Re: 1 John 4:13 translation questioned

From: Jonathan Robie (jonathan@texcel.no)
Date: Mon Mar 08 1999 - 09:19:04 EST


At 10:01 PM 3/6/99 EST, LGOberean@aol.com wrote:
 
>I don't fully understand why, but I believe that this translation approach is
>influenced by a particular theological understanding of John 3:34. This
verse
>from John’s Gospel is understood to be saying that only Christ has received
>from the Father the Spirit without measure. For 1 John 4:13 to refer to our
>receiving the Spirit is somehow seen as a contradiction of John 3:34. I have
>heard sermons and read commentaries that took this position (Cf. Donald
>Burdick’s comments in the “The Epistles of John” volume [pgs. 75-76] in the
>Everyman’s Bible Commentary series), and I have participated in discussions
>where this view was adopted.

I should start by saying that I've never read anything on this particular
dispute, and was not aware of it. I'm a computer scientist, not a
theologian or a NT scholar, and I don't often use commentaries.

Looking at John 3:34, though, I'm a bit puzzled at the interpretation given
to it by the scholars you mention. The phrase OU GAR EK METROU DIDWSIN TO
PNEUMA does not say or imply that *only* Christ has received the Spirit
from the Father without measure. It says "for God gives the Spirit without
measure", it does not say "for God has given the Spirit to the Son without
measure", and especially not, "for only the Son has been given the Spirit
without measure". The use of the present tense for DIDWSIN and the lack of
a specified object suggest to me that this is meant to state quite
generally that God is in the business of giving his Spirit without measure.

Come to think of it, it actually says "for *he* gives the Spirit without
measure", and there are two possible referents for the "he" in this verse -
"he" might well refer to Jesus. Consider the whole verse:

John 3:34 hON GAR APESTEILEN hO QEOS TA hRHMATA TOU QEOU LALEI, OU GAR EK
METROU DIDWSIN TO PNEUMA

There are two present tense verbs here, LALEI and DIDWSIN. Given the
emphasis John puts on the Spirit as the evidence of truth in other
passages, perhaps the argument here is this: the proof that Jesus speaks
the words of God (TA hRHMATA TOU QEOU LALEI) is that he gives the Spirit
without measure (OU GAR EK METROU DIDWSIN TO PNEUMA).

I haven't any commentaries with me, so I have no idea whether anybody
interprets the verse this way, but this morning it seems plausible. I do
not claim that TA hRHMATA TOU QEOU LALW.

Jonathan
___________________________________________________________________________

Jonathan Robie jwrobie@mindspring.com

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