“In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

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DCHindley
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by DCHindley »

Hi Greg,

I kind of formatted your Fall 2020 thesis to break things down for me.

A copy of a PDF of this is attached here:

I thought I'd let you read it over and make any necessary changes you may want to make before I started serious analysis.

Like you, I am an amateur who knows enough Greek to be dangerous. My knowledge has always been on the rudimentary side, maybe yours is fresher or just better.
Oops! Realized the spelling error. To correct would cause display problems.
gryan
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by gryan »

DCHindley wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 11:14 am OK, does this mean that Gregory Hartzler-Miller is "you"? (Not that there's anything wrong with that) :eek:

I'll still give everything a look through.

Dave
Yes. Gregory Hartzler-Miller is my legal name since marriage to a woman named Hartzler. Here on the forum, I've been going by gryan until now.
gryan
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by gryan »

Kunigunde Kreuzerin wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 11:22 am
gryan wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 1:24 am
Instead of "faith in”: Galatians 2:20

"I have been co-crucified with Christ, and I no longer who live, but Christ who lives in me. And so the life which I now live IN THE FLESH, in the faithfulness I live--that of God’s Son (νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκί, ἐν πίστει ζῶ τῇ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ), who loved me and gave himself for me."

It is grammatically possible that Paul was saying that “in the flesh” and in the “now”, his “life” was manifesting the “faithfulness of" God’s Son.
Mmh, I would tend to think that it's grammatically not impossible, but that the chiastic syntax and the position of the words speak rather against it.

Χριστῷ συνεσταύρωμαι
.... ζῶ δὲ οὐκέτι ἐγώ,
.... ζῇ δὲ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός
.... ὃ δὲ νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκί
.... ἐν πίστει ζῶ
τῇ τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ
.... τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντός με καὶ
.... παραδόντος ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ.
With Christ I have been crucified
.... I live however no longer an I
.... it lives however in me Christ

.... what however now I live in flesh
.... in faith I live

the (one) of the son of the God
.... the one having loved me and
.... having given up himself for me.

Beautiful, clear presentation of Gal 2:20!

The thesis has several stages for each of the "flesh" passages in question. At stage one, in the immediate context of the verse, all I need for my thesis is that "it's grammatically not impossible". I find that in use, and in ever widening circles of context, the grammar begins to sound familiar.

If you think the reading of 2:20 is a stretch, I'm curious what you think of the others.
gryan
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by gryan »

DCHindley wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 12:06 pm
Like you, I am an amateur who knows enough Greek to be dangerous. My knowledge has always been on the rudimentary side, maybe yours is fresher or just better.
DCHindley: I was unable to edit your pdf, but I did go over the document another time, and I'm satisfied that that is my best as of now.

In seminary, MATS '91, I was an average student of the Greek language. I never attempted to "sight read", and have always been limited to study helps of various kinds. But I had some excellent teachers, most notably I was in an advanced seminar on exegesis of 1 Peter with Paul Achtemeier at Union in Virginia during a time when he was president of SBL and working on a 1 Peter commentary for hermeneia.

So far, nobody has asked me about my scholarly sources. In case it helps, here is an overview:


Scholarly sources for this study and methods

On Translation

The translation of the texts from Hebrews is based mainly on that of James Swetnam, SJ, from his book, Hebrews: An Interpretation (2016). His background in the study of Paul’s writings (His dissertation, Jesus and Isaac: A Study of the Epistle to the Hebrews in the Light of the Aqedah, was written under the supervision of Morna Hooker.), and his many previously published close readings of exegetical cruxes in Hebrews makes his little commentary on the structure of Hebrews a very illuminating culmination of his life work.

“Faith of Christ”

There is nothing original in my reading of the grammar of Galatians 2:20 or in my seeing an echo of "the faith of Christ" in Hebrews. The modern pioneer of this reading is Richard Hays and this text was one of a number of texts in the faith of Christ debate. As a result of the debate the scholarly consensus has (arguably) shifted toward reading Galatians 2:20 as a reference to the faithfulness of God’s son.

On the influence of Galatians on Hebrews

On reading Hebrews as a reception of Galatians, Ben Witherington provided the model with his article, “The influence of Galatians on Hebrews.” In it, he offered a series of parallels, large and small, which provided convincing evidence that the anonymous author of the book of Hebrews had read Galatians and was profoundly influenced by it. Witherington went on to argue that the image of Jesus as faith’s pioneer and perfecter was a kind of first century commentary on Paul’s grammatically ambiguous faith of Christ statements, thus providing evidence in favor of Hays’ reading of the grammar. What is original to this thesis is how extend this model.

