[B-Greek] Hb. 1:6: "hOTAN...EISAGAGHi"
A. J. Birch
a_j_birch at yahoo.es
Tue Nov 20 16:20:30 EST 2007
Thankyou, George, for this, but the entry in question still seems (to me) to make the Hebrews 1:6 usage at least unusual. If it refers to the Incarnation - a past (at the time of writing), definite and unrepeatable event - then the action in question is not "conditional", "possible" or "repeated". I've just looked at Westcott's commentary and he says (on the grounds of the Greek) that it must refer to a future event, which he takes to be the second coming of the Lord. This leads me to add a second question to my first one: does "hOTAN" + the aorist subjunctive here make it more likely, on purely grammatical grounds, to refer to the second coming than to the first coming? And, in view of what the entry you quote says about it being "usually of (regularly) repeated action", could it (somehow) refer to more than one future coming? (I have no eschatological interest whatsoever in asking these questions.)
Andrew J. Birch
Palma de Mallorca, Spain
----- Original Message -----
From: George F Somsel
To: A. J. Birch ; B-Greek
Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2007 5:36 PM
Subject: Re: [B-Greek] Hb. 1:6: "hOTAN...EISAGAGHi"
① pert. to an action that is conditional, possible, and, in many instances, repeated, at the time that, whenever, when
ⓐ w. the subj., in which case ὅτ. hOT. oft. approaches the mng. of ἐάν EAN, since the time-reference also indicates the conditions under which the action of the main clause takes place (Kühner-G. II 447f). 1J 2:28 the mss. vary betw. ὅτ.hOT. and ἐάν EAN (as e.g. also Judg 6:3)
α. w. the pres. subj., when the action of the subordinate clause is contemporaneous w. that of the main clause. Usually of (regularly) repeated action whenever, as often as, every time that (PFay 109, 1 ὅταν θέλῃς=‘every time that you want’; likew. POxy 1676, 26; Just., D. 128, 3 ὅταν βούληται hOTAN BOULHTAI. Cp. ἄν AN I, cα) ὅταν ποιῇς ἐλεημοσύνην hOTAN POIHiS ELEHMOSUNHN Mt 6:2; cp. 5f, 16; 10:23; Mk 13:11. ὅταν θέλητε hOTAN QELHTE 14:7.—Lk 12:11; 14:12f al. W. τότε TOTE foll. whenever … , then (Hero Alex. III p. 214, 5) ὅταν ἀσθενῶ hOTAN ASQENW, τότε δυνατός εἰμι TOTE DUNATOS EIMI 2 Cor 12:10. Also without the idea of repetition when 1 Th 5:3.—Looking back upon a preceding time-reference ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ἐκείνης ὅταν πίνω hEWS THS hHMERAS EKEINHS hOTAN PINW Mt 26:29; Mk 14:25. Introducing an epexegetical statement 1J 5:2 (B-D-F §394).
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β. w. the aor. subj., when the action of the subordinate clause precedes that of the main clause (IMaronIsis 9 [ὅτ]αν οἷς ἔβλεψα τὸν ἥλιον [hOT]AN hOIS EBLEYA TON hHLION=‘whenever with what [eyes] I have seen the sun’ [corrected restoration of editio princeps]; PLips 104, 16 [96/95 b.c.]; PRyl 233, 2; Is 28:19; 57:13; Ath. 1, 4): ὅταν ὀνειδίσωσιν hOTAN ONEIDISWSIN when they (have) revile(d) Mt 5:11. Cp. 12:43 (s. KBeyer, Semitische Syntax im NT, ’62, 285f); 13:32; 23:15; 24:32f; Mk 4:15f, 31f; 13:28; Lk 6:22, 26 and oft. W. τότε TOTE foll. when (someth. has happened), then (Sir 18:7; Jos., Bell. 6, 287, Ant. 10, 213; TestJob 38:3; ApcEsdr 3:13 p. 27, 24) Mt 24:15f; 25:31; Mk 13:14; Lk 5:35 (different in the parallels Mt 9:15; Mk 2:20, where ἡμέραι ὅταν hHMERAI hOTAN days when belong together and τότε is connected w. καί KAI); Lk 21:20; J 8:28; 1 Cor 15:28, 54; Col 3:4.
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Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature., by W.F. Arndt, F.W. Gingrich, and F.W. Danker." (3rd ed.) (730). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
george
gfsomsel
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