John 3:16 (eis/into)

From: Craig Martin (CrMartin@sunbelt.net)
Date: Tue Aug 08 1995 - 14:35:41 EDT


Thanks for all of your ideas on the usage of eis/into. At your prompting, I
did a little deeper study, and discovered the following:
The phrase "en piste*", "believe in" does not occur in the book of John.
Every occurrence of the phrase "believe in" is the Greek "eis piste*",
"believe into". What is interesting is that this particular phrase (eis
piste*) _only_ occurs when referring to believing into the person of
Christ, His name, or God. In other words, phrases like "believe en God","
believe en the Bible" "believe en the things I say" do not occur in John.

Note that every occurrence of "piste* eis" involves Christ, His name, or God:
 INTO(eis)
John 1:12 - believe eis his name
John 3:15 - believe eis him
John 3:16 - believe eis him
John 3:18 - believing eis him /believed eis the name
John 3:36 - believe eis the son
John 6:29 - believe eis him
John 6:35 - believing eis me
John 6:40 - believing eis him
John 6:47 - believing eis me
John 7:38 - believing eis me
John 7:39 - believing esi him
John 9:35 - believe eis the Son of God
John 9:36 - believe eis him
John 11:25 -believing eis me
John 11:26 -living and believing eis me
John 11:48 - believe eis him
John 12:36 - believe eis the light
John 12:44 - believing eis me-believe eis me- (believe)eis Him
John 12:46 - believe esi me - en darkness not remain
John 14:1 - believe eis God and eis me believe
John 14:12 - believing eis me
John 16:9 - believe eis me
John 17:20 - believing eis me through their word

I believe this is significant, and could involve an idiom common to that
time, as some of us have pointed out.
I also think it significant that the term "piste* en", what we would
translate "believe in", does not occur whatsoever. Not that the idea of
believing in something, that is mental assent to the veracity of a truth,
does not occur. It is just that it does not occur with the wording "piste* en".



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