[B-Greek] 1 Sam 2:26

Albert Pietersma albert.pietersma at sympatico.ca
Sun Dec 28 15:01:01 EST 2008


On Dec 28, 2008, at 2:38 AM, Kenneth Litwak wrote:

> Perhaps I am missing something but "was in
> favor" seems like a lot to get out of KAI AGAQON KAI.  It is  
> certainly true that it is necessary at times to add a copula but  
> this does not look like one of those times (there is not a noun  
> immediately precedig or following AGAQON that would lead one to a  
> reasonable expectation of the need to supply a copula because AGAQON  
> is serving as a predicate adjective).   So isn't the NETS  
> translation being governed to some extent by the underlying Hebrew?
In the sense that the Greek is a translation of the Hebrew it may be  
said to be governed by the source text. There is also no question that  
the Greek is a woodenly literal (isomorphic) translation of the  
Hebrew. Moreover, the woodenly literal translation can hardly be  
called idiomatic expression. None of these necessarily means that  
semantically the source text is being superimposed on the target text.  
Not only do the individual Greek words carry their standard Greek  
sense, but the verse as whole would seem to have the same sense in  
Greek and Hebrew. That is to say, 2:26 is about a lad who grew in  
stature and good standing.
As for KAI AGAQON KAI——no extra morpheme would in fact seem to have  
been added. The first KAI reflects Hebrew W(TWB) and the second KAI  
represents Hebrew GAM. What G does NOT do is to insist on the  
representation of WGAM (later in the verse) by anything more than KAI  
(not KAIGE as one might get in the so-called Kaige recension). For G  
to render GAM . . . WGAM  by  KAI . . . KAI (both ... and) would seem  
rather felicitous. Accordingly, NETS translates: "both with the Lord  
and with people."
>  I could see "and good also with God..." or "and good both with  
> God..." but not "was in favor with God..."  What identified  
> grammatical construct would lead a native Greek speaker to take it  
> this way?
Since KAI . . . KAI is standard Greek usage, I see no problem  
regarding this feature.
Al
>  Thanks.

—
Albert Pietersma PhD
21 Cross Street,
Weston ON Canada M9N 2B8
Email: albert.pietersma at sympatico.ca
Homepage: http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~pietersm




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