Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges - James 2:11 - 2:11

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Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges - James 2:11 - 2:11


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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:

11. εἰ δὲ οὐ μοιχεύεις. This use of οὐ for μή in the protasis of a conditional sentence is not infrequent in the N.T., especially when there is an antithesis between a negative and affirmative sentence as here. As Dr Moulton notes on Winer, p. 601, the expression is equivalent to εἰ οὐ μοιχεύων ἔσῃ, φονεύων δέ. εἰ οὐ μοιχεύεις = ‘if thou art guiltless of adultery.’ Comp. εἰ τοὺς θανόντας οὐκ ἐᾷς θάπτειν, Soph. Aj. 1131; εἰ ἀποστῆναι Ἀθηναίων οὐκ ἠθελήσαμεν, Thuc. III. 55; εἰ ἄλλοις οὐκ εἰμὶ ἀπόστολος ἀλλά γε ὑμῖν εἰμί, 1Co 9:2.

In Modern Greek ἐὰν δέν (the modern equivalent to οὐ) is the regular idiom.