[B-Greek] subject in Rev 1:1

Iver Larsen iver_larsen at sil.org
Fri Aug 15 11:49:57 EDT 2008


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Carl Conrad" <cwconrad2 at mac.com>
To: "Beata Urbanek" <beata.urbanek at op.pl>
Cc: "B-Greek B-Greek" <b-greek at lists.ibiblio.org>; "John Sanders" <john.franklin.sanders at gmail.com>
Sent: 15. august 2008 13:21
Subject: Re: [B-Greek] subject in Rev 1:1


> On Aug 13, 2008, at 3:09 PM, Beata Urbanek wrote:
>
>> Dear List,
>>
>> Rev 1:1 says: APOKALUYIS IHSOU CRISTOU hHN EDWKEN AUTWi hO QEOS
>> DEIXAI TOIS DOULOIS AUTOU hA DEI GENESQAI EN TACEI KAI ESHMANEN
>> APOSTEILAS DIA TOU AGGELOU AUTOU TWi DOULWi AUTOU IWANNHi
>>
>>
>> My question is: what is the subject of the verb ESHMANEN? Is it hO
>> QEOS because it is the nearest possible noun and in nominative? Or
>> is it Jesus Christ because APOKALUYIS was given to him and he can
>> give it to others? Consequently, whose AGGELOS is it?
>
> Rev. 1:1 Ἀποκάλυψις Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἣν
> ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ ὁ θεὸς δεῖξαι τοῖς
> δούλοις αὐτοῦ ἃ δεῖ γενέσθαι ἐν
> τάχει, καὶ ἐσήμανεν ἀποστείλας διὰ
> τοῦ ἀγγέλου αὐτοῦ τῷ δούλῳ αὐτοῦ
> Ἰωάννῃ,

[CC:]
> "Here's the baseball bat that a father gave his son to show to his
> friends ...

Several have already commented, and I am not going to add much.
Tom Moore pointed out that the implied subject of the infinitive DEIXAI ought to be the same as 
AUTWi, that is Jesus.
Even in Carl's example, when a father gives a bat to his son to show to his friends, it is 
understood that it is the son who is going to show the bat to his friends. This is a logical 
deduction partly from the object "his son" (or him), partly from the meaning of "give". Once it has 
been given to the son, it is in his possession and therefore he is the one to show it to his 
friends.

Likewise, God gave AUTWi (Jesus) something for him to show to his (Jesus') servants.

Another point is the common Hebrew circular or overlapping thought pattern where the second clause 
elaborates on the first. ESHMANEN is semantically overlapping with DEIXAI and therefore has the same 
semantic agent, especially since the recipients are also overlapping: TOIS DOULOIS AUTOU and TWi 
DOULWi AUTOU.

And as Vasile ESHMAMEN/EDEIXEN earlier, Rev 22:16 makes it clear that Jesus is the intended subject 
in 1:1 also:
EGW, IHSOUS, EPEMYA TON AGGELON MOU MARTURHSAI hUMIN TAUTA.

Iver Larsen 




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