by WStroupe » January 10th, 2013, 1:38 am
The rendering "on account of" permits some measure of indirection - the "flesh" to be saved, according to the verse, does not necessarily have to equate to "the chosen ones" in that same verse. "On account of" could open the possibility that when the tribulation is cut short on account of the fact that certain "chosen ones" were present on earth at the time, some other persons (another group) would get saved in the flesh in the process, merely as a secondary effect of the cutting short of the tribulation in behalf of the chosen ones. So, in this convoluted reasoning, the chosen ones and the flesh that will be saved [on earth] would not be the same group of persons.
However, if the rendering is "for the sake of", well then the "flesh" to be saved is absolutely equated with "the chosen ones". The action (getting saved) would be performed for those very ones. This would equate the chosen ones with the flesh that gets saved.
My purpose is not to debate theology here - I simply wanted to understand if anything in the Greek itself either dictated or even recommended the translation "on account of", which translation is significantly less personal and less direct than "for the sake of" with respect to the action performed (getting saved). After understanding the answer to that question, I can make my own theological assessment separate from this forum.
But theological assessments must be based upon something genuine from the Greek - one must have the full and unambiguous support of the Greek grammar in behalf of his/her theological conclusions.
If there exists nothing in the Greek grammar itself to drive us away from the more direct and personal "for the sake of" and toward the rendering "on account of", then I want to know and understand that fact.
William J. Stroupe
"God's Word is alive and exerts power..." Hebrews 4:12