Acts 17:28: Sphere of Influence (Porter) or Instrumental?
Posted: July 7th, 2012, 11:01 pm
Acts 17:28a ἐν αὐτῷ γὰρ ζῶμεν καὶ κινούμεθα καὶ ἐσμέν,
Aland, B., Aland, K., Black, M., Martini, C. M., Metzger, B. M., & Wikgren, A. (1993). The Greek New Testament (4th ed.) (375). Federal Republic of Germany: United Bible Societies.
Culy and Parsons refer to Porter/s Idioms book to defend the translation 'In him" in Acts 17:28. Porter does not speak about this specific text but the pages referenced, 157, 159, discuss what Porter describes as a use of EN for sphere of influence and control, including he phrase EN CRISTW. While I am not convinced by Porter's argument for the latter well-known and much-debated phrase, I'm inclined to see EN at the start of Acts 17:28 as indicating an instrumental sense, i.e., it is by God that humans live and do what they do (Louw-Nida) and exist.
While the notion of a sphere of influence is certainly possible, in its original context, when Greek authors, perhaps mediated through Jewish apologists (so Loveday Alexander), it seems to me unlikely that they would use this text in this way when EN could suggest a Stoic sense: everyone exists as part of the Divine Logos, so in a very real sense humans live and do what they do and exist in "God," since as pantheists, they see themselves as part of God. Since the emphasis of the context has been on God's causality, he made humankind from one person, he determined the set times and boundaries of their dwelling place, and so forth, it appears to me far more plausible that Acts 17:28a denotes causality as well. It is by the ongoing actions of God as the one who not only made but sustains creation (a concept clearly present in the Scriptures of Israel) that humans live, are able to come and go, and even exists
I have not found an English translation that renders EN by "by" in this verse but then I've not found an English translation that renders EN PNEUMATI in Galatians 5 as "by the Spirit," where I'm completely confident the sense of EN mist be causal or instrumental.
Any thoughts on the sense of EN in Acts 17:28? Thanks.
Ken
Aland, B., Aland, K., Black, M., Martini, C. M., Metzger, B. M., & Wikgren, A. (1993). The Greek New Testament (4th ed.) (375). Federal Republic of Germany: United Bible Societies.
Culy and Parsons refer to Porter/s Idioms book to defend the translation 'In him" in Acts 17:28. Porter does not speak about this specific text but the pages referenced, 157, 159, discuss what Porter describes as a use of EN for sphere of influence and control, including he phrase EN CRISTW. While I am not convinced by Porter's argument for the latter well-known and much-debated phrase, I'm inclined to see EN at the start of Acts 17:28 as indicating an instrumental sense, i.e., it is by God that humans live and do what they do (Louw-Nida) and exist.
While the notion of a sphere of influence is certainly possible, in its original context, when Greek authors, perhaps mediated through Jewish apologists (so Loveday Alexander), it seems to me unlikely that they would use this text in this way when EN could suggest a Stoic sense: everyone exists as part of the Divine Logos, so in a very real sense humans live and do what they do and exist in "God," since as pantheists, they see themselves as part of God. Since the emphasis of the context has been on God's causality, he made humankind from one person, he determined the set times and boundaries of their dwelling place, and so forth, it appears to me far more plausible that Acts 17:28a denotes causality as well. It is by the ongoing actions of God as the one who not only made but sustains creation (a concept clearly present in the Scriptures of Israel) that humans live, are able to come and go, and even exists
I have not found an English translation that renders EN by "by" in this verse but then I've not found an English translation that renders EN PNEUMATI in Galatians 5 as "by the Spirit," where I'm completely confident the sense of EN mist be causal or instrumental.
Any thoughts on the sense of EN in Acts 17:28? Thanks.
Ken