[B-Greek] Colossians 1:16 KTIZW

Carl W. Conrad cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu
Tue Sep 12 08:32:52 EDT 2006


On Sep 12, 2006, at 7:36 AM, William Ross wrote:

> Does the semantic range of KTIZW really support EX NIHILO type  
> creation?

As a DOCTRINAL question, this falls outside the parameters of  
appropriate list discussion, but I suggest you take a look at Romans  
4:17 and ponder what Paul's understanding -- of the nature of the God  
whom Abraham believed -- may have been.

> COL 1:16  OTI EN AUTW EKTISQH TA PANTA EN TOIS OURANOIS KAI EPI THS
> GHS TA ORATA KAI TA AORATA EITE QRONOI EITE KURIOTHTES EITE ARCAI EITE
> EXOUSIAI TA PANTA DI AUTOU KAI EIS AUTON EKTISTAI
>
> The actual general usage of the word, as well as this specific
> context, seem to relate more to "setting up a government."
>
> "that by his agency [the god] founded everything, in the sky and on
> the dry land, both seen and unseen, be they thrones, be they
> lordships, be they rulerships, be they positions of authority -
> everything through and for him is founded."

You have hit the nail on the head with regard to the original sense  
of KTIZW, the earliest use of which in ancient Greek seems to be  
formation of a colonial community in alien territory. Philo's account  
of the creation of the world (De Opificio) begins with a fascinating  
description of why the books of Law begin with the Genesis account of  
creation as the establishment of a "community" for which the Law was  
to be the "constitution." BUT: once a metaphor like KTIZW becomes  
standard usage for a conception, it's questionable practice to build  
upon that word's etymological origins. The same must be said of  
POIEW, which originally seems to have meant "create" in the sense of  
forming a raw material into an aesthetically pleasing or useful object.


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/





More information about the B-Greek mailing list