Acts 17:28 Τοῦ γὰρ καὶ γένος ἐσμέν.

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cwconrad
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Re: Acts 17:28 Τοῦ γὰρ καὶ γένος ἐσμέν.

Post by cwconrad »

Stephen Hughes wrote: April 20th, 2017, 1:23 pm I really feel that I lost the concept of versification in my 51 marks, 1 mark wwasted approach to study. Now in my 50th year, I am a little less headstrong, and if you'd care to set out just this, I might be ready to lsten, if you'd like to explain, I'd be okay.
This is a matter of what is called "compensatory lengthening": cf. Smyth §§768 (& 768D) for forms of εἰμί, §§37-38 for compensatory lengthening: in this instance, the σ of the original form ἐσμέν functioned with the short-vowel ε and the two consonants σ and μ to make the syllable -εσμ- quantitatively (prosodically) long, but when the σ stopped being pronounced, the ε lengthened to the "spurious diphthong" ει to retain the quantitative length of the syllable in pronunciation and prosody. Something comparable to that takes place in the pronunciation of -ar- in New England/Boston: "Harvard Yard" is pronounced by native Bostonians as "Hah-vahd Yahd" with the "a) seeming unnaturally long.
οὔτοι ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς πάντα θεοὶ θνητοῖς ὑπέδειξαν,
ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ ζητέοντες ἐφευρίσκουσιν ἄμεινον. (Xenophanes, Fragment 16)

Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)
Stephen Hughes
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Re: Acts 17:28 Τοῦ γὰρ καὶ γένος ἐσμέν.

Post by Stephen Hughes »

Is any body interested to work through maybe a hundred lines of this is some form or another in this thread?

Here are the first four lines that set the background for the Biblical quote (together with a few pointers that I think might be helpful):
Aratus Solensis, Phaenomena, 1-4 wrote: ἐκ Διὸς ἀρχώμεσθα, τὸν οὐδέποτ᾽ ἄνδρες ἐῶμεν
ἄρρητον: μεσταὶ δέ Διὸς πᾶσαι μὲν ἀγυιαί,
πᾶσαι δ᾽ ἀνθρώπων ἀγοραί, μεστὴ δὲ θάλασσα
καὶ λιμένες: πάντη δὲ Διὸς κεχρήμεθα πάντες.
ἀρχώμεσθα - let's begin hortative subjunctive, ie. an invitation to join somebody in an action or endeavour that thay are undertaking or planning to undertake
τὸν ... ἐάω ... ἄρρητον - I let him be ..., I am leaving him to be ... a verb with two accusatives
ἄρρητος - not spoken of In speaking of his rapture, the Apostle uses ἄρρητος to describe what he heard in heaven - 2 Corrinthians 12:4 ὅτι ἡρπάγη εἰς τὸν παράδεισον, καὶ ἤκουσεν ἄρρητα ῥήματα, ἃ οὐκ ἐξὸν ἀνθρώπῳ λαλῆσαι.
μεστός - (stuffed) full adjective + genitive of what sth is filled with. It is used in the NT and survives into Modern Greek.
ἀγοραί - markets where people mean for commerce and social interaction, or the interactions that take place
Διὸς - of Zeus the meaning is the pantheistic all pervading world-soul, rather than the fickle olympian
ἀγυιαί - streets, highways a mostly Epic word that does not survive into Modern Greek
λιμήν - harbour the word is third declension masculine. It is used three times in the New Testament. As an illustration of the Modern Greek diglossia, it survives into literary Modern Greek as λιμένας, and has developed into colloquial Modern Greek as λιμάνι.
πάντη - in every way, altogether An adverbial form. It is used by Luke in Acts 24:2-3, Κληθέντος δὲ αὐτοῦ, ἤρξατο κατηγορεῖν ὁ Τέρτυλλος λέγων, Πολλῆς εἰρήνης τυγχάνοντες διὰ σοῦ, καὶ κατορθωμάτων γινομένων τῷ ἔθνει τούτῳ διὰ τῆς σῆς προνοίας, 3 πάντῃ τε καὶ πανταχοῦ ἀποδεχόμεθα, κράτιστε Φῆλιξ, μετὰ πάσης εὐχαριστίας.
κεχρήμεθα - we long for (From LSJ χράω) in pf. κέχρημαι (with pres. sense) c. gen., desire, yearn after, the usual sense in Ep.

Any responses, translations or queries for me or the greater brains trust?
Γελᾷ δ' ὁ μωρός, κἄν τι μὴ γέλοιον ᾖ
(Menander, Γνῶμαι μονόστιχοι 108)
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