From: Carl W. Conrad (cwconrad@artsci.wustl.edu)
Date: Thu Dec 24 1998 - 11:01:39 EST
At 7:55 PM -0500 12/23/98, Jonathan Robie wrote:
>A rather long time ago, Carl Conrad wrote:
>
>>BUT--the imperfect (indicative) retains one function in Koine that it had
>>in Classical Attic: it is used in both protasis and apodosis of present
>>counterfactual conditions. I've never been able to figure out a good reason
>>why the indicative should function in Greek for a counterfactual
>>condition--but of course the aorist indicative does so in past
>>counterfactual conditions also.
>
>Are imperfects in the protasis and apodosis always *present* counterfactual
>conditions? Consider the following:
>
>Matt 23:30
>
>EI HMEQA EN TAIS hHMERAIS TWN PATERWN hHMWN, OUK AN HMEQA AUTWN KOINWNOI EN
>TWi hAIMATI TWN PROFHTWN
Yes, I think so. Isn't this, in effect, "Even IF we were in existence in
our fathers' days, we (still) wouldn't be participants in the blood(shed)
of the prophets = in the shedding of the blood of the prophets).
What's odd here is the imperfect HMEQA where one really should expect
perhaps an EGENOMEQA; I take it that we have an imperfect here because
there is no aorist of EIMI. Properly speaking I think this ought to be a
"mixed" condition, since the HMEQA clearly means, "had been in existence."
(Gee, it's nice to be back in touch from home--my Christmas present to
myself was an iMac!)
Seasons' blessings to all!
Carl
Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics/Washington University
One Brookings Drive/St. Louis, MO, USA 63130/(314) 935-4018
Home: 7222 Colgate Ave./St. Louis, MO 63130/(314) 726-5649
cwconrad@artsci.wustl.edu OR cconrad@yancey.main.nc.us
WWW: http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/
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