[B-Greek] Aspect of KATALLASSWN in 2Cor 5,19

Elizabeth Kline kline_dekooning at earthlink.net
Sun Sep 27 14:34:04 EDT 2009


2Cor. 5:18 τὰ δὲ πάντα ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ  
καταλλάξαντος ἡμᾶς ἑαυτῷ διὰ  
Χριστοῦ καὶ δόντος ἡμῖν τὴν  
διακονίαν τῆς καταλλαγῆς,  19 ὡς ὅτι  
θεὸς ἦν ἐν Χριστῷ κόσμον  
καταλλάσσων ἑαυτῷ, μὴ λογιζόμενος  
αὐτοῖς τὰ παραπτώματα αὐτῶν καὶ  
θέμενος ἐν ἡμῖν τὸν λόγον τῆς  
καταλλαγῆς.

2COR. 5:18 TA DE PANTA EK TOU QEOU TOU KATALLAXANTOS hHMAS hEAUTWi DIA  
CRISTOU KAI DONTOS hHMIN THN DIAKONIAN THS KATALLAGHS, 19 hWS hOTI  
QEOS HN EN CRISTWi KOSMON KATALLASSWN hEAUTWi, MH LOGIZOMENOS AUTOIS  
TA PARAPTWMATA AUTWN KAI QEMENOS EN hHMIN TON LOGON THS KATALLAGHS.
.
KATALLASSWN is imperfective whether or not we construe it with HN as a  
periphrastic construction. Scholarly opinion is somewhat divided how  
to parse v19a. M.J. Harris (2cor 2005 pp. 440-443) makes a case for  
reading HN with EN CRISTWi. The often reapeted claim that QEOS HN EN  
CRISTWi is a statement Paul would never make is a fallacy because it  
assumes a very specific reading of QEOS HN EN CRISTWi and excludes  
other equally viable readings. This discussion becomes immediately  
very theological, the objection that is raised against QEOS HN EN  
CRISTWi as a clause is a theological objection.
.
Harris' argument against the periphrastic reading of HN ...  
KATALLASSWN begins with the distance between HN and KATALLASSWN.  
Cooper[1] states "separation of the helping verb from the participle,  
especially if the helping verb is comes early in the sentence, works  
against true periphrasis (unified conception of the helping verb and  
the participle) by reawakening the original force of the helping verb.  
This in turn causes the participle to become more predicative, i.e.,  
descriptive ..." .

The details of Harris' argument are too complext to reproduce here but  
you may find it here [2].

Elizabeth Kline

[1] G.Cooper, Attic Syntax v1 56.3.0 p.807

[2]  google literarl search  "that god effected reconciliation" harris


More information about the B-Greek mailing list