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Re: Meaning of phusis
Can I simply refer to Litwak & others to Cranfield's commentary on Romans
(new ICC) on Rom. 2:14-15 and the "physis" there, for indication that the
common translations of the passage may well not be right(and are not right
in my view too)?
Can I also simply suggest that Mr. Litwak reads into physis in
Paul a biological sense that is very modern and NOT borne out in the
contexts he cites, nor is it borne out by an examination of the broader
ancient Greek usage of physis?
The "physis" that makes long hair on men improper is not
biological (men can grow hair long just as "naturally" as women can!!),
but is the cultural custom of the Greco-ROman period that Paul was
familiar with in which men wear short hair (look at the statues!). The
other passages similarly are much more plausible in the normal sense of
physis.
Larry Hurtado, Religion, Univ. of Manitoba
References: