[B-Greek] 2COR. 12:1 OPTASIAS KAI APOKALUYEIS KURIOU

Yancy Smith yancywsmith at sbcglobal.net
Wed Dec 23 17:19:42 EST 2009


Elizabeth,

Great question.

>From my point of view, the question of how the nouns are related in the genitive construction ὀπτασίας καὶ ἀποκαλύψεις κυρίου ‘visions and revelations of the Lord’ has more to do with rhetoric than grammar. If  Paul is using a phrase from his rivals and re-interpreting it, then he may be purposefully ambiguous. And Paul's use of the phrase seems ironic. At issue in taking up the topic "visions and revelations of the Lord" is: who has the best prophetic gifts? Paul's response is perhaps the trope of the buffoon as a method of reducing his opponents position to the absurd. Here he is pulling out all the stops, as a comparison with Aristole's advice on jesting and buffoonery suggests:

"As to jests. These are supposed to be of some service in controversy. Gorgias said that you should kill your opponents’ earnestness with jesting and their jesting with earnestness; in which he was right. Jests have been classified in the Poetics. Some are becoming to a gentleman, others are not; see that you choose such as become you. Irony better befits a gentleman than buffoonery; the ironical man jokes to amuse himself, the buffoon to amuse other people." (On Rhetoric 3.18.7 [1419b]).


The SIL Exegetical Summary lists the possibilities as:

1. The genitive is subjective; that is, the visions and revelations are from the Lord or granted by the Lord 
Supporting
Furnish, Victor Paul. 2 Corinthians. The Anchor Bible, 
Bernard, J. H. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians. In the Expositor’s Greek Testament, 
Héring, Jean. The Second Epistle of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Hodge, Charles. An Exposition of the Second Epistle to the Corinthians
Plummer, Alfred. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Second Epistle of St Paul to the Corinthians
Lenski, R. C. H. The Interpretation of St. Paul’s First and Second Epistles to the Corinthians
Bruce, F. F. 1 and 2 Corinthians. New Century Bible Commentary,
Barnett, Paul. The Second Epist0le to the Corinthians. The New International Commentary on the New Testament, 
Kistemaker, Simon J. Exposition of the Second Epistle to Corinthians. New Testament Commentary, 
Bratcher, Robert G. A Translator’s Guide to Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. UBS Helps for Translators
Omanson, Roger L. and John Ellington. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. UBS Helps for Translators

2. The genitive is objective; that is, the visions and revelations are about the Lord 
Supporting:
Lambrecht, Jan. Second Corinthians. Sacra Pagina

3. While the visions and revelations are from the Lord it is also possible that they may be about him as well

Supporting:
Thrall, Margaret E. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Second Epistle of St Paul to the Corinthians, 
Hughes, Philip Edgcumbe. Paul's Second Epistle to the Corinthians. The New International Commentary on the New Testament,
Martin, Ralph P. 2 Corinthians. Word Biblical Commentary.

About who is ‘the Lord,’ Furnish, Bernard, Héring, Hodge, Plummer, Thrall, Kistemaker, Lambrecht, Bratcher are in agreement with Christ as the referent. 

But I wonder. Why can't a reference to "the Lord" of the OT not be seriously entertained? Since Paul is likely using a phrase that has been foisted upon him as George indicates, then Paul's normal usage of "Lord" might not be the standard for determining this. Given that Paul says in verse 2 οἶδα ἄνθρωπον ... εἴτε ἐν σώματι οὐκ οἶδα, εἴτε ἐκτὸς τοῦ σώματος οὐκ οἶδα, ὁ θεὸς οἶδεν OIDA ANQRWPON ... EITE EN SWMATI OUK OIDA, EITE EKTOS TOU SWMATOS OUK OIDA, hO QEOS OIDEN it would seem that the question is open. Verses 8-9 doesn't really solve the problem because they do not specify that Paul is speaking of a vision OPTASIA of Christ. They could simply have been an impression or an audition given by God of Christ.

