Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

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Stephen Carlson
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Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by Stephen Carlson »

Gal 1:11 wrote:Γνωρίζω γὰρ ὑμῖν, ἀδελφοί, τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τὸ εὐαγγελισθὲν ὑπ᾽ ἐμοῦ ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν κατὰ ἄνθρωπον·
For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not of human origin; (NRSV)
I want to discuss the interpretation of the first word, γνωρίζω. According to the lexica (BDAG, LSJ), γνωρίζω means to "make known," "disclose," "reveal," "point out," "cause information to be known," yet that's not how the NRSV and other translations are rendering this word. Rather, they have “I want you to know” (NRSV, NIV, NAB, NET, NJB) or “I would have you know” (NASB, ESV, RSV), adding some desiderative "want" or "would" to the translation. (Note that the KJV has the simple present, “I certify to you," as do Brooks and Winberry, "I declare to you").

What's the reason behind interpreting γνωρίζω desideratively as "want you to know" rather than simply "let you know"? Is it some interpretation of the present tense, and if so why should it be superior?
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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by cwconrad »

Stephen Carlson wrote:
Gal 1:11 wrote:Γνωρίζω γὰρ ὑμῖν, ἀδελφοί, τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τὸ εὐαγγελισθὲν ὑπ᾽ ἐμοῦ ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν κατὰ ἄνθρωπον·
For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not of human origin; (NRSV)
I want to discuss the interpretation of the first word, γνωρίζω. According to the lexica (BDAG, LSJ), γνωρίζω means to "make know," "disclose," "reveal," "point out," "cause information to be known," yet that's not how the NRSV and other translations are rendering this word. Rather, they have “I want you to know” (NRSV, NIV, NAB, NET, NJB) or “I would have you know” (NASB, ESV, RSV), adding some desiderative "want" or "would" to the translation. (Note that the KJV has the simple present, “I certify to you," as do Brooks and Winberry, "I declare to you").

What's the reason behind interpreting γνωρίζω desideratively as "want you to know" rather than simply "let you know"? Is it some interpretation of the present tense, and if so why should it be superior?
Good question, Stephen. I thought I might find something in Smyth on -ίζω verbs, but I couldn't find it under word-formation where I was looking for it. The verbal infix does seem to have an element of deliberate enactment. Maybe "I want you to know" isn't quite right, but on the other hand, there is a powerful intention to make something known. Colloquially we might say, "I'm telling you this: xxx" or "You must understand that xxx" or "The truth, you must understand, is xxx." I think there's more here than imparting information; it's more like Richard Nixon's "Let me make one thing crystal clear ... " Paul is laying down the foundation of his authority here; if his claim to authority is not accepted, then the whole appeal set forth in this letter must fail. This means that there is indeed a strong assertion of the will implicit in the expression, and if that's the case, those translations are not really so far off the mark.
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by Stephen Carlson »

Thanks for your comments. I like the "crystal clear" idiom.

Could it be the case that the translators are assuming that the Galatians (should) already know that about Paul's gospel, so they want to avoid the implication that Paul is telling them new information?
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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by cwconrad »

Stephen Carlson wrote: ...Could it be the case that the translators are assuming that the Galatians (should) already know that about Paul's gospel, so they want to avoid the implication that Paul is telling them new information?
I don't really think the translators are making that assumption. I just think they want to underscore how important it is to Paul that the congregation in Galatia grasp this foundation of his whole appeal to them.
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by David Lim »

cwconrad wrote:Good question, Stephen. I thought I might find something in Smyth on -ίζω verbs, but I couldn't find it under word-formation where I was looking for it.
I found Smyth 866, but it does not say that "-ιζω" connotes a desire but merely an action. Instead it says under 868 that "-ιαω" / "-σειω" is what connotes desire or bodily condition. Anyway this is very interesting; I had previously thought it was quite arbitrary.
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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by MAubrey »

David Lim wrote:I had previously thought it was quite arbitrary.
Difference in form. Difference in meaning.
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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by Stephen Carlson »

Looking at the various translations I have on my Bible software (I love the fact that I can consult dozens of translations at once!), it looks like the desiderative rendering of γνωρίζω is a mainstream English translational tradition, but individual English translations and foreign translations generally don't do this.

