Question marks in the Bible

Morris Proctor wrote:

Over the past few months several Logos users have emailed asking if it’s possible to search for questions in the Bible. In other words, can we search for punctuation marks? Currently we cannot.

Well, there's 3,269 in the NASB for those of you wishing they knew. . . .

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DMB

Youngs 3,215

NET 3,100

So you win!

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

Over the past few months several Logos users have emailed asking if it’s possible to search for questions in the Bible. In other words, can we search for punctuation marks? Currently we cannot.

Welcome [:D]

While search for punctuation marks is currently not possible in Logos 4, can search for words that often appear in questions:

if, how, however, what, whatever, where, wherever, when, whenever, who, whoever, whom, whomever, why

Thread => Syntax search question also includes idea of searching New Testament using Louw-Nida domains for questions => http://community.logos.com/forums/p/45162/336507.aspx#336507 that was followed later by a Morph Search suggestion.

Keep Smiling [:)]

Rosie Perera

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362171#Comment_362171

While search for punctuation marks is currently not possible in Logos 4, can search for words that often appear in questions:

if, how, however, what, whatever, where, wherever, when, whenever, who, whoever, whom, whomever, why

You forgot which (e.g., Isa 42:23; Matt 7:9; Lk 11:11).

Also questions can be formed by reversing the order of subject and verb, so your method will miss a lot of questions (e.g. Lk 14:28 "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?") You won't... (sentence) ==> Won't you...? (question)

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362226#Comment_362226

While search for punctuation marks is currently not possible in Logos 4, can search for words that often appear in questions:

if, how, however, what, whatever, where, wherever, when, whenever, who, whoever, whom, whomever, why

You forgot which (e.g., Isa 42:23; Matt 7:9; Lk 11:11).

Thanks [8-|]

Also questions can be formed by reversing the order of subject and verb, so your method will miss a lot of questions (e.g. Lk 14:28 "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?") You won't... (sentence) ==> Won't you...? (question)

Personally living and learning that a Morph Search using Logos Greek Morphology:

@BI OR @RI OR @TI OR @CAC

can be changed to a Bible Search, which does find Lk 14:28 plus many more questions:

Note: also learned that adding @CAC to Morph Search of @BI OR @RI OR @TI finds three questions in Mt 4 plus four more in Mt 5, etc.

Edit: follow-up in thread => http://community.logos.com/forums/p/45162/362232.aspx#362232 has a Morph Search of:

@BI OR @RI OR @TI OR @BC OR @CAC

Keep Smiling [:)]

Gary O'Neal

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362171#Comment_362171

While search for punctuation marks is currently not possible in Logos 4, can search for words that often appear in questions:

I was going to search The Lexham Clausal Outlines of the Greek New Testament, since it tags all questions. However, I can't figure out how to ask it to search on anything other than the text even though it says it is indexed for a number of different search fields. You can use the Ctrl-F search to go from one to another, but this doesn't give you a list of them.

EDIT:

I was trying to do this from a Bible search--the field searches do work from a basic search.

DMB

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362147#Comment_362147

Darby has 3,221

I'm having a hard time beating NASB.

I assume it has much to do with the translational 'drift' of the translators.

I know YLT tends to hold back, unless it's clear there's a question.

I'm just curious while you guys are trying to overcome Logos's search architecture.

tom

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362282#Comment_362282

I'm just curious while you guys are trying to overcome Logos's search architecture.

I personally think searching for punctuation is important. The meaning of a sentence changes when it ends with a "." or with a "?".

DMB

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362285#Comment_362285

Tom ... I agree. No offense to Bob, the guru of 'search', but translators putting in a '?' is a very strong translational statement, but currently not easily detected.

YLT uses a '---' sometimes to show the flow is breaking up and the reader should slow down on the implied meaning. I think heavy punctuated translations are shaky which is why NASB surprises me.

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362279#Comment_362279

I was going to search The Lexham Clausal Outlines of the Greek New Testament, since it tags all questions.

An option for Lexham Clausal Outlines of the Greek New Testament is visual filter highlighting of left margin tagging:

Keep Smiling [:)]

tom

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362279#Comment_362279

I was going to search The Lexham Clausal Outlines of the Greek New Testament, since it tags all questions.

I would say something like, 'I was going to search The Lexham Clausal Outlines of the Greek New Testament, since it tags all questions that its scholars who did the tagging interpreted as questions.

Gary O'Neal

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362467#Comment_362467

since it tags all questions that its scholars who did the tagging interpreted as questions.

But isn't that understood for all the translations we're talking about? A scholar somewhere has made an interpretive decision as what is or is not a question--and for the most part it's pretty straightforward.

I'm continually amazed at the efficiency of language to communicate--sure we struggle with Greek and Hebrew because for most of us they are second languages. But look at English--we read and process things without stopping to run through all the grammatical rules. We know the language to the point that we pick up on semantics even if the syntax is a little skewed. For instance, most people reading my first sentence above probably didn't think I was actually asking a question even though it is in the form of a question and ends with a question mark.

Room4more

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362488#Comment_362488

O'Neal-? I know an O'Neal from RPTS....any relation.

Gary O'Neal

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362491#Comment_362491

O'Neal-? I know an O'Neal from RPTS....any relation.

None that I know of. Most of my relatives are in south Mississippi.

tom

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/362488#Comment_362488

I'm continually amazed at the efficiency of language to communicate--sure we struggle with Greek and Hebrew because for most of us they are second languages. But look at English--we read and process things without stopping to run through all the grammatical rules. We know the language to the point that we pick up on semantics even if the syntax is a little skewed. For instance, most people reading my first sentence above probably didn't think I was actually asking a question even though it is in the form of a question and ends with a question mark.

Yes, and at the same time language is very complex (just as you noted - you wrote a statement in the form of a question.

There is a reason why we have the statement that 90% of office communication is correcting the other 10%.