When the BDAG has multiple choices, but your verse isn't mentioned in any, what do you use ?

Charles Jones

When using the BDAG in exegetical study, what do you do when your verse's use of a greek word is not in the BDAG, and there are multiple choices within the BDAG ?

Do I choose the one that lines up with the Louw-Nida ?

Needless to say, I am a novice with the Greek and Hebrew texts.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Christopher Randall

For starters, it is a perfect active indicative 2nd person singular from Lambano (λαμβάνω) - the beginning Greek way of translating that would be "You have taken/received." This would be the basic meaning if a word could have a meaning by itself. Next, you would look at the context to determine the meaning. If you have the 3rd Edition BDAG, it gives you definitions for many of the words. Find the best definitions that would fit the context. With the definition are a few suggested gloss words that would fit within the framework of that definition - there is freedom here. What is referenced in BDAG are just examples, especially for a word like Lambano/λαμβάνω since this is a word that is used often. It would be impossible for BDAG to reference every use without making the book extra large.

You can also look at how the word is used in the rest of Revelation and then how the word is used by the Author (assuming it is the same John who wrote all the others that bear his name). You could then look at textual variants and manuscripts (if there are any) to see how other ancient texts understood the word. But the immediate context is the most important.

If you are new to languages, then do a verse comparison on how other translators translated the word. Many technical commentaries could help you examine the Greek words and give helpful insights.

Lastly, since "take" or "receive" are good choices due to the word often being translated that way, pick which one fits the best in the context. Ultimately, context is the most important thing.