Poor Greek:
Select Commentary on Against Heresy, Book 3, Chapter 7
June 1, 2015
G.D.O'Bradovich III
It is a curious thing that God learned Greek when he wished to turn author-
and that he did not learn it better.
Beyond Good and Evil, Chapter 4, Aphorism 121
and that he did not learn it better.
Beyond Good and Evil, Chapter 4, Aphorism 121
1
As we have previously discussed, Nietzsche's only obsession is Christianity. If he can not be understood either in the light of the Garden of Eden or of church history, then we must look to the alleged writings of the Church Fathers.
Irenaeus in Against Heresy Book 3, chapter 7 admits that Saint Paul “frequently uses a transposed order in his sentences” and he attempts to explain this poor Greek “due to the rapidity of his discourses, and the impetus of the Spirit which is in him.”
Irenaeus desires to convince the reader that Saint Paul’s writing of “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not" should be understood as “God hath blinded the minds of the unbelievers of this world” (2 Corinthians, 4:4) . We are not Greek scholars and we will never take a census to determine truth, but we offer the following translations to see how many, if any, agree with Irenaeus’ opinion.
New International Version
The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers...
New Living Translation
Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don't believe.
English Standard Version
In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers...
New American Standard Bible
in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
King James Bible
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not...
Holman Christian Standard Bible
In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers ...
International Standard Version
In their case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of those who do not believe...
NET Bible
among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe ...
Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Those whose intellects The God of this world has blinded, because they do not believe...
GOD'S WORD® Translation
The god of this world has blinded the minds of those who don't believe.
Jubilee Bible 2000
In whom the god of this age has blinded the understanding of those who do not believe...
King James 2000 Bible
In whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of them who believe not...
American King James Version
In whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not...
American Standard Version
in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
Douay-Rheims Bible
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of unbelievers..
Darby Bible Translation
in whom the god of this world has blinded the thoughts of the unbelieving...
English Revised Version
in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
Webster's Bible Translation
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them who believe not...
Weymouth New Testament
in whom the god of this present age has blinded their unbelieving minds...
World English Bible
in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
Young's Literal Translation
in whom the god of this age did blind the minds of the unbelieving...
Of the twenty one translations, none of them agree with Irenaeus’ premise that the “of the world” should refer to “unbelievers” and not to “God”.
Irenaeus in Against Heresy Book 3, chapter 7 admits that Saint Paul “frequently uses a transposed order in his sentences” and he attempts to explain this poor Greek “due to the rapidity of his discourses, and the impetus of the Spirit which is in him.”
Irenaeus desires to convince the reader that Saint Paul’s writing of “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not" should be understood as “God hath blinded the minds of the unbelievers of this world” (2 Corinthians, 4:4) . We are not Greek scholars and we will never take a census to determine truth, but we offer the following translations to see how many, if any, agree with Irenaeus’ opinion.
New International Version
The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers...
New Living Translation
Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don't believe.
English Standard Version
In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers...
New American Standard Bible
in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
King James Bible
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not...
Holman Christian Standard Bible
In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers ...
International Standard Version
In their case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of those who do not believe...
NET Bible
among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe ...
Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Those whose intellects The God of this world has blinded, because they do not believe...
GOD'S WORD® Translation
The god of this world has blinded the minds of those who don't believe.
Jubilee Bible 2000
In whom the god of this age has blinded the understanding of those who do not believe...
King James 2000 Bible
In whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of them who believe not...
American King James Version
In whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not...
American Standard Version
in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
Douay-Rheims Bible
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of unbelievers..
Darby Bible Translation
in whom the god of this world has blinded the thoughts of the unbelieving...
English Revised Version
in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
Webster's Bible Translation
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them who believe not...
Weymouth New Testament
in whom the god of this present age has blinded their unbelieving minds...
World English Bible
in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving...
Young's Literal Translation
in whom the god of this age did blind the minds of the unbelieving...
