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Re: 1st John 1:1

Larry & Beth Hartman wrote:
> 
> I've been starting a study on 1st John.
> 
> 1.)     There are 4 relative pronouns "ho" in this verse.  The first one is
> Nominative Neuter.  I am pretty sure of this because the linkiing verb
> it corresponds to has the same personage.  The next three I am not sure
> of.  The verbs they are used with use the 1st person plural form, while
> "ho" is 3rd person singular.  In these three cases would the relative
> pronoun be Nominative or Accusative, and why?
> 
> 2.)     At the end of 1st John 1:1 the phrase occurrs "peri tou logou ths
> zwhs".  The "tou logou" is genitive with its corresponding preposition.
> Is the genitive phrase "ths zwhs" a Genitive Possessive or Genitive
> Content?  Or are these not even in the ball park?  And what reasons
> would be for the right answer?
> 
> Larry A. Hartman
> Defense Language Institute Alumnus
> Department of Arabic Studies

Dear Larry;

Welcome to one of the most difficult verses in the NT to diagram in my
estimation.  I would take the neuter prepositions to be accusatives.  I
am thinking that all the clauses "that which was from the beginning,
that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, etc."
are clauses that serve as direct object clauses of the verb "we are
proclaiming..." In answer to the second part "concerning the
word/message of life" the following options seem possible 1.
epexegetical=the word which is life, 2. qualitative genitive=the life
giving word, 3.  objective genitive=the word about life, 4. My choice:
genitive of product or result=the word that produces life/the word that
results in life. Perhaps there are some others. Take your pick.

John of Dover
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