[B-Greek] 1 John 2:20

Carl Conrad cwconrad2 at mac.com
Fri Feb 22 08:18:25 EST 2008


On Feb 21, 2008, at 9:45 PM, JMonte2000 at aol.com wrote:

> Hi all I have a question, why is KAI  kai.  translated as But. It's  
> the first
> word in 1 John 2:20 when I  couldn't find this in any lexicons, they  
> have,
> And, even also, namely,
> Any help would be appreciated. In the future is there a place to  
> look when  I
> find a small problem like this?

There have been excellent responses to this question already by Kelton  
Graham and George Somsel. I just want to ask the question of Jim here  
and offer some advice:

Question: You say that you couldn't find the "but" usage in any  
lexicons. May I ask: WHICH lexicons did you actually consult? I find  
it hard to conceive of any half-way respectable lexicon that would not  
include this usage. EVEN that perhaps-most-readily-accessed-and- 
generally-useless glossary of Barclay Newman about which I have vented  
ad nauseam has: "καί [KAI} conj. and, also, but, even; that is,  
namely." I cannot conceive of any lexicon worthy of publication that  
offered only "and" for KAI. Nay, further (KAI MHN!): if it were  
enforceable, I would propose a law against single-word-for-word  
glossaries with severe penalties imposed upon offenders producing  
them. And this is a mischief that is promoted with compound interest  
in the latest "surge" of interlinear Biblical texts that offer single- 
word-for-word equivalents selected by some unidentified authority out  
of the range of possible senses for the word or phrase in question.

Comment: Of course beginners need help, beginning students of Biblical  
Greek no less than kids learning to ride a bicycle. But training  
wheels and an older person's supporting hands have to give way if one  
is ever to go forward with self-sustained and steady momentum; so also  
word-for-word glossaries, parsing guides and interlinears have to give  
way to direct confrontation with original texts and lexica that are as  
reasonably thorough in coverage as can be obtained. Nor is it enough  
to acquire and own a good lexicon; one needs to STUDY the entries for  
words. You might note with dismay a lexical entry of a whole column or  
perhaps even two or three pages -- for a word that keeps you from  
moving on in a text because you either don't know its fundamental  
meaning or find it in an unfamiliar context where what you remember of  
it doesn't avail. You throw up your arms in frustration because what  
you REALLY want to know is WHAT THAT ?*!#@% WORD MEANS IN THIS  
INSTANCE and you cannot find it by scanning the entry quickly with  
your eyes. But it is precisely THESE words with lengthy entries in the  
lexicon that you MUST come to appreciate in their range of senses in  
varying contexts. And the only way you can come to appreciate that  
range of senses is to pore over the examples offered and ponder the  
nuances of difference that derive from difference of context. However  
paradoxical it may seem, the lengthy lexical entry for a frequently- 
used word in an alien language is not an impediment to your forward  
progress in the text you're trying to read; rather it is the most  
important resource -- or at least one of them -- toward gaining real  
proficiency in the language you're trying to master. What slows you  
down when you're trying to read an EASY text like 1 John will equip  
you hereafter when you endeavor to access much more difficult texts  
with ubiquitous and nuanced instances of KAI.

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)






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