From: John M. Harkins (smichael@bellatlantic.net)
Date: Wed Jun 09 1999 - 08:04:28 EDT
John Barach wrote:
> I've been working on 1 Peter 2:18-20 and have run into the difficult
> phrase in 2:19: DIA SUNEIDHSIN QEOU. My question is twofold:
>
> (1) First, how should SUNEIDESIN QEOU be understood?
>
> Most often in the NT, the word SUNEIDHSIS refers to the conscience as a
> source of moral awareness. Consequently, this phrase is sometimes
> rendered "because of a [good] conscience toward God." The problem with
> that rendering, however, is that the word "good" does not appear in most
> manuscripts and it seems awkward or implausible to render the genitive
> QEOU as "toward" or "with reference to God."
>
> SUNEIDHSIS can also be rendered as "consciousness," as several
> commentaries suggest. Such a translation fits better with the genitive:
> "because of consciousness of God." On the whole, the two translations
> are not that distant in meaning: being conscious of God (i.e., aware of
> His presence, His standards, His evaluation) will lead the believer to
> strive for a good conscience before Him.
>
> (2) My second question concerns the function of the prepositional phrase.
> Most often, the passage has been taken to mean that the believer who is
> suffering endures his sorrows patiently because he is conscious of God
> (or has a good conscience toward God) and because he knows that God is
> the ultimate and righteous judge, and so forth.
>
> Some (e.g., Goppelt, Van Houwelingen) understand DIA SUNEIDHSIS QEOU to
> be the *basis* or *origin* of the unjust suffering. "Christians have to
> suffer above all on account of their conscience which is trained on God
> and remains bound to him," Van Houwelingen says, citing Goppelt.
>
> Any help you could provide would be greatly appreciated.
>
> Thanks!
>
> John
>
> %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
> John Barach
> Box 295, Lethbridge, AB T1J 3Y7
> Ministerial Candidate (URCNA)
>
> %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
> John Barach
> Box 295, Lethbridge, AB T1J 3Y7
> Ministerial Candidate (URCNA)
>
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1 PT 2: 19
TOUTO GAR XARIS EI DIA SUNEIDHSIN QEOU hUPOFEREI TIS LUPAS PASXWN ADIKWS.
Here comes the famed two cents:
THEOU seems a pretty straightforward objective genitive. The rendering of the word
SUNEIDHSIS conscience or consciousness also seems straightforward. I am not familiar
with the scholars that you cite (GOP pelt, Van Houwelingen). In reading /explaining
ID SUNEIDHIN QUEUE as "the conscience trained on God which remains bound to him" as
being the *basis* or *origen* of the suffering, they seem to me to have remained
with the basic ID notion of causality or reason. The expansion given above does add a
vividness to the causality perhaps even startles a bit. It made me immediately think
of Din 17:14 even though there is no grammatical comparison. Seems to me to be a
good reading.
Best wishes.
(Rev.) John M. Harking
St. Michael R C Church
1445 N 2nd Street
Philadelphia Pa 19122
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