John 1.1: Grammatical Points
September 5, 2017The God of Jesus by Kegan Chandler
October 5, 2017Jesus’ use of the Divine Passive means he is not God!
R. Martin, Approaches to NT Exegesis, p. 237:
“[The divine passive became] customary, with an extended usage, on Jesus’ lips. He uses it over 100x [Mat 5.4; Luke 12.7].”
Jeremias, NT Theology, p 11:
“The divine passive occurs round about 100 times in the sayings of Jesus.”
N.T. Wright, The Epistles of Paul to the Colossians & to Philemon, p. 71:
“The [divine passive denotes] in a typically Jewish fashion, the activity of God the Father, working in the Son.”
Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax of the NT, p 437:
“The passive is also used when God is the obvious agent. Many grammars calls this a divine passive (or theological passive), assuming that its use was due to the Jewish aversion to using the divine name [So BDF, 71 (§130.1); Zerwick, Biblical Greek, 76 (§236); Young, Intermediate Greek, 135-36. Cf. also J. Jeremias, NT Theology 9 -14, especially finds it on the lips of Jesus].”
“Jesus’ Avoidance of the Divine Name,” Soulen, Jesus and the Divine Name:
The “divine passive” is so typical of Jesus that a full survey basically amounts to a recapitulation of his public teaching.
• 19x in Mark 2.5, 9, 20;
3.28;
4.11-12, 24-25;
8.12, 17
9.31, 45, 47, 49;
10.40;
12.10
13.11, 13
14.41
• 34x in Luke 4.25, 43;
6.21, 37-38;
7.47
10.15, 20
11.2, 9-10, 50-51
12.2, 7, 10, 31, 48;
13.28, 32, 34-35
14.11, 14
16.25-26
17.10, 34-35;
18.14
19.42
22.16, 22
24.7
• 41x in Matthew 5.4, 6-7, 9, 29;
6.7, 33;
7.1-2, 7-8, 19;
8.12
9.29
10.19, 26, 30;
12.31-32, 37, 39
13.11-12;
15.13;
16.4, 19;
18.18
19.11;
20.23;
21.43;
23.12, 37-38;
24.13, 40-41;
25.29, 34, 41;
26.42
28.18
• 2x in John 3.18;
16.11