Hot answers tagged greek
19
Short answer: no.
Long answer: While the Greek lacks the definite article on theos in the clause under discussion, that doesn't mean the English should be translated with an indefinite article. Greek and English do not enjoy a one-to-one relationship between their words. There are times in Greek when the article is present but not translated into English. ...
16
It does not appear to be a very good translation of this word.
1473 (εγώ) is the personal pronoun, "I", so it tells us that Jesus was talking about Himself.
1510.2.1 (ειμι) is the real core of the question. 1510 is the infinitive "to be, exist". The following numbers (".2.1") tell you more about the nuances of meaning - tense, voice, etc. Some ...
14
The Greek word for robber in John 18:40 is λῃστής. This word is defined by Strong's Enhanced Lexicon this way:
3027 ἀρχιλῃστής, λῃστής [lestes /lace·tace/] n m. From leizomai (to
plunder);15 occurrences; AV translates as “thief” 11 times, and
“robber” four times. 1 a robber, plunderer, freebooter, brigand.
The Greek word used as murder here is ...
14
Among popular translations, New American Standard Bible is one of the most literal translations from the original languages, attemping to preserve as much as possible of the original sentance structure and word order.
From more literal to less literal popular translations include: NASB, ESV, KJV, NKJV, NRSV, NIV, NLT, CEV, The Message. (list order courtesy ...
13
The footnote exists because textual variants exist (different manuscripts have different words). Although "son" and "god" seem different, μονογενὴς θεός (the only God) and ὁ μονογενὴς υἱός (the only son) are actually not far off. In fact, in some of the manuscripts, they are contracted such that only one letter distinguishes them. We cannot be certain which ...
13
I agree wholeheartedly with Jessica Brown's answer, but there's another dimension to accuracy: the text a translation is based on. Before the Tyndale Bible, English translations were made from the Latin translation (the Vulgate) and not directly from the Greek. For obvious reasons, these translations are automatically less accurate to the original texts ...
13
To answer your first question, we should not simply accept Sinaiticus as the source of the truth for the New Testament. It has great weight in debates from its age, but age is not the final arbiter in textual considerations.
Codex Sinaiticus was made in the 4th century on parchment using capital letters (a manuscript in all capitals is called an "uncial"). ...
11
The Hebrew phrase in Psalms 118:25 from which the Greek Hosanna (ὡσαννά) derives is actually two words: הוֹשִׁ֨יעָ֥ה נָּ֑א (hoshi'ah na):
הוֹשִׁ֨יעָ֥ה (hôšîâ) is Hiphil imperative masculine singular fromישׁע` (ysh'), which means to help, save, rescue.
נָּ֑א (na) is a particle which indicates urgency or sincerity, and takes different meanings based on ...
11
This argument is incorrect. Participles have a wide range of interpretive possibilities and sometimes choosing the correct one is difficult. Here is a resource that may help as I go along.
The argument that since βαπτίζοντες follows μαθητεύσατε it must mean that it is a later action is a grammar myth along the lines of the abused aorist.
So, it is true ...
10
The word πορνεία is a difficult one to translate because it covers a wide range of sexual immorality. It has to be interpreted in context. Of the examples that you provide, 1 Corinthians 7:2 yields the strongest argument that pre-marital sex is included in Paul's use of the word πορνεία.
1 Corinthians 5:1 gives us a good example of the importance of ...
9
I noticed that none of the current answers explicitly address the question of whether meek is a good English translation. Given the modern connotations of the word meek, it is not a good translation (though it may have been at one time), because in the modern usage it has a sense of craven pandering—the word, at least in my mind, has a derogatory ...
9
The Greek is πραεῖς, which has also been translated gentle.
According to this source, the word was used to describe a horse that had been broken-in among other similar usages.
9
Was "Τετέλεσται" stamped across documents? Maybe. But I wouldn't think about translating this as "Paid in Full".
Support for this phrase
I have yet to find any true support for this phrase being used on tax documents. The closes I could come was from The Greek-English lexicon by Moulton and Milligan, which says:
“Receipts are often introduced by the ...
9
This is an attempt to give a brief theological answer, an answer that examines the words in their contexts and in their broader theological context, rather than a lexical investigation.
The fool in Psalm 14/53 and in Proverbs is someone who is in moral antithesis to God. This is not an insult or a slur; it is an accurate description of the state of his ...
9
Raca means "empty headed," very similar to how we use "fool" today. Jesus also uses moros in that verse, which is the root of moron. While we normally need to take care not to commit the root fallacy, this one does mean the same thing.
The word used in Hebrew is nabal which has more to do with consistently making bad moral choices. Brown, Driver, Briggs ...
