From: Ben Crick (ben.crick@argonet.co.uk)
Date: Thu Mar 12 1998 - 16:59:49 EST
I posted this way back on 7th March, but it got lost in cyberspace...
ÊOn Thu 5 Mar 98 (21:03:41), justinj_tsp@email.msn.com wrote:
>ÊDoes anyone know of the curse word that Paul uses in one of the
> letters? If so, what letter is it in? Also, how was it used in
>Êeverday life?
Dear Justin,
I think you must be referring to 1 Corinthians 16:22, EI TIS OU FILEI
TON KURION, HTW ANAQEMA. MARANA QA.
ANAQEMA is a shortened form of ANATEQEIMENON, something placed or setÊup.
It refers to a pagan votive offering placed in a temple in front of an
idol, and therefore "anathema" to a Christian, and a CheReM to aÊHebrew.
Ê
A /CheReM/ in Hebrew refers to something "devoted to destruction";Êlike
Êall the spoils of the Battle of Jericho. God would "do thus and moreÊalso"
to anyone who appropriated something that was dedicated to YHWH to
destruction. The Arabic word /Harem/ (the quarters of the multipleÊwives
of an Arabian sheikh) has the same idea. Violation of the Harem isÊpunishable by death.
Ê
In the LXX, ANAQEMA translates CheReM. In the NT, see also Romans 9:3,
1 Corinthians 12:3, and Galatians 1:8-9. For a non-Pauline use seeÊActs
23:14, where forty conspirators bound themselves by a great curse
/ANAQEMATI ANEQEMATISAMHN hEAUTOUS/ that they would eat nothing until
Êthey had slain Paul. I often wonder how they got off the hook when they Êfailed to kill him!
HTH
Ben
-- Revd Ben Crick, BA CF <ben.crick@argonet.co.uk> 232 Canterbury Road, Birchington, Kent, CT7 9TD (UK) http://www.cnetwork.co.uk/crick.htm
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