[b-greek] RE: 2Cor 4:3-4

From: Iver Larsen (iver_larsen@sil.org)
Date: Sat Nov 10 2001 - 12:15:31 EST


> Dear friends:
> I have a question on 2Cor 4:4:
> 3 EI DE KAI ESTIN KEKALUMMENON TO EUAGGELION hHMWN, *EN* TOIS
> APOLLUMENOIS ESTIN KEKALUMMENON
> 4 *EN* hOIS hO QEOS TOU AIWNOU TOUTOU ETUFLWSEN TA NOHMATA...
> 3 and if also our good news is vailed, in those perishing it is vailed,
> 4 in whom the god of this age did blind the minds ...
> My question is what EN in both verses can mean. Can it mean "for"?
> I met an opinion that in Galatians 1:16 (to reveal his Son *in* me, that
> I might preach him among the Gentiles; straightway I conferred not with
> flesh and blood) "EN" also means "for".
> Is that true, or can "EN" in these texts mean "for"?
> Thank you very much.
> Sincerely,
> Dmitriy Reznik

Let me add a comment from the viewpoint of semantic case frames.

The semantic verb like reveal would normally have three semantic roles:
agent, patient and recipient (beneficiary and/or experiencer). Someone
reveals something (or someone) to someone else. In some languages the verb
would be expressed as "cause to see". Therefore, I am not sure whether to
call the third role beneficiary or experiencer. But it seems to me that
Greek normally encodes the experiencer with an accusative, and rarely a
genitive, and the beneficiary with a dative. I am exploring whether
"recipient" is not a better term for Greek - and maybe even in general
semantics.
In Gal 1:16 we find APOKALUPTW. When this verb occurs with all three verb
arguments, the recipient is normally in dative as expected, e.g. Mat
11:25,25; Mat 16:17; John 12:38; 1 Cor 2:10; 14:30; Eph 3:5, Phil 3:15; 1
Pet 1:12.
Since EN is encroaching on the dative, it is very likely that EN EMOI in Gal
1:16 is the recipient, that is, "God revealed his son to me" (as most
translations render it). I think this fits the context best.
I would also consider the EIS hHMAS in Rom 8:18 to reflect the recipient for
which EIS is also suitable - it will be revealed to us.

In light of this I would favor the suggestion that at least the EN in 2 Cor
4:3 also refers to those people to whom this has been hidden. The verb
KALUPTW in this context in a middle sense is almost the opposite of
APOKALUPTW. Instead of the Gospel being revealed to them it is hidden to
them. (I suppose it should have been in the ablative case, if that case had
still been used.)

Iver Larsen





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