From: Steven Craig Miller (scmiller@www.plantnet.com)
Date: Wed Dec 22 1999 - 09:03:29 EST
<x-flowed>To: Ken Johnson,
<< Can the pronouns in John 1:1-5 and I John 1:1-4 be translated "it" as
Tyndale and Beck, respectively, have done? >>
Can they? They not only can, but they have done so as you yourself have
noted. I wonder if the question you really wanted to ask was: Should they?
Or perhaps better yet, why did they?
It should also be noted that these two passage are quite different.
<< In William Tyndale's translation of John 1:1-5 we have: "In the
beginning was the word, and the word was with God: and the word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by it (a), and
without it (b), was made nothing, that was made. In it (c) was life, and
the life was the light of men, and the light shineth in the darkness, but
the darkness comprehended it (d) not." >>
There are four "its" in this passage which I've marked with the letters "a"
through "d." The first three "its" are masculine pronouns referring to the
masculine noun LOGOS. The fourth "it" is a neuter pronoun referring to the
neuter noun FWS.
<< In William Beck's translation of I John 1:1-4 we have: "It (a) was there
from the beginning, we heard It (b), we saw It (c) with our eyes, we looked
at It (d), and our hands touched It (e) - we're writing about the Word of
Life. That Life showed itself (f) and we saw It (g), and now we testify and
tell you about the everlasting Life that was with the Father and showed
itself (h) to us. We saw and heard It (i), and we tell you about It (j) so
that you, too, will have It (k) in fellowship with us. Our fellowship is
with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. We're writing this so that
our joy may be complete." >>
There are eleven "its" in this passage, which I have marked with the
letters "a" through "k." Five of these "its," those labeled "a," "b," "c,"
"d," & "i," refer to the relative neuter pronoun hO. But six of these
"its," those labeled "e," "f," "g," "h," "j," & "k," refer to no explicit
pronoun in the Greek text. As for the five neuter relative pronouns, it is
grammatically unclear as to what they refer.
-Steven Craig Miller
Alton, Illinois (USA)
scmiller@www.plantnet.com
Disclaimer: "I'm just a simple house-husband (with no post-grad degree),
what do I know?"
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