Change of tense - what effect does it have: 1Tim 6,12

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Peter Streitenberger
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Joined: June 3rd, 2011, 10:45 am

Change of tense - what effect does it have: 1Tim 6,12

Post by Peter Streitenberger »

Dear friends,

Ἀγωνίζου τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα τῆς πίστεως, ἐπιλαβοῦ τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς, (1Tim 6,12) - why is the first imperative in the present tense and the second in the Aorist? Is it a call to an ongoing fight of faith and a grasping of eternal live seen as a singe event (if so is it already done or a future event - I mean the grasping).
Thanks !
Peter
Stephen Hughes
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Joined: February 26th, 2013, 7:12 am

ἐπιλαβεῖν is not κρατῆσαι / κρατεῖν

Post by Stephen Hughes »

I not sure about why Ἀγωνίζου is imperfect, but I don't think the aspect of ἐπιλαβοῦ here is significant.

That's because it always remains aorist when used with this meaning, and so, it is effectively unmarked for aspect - what I treat as the fourth aspect: the nil aspect.

Perhaps you are confusing ἐπιλαβεῖν "to (initially) grasp" (the movement of the hand, cf. the sense of "to beat", where the hand moves but doesn't close to grasp, or the sense of "to tear apart", where the hand moves grasps and moves back) with κρατῆσαι / κρατεῖν "to grasp", "to grasp (= hold onto)" where the is a hold in grip.

It would have to be in the future. If hold onto were meant, that would be κράτει (+acc.)

cf. ἐπίληψίς "a taking hold of", "a clasping"

Further cf. ἅπτεσθαι "to touch" (which may or may not involve grasping).
Γελᾷ δ' ὁ μωρός, κἄν τι μὴ γέλοιον ᾖ
(Menander, Γνῶμαι μονόστιχοι 108)
Peter Streitenberger
Posts: 224
Joined: June 3rd, 2011, 10:45 am

Re: Change of tense - what effect does it have: 1Tim 6,12

Post by Peter Streitenberger »

Ok, thank you, Stephen, many interesting thoughts !

>ἐπίληψίς "a taking hold of", "a clasping"
That would imply that the reader is in possesion of the eternal live and should cling to it. But at this point I'm not sure whether this is the idea within this verb. So is Timothy expected to reach out for (a future) eternal life or to cling to it, already having it. That would be interesting.
Yours
Peter
Stephen Hughes
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Joined: February 26th, 2013, 7:12 am

κατοχή - holding on and not letting go

Post by Stephen Hughes »

Peter Streitenberger wrote:>ἐπίληψις "a taking hold of", "a clasping"
That would imply that the reader is in possesion of the eternal live and should cling to it. But at this point I'm not sure whether this is the idea within this verb. So is Timothy expected to reach out for (a future) eternal life or to cling to it, already having it.
I'm not exactly sure what you are saying (or asking). You are talking about κτῆσις "possession", but that is not neccessarily dependent on physically holding something. ἐπίληψις is an action for the hand - when we are looking at the hand. Perhaps you mean "hold and not let go", when you say "cling to"? That would be τὸ μὴ χαλᾶν or ἐγκράτεια, if we look at the hand, or κατοχή if we look at the person

I realise that my writing is tedious and elementary, but anyway...

If you are looking at somebody and paying attention to the hand, it is:
  • ἐπίληψις is the bending / wrapping of the fingers to start holding something,
  • ἐγκράτεια is the holding onto it firmly in one's hand,
  • χάλασις is the straightening / unwrapping the fingers to loosen the hold / grip. (fully straighten would be ἐκτείνειν)
If you (the person) take (a hold of) something and it becomes yours, that would be just λαβεῖν (λῆψις) λαβεῖν also implies having it, but if you wanted to say it clearly, you could use ἔχειν or κρατεῖν. To finish / end the ἔχειν, you could τιθέναι "place" (θέσις) or διδόναι "give" (δόσις). If you don't want to let go of something then you would κατέχειν "hold onto" (κατοχή).

So, if you are looking at the person, it is:
  • λῆψις taking (horizotally - as from a person)
  • τὸ αἴρειν taking (vertically - as from a table)
  • τὸ ἔχειν holding
  • ἐγκράτεια hold to (forcibly) control, (rather than hold tightly)
  • τὸ φέρειν / κομίζειν carrying (hold and move to another place)
    EITHER
  • δόσις giving (horizontally - as to a person)
  • θέσις placing (vertically - as on a table)
    OR
  • κατοχή continuance of holding onto / not letting go of
Peter Streitenberger wrote:the reader is in possesion of the eternal live and should cling to it.
If he had meant this, then perhaps the writer would have written "κάτασχε τὴν αἰώνιον ζωήν".
Γελᾷ δ' ὁ μωρός, κἄν τι μὴ γέλοιον ᾖ
(Menander, Γνῶμαι μονόστιχοι 108)
Barry Hofstetter

Re: Change of tense - what effect does it have: 1Tim 6,12

Post by Barry Hofstetter »