9
In Hebrew the name Joshua is:
יְהוֹשׁוּעַ Yehoshua or יְהוֹשֻׁעַ Yehoshua “the LORD is salvation.”
In Greek it is the transliteration of the Hebrew:
Ιησους (Iēsous, sounds like ee-ay-soos).
Therefore in the Greek New Testament Jesus and Joshua are both Iēsous.
Up until now the names are the same and even in the Latin Vulgate they remained the same. In ...
9
This is just to add to Mike's answer, not to replace it.
Joshua does not transliterate into Greek exactly. There are letters in Hebrew that are simply not there in Greek. The Greek of Luke 3:29, Acts 7:45 and Hebrews 4:8 all have Ἰησοῦ/s for Joshua. Translators render it as Joshua instead of Jesus because that is the name readers will be familiar with. ...
8
They are the pillars of the early church, not only the old ones – although they are from the group of the old and experienced.1 According to verse 2a they shall "be shepherds of God's flock".
The technical use of the word πρεσβυτέροι for the heads of a community was usual for OT-Jewish region and "understandable" for the hellenistic environment.2
1: ...
8
In ancient times a seal or signet was an instrument, often metal or stone, with an engraved pattern or design on it. It would be pressed into a softer material, usually wax or clay leaving an imprint like a stamp.
A seal affixed to a document (usually on a scroll) would have to be broken in order to unroll the document and read it. This meant it was in one ...
8
That seems unlikely. The word is clearly a compound of προ, which is equivalent to the English prefix "pre-", and ορίζω which means:
v. define, fix, designate, detail, determine, prescribe, set
As far as I can tell, this particular definition still applies to the word in modern Greek.
8
The King James Version uses "charity" throughout the "Love Passage":
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (KJV)
4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the ...
8
I would take a look at the NRSV. Depending on which version you get (there is a Catholic NRSV as well) you will commonly find a "you all" or "all of you" instead of simply "you." Although rather than being a "word-for-word" or "thought-for-thought" translation, it is somewhere in between. It does a fairly good job of making grammatical distinctions where ...
8
This answer is supplementary to Frank Luke's, and supports it.
When someone makes a claim about an ancient language's grammar, it always helps me to believe it and internalize it when I can see parallel usages that illustrate the truth of the claim. Thus, I am glad that Frank Luke offered several examples.
I have another which is perhaps even more to the ...
8
I think it must be kept in mind that the Jewish day begins at dusk/sunset, which is the beginning of the evening. The day lasts until the next sunset. It could alternately be translated, "And evening coming, when the sun sank..." or "And evening having come, when the sun did set...."
I don't know whether this is a closing passage to the previous context ...
7
Not an expert, but I did have this link sent to me once:
Abba Isn't Daddy
Each of the three occurrences of αββα in the NT is followed by the
Greek translation ο πατερ, "the father." This translation makes clear
its meaning to the writers; the form is a literal translation --
"father" plus a definite article -- and like abba can also be a
...
7
"Justified" has the same meaning in each verse. You have to look at those verses in the larger context to understand what the authors are referring to by "works" and how that relates to justification.
James 2:14-26 makes the point that true faith always leads to works. The clearest statements are in verses 17 and 26:
17 Even so faith, if it has no ...
7
The Greek word is οπηειλεμα(3783), which according to Strong's means
1) that which is owed 1a) that which is justly or legally due, a debt 2) metaph. offence, sin
The word comes from οπηειλο(3784):
1) to owe 1a) to owe money, be in debt for 1a1) that which is due, the debt 2) metaph. the goodwill due
So a literal translation would be "debt", ...
7
During the Intertestamental period, Judas the Maccabee (the Hammer) led a major revolt in Israel. This is the Hasmonean revolt (beginning in 167 BC). After Judah and the other Hasmoneans led the people to victory in a major battle, the people had a celebration. They cut off palm branches, waved them in the air, and shouted "Hosanna!"
Judah was killed in ...
7
Typically the word "righteous" or "just" are simply alternative translations of the same word, "dikaios" (δικαιος and cognate verbs and such). There is simply no difference.
I'll go ahead and add an analogous example that people also often confuse, and that is the difference between "faith" and "belief". In Greek they are translations of the same root. In ...
7
The word miseo appears 173 times between the New Testament and Septuagint. It comes from the root misos meaning "hatred." Miseo means "hate, detest, abhor." It appears 35 times in the apocryphal books.
In the Septuagint and a Hebrew translation of the New Testament I have, it is usually used for sone. If I had a copy of Hatch and Redpath's Concordance ...
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