(DOWNLOAD) "Just a Busybody? A Look at the Greco-Roman Topos of Meddling for Defining [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] in 1 Peter 4:15." by Journal of Biblical Literature # eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free

eBook details

Title: Just a Busybody? A Look at the Greco-Roman Topos of Meddling for Defining [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] in 1 Peter 4:15.
Author : Journal of Biblical Literature
Release Date : January 22, 2006
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines,Books,Professional & Technical,Education,
Pages : * pages
Size : 245 KB

Description

Near the end of 1 Peter, the author of the letter lists four activities that his audience is to avoid as they suffer for Christ's sake. The first three are not surprising: "But let none of you suffer as a murderer ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]), an evildoer ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII])" (1 Pet 4:15). The final activity, however, has caused much consternation for scholars and translators more particularly. Is [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] to be translated "embezzler," "informer," or "errant bishop"? Or should it be rendered as in most modern English translations with one of a number of related English equivalents: "meddler" (NIV, ESV [English Standard Version]), "busy-body" (KJV, NKJV, CEV) or "mischief-maker" (RSV, NRSV)? I will argue that the latter constellation of ideas (busybody, meddler, mischief-maker) reflects the author's purpose for using [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], but without the rather innocuous associations of these terms in English. In fact, the Greco-Roman idea of meddling or interfering in other people's affairs was an activity that caused serious opposition and may have even evoked revolutionary overtones. More pointedly, it could refer to inappropriate movement outside of one's assigned role in society. This connotation may adhere to the author's usage of [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] in 1 Pet 4:15. In the larger purview of 1 Peter, the prohibition against this particular behavior would fit well with the admonition in the Haustafel for Christians to submit to and remain within the sphere in which they find themselves (2:11-3:12). In the end, the author of 1 Peter entreats his audience to refrain from activity that will impede the progress of the gospel, in the case of [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], to refrain from meddling, that is, transgressing prescribed social boundaries. (1)