Peter Streitenberger wrote:Dear friends,

Ἀγωνίζου τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα τῆς πίστεως, ἐπιλαβοῦ τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς, (1Tim 6,12) - why is the first imperative in the present tense and the second in the Aorist? Is it a call to an ongoing fight of faith and a grasping of eternal live seen as a singe event (if so is it already done or a future event - I mean the grasping).
Thanks !
Peter
I would see the force of ἐπιλαβοῦ as "grasp," "seize firmly." In my mind the aorist imperative simply looks at the action as a whole, and I wonder if this isn't really an aktionsart issue?
cwconrad
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Re: Change of tense - what effect does it have: 1Tim 6,12

Post by cwconrad »

Barry Hofstetter wrote:
Peter Streitenberger wrote:Dear friends,

Ἀγωνίζου τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα τῆς πίστεως, ἐπιλαβοῦ τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς, (1Tim 6,12) - why is the first imperative in the present tense and the second in the Aorist? Is it a call to an ongoing fight of faith and a grasping of eternal live seen as a singe event (if so is it already done or a future event - I mean the grasping).
Thanks !
Peter
I would see the force of ἐπιλαβοῦ as "grasp," "seize firmly." In my mind the aorist imperative simply looks at the action as a whole, and I wonder if this isn't really an aktionsart issue?
When I was a kid many, many moons ago (later 1940's), a popular ditty was "You've got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch on to the affirmative, don't mess with Mr. Inbetween." "Latch on to" seems to me perfect colloquial English idiom for ἐπιλαβέσθαι -- "get a firm grip on."
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)
Stephen Hughes
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Joined: February 26th, 2013, 7:12 am

Why is ἀγωνίζεσθαι taken as "to fight"?

Post by Stephen Hughes »

Peter Streitenberger wrote: Ἀγωνίζου τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα τῆς πίστεως, (1Tim 6,12) - why is the first imperative in the present tense ... Is it a call to an ongoing fight of faith ...
Taking ἀγωνίζεσθαι as "to fight" or "to compete for" has connotations of somebody wins / somebody loses. Is it in a violent (cf. πάλη) or competative (cf. ἀθλεῖν) (or adversarial - legal) sense here?

Apart from the general meaning of ἐπιλαβεῖν that I'm aware of, is it used with a special sense with say ἆθλον, νίκην or στέφανον?
Γελᾷ δ' ὁ μωρός, κἄν τι μὴ γέλοιον ᾖ
(Menander, Γνῶμαι μονόστιχοι 108)
cwconrad
Posts: 2112
Joined: May 5th, 2011, 5:52 pm
Location: Burnsville, NC 28714
Contact:

Re: Why is ἀγωνίζεσθαι taken as "to fight"?

Post by cwconrad »

Stephen Hughes wrote:
Peter Streitenberger wrote: Ἀγωνίζου τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα τῆς πίστεως, (1Tim 6,12) - why is the first imperative in the present tense ... Is it a call to an ongoing fight of faith ...
Taking ἀγωνίζεσθαι as "to fight" or "to compete for" has connotations of somebody wins / somebody loses. Is it in a violent (cf. πάλη) or competative (cf. ἀθλεῖν) (or adversarial - legal) sense here?

Apart from the general meaning of ἐπιλαβεῖν that I'm aware of, is it used with a special sense with say ἆθλον, νίκην or στέφανον?
I would think that the ἀγών in question here is the recurrent Pauline image of the race that is run for the prize of ζωὴ αἰώνιος.
1 Cor 9:24 Οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι οἱ ἐν σταδίῳ τρέχοντες πάντες μὲν τρέχουσιν, εἷς δὲ λαμβάνει τὸ βραβεῖον; οὕτως τρέχετε ἵνα καταλάβητε. 25 πᾶς δὲ ὁ ἀγωνιζόμενος πάντα ἐγκρατεύεται, ἐκεῖνοι μὲν οὖν ἵνα φθαρτὸν στέφανον λάβωσιν, ἡμεῖς δὲ ἄφθαρτον. 26 ἐγὼ τοίνυν οὕτως τρέχω ὡς οὐκ ἀδήλως, οὕτως πυκτεύω ὡς οὐκ ἀέρα δέρων· 27 ἀλλὰ ὑπωπιάζω μου τὸ σῶμα καὶ δουλαγωγῶ, μή πως ἄλλοις κηρύξας αὐτὸς ἀδόκιμος γένωμαι.
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)
Barry Hofstetter

Re: Why is ἀγωνίζεσθαι taken as "to fight"?

Post by Barry Hofstetter »

Stephen Hughes wrote:
Peter Streitenberger wrote: Ἀγωνίζου τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα τῆς πίστεως, (1Tim 6,12) - why is the first imperative in the present tense ... Is it a call to an ongoing fight of faith ...
Taking ἀγωνίζεσθαι as "to fight" or "to compete for" has connotations of somebody wins / somebody loses. Is it in a violent (cf. πάλη) or competative (cf. ἀθλεῖν) (or adversarial - legal) sense here?

