[B-Greek] EN TWi EQNEI MOU Acts 26:4--what nation?
George F Somsel
gfsomsel at yahoo.com
Tue Dec 11 05:00:04 EST 2007
Yes and No.
It does mean among the "Cicilians" in one sense, but these were Jewish Cicilians. It refers to his life as a youth in the country where he grew up. It must be remembered, however, that the Jews tend(ed) to be a distinct group. Therefore, while it refers to his home town, it also refers to his fellow Jews in his home town.
② (τὰ) ἔθνη [(TA) EQNH] people groups foreign to a specific people group (corresp. to Heb. גּוֹיִם [GoWYiM] in LXX; a nationalistic expression, also usu. in Gk. for foreigners: Aristot., Pol. 1324b, 10 [opp. Ἕλληνες [[hELLHNES]] ]; Ael. Aristid. 45, p. 3 D.; Cass. Dio 36, 41; Ps.-Callisth. 2, 7, 4 [opp. ἡ Ἑλλάς [[hH hELLAS]] ]; IG II/1, 445 Fgm. ab, 8; Fgm. c, 5; 448, 15 and 17 [c. 150 b.c.]; SIG 760; PStras 22, 19; PFay 20, 11; this is an expression favored by Appian in Rome for foreign peoples in contrast to the Italians: Bell. Civ. 2, 26 §99; 2, 28 §107; 3, 35 §140; 4, 57 §246 and oft.; s. Nägeli 46; B-D-F §254, 3) in our lit.
Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature. (3rd ed.) (276). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Consider Acts 6.1
Ἐν δὲ ταῖς ἡμέραις ταύταις πληθυνόντων τῶν μαθητῶν ἐγένετο γογγυσμὸς τῶν Ἑλληνιστῶν πρὸς τοὺς Ἑβραίους, ὅτι παρεθεωροῦντο ἐν τῇ διακονίᾳ τῇ καθημερινῇ αἱ χῆραι αὐτῶν.
EN DE TAIS hHMERAIS TAUTAIS PLHQUNONTWN TWN MAQHTWN EGENETO GOGGUSMOS TWN hELLHNISTWN PROS TOUS hEBRAIOUS, hOTI PAREQEWROUNTO EN THi DIAKONIAi THi KAQHMERINHi hAI XHRAI AUTWN
Or consider the most notable case of all, Acts 2.5 ff
5 ῏Ησαν δὲ εἰς Ἰερουσαλὴμ κατοικοῦντες Ἰουδαῖοι, ἄνδρες εὐλαβεῖς ἀπὸ παντὸς ἔθνους τῶν ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανόν. 6 γενομένης δὲ τῆς φωνῆς ταύτης συνῆλθεν τὸ πλῆθος καὶ συνεχύθη, ὅτι ἤκουον εἷς ἕκαστος τῇ ἰδίᾳ διαλέκτῳ λαλούντων αὐτῶν. 7 ἐξίσταντο δὲ καὶ ἐθαύμαζον λέγοντες· οὐχ ἰδοὺ ἅπαντες οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ λαλοῦντες Γαλιλαῖοι; 8 καὶ πῶς ἡμεῖς ἀκούομεν ἕκαστος τῇ ἰδίᾳ διαλέκτῳ ἡμῶν ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθημεν; 9 Πάρθοι καὶ Μῆδοι καὶ Ἐλαμῖται καὶ οἱ κατοικοῦντες τὴν Μεσοποταμίαν, Ἰουδαίαν τε καὶ Καππαδοκίαν,
Πόντον καὶ τὴν Ἀσίαν, 10 Φρυγίαν τε καὶ Παμφυλίαν, Αἴγυπτον καὶ τὰ μέρη τῆς Λιβύης τῆς κατὰ Κυρήνην, καὶ οἱ ἐπιδημοῦντες Ῥωμαῖοι, 11 Ἰουδαῖοί τε καὶ προσήλυτοι, Κρῆτες καὶ Ἄραβες, ἀκούομεν λαλούντων αὐτῶν ταῖς ἡμετέραις γλώσσαις τὰ μεγαλεῖα τοῦ θεοῦ.
5 HSAN DE EIS hIEROUSALHM KATOIKOUNTES IOUDAIOI, ANDRES EULABEIS APO PANTOS EQNOUS TWN hUPO TON OURANON. 6 GENOMENHS DE THS FWNHS TAUTHS SUNHLQEN TO PLHQOS KAI SUNEXUQH, hOTI HKOUON hEIS hEKASTOS THi IDIAi DIALEKTWi LALOUNTWN AUTWN. 7 ECISTANTO DE KAI EQAUMAZON LEGONTES, "OUX IDOU hAPANTES hOUTOI EISIN hOI LALOUNTES GALILAIOI? 8 KAI PWS hHMEIS AKOUOMEN hEKASTOS THi IDIAi DIALEKTWi hHMWN EN hHi EGENNHQHMEN -- 9 PARQOI KAI MHDOI KAI ELAMITAI KAI hOI KATOIKOUNTES THN MESOPOTAMIAN, IOUDAIAN TE KAI KAPPADOKIAN, PONTON KAI THN ASIAN, 10 FRUGIAN TE KAI PAMFULIAN, AIGUPTON KAI TA MERH THS LIBUHS THS KATA KURHNHN, KAI hOI EPIDHMOUNTES RWMAIOI, 11 IOUDAIOI TE KAI PROSHLUTOI, KRHTES KAI ARABES, AKOUOMEN LALOUNTWN AUTWN TAIS hHMERTERAIS GLWSSAIS TA MEGALEIA TOU QEOU."
george
gfsomsel
Therefore, O faithful Christian, search for truth, hear truth,
learn truth, love truth, speak the truth, hold the truth,
defend the truth till death.
- Jan Hus
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----- Original Message ----
From: Webb Mealy <webb at selftest.net>
To: Biblical Greek <b-greek at lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Monday, December 10, 2007 11:46:50 PM
Subject: [B-Greek] EN TWi EQNEI MOU Acts 26:4--what nation?
EN TWi EQNEI MOU EN TE hIEROSOLUMOIS (Acts 26:4)
Surely the expression EN TWi EQNEI MOU here means among the Jewish people,
as opposed, for example, to among the Cicilians? I wasn’t surprised to find
that Lattimore, not an expert on matters of Judaism or New Testament
studies, translated the phrase,
“both in my own country and in Jerusalem”,
presumably being influenced by the information in Acts that Paul was born in
Tarsus (Acts 22:3). But I can’t imagine a Jew saying TO EQNOS
MOU—particularly to another Jew, even a “half-Jew” like Agrippa—and meaning
anything other than the people of Israel. Right?? But then again, no less a
translation than TEV renders it, “at first in my own country and then in
Jerusalem”.
Perhaps this question straddles or lies outside the borders of the scope of
the list. I welcome input—I leave it to people’s discretion whether to
answer on- or off-list.
Thanks,
Webb Mealy
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