[B-Greek] TO PNEUMA KAI hH YUCH in 1 Thessalonians 5:23--Are they synonyms?
Mark Lightman
lightmanmark at yahoo.com
Sat Jun 19 08:34:05 EDT 2010
Leonard ηρωτησε:
<Is there any grammatical objection to taking TO PNEUMA
KAI hH YUCH above as synonyms? Specifically, does the
presence of the article before each of the three words--PNEUMA,
YUCH and SWMA--present an obstacle to
taking the first two words as synonyms?>
Hi, Leonard,
They are not synonyms for Paul. You have the Granville Sharp Rule, which would suggest that it
the article was not repeated before psyche then maybe they could be equated in some sense.
But beyond that, a key point of 1 Cor 15 is to establish that the glorified SWMA that we get
at Jesus' coming WILL be a SWMA but it will be a different kind of SWMA, and to make this point
Paul clearly distinguishes between PNEUMA and psyche.
v. 44 σπειρεται σωμα ψυχικον, εγειρεται σωμα πνευματικον. (SPEIRETAI SWMA YUCIKON, EGEIRETAI SWMA PNEUMATIKON)
My old teacher at U.C Santa Barbara wrote an extended treatment on this
http://www.amazon.com/Pneumatikos-Psychikos-Terminology-Corinthians-Corinthian-Dissertation/dp/0889140324/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276948738&sr=1-10
where he basically argues that Paul co-opts the proto-Gnostic term Psychikos to solve the problem of
maintaining the traditional Jewish idea of the resurrection of the body while coming to terms with
the Late Greek/Gnostic dualism of spirit/body which was pervasive in Corinth and elsewhere. For Paul and
for the Gnostics, Pearson argues, psychikos is sort of a middle term between SWMA and pneuma.
I would call the phrase σωμα πνευματικον "Pauline eschatology in miniature."
I agree with Carl that the parallel from Luke 1:47 comes from a different thought-world, namely
a less dualistic (not to mention tripartite) Judaism which is closer to Homer than to Plato.
Mark L
FWSFOROS MARKOS
________________________________
From: cwconrad2 <cwconrad2 at mac.com>
To: Leonard Jayawardena <leonardj at live.com>
Cc: b-greek at lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Sat, June 19, 2010 4:45:28 AM
Subject: Re: [B-Greek] TO PNEUMA KAI hH YUCH in 1 Thessalonians 5:23--Are they synonyms?
On 19 Jun, 2010,at 05:43 AM, Leonard Jayawardena <leonardj at live.com> wrote:
>
> 1 Thessalonians 5:23:
>
>
> hOLOKLHRON hUMWN TO PNEUMA KAI hH YUCH KAI TO SWMA AMEMPTWS ... THRHQEIH.
>
>
> Is there any grammatical objection to taking TO PNEUMA KAI hH YUCH above as synonyms? Specifically, does the presence of the article before each of the three words--PNEUMA, YUCH and SWMA--present an obstacle to taking the first two words as synonyms?
>
> There is biblical--and extra-biblical--warrant for taking these two words synonymously sometimes, e.g., Luke 1:47 (MEGALUNEI hH YUCH MOU TON KURION KAI HGALLIASEN TO PNEUMA MOU EPI TWi QEWi TWi SWTHRI MOU).
Well, it seems to me that, IF one thinks it proper to equate TO PNEUMA and hH YUCH here as synonymous, then there can hardly
be an objection to taking TO SWMA as well as synonymous with the other two nouns -- but I doubt that anyone would think that to
be a reasonable equation.
The parallel suggested in Luke 1:47 does not really apply because that's a pattern of poetic parallelism either derived from or imitative
of LXX style. On the other hand, I rather think that Paul's usage of PNEUMA and YUCH does not equate them. I think a more careful analysis of Pauline psychological and physiological terminology would be required to demonstrate any likelihood of your suggestion having validity. Probably that analysis has been done -- perhaps more than once, I'd guess -- and someone could point to the
relevant authority or authorities. Bultmann had a chapter on Pauline psychology in his Theology of the NT, but I think that his
study has been faulted on one or more grounds.
Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (ret)
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