From: KevLAnder@aol.com
Date: Thu Aug 17 1995 - 16:09:51 EDT
Just a note about David L. Moore's treatment of J 10:10. My interest was
piqued by his discussion because, frankly, I had never taken a close look at
J 10:10; and when I opened my GNT and read J 10:10 I realized that a
straightforward reading of the Greek text appears to favor his view that
PERISSON be taken as a substantive adjective instead of as an adverbial
qualifier of ZWHN. I then did some lexicon checking. It so happens that
Thayer classifies PERISSON in J 10:10 as Moore would, translating PERISSON
ECHEIN as "to have abundance." Thayer also cites a cognate usage of the
adjective in antiquity: HOI MEN . . . PERISSA EXHOUSIN, HOI DE OUDE TA
ANAGKAI DUNANTAI PORIZESTHAI ("On the one hand, those who have abundance, but
on the other hand, those who do not have the wherewithal to get along" [my
rough translation]), Xen. oec. 20,1. (Note that in this example PERISSA is
anarthrous.) I thought David would also be interested in Alfred Plummer's
comments on this verse.
_have it more abundantly_] Omit 'more;' it is not in the Greek, and
somewhat
spoils the sense. More abundantly than what? Translate, _that they_ may
have abundance.
Marcus Dods in the _Expositor's Greek Testament_ also has some enlightening
commentary:
With quite other intent has Christ come: EGO HLTHON . . . ECHOSIN, that
instead of being killed and perishing the sheep "may have life and may
have
abundance." This may mean abundance of life, but more probably abundance
of all that sustains life. PERITTON ECHEIN in Xen., _Anab._, vii. 6,31,
means
"to have a surplus". "The repetition of ECHOSIN gives the second point a
more
independent position than it would have had if KAI alone had been used.
. . ."
Meyer.
I discovered that some translations, such as the NASB, list in the margin
"have abundance" as an alternate translation.
David's discussion of the variant readings was most interesting and I think
they warrant further investigation.
I would venture to supplement David's contextual clues in favor of rendering
PERISSON as "abundance." It is certainly illuminating that in verse 10 there
is a contrast between the thief who steals, kills, and destroys and Jesus who
provides life and abundance. But I believe the comparison can be tightened up
a bit. The key is in the whole shepherd/sheep figure that Jesus is using. In
verses 1-5 Jesus points out that the shepherd enters into the fold of sheep
via the door or sheep-gate, whereas the thief or robber steals his way in
some other way. Furthermore, Jesus contrasts how the shepherd's voice is
recognized by the sheep, while they do not pay attention to the thief. It is
of some significance that in verses 3 and 4, and then also in verse 9 Jesus
says that the shepherd goes into the fold in order to lead them in and out
(cp. Num 27:16-17). In verse 9 Jesus says specifically, "I am the door; if
anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and
find pasture." Now this parallels very nicely with verse 10:
Verse 9: He shall be saved . . . and find pasture
Verse 10: They might have life . . . and have abundance
Now the coupling of life and the provision of sustenance is far from foreign
to the Gospel of John. In 6:26ff this coupling is readily apparent. Jesus
says in 6:27, "Do not work for food which perishes, but for the food which
endures to eternal life." Jesus identified Himself as the true bread from
heaven. And how could "abundance" be described more graphically?--"For the
bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the
world. . . . I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and
he who believes in Me shall never thirst" (6:33,35). The parallel becomes
even stronger when one compares Jesus' description of His abundant provision
for the sheep in laying His life down for them (10:11,17-18) with His
depiction of sustenance as the partaking of His flesh and blood (6:51-58).
Obviously, the abundant provision of sustenance and the giving of life are to
be found quintessentially in the death of Jesus. Christ's atoning death is
indeed, to borrow the words of Marcus Dods, the "abundance of all that
sustains life"!
I haven't the time to follow this subject any further at this time (after
1:00 AM at this moment), but I would be interested to search out the theme of
"abundance" in the Pauline literature as well. I do recall one verse from
Romans that might be apropos: "For if by the transgression of the one, death
reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance
[PERISSEIAN] of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life
through the One, Jesus Christ" (5:17). Perhaps someone else could follow this
theme in Paul--;)
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Sat Apr 20 2002 - 15:37:25 EDT