Re: 1 Peter 1:7
Edgar M. Krentz (emkrentz@mcs.com)
Tue, 7 Oct 1997 16:34:16 -0500
>> From: "Martin Arhelger" <martin.arhelger@metronet.de>
>> Date: Tue, 7 Oct 1997 09:47:31 +0200
>>
>>
>> <snip>
>>
>>
>> 2 nd posibillity:
>>
>> DOKIMION
>> \ \ \_____________PISTEWS
>> \ \_____hUMWN \___THS
>> \__TO
>>
>> "the appraisal of you, [that is,] of the faith"
>>
>> I still think that this would be an awkward splitting of thoughts
>> (see my last e-mail). But it is interesting to find, that the famous
>> conservative German exegete A. Schlatter (1852-1938) seems to
>> understand it that way. In his commentary on James 1:3 (Der Brief
>> des Jakobus, Stuttgart 1932 - I don't know, whether there exists an
>> English translation), he writes:
>> "Es genuegt auch kaum zu sagen, der Genetiv hUMWN sei vor sein
>> Nomen THS PISTEWS gestellt. Zunaechst ist wohl TO DOKIMION hUMWN
>> zusammengedacht. (...) Ein Geschulter haette fuer das, was Jakobus
>> wollte, gesagt: TO DOKIMION hUMWN TO THS PISTEWS. Dass Petrus die
>> Ordnung der Worte nicht veraendert hat, 1,7, spricht auch dafuer,
>> dass fuer beide hUMWN als Suffix an TO DOKIMION hing ..."
>>
>> Translation by Martin Arhelger:
>> "It does not suffice to say, that the genitive hUMWN is set before
>> his noun THS PISTEWS. First of all TO DOKIMION hUMWN seems to bee a
>> unit. (...) A learned man, wanting to say, what James did, would
>> have written: TO DOKIMION hUMWN TO THS PISTEWS. Seeing that Peter
>> (1:7) did not change the order of words proves, that for both hUMWN
>> was the suffix of TO DOKIMION ..."
>>
>> I don't agree with Schlatter, here. But I respect his view, seeing,
>> that I'm only a "Little Greek" with respect to Schlatter's profound
>> knowledge.
>>
>Even with this sentence diagram -- and Schlatter's interpretation
>-- would it be possible to regard hUMWN as a subjective genitive,
>and so translate as
>
> "your proving-out of the faith"
>
>That is, Peter would then be saying that it is our proving-out
>of the faith -- demonstrating its validity by the way we live
>and depend on it -- that results in praise, glory, and honor
>at the unveiling of Jesus Christ.
>
>Translating it this way reminds me of Rom. 12.2:
>
> EIS TO DOKIMAZEIN hUMAS TI TO QELHMA TOU QEOU ...
> for [the sake of] your proving-out what God's desire [is] ...
In my opinion that translation is almost certainly impossible.
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* Edgar Krentz *
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