[b-greek] Re: hEPTA + KIS?

From: Carl W. Conrad (cwconrad@artsci.wustl.edu)
Date: Fri Oct 19 2001 - 07:47:06 EDT


At 9:03 AM +0200 10/19/01, Iver Larsen wrote:
>> on 10/18/01 7:37 PM, Mark Wilson at emory2oo2@hotmail.com wrote:
>>
>> > Can someone tell me how hEPTAKIS is derived. Assuming
>> > the hEPTA part is "seven," where does KIS come from?
>>
>> Not sure I have this right, but judging from the words that have this
>> ending, it seems to be an adverbial suffix meaning "times." In a search I
>> did, I came up with hEBDOMHKONTAKIS (seventy times), hEPTAKIS
>> (seven times),
>> hOSAKIS (as many times as), PENTAKIS (five times), POLLAKIS (many times),
>> POSAKIS (how many times?).
>> --
>>
>> Steven Lo Vullo
>
>>From a translation point of view this is interesting in
>Matt 18:22: OU LEGW SOI hEWS hEPTAKIS ALLA hEWS HEBDOMHKONTAKIS hEPTA
>
>The seventy-fold seven was wrongly transferred by literal English versions
>into 70 times 7 times when in fact it means 77 times. Jesus is probably
>making reference to Gen 4:24 where Lamech says that he will revenge 77-fold.

No doubt this IS from the LXX of Gen 4:24, but hEBDOMHKONTAKIS hEPTA does,
in fact, mean 70 x 7 = 490. It was not the English translator that made an
error here but rather, it would seem, the LXX translator; the Hebrew of Gen
4:24 reads SHIV'IM WeSHIV'A, 70 + 7 = 77; the LXX text doesn't have any
conjunction KAI between the two numerals corresponding to the Hebrew We.

>Jesus now says that in the new Kingdom of God forgiveness has replaced
>revenge.

This, of course, would be the implication in any case.
--

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Emeritus)
Most months: 1647 Grindstaff Road/Burnsville, NC 28714/(828) 675-4243
cwconrad@artsci.wustl.edu OR cwconrad@ioa.com
WWW: http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/

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