I’ve began working on my paper on 2 Corinthians 3:1-18
, and thought I would give you my (wooden) translation, and breakdown of verses 1-3.
click to enlarge
You can ignore the [middle or passive] and <<ministered>>, those were idea “placeholders” as I translated through the text the first time.
This passage is a transition passage, connecting 2:17 with 3:4ff. The ὥς τινες (like some others) clause connects back to 2:17 (ὡς οἱ πολλοὶ καπηλεύοντες τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ, “like many others, who peddle the word of God for profit”). διακονηθεῖσα (ministered), πλαξὶν λιθίναις (stone tablets), and πλαξὶν καρδίαις σαρκίναις (tablets of human hearts) all anticipate the verses that follow: Paul as a minister of the new covenant, as well as a contrast between the old and new covenants.
Certainly nothing scholarly or hard, but simply a glimpse into what’s going on at the moment.
2 Responses
Stay in touch with the conversation, subscribe to the RSS feed for comments on this post.
love this translation and explanation. my 13 yo home school son has asked to learn Greek and he is just starting this year. Isn’t great when a child asks to learn anything? We are using a very simple study called, “Hey Andrew, Teach Me Some Greek” by Greek ‘n’ stuff (www.greeknstuff.com) It is amazing how even learning to write the great letters has given him handwriting practice without feeling dumb using elementary handwriting books/workbooks.
I think the parrell is so God! That he would use the stone tablet and the human heart in one passage to introduce the old and new covenants that Paul is going to teach. It is better than scholarly and hard, it is creatively God.
Lindylou
Thanks so much. it’s really cool to hear about younger people getting interested in languages. I wish I had been able to start earlier.
Random info for this post. In tabbing the dependent clauses, I did not put them directly under the word they are modifying. I just did 1)flush against the margin, 2) one tab, 3)two tabs as a quick way of getting the structure down.