From: Bruce Terry (terry@bible.acu.edu)
Date: Fri Jan 12 1996 - 15:50:30 EST
On Fri, 12 Jan 1996, Carl W. Conrad wrote:
>At 1:38 PM 1/12/96, Bruce Terry wrote:
>>On Thu, 11 Jan 1996, Kenneth Litwak wrote (in part):
>>
>>>4. Finally, II:7 says ou mishseis panta anqrwpou. I think this says
>>>"You shall not hate every person", while Lightfoot translates it as
>>>"thou shalt not hate any man". I don't think I accept translating pas as
>>>"any". that's what tis is for. Comments?
>>
>>The rule of thumb here is to translate PAS as "any" when used with a negative.
>>This is because Greek PAS is used with different meaning than English "all"
>>with negatives. If you translate this, "You shall not hate every person,"
>>some English speaker is bound to say, "I don't hate every person; it's just
>>so-and-so that I hate."
>
>Nevertheless, Bruce, I think this must be a Semitism. In Attic Greek PANTA
>ANQRWPON used thus would have to mean "every person." I really think this
>derives from Hebrew QOL's usage. BDF note this as "Hebraizing" at #302.
My point, Carl, is that the English is capable of sustaining two meanings, one
of which I don't think the Greek contains (but perhaps I am wrong; you have
read much more extensively in Classical Greek than I). English "every person"
can mean not only "each and every person" viewed individually (i.e. "each and
every person you shall not hate" or "you shall not hate any person at all"),
but also "all the people" viewed collectively ("you shall not hate every
single last person" or "you shall not hate the sum total of the people"). If
I am not mistaken, the Greek only allows the former. The reason for
translating PAS as "any" does not have to do with what Greek or Hebrew means,
but with the ambiguity in the English. Does this ambiguity also exist in the
Greek? Can PANTA ANQRWPON mean "all the people" as English can?
The meaning is obviously the former in the passage at hand, but the convention
of translating PAS as "any" is to reduce the ambiguity and keep some wit from
taking the other possible meaning in English.
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Bruce Terry E-MAIL: terry@bible.acu.edu
Box 8426, ACU Station Phone: 915/674-3759
Abilene, Texas 79699 Fax: 915/674-3769
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