“Being made perfect”

The argument for Galatians 3:3 is my own. As far as I know, there is no published precedent for it, modern or ancient. This strikes me as odd, because the possibility was so easy to see in light of a participationist reading of 2:20 (the life I now live in the flesh, in the faith I live…”) and in light of Paul’s call to imitate in 4:12 (“Become as I” Cf. Cor. 11:1 “Become imitators of me, as I also Christ”).

Deflecting blame

In the context of the overall tone of the letter, it was helpful to realize Paul’s anger was not directed toward the “brothers.” His strategy was to win them back through encouraging words, all the while focusing his harsh language on the influencers. A rereading of the grammar of Galatians 1:6-7 provided by Troy Martin was useful in this discernment:

“If there are not some who are troubling you and desiring to pervert the gospel of Christ, I am surprised [at you] because you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ for a different gospel, which is not another.” (Gal. 1:6-7)

The logic of this conditional sentence implies that there are indeed some who are troubling the Galatians and, therefore, Paul is not surprised at the desertion of the “brothers”. Rather, understands it and shifts the blame to the agitators.

“Your temptation”

I doubt that I would ever have come to this reading of the grammar without having first read an article on Galatians 4:13-14 by Troy Martin. Martin argues with great precision and depth that Paul was saying that he had “preached the Gospel” not because of his own “fleshly weakness” (presumed to be a bodily illness or injury), but because of his audience’s “weakness of the flesh.” When the missing pronoun is understood as “your” the whole prepositional phrase is paralleled in Romans where Paul wrote unambiguously about his audience’s condition as the occasioning cause for his words spoken to them: “I speak in human terms because of your fleshly weakness.” Martin also did a service by citing a precedent for this reading in Jerome’s Commentary of Galatians. As a result, I got into Jerome as never before. Jerome and Troy Martin have this in common: even when their exegesis is "wrong", it is worth pondering. As for the rest of Galatians 4:12-15, I was impressed by the way Martin took it apart, but not at all convinced by his way of putting it back together. I spent a long time considering all possible construals of the phrase “your temptation in my flesh.” In the process, I have consulted a number of scholars with a specialty in Greek New Testament, and they have found my rereadings at least “coherent” and at best “good” (none have expressed any interest in endorsing my rereadings publicly as yet).

“Called Brothers”

It was again Troy Martin who introduced the idea that in Galatians 5:13 αδελφοί is probably a nominative of description rather than the vocative of direct address. Having been immersed in parallels between Galatians and Hebrews, the language of being “called brothers” immediately clicked.

“We see Jesus”

As a student of the life of St. Francis, I had long been intrigued by Paul’s statement, “I bear the stigmata of Jesus in my body.” I had also found the statement in Hebrews striking: “But we do gaze on the one who for a time was made lower than the angels, Jesus...” However, I had never considered them together before this project. When I was pondering the phrase, “your temptation in my flesh” (Gal. 4:14) I was encouraged by the Galatian receptivity. If they could receive the apostle “as Christ Jesus” maybe I could also somehow “see Jesus” manifested Paul’s “flesh” statement. My study of Jerome and his predecessor, Victorinus led me to doubt the conventional interpretations. If Paul had wanted to say what he is usually presumed to have said–that his own “flesh” had put the Galatians “to the test”–would he have used those words in that extremely odd grammatical construal? Rather than settle for the conventional construal, I did a kind of lectio divina in the Greek. I meditated on the phrase τὸν πειρασμὸν ὑμῶν ἐν τῇ σαρκί μου as devotion to Christ, and as scholarly inquiry. I did it long enough that I quit caring about the conventional readings, and letting go of forced coherence, kept pressing on toward genuine grammatical coherence.

The resultant echo in Hebrews was problematic. Did the author of Hebrews really get his idea of Jesus being tempted in all ways like us in connection with his reading of Paul’s enigmatic claims in Galatians 4:12-14? After much reflection, I see how it indeed could have been so. The key was to take the leap of contemplatively “seeing” the “flesh” of Jesus manifested in breaking down the dividing wall between so called “Gentile flesh” and “Jewish flesh” (Eph. 2:3, 11 and 15) through “power in weakness”. Very early on, Paul’s writings were read as scripture, albeit difficult to understand (2 Peter 3:16). Through reading Galatians as scripture (with the proposed grammar), focusing on the image of Jesus, I have become convinced I am in the company of another ancient reader--the author of Hebrews, who paid close attention to Paul as one of “those who heard” the Lord (Heb. 3:2).