Of the twenty one translations, none of them agree with Irenaeus’ premise that the “of the world” should refer to “unbelievers” and not to “God”.
2
Irenaeus continues in his attempt to explain Saint Paul’s correct word order:
Wherefore then the law of works? It was added, until the seed should come to whom the promise was made; [and it was] ordained by angels in the hand of a Mediator.
Irenaeus’ suggested reading:
Wherefore then the law of works? Ordained by angels in the hand of a Mediator, it was added until the seed should come to whom the promise was made.
Again, we offer the following examples for comparison:
New International Version
It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator.
New Living Translation
It was given alongside the promise to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised. God gave his law through angels to Moses, who was the mediator between God and the people.
English Standard Version
It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary.
New American Standard Bible
It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made.
King James Bible
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
Holman Christian Standard Bible
It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise was made would come. The law was put into effect through angels by means of a mediator.
International Standard Version
Because of transgressions, until the descendant came about whom the promise pertained. It was put into effect through angels by means of a mediator.
NET Bible
It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the descendant to whom the promise had been made. It was administered through angels by an intermediary.
Aramaic Bible in Plain English
It was added because of apostasy until The Seed would come to whom The Promise belonged, and The Written Law was given by Angels in the hand of a mediator.
GOD'S WORD® Translation
They were added to identify what wrongdoing is. Moses' laws did this until the descendant to whom the promise was given came to Abraham. It was put into effect through angels, using a mediator.
Jubilee Bible 2000
It was added because of rebellions until the seed should come to whom the promise was made, and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
King James 2000 Bible
It was added because of transgressions, till the descendant should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
American King James Version
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
American Standard Version
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise hath been made; and it was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Douay-Rheims Bible
It was set because of transgressions, until the seed should come, to whom he made the promise, being ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
Darby Bible Translation
It was added for the sake of transgressions, until the seed came to whom the promise was made, ordained through angels in [the] hand of a mediator.
English Revised Version
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise hath been made; and it was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Webster's Bible Translation
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
Weymouth New Testament
It was imposed later on for the sake of defining sin, until the seed should come to whom God had made the promise; and its details were laid down by a mediator with the help of angels.
World English Bible
It was added because of transgressions, until the seed should come to whom the promise has been made. It was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Young's Literal Translation
on account of the transgressions it was added, till the seed might come to which the promise hath been made, having been set in order through messengers in the hand of a mediator --
Of the twenty one translations, only the New American Standard Bible agrees with Irenaeus’ premise that the word order should be transposed.
New International Version
It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator.
New Living Translation
It was given alongside the promise to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised. God gave his law through angels to Moses, who was the mediator between God and the people.
English Standard Version
It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary.
New American Standard Bible
It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made.
King James Bible
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
Holman Christian Standard Bible
It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise was made would come. The law was put into effect through angels by means of a mediator.
International Standard Version
Because of transgressions, until the descendant came about whom the promise pertained. It was put into effect through angels by means of a mediator.
NET Bible
It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the descendant to whom the promise had been made. It was administered through angels by an intermediary.
Aramaic Bible in Plain English
It was added because of apostasy until The Seed would come to whom The Promise belonged, and The Written Law was given by Angels in the hand of a mediator.
GOD'S WORD® Translation
They were added to identify what wrongdoing is. Moses' laws did this until the descendant to whom the promise was given came to Abraham. It was put into effect through angels, using a mediator.
Jubilee Bible 2000
It was added because of rebellions until the seed should come to whom the promise was made, and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
King James 2000 Bible
It was added because of transgressions, till the descendant should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
American King James Version
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
American Standard Version
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise hath been made; and it was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Douay-Rheims Bible
It was set because of transgressions, until the seed should come, to whom he made the promise, being ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
Darby Bible Translation
It was added for the sake of transgressions, until the seed came to whom the promise was made, ordained through angels in [the] hand of a mediator.
