Biblical Hebrew Forum

[peter_kirk AT SIL.ORG]

Well, maybe they knew the tradition of Philo, but maybe they just knew 
John (who called Jesus Christ the Logos) and Paul (who called Jesus 
Christ the firstborn - actually John or his followers did also, 
Revelation 1:5) and put two and two together. For that matter, they 
could have derived their understanding directly from Proverbs 8:22ff. 
Also, I am not sure that you can call texts which are probably 
derivative from Colossians and a century or so later part of its 
cultural context. But thank you for showing that the "orthodox" 
Christian view of the firstborn was clearly understood in the second 
century.

Peter Kirk


______________________________ Reply Separator 
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Subject: Re[3]: Translations and Arian Bias
Author:  mc2499 AT mclink.it at internet
Date:    31/03/1999 18:29


<snip>
To understand the tradition in which the sentence was written, you should 
see that the either/or in the last sentence is not relevant. As the first 
step in creation, the image of God is born first. Here's Theophilus (To 
Autolycus 2,10):
----------------------------------------------------------------------
--- <snip>
This is Athenagoras, writing in the mid-second century: 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
--- <snip>

These are the heirs of Philo (whether they knew him or not is irrelevant, 
for they clearly knew the tradition in which Philo could call the Logos, 
"God's first-born").

One can't simply import theological issues that may not be reflected in the 
text one is analysing (Col 1:15). Accordingly one should take note of the 
cultural context, part of which I have alluded to here. There is no reason 
to treat "first-born" any differently in this passage from its other 
literary contexts, which all seem to belong to the one cultural complex.


Ian


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