Hope this helps you understand what I'm up to here!
davidmartin
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by davidmartin »

Wouldn't this also help make sense of "Therefore, henceforth know we no man according to the flesh; yea, though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now henceforth we know Him so no more" 2 Cor 5:16?
gryan
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by gryan »

davidmartin wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 5:18 pm Wouldn't this also help make sense of "Therefore, henceforth know we no man according to the flesh; yea, though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now henceforth we know Him so no more" 2 Cor 5:16?
There is a significant difference, for Paul, between "according to the flesh" and "in the flesh." In 2 Cor 10:2-4 he wrote: "

2 "I beg you that when I come I may not need to be as bold as I expect toward those who reckoning us as walking according to the flesh (ὡς κατὰ σάρκα περιπατοῦντας). 3For though we walk in the flesh (Ἐν σαρκὶ γὰρ περιπατοῦντες), we do not wage war according to the flesh"(οὐ κατὰ σάρκα στρατευόμεθα)."

In the four usages that are the focus of my thesis above, I read Paul to be speaking in the sense of 2 Cor 10:3--"we walk in the flesh... not according to the flesh." Also in the sense of 2 Cor 4:11, "For we who are alive are always consigned to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our mortal flesh (ἐν τῇ θνητῇ σαρκὶ ἡμῶν)."

Does that answer your question?
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by davidmartin »

Yes i wasn't aware of this and it is clearly different, with according to the flesh being in a worldly sense

the same concept is found in the odes as well
"to Him I offer the offering of His thought. For His thought is not like the world, nor like the flesh, nor like them who worship according to the flesh"
Bernard Muller
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by Bernard Muller »

Hebrews: (pre-existence (explained) (1:1-3a,5-10,2:5-8), Sacrifice (explained) (1:3,5:8-9,7:27,9:11-15,10:1-14), (Jesus') blood (9:12,10:19,29), co-Creator of the universe (explained) (1:2,10), Moses' followers dying in the wilderness (3:16-17), home in heaven for Christians (12:22-23), atonement for sins (explained) (1:3,2:17,10:12), "Son of God" (explained) (1:5,8-9), Christians as seed and heirs of Abraham through the "promise" (2:16,6:13-17), the heavenly Jerusalem (12:22-23), Jesus offering himself for sacrifice for atonement of sins (explained) (7:27b,10:12), "at the right hand of God" (explained) (1:3,13,8:1,10:12,12:2), "firstborn" (explained) (1:6,12:23), Jesus interceding with God in behalf of Christians (explained) (7:25)

Echoes in Paul epistles:

- 1 Corinthians: pre-existence (8:6,10:4), Sacrifice (clear-cut) (5:7), (Jesus') blood (10:16), co-Creator of the universe (8:6), Moses' followers dying in the wilderness (10:2-8)

- 2 Corinthians: home in heaven for Christians (5:1), atonement for sins (5:19,21) "Son of God" (1:3,19)

- Galatians: Christians as seed and heirs of Abraham through the "promise" (3:16-29), the heavenly Jerusalem (4:26), Jesus offering himself for sacrifice for atonement of sins (1:3b-4a)

Cordially, Bernard
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by Bernard Muller »

About my/your/his/our flesh:

Ro 6:19 Darby "I speak humanly on account of the weakness of your flesh."
2 Cor 7:5 Darby "For indeed, when we came into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest ..."
Gal 4:14 Darby "and my temptation, which [was] in my flesh, you did not slight nor reject with contempt; ..."
Gal 6:8 Darby "For he that sows to his own flesh, shall reap corruption from the flesh ..."
Gal 6:13 Darby "... but they wish you to be circumcised, that they may boast in your flesh ..."
Heb 12:9 Darby "Moreover we have had the [real!] fathers of our flesh as chasteners, and we reverenced [them] ..."
Heb 5:7 RSV "In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard for his godly fear."

Cordially, Bernard
gryan
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Re: “In the flesh”: Recovering the lost grammar of Paul in Galatians in light of echos in Hebrews

Post by gryan »

Bernard Muller wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 7:53 pm About my/your/his/our flesh:

Gal 4:14 Darby "and my temptation, which [was] in my flesh, you did not slight nor reject with contempt; ..."
Gal 4:14 καὶ τὸν πειρασμὸν ὑμῶν ἐν τῇ σαρκί μου οὐκ ἐξουθενήσατε (this is the critical text)

τὸν πειρασμόν μου Ψ Chrys pesh hark 1611 Byz; C, P46
τὸν πειρασμὸν ὑμῶν 1739, A,  33, B, D* F G d b ×vg

"The small change in the pronoun—from “your” to “my”—has a large effect" wrote Stephen Carlson (The Text of Galatians and Its History). That is so true!

My thesis is impossible with the Darby/Textus Receptus/KJV/Luther Bible version of this text: τὸν πειρασμόν μου ("in your my flesh"). Scribes as early as P46 *circa 200" changed it from what all critical texts regard as original--"in your flesh--to "in my flesh".
Last edited by gryan on Mon Jan 25, 2021 12:21 am, edited 3 times in total.
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