1Pe1:16 - why not imperative?

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azclark
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Joined: June 3rd, 2011, 4:02 pm

1Pe1:16 - why not imperative?

Post by azclark »

1Pe1:16:
διότι γέγραπται [ὅτι] ἅγιοι ἔσεσθε, ὅτι ἐγὼ ἅγιος [εἰμι]

for it has been written, holy ye shall be, for I am holy

I was wondering why ἔσεσθε is translated with the force of an imperative in many translations: "BE holy, for I am holy". Would it not be as/more accurate to translate it as "You will be holy, because I am holy", in other words, more as a statement of fact than a command?

Many thanks in advance
Ade
Jonathan Robie
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Re: 1Pe1:16 - why not imperative?

Post by Jonathan Robie »

The future indicative is often used as an imperative in the Septuagint, and is used this way sometimes in the New Testament, particularly in Matthew and in Old Testament quotations.

Here's an older thread:

http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/b-gr ... 36462.html
ἐξίσταντο δὲ πάντες καὶ διηποροῦντο, ἄλλος πρὸς ἄλλον λέγοντες, τί θέλει τοῦτο εἶναι;
http://jonathanrobie.biblicalhumanities.org/
azclark
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Joined: June 3rd, 2011, 4:02 pm

Re: 1Pe1:16 - why not imperative?

Post by azclark »

That's very helpful, thank you.
ed krentz
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Location: Chicago, IL

Re: 1Pe1:16 - why not imperative?

Post by ed krentz »

OT law codes take two forms, casuistic and epideictic.

Epideictic uses the future tense in the decalog, which 1 Peter 1:16 is citing.
Edgar Krentz
Prof. Emeritus of NT
Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago
Scott Lawson
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Joined: June 9th, 2011, 6:36 pm

Re: 1Pe1:16 - why not imperative?

Post by Scott Lawson »

ed krentz wrote:OT law codes take two forms, casuistic and epideictic.
Ed,
Don't you mean apodictic? In any case I don't think adding the words "casuistic" and "apodictic" are of much help linguistically.

Ade,

Here are some facts about the imperative that I hope are helpful:

The imperative always implies future time.

The imperative is a late development in Greek. It is the last of the moods to appear.

Prohibitions in the 2nd and 3rd person aorist subjunctive held their place and were not supplanted by the imperative.

The imperative and the future between them carried off the old jussive use of the subjunctive in positive commands of 2nd and 3rd person.

The imperative receives most of its forms from the old injunctive.

The subjunctive, optative, future indicative, infinitive and participle are all used imperativally.

The imperative lacks a regular set of its own suffixes.

The imperative appears in a present form sometimes indistinguishable from the 2nd person plural present indicative active and middle.
Scott Lawson
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