[B-Greek] Jn 14:13 hOTI vs. hO TI
Carl W. Conrad
cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu
Mon Oct 16 06:11:14 EDT 2006
On Oct 15, 2006, at 9:05 PM, Oun Kwon wrote:
> Jn 14:12 last portion reads
>
> KAI MEIZONA TOUTWN POIHSEI
> hOTI EGW PROS TON PATERA POREUOMAI:
>
> Jn 14:13a then reads
>
> KAI hO TI AN AITHSHTE EN TW ONOMATI MOU
>
> What I have in a GNT text (which is based on Westcott-Hort) is this:
>
> KAI hOTI AN AITHSHTE ~
>
> My questions are: (1) Is hOTI the way W-H text reads or a typo in
> my GNT copy?
>
> (2) Since there would be no spaces between words in the original mss,
> how one can tell which is correct?
>
> If I accept hOTI, this clause seem to function parallel to the last
> clause in the preceding verse. Jesus was thus saying that the
> disciples will do greater things, because (1) He is going back to the
> Father, and because, (2) He will do whatever they ask in His name.
> This would better fit for the context.
No matter where that reading hOTI AN AITHSHTE came from, it can only
be erroneous: the conjunction hOTI would not be used with AN +
subjunctive. The hOTI must certainly be the indefinite relative
pronoun, n. sg. of hOSTIS. Modern editors normally spell the n. sg.
indefinite relative pronoun as two words hO TI to distinguish it from
the conjunction hOTI, but in fact this is simply a modern editorial
orthographical convention -- the MSS would have hOTI in any case.
And, of course, the conjunction hOTI is identical with the pronoun hO
TI in origin, just as the English conjunction "that" is identical
with the pronoun "that" originally and the Latin conjunction QUOD
is identical with the pronoun QUOD originally.
Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)
1989 Grindstaff Road/Burnsville, NC 28714/(828) 675-4243
cwconrad2 at mac.com
WWW: http://www.ioa.com/~cwconrad/
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