Studies in the Greek New Testament: Theory and Practice

Studies in the Greek New Testament: Theory and Practice. By Stanley E. Porter. Studies in Biblical Greek 6. New York: Peter Lang, 1996, viii + 290 pp., $32.95 paper.

Barely into his forties, Stanley Porter has already become as productive as many seasoned scholars in the Biblical studies academy. His works are invariably solid, well researched and rigorously argued treatments on a wide variety of NT issues. This book gathers 13 typical Porter essays, two published here for the first time, and all related in one way or another to the original language of the NT.

The first five chapters are devoted to theoretical matters: The relation between linguistic theory and the Greek of the NT; the nature of Greek verbal aspect, particularly with reference to the work of B. Fanning; tense terminology in the teaching of Greek; NT lexicography; and the nature of NT Greek with respect to "Semitic" influence.

The "practical" chapters address technical linguistic problems in NT interpretation on a wide range of subjects: The importance of the periphrastic for the loosing-binding passage in Matt 16:19; the meaning of eggizein for the problem of the conflicting synoptic accounts of Jesus' healing at Jericho; the place of Greek as a spoken language in first-century Palestine, and its implications for whether Jesus used Greek as a teaching medium; the validity of the presumed Thucydidean policy on the use of speeches and its implications for understanding Acts; the background of the katallassein group and its relation to the other peace-and-salvation terminology in Romans 5; an evaluation of diatribe as a genre in the interpretation of Romans 5; an assessment of the validity of Wittgenstein's classes of utterance and their relevance for NT ethical statements, particularly with reference to Gal 3:28-29; and, finally, a reinterpretation of the "salvation-by-childbirth" passage at 1 Tim 2:15.

There is much to learn from reading this remarkable collection. The footnotes constitute a virtual card catalog on the subjects at hand and alone may be worth the high price of the book. Porter's procedure itself is instructive: He follows a relatively stable pattern of stating the problem, examining the previous research, analyzing the assumptions, exploring unexploited areas of relevance (or re-exploring areas inadequately understood) and drawing conclusions for his subject. One can quibble over this or that, for instance, whether Porter's examples of eggizein adduced in chap. 7 are convincing for his thesis, or why the reprinted essay defending his view of verbal aspect (chap. 2) makes no attempt to respond to the telling criticism that Fanning makes (as does Silva) in the same volume where Porter's essay first appeared (S. E. Porter and D. A. Carson, eds., Biblical Greek Language and Linguistics: Open Questions in Current Research, JSNTSup 80, 1993, p. 59), that Porter "has been misled by trying to formulate a theory which brooks absolutely no exceptions." But in the main, the approach is stimulating and the arguments well presented.

The volume has its unfortunate side, however. Pervading the entire work is a tone of superiority, almost of superciliousness. Previous research by others is frequently described as "disappointing," "not too informative," characterized by "ancient methods," and the like. One such comment, aimed at a named scholar, is downright cruel (p. 58); it would be cruelty toward Porter to repeat it here. Add to this the fact that although most of his readers will be NT scholars with little if any experience in classical Greek, Porter does not translate the many citations of classical texts (e.g. pp. 180-181, 197, 217-218; though oddly, he translates LXX texts, sometimes twice, pp. 198-199). All this is balanced by an equally unseemly regard for his own work. One indulges a scholar's mild vanity in publishing a collection of his or her essays; it is good to take pride in one's work. But did we really need this book, when eleven of the thirteen essays are reasonably, most easily, accessible in their original place of publication? His apology for the collection, printed in the preface, is typical in this regard. And for a grammarian s work, there are in it a surprising number of obscure sentences (pp. 35, 68-69, 88, 113, n. 49, 161, 248).

But as a NT linguist, Porter is on to something; we will benefit by hearing him. His caustic patronization we may endure; it need not be taken seriously except insofar as it may prevent some of his readers from being more open and sympathetic to his very valuable perspective. We can indulge it, because it takes a particular courage and self-assurance-not to mention brilliance-to succeed in the worthy task Porter has apparently set for his life's work. Still, we can encourage him to examine his presentation, and meanwhile examine our own and learn from each other.

Rich Erickson

Fuller Theological Seminary, Seattle, WA

Copyright Evangelical Theological Society Mar 1999
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