[b-greek] Re: Rich Folks in Mk 10:23,24

From: Carl W. Conrad (cwconrad@artsci.wustl.edu)
Date: Sat Sep 09 2000 - 08:59:48 EDT


At 2:01 PM -0700 9/8/00, clayton stirling bartholomew wrote:
>The general consensus seems to be that Jesus takes his statement about
>hOI TA CRHMATA ECONTES in Mk 10:23
>
>PWS DUSKOLWS hOI TA CRHMATA ECONTES EIS
>THN BASILEIAN TOU QEOU EISELEUSONTAI
>
>and makes is universal in Mk 10:24
>
>PWS DUSKOLON ESTIN EIS THN BASILEIAN TOU QEOU EISELQEIN
>
>I don't find this conclusion very compelling for several reasons. It is
>quite common for a verbal repetition to be abbreviated without any intended
>change in meaning. So assuming that NA27 has the original reading (see the
>alt. readings for Mk 10:24) I think one could argue that this is just
>streamlining of the original statement and not an intended shift in focus
>from a specific principal to a universal principle. I am not denying the
>universal principle is taught elsewhere, I am just talking about Mk 10:24.
>
>The context both preceding and following Mk 10:24 is talking about the
>problems the "rich" have EIS THN BASILEIAN TOU QEOU EISELEUSONTAI. I see no
>compelling reason to expand the scope of the statement in Mk 10:24 and make
>it universal. One reason that a universal statement in Mk 10:24 seems
>unlikely is that it disrupts the semantic coherence of the larger discourse
>unit. The problem raised in the minds of the disciples is very specifically
>tied to the wealth aspect of this question. It seems that the universal
>difficulty of EIS THN BASILEIAN TOU QEOU EISELEUSONTAI is essentially
>irrelevant to the discussion.
>
>The NT manuscript evidence for Mk 10:24 might be used to support this
>understanding. If we assume again that NA27 has the original reading, the
>expanded readings might be taken as evidence that one or more scribes felt
>the need to make more explicit the fact the the abbreviated statement in
>Mk 10:24 is the semantic equivalent of the statement in Mk 10:23.

I think this question may be fairly asked, but I wonder whether this is
really the proper place to ask it. Is it a question of interpretation of
the Greek or a text-critical question? Or both? My immediate gut reaction
(springing, I'm sure, from force of habit when thinking about Mark's
gospel) is to think it's a redaction-critical question--couldn't we just as
easily suppose that 10:24, PWS DUSKOLON ESTIN EIS THN BASILEIAN TOU QEOU
EISELQEIN is the original saying that has been expanded into a new and
distinct Marcan pericope focusing on the special case of the wealthy? But
to many it is utterly alien to think about the Marcan text that way, and
the last thing I want to do here is to start a redaction-critical
discussion--it just doesn't belong on B-Greek. My only reason for raising
this question here is to suggest that there are really quite a few ways of
thinking about the relationship between Mk 10:23 and the following verse,
and my own sense of Marcan phrasing is that this author is rather fond of
harsh and provocative juxtapositions, e.g. 2:17 KAI AKOUSAS hO IHSOUS LEGEI
AUTOIS: OU CREIAN ECOUSIN hOI ISCUONTES ALL' hOI KAKWS ECONTES; OUK HLQON
KALESAI DIKAIOUS ALLA hAMARTWLOUS-- or 2:27-28 TO SABBATON DIA TON ANQRWPON
EGENETO KAI OUC hO ANQRWPOS DIA TO SABBATON; hWSTE KURIOS ESTIN hO hUIOS
TOU ANQRWPOU KAI TOU SABBATOU. That is to say, hermeneutical
presuppositions brought to bear upon the Biblical Greek text range over a
considerable spectrum; obviously we don't all share the exact some ones,
but we may be inclined to look upon the question raised here from very
different viewpoints. I'd suggest that we stick to questions more tightly
bound up with the Greek text itself.

--

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics/Washington University
One Brookings Drive/St. Louis, MO, USA 63130/(314) 935-4018
Home: 7222 Colgate Ave./St. Louis, MO 63130/(314) 726-5649
cwconrad@artsci.wustl.edu
WWW: http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/

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