From: Iver Larsen (iver_larsen@sil.org)
Date: Sun Jul 29 2001 - 03:08:10 EDT
Alan wrote:
> In English, "or" generally expresses a disjunct. And
> most standard English dictionaries would define AND
> as "additive." Perhaps you are using "disjunct" in a
> different sense than I am familiar with.
>
> I really think there is quite a similarity between the
> Greek KAI and the English AND. What I think you might
> be referring to is the 'additional' functions that KAI
> has, perhaps when it is translated "even" or "also."
> But even here, the English AND can get quite close.
>
> The very statements you made about the Greek KAI (is
> an "additive", more than a disjunctive, and it can add
> a different aspect or fuller explanation to the same
> idea) would be the same for the English AND on more
> occasions than not.
>
> I do agree that the Greek KAI has multiple functions,
> but I would say that the English AND very often
> functions as does the Greek KAI.
>
> Did I misunderstand your intent?
Yes, but that is because I was rather brief. And then I did use disjunct in
a slightly different sense than the logical sense connected with an OR
operation. If you are familiar with logic, you will know about the two
different OR operators. One is that A OR B is true if A is true, B is true
or both is true. The strict A OR B is true only if A is true or B is true,
but not if both A or B is true. Natural language do not follow the laws of
logic, but there are similarities. When I used the word "disjunct" I was
thinking of references. "Peter and John" refer to two different references
and in that sense is like the strict OR. A particular Person is either Peter
or John, but not both. Similarly, "the accountant and the bookkeeper" would
normally refer to two different entities in English, like the strict OR. My
thesis is that the Greek KAI in the NT may well be like the other OR. Either
the person referred to is the accountant or he is the bookkeeper, or he may
be both accountant and bookkeeper.
In many cases the Greek KAI and English "and" do correspond nicely. But
there are also a number of cases where they do not correspond. They are not
equivalent, and it is important to let the context, semantics and discourse
studies override any assumptions based on how "and" functions in English.
In Matt 21:5 the example was:
"mounted on a donkey and on a colt, the foul of a donkey"
With an English "and" this sounds as if "donkey" and "colt" refer to two
different animals. But it is very common in Hebrew to say "donkey" waw "colt
which in a literal translation into Greek becomes KAI and then into English
becomes "and". This obscures that the Hebrew construction is often - as
here - a generic-specific relationship meaning "riding on a donkey, that is
more specifically, a colt".
In Mark 15:1 the coordinated nouns were:
"the elders and scribes and the whole council". This does not refer to three
different entities. Rather the intended meaning is seen once we recognize
the Hebrew generic-specific relationship (which is feature of Semitic
rhetorical structure also found in Arabic and other related languages). Mark
is here referring to "elders and scribes, yes the whole council." He is not
talking about all elders and scribes, but specifically those that also
belonged to the Sanhedrin. In this sense KAI moves away from "and" towards
"also, indeed" (if you think in English.)
Acts 5:29: APOKRIQEIS DE PETROS KAI hOI APOSTOLOI EIPAN
Notice how the NIV translates this as: Peter and the other apostles.
Two things are going on here. First, "Peter" is also an apostle. Second, the
apostles are considered a unit, but Peter is the spokesman. It is
interesting that the participle is in singular and the finite verb in
plural.
The main problem for translation is that in normal English, if we say Peter
and the apostles, we assume that "Peter" and "the apostles" refer to
different entities. It can clarified in English by words like "other".
Actually, I think it would be clearer in Greek to include LOIPOI. I suspect
that we have a Semitic rhetorical structure expressed in Greek words and
syntax, and that can be confusing.
I hope this helps to clarify my point. When you find an "and" or a "kai" in
Biblical Greek, it may be necessary to think with a Semitic mind in order to
get the intended meaning.
Iver Larsen
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