Re: SYNONYMS IN John 21

From: BibAnsMan@aol.com
Date: Mon Jun 24 1996 - 12:39:51 EDT


In a message dated 96-06-24 11:30:18 EDT, perry.stepp@chrysalis.org writes:

<< Oh, please. This argument (that AGAPH and PHILEW were intrinsically
different
 words, with AGAPH understood in the first-century Hellenistic/Jewish milieu
to
 refer to a higher type of love) is old and tired, a great example of
"preacher
 Greek." Witness 2 Ki 13.1 LXX (2 Sam 13.1): speaking of Tamar, the writer
 notes that "Amnon, son of David, loved (HGAPHSEN) her." Later, (13.4) Amnon
 asserts, "I love (AGAPW) Tamar, the sister of my brother Absolom." Even
 after the rape, the writer speaks of Amnon's lust as "THN AGAPHN, hHN
HGAPHSEN
 AUTHN."
 
 Is anyone really going to suggest that Amnon's love was a god-like (or
 God-like) love? I didn't think so. >>

No one to my knowledge ever said that _all_ uses of AGAPAW or AGAPH refer to
"divine" type of love. What was said was that when the biblical writer wants
to refer to the divine, self-sacrificial love, the writer was more prone to
use AGAPAW instead of FILEW as is illustrated many times in Scripture for the
preference of the term.

James McGuire



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