From: KJohn36574@aol.com
Date: Fri Dec 24 1999 - 14:28:32 EST
There is no apparent disparity between Heraclitus' concept of the logos and
John's.
William Barclay quoted Heraclitus by saying logos "was the reasoning of God".
I have no problem with that as I have always maintained logos as the reason
or speech of a person. And this accepted Greek notion of Logos could be cited
as a "philosophical" one. However, my view that the Logos was the Expression
of God or as the Philips paraphrase clearly points out, "In the beginning God
expressed himself" includes "In the beginning".
I have never excluded this notion, I just think to isolate logos apart from
the background of John and the obvious Hebrew "en archee" is a mistake, just
as it would be wrong to isolate Logos from "Wisdom". Of course Logos was more
than God's wisdom, it was his power, love and intelligence, or God's divine
mind put into action or expressing itself in creation in John 1:1.
On another thread, the preposition "pros" simply does what preposition do in
all other places where the cases would convey the sense of association. Dana
and Mantey say concerning this,
"It is incorrect...to say that prepositions govern cases. Neither is the
opposite true, that cases govern propositions. But it is true that as cases
limit and define the relations of verbs to substantives, so also prepositions
help to express more exactly and effectively the very distinctions for which
cases were created." p. 97.
For this reason pros as in "pros ton theon" has a perfective force or
emphatic force to show relationship between the Logos and Theon. The
reasoning concept logos of original creation John is setting forth here does
not come from some source other than God. Since it continues to say that "the
Word was God [himself]". No other element, whether celestial creature or
matter reduced or enlarged, was associated with the first inkling of awesome
creation. All was with God in concept and God was this planning and
expression.
Ken Johnson
Elk Grove, CA
Kj36574@aol.com
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