Apart from the general meaning of ἐπιλαβεῖν that I'm aware of, is it used with a special sense with say ἆθλον, νίκην or στέφανον?
The term can be used generically of any athletic contest or of simply struggling in general:

ἀγωνίζομαι impf. ἠγωνιζόμην; fut. ἀγωνίσομαι (Just., D. 65, 2) and ἀγωνιοῦμαι (68, 3); 1 aor. ἠγωνισάμην; pf. ἠγώνισμαι (Eur., Hdt.+).
① of a(n athletic) contest, lit. and fig. engage in a contest πᾶς ὁ ἀγωνιζόμενος 1 Cor 9:25 (AEhrhardt, ZNW 48, ’57, 101–10); cp. 2 Cl 7:1ff.
② gener. to fight, struggle
ⓐ lit., w. weapons (Polyb. 1, 45, 9; Plut., Marcell. 303 [10, 4]; 2 Macc 8:16) ἠγωνίζοντο ἄν, ἵνα μὴ παραδοθῶ J 18:36.
ⓑ fig. of any struggle (περὶ τῆς ἀληθείας Orig., C. Cels. 1, 62, 63) κοπιῶ ἀγωνιζόμενος I labor, striving Col 1:29; cp. 1 Ti 4:10. Of wrestling in prayer (ἀ. δὲ διὰ τῶν πρὸς θεὸν εὐχῶν ὑπὲρ τῶν δικαίως στρατευομένων Orig., C. Cels. 8, 73, 24) ἀ. ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν Col 4:12 (ἀ. ὑπέρ τινος: Diod S 13, 14, 3; SIG 317, 20; 386, 19; 409, 33; Jos., Ant. 13, 193). ἀ. ἀγῶνα (s. ἀγών 2) 1 Ti 6:12; 2 Ti 4:7 (JBarton, Biblica 40, ’59, 878–84). W. inf. foll. (Thu. 8, 89, 4 ἠγωνίζετο εἷς ἕκαστος αὐτὸς πρῶτος προστάτης τοῦ δήμου γενέσθαι; Diod S 31, 19, 8 ὥστε ὁ πατὴρ ἐξίστασθαι τῆς ὅλης ἀρχῆς ἠγωνίζετο τῷ παιδί; PLond 1338.—ἀγ. simply=‘take pains, exert oneself’: Just., D. 38, 2; 65, 2 al.; Alex. Aphr., Fat. 31, II 2 p. 203, 9; Sb 6997, 9 [III B.C.]) ἀγωνίζεσθε εἰσελθεῖν strain every nerve to enter Lk 13:24; cp. 1 Cl 35:4; B 4:11.—DELG s.v. ἄγω. M-M. TW.


Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Also from MM:



ἀγωνίζομαι 75
is very common in the inscriptions, e.g. Syll 21333 (iii/B.C.) ἀγωνιζόμενος ὑπὲρ τῆς κοινῆς σωτηρίας, where the reference is to warfare. So ib. 16318 (B.C. 318–7) πρ]οείλετο τελευτῆσαι ὑπὸ τῶν ἐναντίων ἀγ[ωνιζόμεν]ος ὑπὲρ τῆς δημοκρατίας: ib. 1997 (iii/B.C.) and 19819 (B.C. 281) ἀγωνιζόμενος ὑπ[ὲρ αὐτοῦ], etc. Cf. an Athenian inscription of B.C. 268–6, Syll 21410, ἐπειδὴ πρότερομ μὲν Ἀθηναῖοι καὶ Λακεδαιμόνιοι καὶ οἱ σύμμαχοι οἱ ἑκατέρων φιλίαν καὶ συμμαχίαν κοινὴν ποιησάμενοι πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς πολλοὺς καὶ καλοὺς ἀγῶνας ἠγωνίσαντο μετʼ ἀλλήλων πρὸς τοὺς καταδουλοῦσθαι τὰς πόλεις ἐπιχειροῦντας. The phrase here hardly differs from 2 Tim 4:7, and when taken along with the preceding inscription makes it decidedly less clear that the figure there is drawn from the games, as Deissmann thinks (LAE, p. 312), illustrating the passage from a ii/A.D. inscription from the theatre at Ephesus—ἠγωνίσατο ἀγῶνας τρεῖς, ἐστέφθη δύω (Greek Inscriptions in the British Museum III. 604). For the rare use of ἀ. with an inf. as in Lk 13:24 ἀγωνίζεσθε εἰσελθεῖν, Field (Notes, p. 66) compares Diod. Sic. X., p. 25, ed. Bip.: ὥστε ὁ μὲν πατὴρ ἐξίστασθαι τῆς ὅλης ἀρχῆς ἠγωνίζετο τῷ παιδί. The verb is MGr.


Moulton, J. H., & Milligan, G. (1930). The vocabulary of the Greek Testament. London: Hodder and Stoughton.
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