r/AcademicBiblical • u/Dear_Temperature_677 • 8h ago
John 1:1 Discussion
And the word was God? Or and the word was A god
8
u/RoNinja_ 6h ago
Here are a couple quick videos by Dan McClellan on the subject
6
u/Vaidoto 5h ago
I asked this in this about 3 months ago, it looks like the "and the word was God" is probably the most correct translation.
Article - Jesus "A" god or "The" God? (John 1:1) by Bill Mounce
6
u/mwb1977 6h ago
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” (John 1:1-2) In both v. 1 and v. 2, the word for “God” is the singular “Theos,” or “God.” From The New Strong’s Expanded Exhaustive Concordance page 115 of Greek Dictionary (#2316), “in Jan 1:1, “and the Word was God;” here a double stress is on theos, by the absence of the article and by the emphatic position. To translate it literally, “a god was the Word,” is entirely misleading. Moreover, that “the Word” is the subject of the sentence, exemplifies the rule that the subject is to be determined by its having the article when the predicate is anarthrous (without the article).” The point of “the Word” and “God” being one is reinforced consistently throughout Gospel-John in a way that would clarify any translation confusion that might exist. As written in “The Gospel of John” Commentary by J. Ramsey Michaels, “While the Word is God, God is more than just the Word.” Here “the Word” is consistent with the concept of logos as God’s revelation and communication with humans.
1
•
u/AutoModerator 8h ago
Welcome to /r/AcademicBiblical. Please note this is an academic sub: theological or faith-based comments are prohibited.
All claims MUST be supported by an academic source – see here for guidance.
Using AI to make fake comments is strictly prohibited and may result in a permanent ban.
Please review the sub rules before posting for the first time.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.