elsewhere in the NT, clearly had a police force, and religious
authorities could arrest people for religious offenses, it stands to reason that there must have
been some sort of holding facility for prisoners until they could be tried before the Synedrion.
So the phrase EN THRHSEI DHMOSIAi may be merely St Luke's shorthand way of pointing out that the
Apostles were NOT held in a Temple jail, but in the 'common prison' AS IF they'd been arrested by
Roman (or at least municipal) police for a civil offense -- which wasn't the case. Hence St Luke's
clarification.
More information about the B-Greek
mailing list