[B-Greek] 2 Cor 12:7 beatings or diseases
Carl Conrad
cwconrad2 at mac.com
Fri Jan 9 19:17:22 EST 2009
On Jan 9, 2009, at 12:27 PM, Mitch Larramore wrote:
> KAI THi hUPERBOLHi TWN APOKALUYEWN DIO hINA MH hUPERAIRWMAI EDOQH
> MOI SKOLOY THi SARKI AGGELOS SATANA hINA ME KOLAFIZHi hINA MH
> hUPERAIRWMAI
>
> So many commentaries offer numerous suggestions as to what the thorn
> in the flesh was. Many seem to think it was his poor eyesight or
> malaria. However, does not this passage simply state that the SKOLOY
> was the AGGELOS SATANA? And further, that this AGGELOS was
> authorized to KOLAFIZHi Paul, namely, to 'beat' him in some sense.
> My question really then is why do commentaries move from the thorn
> representing an angel beating Paul to the thorn representing some
> eye disease, or some other malady? (I don't see how KOLAFIZHi could
> mean 'eye disease.')
KOLAFIZW means simply "beat" or "cudgel." My guess is that even this
is metaphorical in the sense, "chastise" -- "afflict for one's own
good." I think that much of what Paul says in his letters depends upon
background known only to himself and his original readers. If Paul had
felt it was important for us to know precisely what "affliction" he
was suffering, I think he would have stated it more openly.
Commentators have a field day with passages like this precisely
because, in the absence of any clear and convincing contextual
evidence, the field is wide open to speculation of any and every kind.
Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)
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