English Revised Version
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise hath been made; and it was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Webster's Bible Translation
It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
Weymouth New Testament
It was imposed later on for the sake of defining sin, until the seed should come to whom God had made the promise; and its details were laid down by a mediator with the help of angels.
World English Bible
It was added because of transgressions, until the seed should come to whom the promise has been made. It was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
Young's Literal Translation
on account of the transgressions it was added, till the seed might come to which the promise hath been made, having been set in order through messengers in the hand of a mediator --
Of the twenty one translations, only the New American Standard Bible agrees with Irenaeus’ premise that the word order should be transposed.
3
Irenaeus’ third example is 2 Thessalonian 2:8-9:
And then shall that wicked be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus Christ shall slay with the Spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy him with the presence of his coming; [even him] whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power, and signs, and lying wonders.”
Irenaeus suggests the reading should be:
And then shall be revealed that wicked, whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power, and signs, and lying wonders, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the Spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the presence of His coming.
Irenaeus continues :
“For he [Saint Paul] does not mean that the coming of the Lord is after the working of Satan; but the coming of the wicked one, whom we also call Antichrist. If, then, one does not attend to the [proper] reading [of the passage], and if he do not exhibit the intervals of breathing as they occur, there shall be not only incongruities, but also, when reading, he will utter blasphemy, as if the advent of the Lord could take place according to the working of Satan.”
The following translations are offered for comparison:
New International Version
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming.The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie,
New Living Translation
Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming. This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles.
English Standard Version
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,
New American Standard Bible
Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders,
King James Bible
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Holman Christian Standard Bible
and then the lawless one will be revealed. The Lord Jesus will destroy him with the breath of His mouth and will bring him to nothing with the brightness of His coming. The coming of the lawless one is based on Satan's working, with all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders,
International Standard Version
Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will destroy with the breath of his mouth, rendering him powerless by the manifestation of his coming.The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the power of Satan. He will use every kind of power, including miraculous signs, lying wonders,
NET Bible
and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will destroy by the breath of his mouth and wipe out by the manifestation of his arrival. The arrival of the lawless one will be by Satan's working with all kinds of miracles and signs and false wonders,
Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And then that Evil One will be revealed, whom our Lord Yeshua will consume with a breath of his mouth, and will destroy him by the revelation of his coming. For the coming of that one is in the activity of Satan in all power, signs and false wonders,
GOD'S WORD® Translation
Then the man of sin will be revealed and the Lord Jesus will destroy him by what he says. When the Lord Jesus comes, his appearance will put an end to this man. The man of sin will come with the power of Satan. He will use every kind of power, including miraculous and wonderful signs. But they will be lies.
Jubilee Bible 2000
And then shall that Wicked one be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of his mouth and remove with the clarity of his coming that wicked one, who shall come by the working of Satan with great power and signs and lying miracles,
King James 2000 Bible
And then shall that Wicked One be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the breath of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
American King James Version
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
American Standard Version
And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to nought by the manifestation of his coming; even he , whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Douay-Rheims Bible
And then that wicked one shall be revealed whom the Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of his mouth; and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming, him,Whose coming is according to the working of Satan, in all power, and signs, and lying wonders,
Darby Bible Translation
and then the lawless one shall be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus shall consume with the breath of his mouth, and shall annul by the appearing of his coming; whose coming is according to the working of Satan in all power and signs and wonders of falsehood,
English Revised Version
And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to nought by the manifestation of his coming; even he, whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Webster's Bible Translation
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the spirit of his mouth, and will destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power, and signs, and lying wonders,
Weymouth New Testament
and then the Lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will sweep away with the tempest of His anger, and utterly overwhelm by the awful splendour of His Coming. The appearing of the Lawless one will be attended by various miracles and tokens and delusive marvels--for so Satan works--
World English Bible
Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will kill with the breath of his mouth, and destroy by the manifestation of his coming; even he whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Young's Literal Translation
and then shall be revealed the Lawless One, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the manifestation of his presence, him, whose presence is according to the working of the Adversary, in all power, and signs, and lying wonders,
New International Version
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming.The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie,
New Living Translation
Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming. This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles.
