Just a word I came across while researching other things...
ἀποκρίνομαι is a very interesting word with plenty of occurrences in the GNT.
A basic resource will translate it simply as - I answer.
However there is plenty more if one is prepared to dig a little!
ἀποκρίνομαι is a deponent verb. What this means is that is has a middle/passive form but is actually active in meaning.
In classical Greek there is an active form of this verb and it's meaning is along the lines of "separate, select, distinguish".
In its deponent form however it is only used to signify an answer given in verbal form.
The verb itself is a combination of two words: ἀπό, which is a preposition meaning "from, out of, away from" and, κρίνω, a verb, which simply means "I judge".
Although, as already stated ἀποκρίνομαι does mean "I answer", the context is so much more than simply blurting out word salad as a response to a query. The implication is very much a considered thoughtful response that comes from a thorough sifting and discerning of all the facts at hand.
There is no suggestion that means ἀποκρίνομαι is a verbal response where the mouth (or pen, or keyboard) is moving faster than the brain!
To give an answer was a weighty issue that demanded a lot of consideration.
This is not to suggest that in all situations that an answer would be delayed while a person thought long and hard about the answer. The answer might be given immediately but would nonetheless express all the hallmarks of a well-considered answer. This approach to verbal expression fits well with the Hellenized culture of the day where philosophical debate was normal and a man could be taken at his word.
This was indeed an era when words meant something!
How different this is to our current culture where hasty and ill-considered "shoot-from-the-hip" one-liners are the norm and the attitude can often be summed up by the phrase "Don't confuse me with facts!"
This is just a very small dip into the world of Koine Greek, a teaser so to speak - not much more than a word study really, but the implications for this forum are indeed undeniable!
ἀποκρίνομαι is a very interesting word with plenty of occurrences in the GNT.
A basic resource will translate it simply as - I answer.
However there is plenty more if one is prepared to dig a little!
ἀποκρίνομαι is a deponent verb. What this means is that is has a middle/passive form but is actually active in meaning.
In classical Greek there is an active form of this verb and it's meaning is along the lines of "separate, select, distinguish".
In its deponent form however it is only used to signify an answer given in verbal form.
The verb itself is a combination of two words: ἀπό, which is a preposition meaning "from, out of, away from" and, κρίνω, a verb, which simply means "I judge".
Although, as already stated ἀποκρίνομαι does mean "I answer", the context is so much more than simply blurting out word salad as a response to a query. The implication is very much a considered thoughtful response that comes from a thorough sifting and discerning of all the facts at hand.
There is no suggestion that means ἀποκρίνομαι is a verbal response where the mouth (or pen, or keyboard) is moving faster than the brain!
To give an answer was a weighty issue that demanded a lot of consideration.
This is not to suggest that in all situations that an answer would be delayed while a person thought long and hard about the answer. The answer might be given immediately but would nonetheless express all the hallmarks of a well-considered answer. This approach to verbal expression fits well with the Hellenized culture of the day where philosophical debate was normal and a man could be taken at his word.
This was indeed an era when words meant something!
How different this is to our current culture where hasty and ill-considered "shoot-from-the-hip" one-liners are the norm and the attitude can often be summed up by the phrase "Don't confuse me with facts!"
This is just a very small dip into the world of Koine Greek, a teaser so to speak - not much more than a word study really, but the implications for this forum are indeed undeniable!
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