appellative words — Timothy Dwight on Titus 2:13

Timothy Dwight[1], the late Professor of Sacred Literature at Yale College has something to offer in regard the τοῦ μεγάλου θεοῦ καὶ σωτῆρος in Titus 2:13.

the text again, always the text.

Titus 2:13 προσδεχόμενοι τὴν μακαρίαν ἐλπίδα καὶ ἐπιφάνειαν τῆς δόξης τοῦ μεγάλου θεοῦ καὶ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ,

Timothy Dwight, without any mention of Granville Sharp, in his notes on the American Edition of J. E. Huther’s commentary[1] on the pastoral epistles, adds a different twist to what we might call “the rule”[2]. Dwight observes that “both θεοῦ and σωτῆρος are, in themselves and originally, appellative words” and cites “the general rule that where two appellative words are united by καὶ under a common article, they belong to one subject”. If we read θεοῦ and σωτῆρος as appellative words we would not expect them to have referents of their own. They would be associated with a substantive and the referent of that substantive. This is a yet another constraint on “the rule”[2], the words joined by καὶ under a common article are appellative words.  

[1] Critical and exegetical hand-book to the Epistles to Timothy and Titus by Joh. Ed. Huther, … Notes on the American Edition by Timothy Dwight, Professor of Sacred Literature at Yale College, pp. 307-308.

[2] It is best to avoid calling this the “Granville Sharp rule” since this leads to endless discussions about an historical issue “what was/were the Granville Sharp rule[s]”, a question which is completely outside the scope of the language and exegesis of Titus 2:13. The ongoing work of Greg Stafford, Ph.D, in occasional conversation with D. B.Wallace Ph.D (Prof. at DTS), in regard to establishing the historical Granville Sharp and his rules, certainly makes entertaining reading. If Dr. Stafford wants to send me a copy of his books I promise to review them. I have already read most of Dr. Wallace and my views on his 1996 grammar are well documented on b-greek from 1996-2002. Interestingly enough, the heavy weights on b-greek have for the most part come around to agreeing with the substance of my Wallace critique, but it took them nearly a decade.