English Standard Version
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,
New American Standard Bible
Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders,
King James Bible
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Holman Christian Standard Bible
and then the lawless one will be revealed. The Lord Jesus will destroy him with the breath of His mouth and will bring him to nothing with the brightness of His coming. The coming of the lawless one is based on Satan's working, with all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders,
International Standard Version
Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will destroy with the breath of his mouth, rendering him powerless by the manifestation of his coming.The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the power of Satan. He will use every kind of power, including miraculous signs, lying wonders,
NET Bible
and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will destroy by the breath of his mouth and wipe out by the manifestation of his arrival. The arrival of the lawless one will be by Satan's working with all kinds of miracles and signs and false wonders,
Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And then that Evil One will be revealed, whom our Lord Yeshua will consume with a breath of his mouth, and will destroy him by the revelation of his coming. For the coming of that one is in the activity of Satan in all power, signs and false wonders,
GOD'S WORD® Translation
Then the man of sin will be revealed and the Lord Jesus will destroy him by what he says. When the Lord Jesus comes, his appearance will put an end to this man. The man of sin will come with the power of Satan. He will use every kind of power, including miraculous and wonderful signs. But they will be lies.
Jubilee Bible 2000
And then shall that Wicked one be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of his mouth and remove with the clarity of his coming that wicked one, who shall come by the working of Satan with great power and signs and lying miracles,
King James 2000 Bible
And then shall that Wicked One be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the breath of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
American King James Version
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
American Standard Version
And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to nought by the manifestation of his coming; even he , whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Douay-Rheims Bible
And then that wicked one shall be revealed whom the Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of his mouth; and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming, him,Whose coming is according to the working of Satan, in all power, and signs, and lying wonders,
Darby Bible Translation
and then the lawless one shall be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus shall consume with the breath of his mouth, and shall annul by the appearing of his coming; whose coming is according to the working of Satan in all power and signs and wonders of falsehood,
English Revised Version
And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to nought by the manifestation of his coming; even he, whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Webster's Bible Translation
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the spirit of his mouth, and will destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power, and signs, and lying wonders,
Weymouth New Testament
and then the Lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will sweep away with the tempest of His anger, and utterly overwhelm by the awful splendour of His Coming. The appearing of the Lawless one will be attended by various miracles and tokens and delusive marvels--for so Satan works--
World English Bible
Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will kill with the breath of his mouth, and destroy by the manifestation of his coming; even he whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Young's Literal Translation
and then shall be revealed the Lawless One, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the manifestation of his presence, him, whose presence is according to the working of the Adversary, in all power, and signs, and lying wonders,
conclusion
Once again, not one of these translations agree with Irenaeus’ proposition. In summation, of the 63 translations, only one is in agreement with Irenaeus. Clearly, modern scholars are either ignorant of Saint Paul’s tendencies of transposing word order or do not agree with Irenaeus’ conclusion.
The poor Greek that Nietzsche alludes to is not found in Saint Paul’s writings, which we conclude are understandable to modern translators, but in Irenaeus's proposed manner of translation.
We note that Irenaeus brings to the reader's attention two passages that the Gnostic writings refer to when they attempt to demonstrate that Saint Paul was the Apostle and a Gnostic, or if not a Gnostic, at least that he taught there at at least two gods (“The God of this world…”), if not more.
The poor Greek that Nietzsche alludes to is not found in Saint Paul’s writings, which we conclude are understandable to modern translators, but in Irenaeus's proposed manner of translation.
We note that Irenaeus brings to the reader's attention two passages that the Gnostic writings refer to when they attempt to demonstrate that Saint Paul was the Apostle and a Gnostic, or if not a Gnostic, at least that he taught there at at least two gods (“The God of this world…”), if not more.