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Jn. 1:18
cwconrad@artsci.wustl.edu (Carl W Conrad) wrote:
>Greg, and others too, perhaps, has already suggested that the phrasing of
>1.18," ho wn eis ton tou patros kolpon" is itself mighty peculiar and
>perhaps deserves a thread of its own. It appears to me (without having
>done any of the necessary spade work at all--and it wouldn't surprise me
>if there's a thesis somewhere on this topic) that the Johannine usage of
>prepositions is itself a topic deserving of study independent of other NT
>texts. It may also be, of course, that the prologue's usage is unique in
>the Johannine text overall in this regard.
If there are any monographs on that subject, it would be interesting and
helpful to have the biographical references and perhaps to integrate some of
their conclusions into our discussion. The major grammars do mention,
however, the use of EIS from time to time in contexts where one might expect
EN. As far as the idiom of EN (or EIS) TON KOLPON TINOS is concerned, one
should look at Lu. 16:22, 23; and Jn. 13:23. The expression appears to
indicate the place of closest proximity to the referenced person, probably
also implying reclining at table or, at least in a special (i.e. festive)
situation. From John's use of this expression in Jn. 13:23, he seems to
believe that Christ's love that has drawn him (John) to the place beside
Jesus at the table in the upper room indicates a relationship of love between
him and Jesus similar to that between Jesus and His Father (Reference back to
Jn. 1:18). Many other individual passages throughout the Fourth Gospel also
echo this theme and develop it in different ways.
David L. Moore