Paul refuses to play the my-propetic-gift-is-bigger-than-theirs game directly ... but ... he can point to something like what his opponents speak of, maybe. (Sounds like buffoonery to me.) He engages in a comedic response. What he is most concerned to do is to show that he has the revelation in an earthen vessel, in the context of weakness and (sickness?) and persecution. That is, the fact that his life exemplifies the comic blend of divine power in a person beset by shameful weakness makes Paul a better representative of Christ.

Yancy

-----Original Message-----
From: b-greek-bounces at lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:b-greek-bounces at lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Elizabeth Kline
Sent: Wednesday, December 23, 2009 2:19 PM
To: greek B-Greek
Subject: [B-Greek] 2COR. 12:1 OPTASIAS KAI APOKALUYEIS KURIOU

There are a number of exegetical decisions required by the phrase  
OPTASIAS KAI APOKALUYEIS KURIOU in 2COR. 12:1. Is Paul referring to a  
theophany? Who is the referent of   KURIOU? What about the genitive  
case? Is KURIOU the content of the revelation and if so in what sense?  
Is KURIOU the source of the revelation and if so in what sense?
.
I have just read M.E.Thrall (2cor ICC 2000, v2. pp. 774-775) and  
M.J.Harris (2Cor NIGTC 2005, pp. 831-832) who present the alterantives  
and the other Pauline texts which use similar language which I have  
included below. I am wondering if any of the scholars on this forum  
who are particularly interested in Pauline studies might have some  
insights on how to resolve these questions. You don't have to be an  
SBL member to respond to this :-)
.

2Cor. 12:1 Καυχᾶσθαι δεῖ, οὐ συμφέρον  
μέν, ἐλεύσομαι δὲ εἰς ὀπτασίας καὶ  
ἀποκαλύψεις κυρίου.
2COR. 12:1 KAUCASQAI DEI, OU SUMFERON MEN, ELEUSOMAI DE EIS OPTASIAS  
KAI APOKALUYEIS KURIOU.
.
Rom. 2:5 κατὰ δὲ τὴν σκληρότητά σου καὶ  
ἀμετανόητον καρδίαν θησαυρίζεις  
σεαυτῷ ὀργὴν ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ὀργῆς καὶ  
ἀποκαλύψεως δικαιοκρισίας τοῦ θεοῦ
ROM. 2:5 KATA DE THN SKLHROTHTA SOU KAI AMETANOHTON KARDIAN  
QHSAURIZEIS SEAUTWi ORGHN EN hHMERAi ORGHS KAI APOKALUYEWS  
DIKAIOKRISIAS TOU QEOU
.
Rom. 8:19 ἡ γὰρ ἀποκαραδοκία τῆς  
κτίσεως τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν τῶν υἱῶν  
τοῦ θεοῦ ἀπεκδέχεται.
ROM. 8:19 hH GAR APOKARADOKIA THS KTISEWS THN APOKALUYIN TWN hUIWN TOU  
QEOU APEKDECETAI.
.
1Cor. 1:7 ὥστε ὑμᾶς μὴ ὑστερεῖσθαι ἐν  
μηδενὶ χαρίσματι ἀπεκδεχομένους  
τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν  
Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ·
1COR. 1:7 hWSTE hUMAS MH hUSTEREISQAI EN MHDENI CARISMATI  
APEKDECOMENOUS THN APOKALUYIN TOU KURIOU hHMWN IHSOU CRISTOU·
.
Gal. 1:12 οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐγὼ παρὰ ἀνθρώπου  
παρέλαβον αὐτὸ οὔτε ἐδιδάχθην  
ἀλλὰ δι᾿ ἀποκαλύψεως Ἰησοῦ  
Χριστοῦ.
GAL. 1:12 OUDE GAR EGW PARA ANQRWPOU PARELABON AUTO OUTE EDIDACQHN  
ALLA DI᾿ APOKALUYEWS IHSOU CRISTOU.
.

Elizabeth Kline




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