ἐξέστημεν/σωφρονοῦμεν 2 Corinthians 5.13
Posted: November 24th, 2014, 4:41 pm
εἴτε γὰρ ἐξέστημεν, θεῷ· εἴτε σωφρονοῦμεν, ὑμῖν.
Should we understand the aorist to refer to past time, and the present to present time? Alfred Plummer wrote (in the Cambridge Greek Testament):
for whether we were out of our minds..
or
for whether we have been out of our minds..
Any thoughts would be appreciated,
Andrew
Should we understand the aorist to refer to past time, and the present to present time? Alfred Plummer wrote (in the Cambridge Greek Testament):
Almost all the translators use an English present tense for both verbs. Some of the commentators speak of a gnomic aorist, and cite Moulton Prolegomena, p.134, but looking that up, it seems rare at best. I would have thought one would only go for that if it was really forced upon you. In this case, I can't see anything wrong with a sense like either:'For whether we went mad (it was) for God; or whether we are in our right mind, (it is) for you.' The change from aorist to present must be marked..
for whether we were out of our minds..
or
for whether we have been out of our minds..
Any thoughts would be appreciated,
Andrew