[B-Greek] Revelation 14:4--PARQENOI GAR EISIN‏

George F Somsel gfsomsel at yahoo.com
Sat Sep 6 09:41:56 EDT 2008


There is more involved than simply allowing Re 14.4 to determine the sense of the word.  Moulton & Milligan have an entry on this.

 
παρθένος     [PARQENOS]
“maiden,” “virgin”: cf. P Ryl II. 12528(a.d.28–9) διὰ τῆς ἑατοῦ θυγατρὸς παρθένου [DIA THS hATOU QUGATROS PARQENOU], and P Lond 9834(iv/a.d.) (= III. p. 229), where a man complains of abusive language addressed τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ συμβίῳ καὶ τῇ παρθένῳ μου θυγατρί [THi hMETERAi SUMBIWi KAI THi PARQENWi MOU QUGATRI'. In Kaibel 5653(not later than ii/a.d.) παρθένος[PARQENOS] is a child of five years of age. For the rare fem, form ἡ παρθένη[hH PARQENH] (cf. MGr παρθένα), Hatzidakis (Einl.p. 24) cites a papyrus published in the Journal des Savants, 1873, p. 100. In farm accounts, P Fay 10230(c.a.d.105), payments are made for παρθέ(νων)λικνιζουσῶ(ν) [PARQE(NWN] LIKNIZOUSW(N)], “girls winnowing.” For αἱ παρθένοι αἱ ἱεραί [hAI PARQENOI hAI hIERAI], see the citation from Michel 694
 s.v.εἶτεν [EITEN], and cf. W. M. Ramsay Ann. of Brit. School at Athensxviii. p. 58.
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The masc. used of men who have not known women in Rev 14:4may be paralleled from CIG IV. 8784b—
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Σκεῦος θεουργὸν(cf. Ac 9:15) συλλαλείτω παρθένῳ
βλάβης σκέπεσθαι δεσπότην Κωνσταντῖνον:
.
SKEUOS QEOURGON (cf Ac 9:15) SULLALEITW PARQENWi
BLABHS SKEPESQAI DESPOTHN KWNSTANTINON:
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cf. also Joseph and Asenath3 ἐστὶν δὲ οὗος ὁ Ἰωσὴφ ἀνὴρ θεοσεβὴς καὶ σώφρων καὶ παρθένος [ESTEIN DE hOUOS hO IWSHF ANHR QEOSEBHS KAI SWFRWN KAI PARQENOS], ib.6 ἄσπασον τὸν ἀδελφόν ου, διότι καὶ αὐτὸς παρθένος [ASPASON TON ADELFON OU, DIOTI KAI AUTOS PARQENOS].
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The adj. παρθεν(ε)ίος[PARQEN(E)IOS] is found in the illiterate P Ryl II. 4352(ii/a.d.) παρήγκελκά συ[PARHGKELKA SU(l.παρήγγελκά σοι [PARHGGELKA SOI]) ἄλλα[ALLA] (for accentuation, Archiv vi. p. 379) ἅπαξ ὅτι ἆρε̣ν[hAPAC hOTI AREN] (l.ἆρον [ARON]) τὰ παρθένειά σου τέκνα [TA PARQENIA SOU TEKNA], “I have charged you more than once ‘Take away your children born of a maiden’”: cf. παρθενικός[PARQENIKOS] in P Lond 4741(ii/a.d.) (= I. p. 82) δάφνη παρθε[νι]κή [DAFNH PARQE[[NI]]KH]. See also P Par 57ii. 21(b.c.156) where for παρθένην[PARQENHN] Wilcken (UPZ i. p. 445) suggests παρθενικήν[PARQENIKHN] or παρθ̣ένειον[PARQENEION] with ζώνην[ZWNHN] understood. For different forms of the word used as proper names see Preisigke Namenbuch.
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Moulton, J. H., & Milligan, G. (1930). The vocabulary of the Greek Testament. Issued also in eight parts, 1914-1929. (494). London: Hodder and Stoughton.
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As you can see from the usage in Joseph and Asenath, it was a practice in Christian literature to use PARQENOS to reference men.

 george
gfsomsel 


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----- Original Message ----
From: Leonard Jayawardena <leonardj at live.com>
To: b-greek at lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Saturday, September 6, 2008 8:35:01 AM
Subject: [B-Greek] Revelation 14:4--PARQENOI GAR EISIN‏


Carl W. Conrad wrote: BDAG s.v. PARQENOS (B) notes several instances of usage of the noun for men:======b. male virgin ὁ παρθένος [hO PARAQENOS] virgin, chaste man (CIG IV, 8784b; JosAs 8:1 uses π. of Joseph; Pel.-Leg. 27, 1 uses it of Abel; Suda of Abel and Melchizedek; Nonnus of the apostle John, who is also called ‘virgo’ in the Monarchian Prologues [Kl. T. 12 1908, p. 13, 13]) Rv 14:4 (on topical relation to 1 En 15:2–7 al., s. DOlson, CBQ 59, ’97, 492–510).—JFord, The Mng. of ‘Virgin’, NTS 12, ’66, 293–99.—B. 90. New Docs 4, 224–27. DELG. M-M. EDNT. TW. Spicq. Sv.======Fr Patrick B. O'Grady wrote: The use of the word, PARQENOS, in the early Christian and subsequentOrthodox Christian tradition remains straightforward; later, frequentlyin hagiography as male or female monastics. <SNIP>

I'd like to know what others think.Leonard JayawardenaSri Lanka  On Sep 5, 2008, at 6:10 AM, Leonard Jayawardena wrote:>> Revelation 14:4: hOUTOI EISIN hOI META GUNAIKWN OUK EMOLUNQHSAN, > PARQENOI GAR EISIN, hOUTOI hOI AKOLOUQOUNTES TW ARNIW....>> An Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon based on the seventh edition > of Liddell and Scott's Greek-English Lexicon has the following under > PARQENOS: "... as masc., [PARQENOS, hO], an unmarried man, N.T. > (Deriv. unknown.).">> This part of the dictionary entry must be based on the use of this > word in Revelation 14:4 as the word unambiguously refers to females > in the rest of the NT. Actually, the use of PARQENOI in the above > verse is metaphorical, being based on the NT teaching that the NT > church, represented by the 144,000, is the "bride" and "wife" of > Christ. Paul writes, ZHLW GAR hUMAS QEOU ZHLW hHRMOSUNHN GAR hUMAS > hENI ANDRI PARQENON hAGNHN PARASTHSAI TWi CRISTWi. In Revelation > itself the
 church is called the lamb's NUMFH and GUNH (19:7;21:9). > This itself is based on the similar relationship between God and > Israel of the OT. PARQENOS as used of the church in Rev. 14:4, which > is the heavenly city of Jerusalem (Rev. 21:9ff; Galatians 4:26; > Hebrews 12:22), is the antonym of the PORNH of Rev. 17, who > represents the earthly city (of imperial Rome, as I understand).>> The use of the plural PARQENOI in Rev. 14:4 implies that each member > of the church is also a virgin spiritually. This is analogous to the > church being called the temple of God when her members are viewed as > working as a team towards the goal of building a habitation for God > in the spirit (Ephesians 2:19ff) , while each individual member is > also the temple of God (1 Corinthians 6:19), the latter of which in > fact is the ultimate reality.> In view of the foregoing, the meaning of PARQENOS as an "unmarried > man" in the above-mentioned dictionary entry is based
 on a wrong > interpretation of Rev. 14:4. I'd like to know whether PARQENOS is > ever used in ancient Greek literature in reference to unmarried > males.  Leonard JayawardenaSri Lanka 
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