[B-Greek] Matt 6:33 a possible translation?

Carl Conrad cwconrad2 at mac.com
Tue Nov 25 07:22:32 EST 2008


On Nov 25, 2008, at 12:50 AM, knpraise at comcast.net wrote:

>
> Am I way off base with this translation?
>
> Matt6:33
>
> Make this your highest priority; to be continually seeking out God's  
> sovereign rule in your life as well as His divine activity and  
> life's needs will be supplied.
>
> John Smithson
> Out of Stone/Campbell
> Fresno , California

It seems to me that you're raising a question of interpretation rather  
than a specific question about the Greek text, which you haven't even  
cited. Translation as such is not a primary focus of B-Greek, nor is  
exegesis. If your concern is really getting a good translation, you  
ought to take a question like this to the Bible-Translation list:
https://lists.kastanet.org/Lists/Bible-Translation/List.html
= http://tinyurl.com/5tju53 (Note the links at the bottom of the page  
for subscribing, etc.)
If your concern is more with exegesis -- with explicating all this is  
implicit within this passage and others, you ought to take a question  
like this to the Biblical Exegesis list:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bibexegesis/

The text, which you have not cited, is:
Matt. 6:33 ζητεῖτε δὲ πρῶτον τὴν  
βασιλείαν [τοῦ θεοῦ] καὶ τὴν  
δικαιοσύνην αὐτοῦ, καὶ ταῦτα πάντα  
προστεθήσεται ὑμῖν.
ZHTEITE DE PRWTON THN BASILEIAN [TOU QEOU] KAI THN DIKAIOSUNHN AUTOU,  
KAI TAUTA PANTA PROSTEQHSETAI hUMIN.

You have offered a very free paraphrase rather than a translation; the  
item that seems most questionable in your version is "His divine  
activity" as an expression of THN DIKAIOSUNHN AUTOU, which I think  
rather points -- certainly in a Matthean context --  to the area of  
what God requires of his people in right behavior.

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






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