The Vulgate has notum ... vobis facio, a causative construction that means "I make known to you." Similarly, the Italian Nuovissima with the same meaning. "Vi rendo noto."

Likewise, Luther's translation has an old fashioned causative construction: "Ich tue euch aber kund" = "But I make known to you." The 2000 Schlachter updates the idiom to "Ich lasse euch aber wissen" = " But I make you know." The Catholic German translation (Einheitsübersetzung) has the basically same meaning with a different construction: "Ich erkläre euch." Similarly, Herder's "ich versichere euch" = "I (re)assure you." Interestingly, however, the Zurich 2007 translation does have a desiderative: "Ich will euch ... kundtun " = "I want ... to make known to you."

Darby's literal translation has "I let you know." Young's literal translation as "I make known to you." The old ASV and the old RV also has "I make known to you."

The "current French" and the "ecumenical" French Bibles have "je vous le déclare" = "I declare it to you." Similarly, the Segond version "je vous déclare" = "I declare to you." The French Jerusalem Bible uses an imperative (which gets the point across nicely): "Sachez-le" = "Know it!" (The French Darby has "je vous fais savoir" = "I am making you know.")

While I wouldn't go so far as to call the desiderative translations "wrong," I do think they have made a fairly unusual and non-obvious rendering, and the prevalence of this rendering in mainstream English translations is a testament to a certain amount of mutual dependence among them.
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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by cwconrad »

Stephen Carlson wrote:Looking at the various translations I have on my Bible software (I love the fact that I can consult dozens of translations at once!), it looks like the desiderative rendering of γνωρίζω is a mainstream English translational tradition, but individual English translations and foreign translations generally don't do this....

While I wouldn't go so far as to call the desiderative translations "wrong," I do think they have made a fairly unusual and non-obvious rendering, and the prevalence of this rendering in mainstream English translations is a testament to a certain amount of mutual dependence among them.
I think all these French, German, and Latin versions are fine, but "I make you know" is just not an English idiom. "I assure you" might do it, but that seems to me to have a different implication ("you might not believe this, but ... "). There's something very awkward about these expressions in the versions you've cited. I remember getting irritated at a lecturer in Munich who would repeatedly remind his audience of what he'd already mentioned: "Ich habe Sie schon darauf bemerksam gemacht, daß ... " It seems to me that the strong desiderative element is really implicit in the γνωρίζω ὑμῖν, even if there's no first-person pronoun: it's the author/speaker who is insistent here that his readers/audience grasp what he is claiming.

In my judgment, then -- for what that's worth --, the translation issue here lies in conveying the implicit urgency of γνωριζω ὑμῖν in the context of what follows. There might be other ways to phrase it, such as, "You've got to understand that ... " I really think that the urgency of the speaker/author calls for the kind of desiderative idiomatic expression in all these English versions. I don't think they're just following the lead of an early translator but rather are phrasing it as seems idiomatically correct in English.
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by Scott Lawson »

The New World Translation renders it; "I put YOU on notice,". A translation you're unlikely to have in your library but interesting to have even if you find it tendential.

BTW, I got to be a student of J. D. BeDuhn for a time when I worked at Northern Arizona University. I hope he found me to be a formidable student. He allowed me to push back on quite a few issues...enjoyed my time with him immensely...didn't necessarily make him a great friend though.
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Re: Gal 1:11 γνωρίζω

Post by cwconrad »

Scott Lawson wrote:The New World Translation renders it; "I put YOU on notice,". A translation you're unlikely to have in your library but interesting to have even if you find it tendential.
"I put you on notice" strikes me as conveying the sense of imparting important information well enough, but I see in this version an overtone of warning that I don't think is present in the original.
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

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