Page 1 of 2
What is purpose and meaning of τῇ in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 19th, 2023, 5:48 pm
by Paul Rittman
The text, from what I have seen, is the same in modern critical versions, as well as the Textus Receptus.

- Gal2.20.png (76.07 KiB) Viewed 32687 times
Now I can see the translation of every Greek word, except "τῇ" that is right after
ἐν πίστει ζῶ, and right before
τοῦ θεοῦ.
I see that it is a dative singular feminine article, but what does it refer to? Faith? that seems kind of awkward.
Re: What is purpose and meaning of te in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 19th, 2023, 7:22 pm
by Paul Rittman
Would it read, "by the faith that is in the Son of God..."?--which would make it a pronoun, and not an article?
Re: What is purpose and meaning of te in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 19th, 2023, 7:54 pm
by James Spinti
Paul,
The ἐν πίστει is fronted for emphasis. The τῇ does refer back to πίστει, and the genitive phrase the follows tells what kind of faith. I won't get into the argument about what kind of genitive it is, suffice it to say that more than a few books have been written on that!
It's a fairly common Greek construction. If you look at the rest of the genitive phrase, you'll see it happening again: the τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντός με καὶ παραδόντος refers back to τοῦ υἱοῦ, with the τοῦ θεοῦ intervening.
It's not really a relative, but in English we would probably say it something like you did: I live in/by/through faith, that is, the faith… But you do lose the emphasis somewhat that Greek used by fronting the phrase
HTH,
James
Re: What is purpose and meaning of te in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 20th, 2023, 9:05 am
by Jonathan Robie
James Spinti wrote: ↑July 19th, 2023, 7:54 pm
It's not really a relative, but in English we would probably say it something like you did: I live in/by/through faith, that is, the faith… But you do lose the emphasis somewhat that Greek used by fronting the phrase
Yes. You can get some of that emphasis and word order back, I think, with a different translation strategy:
ἐν πίστει ζῶ τῇ τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ
In faith I live - [faith] in the Son of God ...
Here, I am translating τῇ with "faith", which it refers to. In English, we can't say "In faith I live - the in the Son of God ...", and I don't think it would be quite right to say "In faith I live - the [faith] in the Son of God. So I think "In faith I live - faith in the Son of God ..." comes close.
And as you point out, it could be "in the Son of God", "through the Son of God", "by the Son of God" ...
Re: What is purpose and meaning of τῇ in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 20th, 2023, 9:23 am
by Paul Rittman
Thanks, both of those explanations were helpful.
I do have one more question, about the initial words of this verse—zo de ouketi ego. The KJV treats this as two separate phrases (“Nevertheless I live, yet not I…”) whereas even the NKJV follows modern translations as interpreting it as one phrase (“It is no longer I who live…”). The Greek readings for the Textus Receptus & modern critical editions are the same here, so what would you say: are both acceptable renderings of the Greek? Or is one to be preferred? The theological significance to me, would be the same, regardless, but I was just wondering.
Also, how do you get a Greek font in your posts? I tried pasting text that had a Greek font in MS Word, and it came out gibberish.
Re: What is purpose and meaning of te in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 20th, 2023, 10:35 am
by Jonathan Robie
Paul Rittman wrote: ↑July 19th, 2023, 7:22 pm
Would it read, "by the faith
that is in the Son of God..."?--which would make it a pronoun, and not an article?
No. You have to look at the Greek to understand the Greek. Guessing at it from English translations simply doesn't work.
But the Greek article sometimes does function like an English pronoun.
Re: What is purpose and meaning of τῇ in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 20th, 2023, 10:38 am
by Jonathan Robie
Paul Rittman wrote: ↑July 20th, 2023, 9:23 am
Also, how do you get a Greek font in your posts? I tried pasting text that had a Greek font in MS Word, and it came out gibberish.
Copy from a web page, e.g.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?s ... ion=SBLGNT
Re: What is purpose and meaning of τῇ in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 20th, 2023, 10:39 am
by Jonathan Robie
Paul Rittman wrote: ↑July 20th, 2023, 9:23 am
I do have one more question, about the initial words of this verse—
zo de ouketi ego.
How do you read this phrase? Can you ask your question in terms of the Greek words, not English translations?
Re: What is purpose and meaning of τῇ in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 20th, 2023, 11:27 am
by Paul Rittman
I'll try. My question is if we can separate the four Greek words into two short phrases--first ζῶ δὲ, and then οὐκέτι ἐγώ. Taking ζῶ δὲ as its own phrase would give us, "nevertheless I live;" and taking οὐκέτι ἐγώ as a separate phrase would give us "no longer [do] I." Or is this not even a possible translation? I'm asking because it appears that the KJV does this, and attempts to render the four Greek words as two short phrases.
Or, if one is going to read all four words as one sentence, as modern translations do, then the δὲ is simply an untranslated particle, and it leads to "I no longer live..."
This is the SBL Greek, linked to above.
ζῶ δὲ οὐκέτι ἐγώ, ζῇ δὲ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός· ὃ δὲ νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκί, ἐν πίστει ζῶ τῇ τοῦ [a]υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντός με καὶ παραδόντος ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ.
Jonathan Robie wrote: ↑July 20th, 2023, 10:39 am
Paul Rittman wrote: ↑July 20th, 2023, 9:23 am
I do have one more question, about the initial words of this verse—
zo de ouketi ego.
How do you read this phrase? Can you ask your question in terms of the Greek words, not English translations?
Re: What is purpose and meaning of τῇ in Gal 2:20?
Posted: July 20th, 2023, 11:27 am
by Paul Rittman
Thanks. I just used that link you gave me, to paste the Greek into the post immediately above this one.