[B-Greek] Galatians

Carl W. Conrad cwconrad at ioa.com
Fri Jan 20 06:25:12 EST 2006


On Jan 19, 2006, at 9:05 PM, Alan Calcutt wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I have been a part of the list for a number of months. The dialogue  
> has
> been edifying, even though I have not been participating.
>
> However, the time has come for me to ask my first question. I have  
> been
> working through the book of Galatians and I have a question regarding
> Galatians 5:19 - 21, which is the list of the works of the flesh.
>
> " . . . PORNEIA, AKAQARSIA, ASELGEIA, EIDWLOLATRIA, FARMAKEIA, ECQRAI,
> EPIS, ZHLOS, QUMOI, ERIQEIAI, DICOSTASIAI, hAIRESEIS, FQONOI, MEQAI,
> KWMOI . . . ". (Forgive me for any errors, as this is my first  
> attempt)

The one item wrongly transliterated above is the first on the second  
line: it should be ERIS (we use P for Pi, R for Rho).

> Some of the nouns are singular, while others are plural. Is there a
> reason for this? Any information that you are can offer will be  
> greatly
> appreciated.

The singular nouns in the list above cited are habitual behavior, it  
seems to me, while the plural nouns are instances of recurrent or  
repeated sinful behavior: ECQRAI "enmities", QUMOI "angry eruptions",  
ERIQEIAI "jealousies", DICOSTASIAI "feuds", hAIRESEIS "cliques",  
FQONOI "acts of spite", MEQAI "fits of drunkenness", KWMOI "wild  
orgies" (I haven't checked these against BDAG -- rather they're my  
sense of what's being pointed at).

I'd reiterate at the same time something I said in a message last  
week: I don't think that this by any means is intended as an  
exhaustive list of ERGA THS SARKOS but rather a representative  
listing of some of the kinds of behavior resulting from rebellious  
self-will (which is what I take SARX to mean, although that's another  
question altogether). And if this view is the right one, then it  
seems to me that the items in the list may even overlap or by nearly  
synonymous (e.g. ECQRAI and ERIQEIAI).

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Emeritus)
1989 Grindstaff Road/Burnsville, NC 28714/(828) 675-4243
cwconrad2 at mac.com
WWW: http://www.ioa.com/~cwconrad/




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