1.5 A PROPER SEMANTIC GRID

A PROPER SEMANTIC GRID As was mentioned in the preceding section, the only question that has been raised with reference to the semantics of the article- noun-kai<-noun plural construction is: are the two groups identical or distinct? A proper semantic grid should see this question as ad- dressing the outer limits, the black and white of the semantics of the plural construction. However, there are various shades of gray which also need to be explored. The approach in this section is to layout in chart form the antecedently possible semantic range of the plural construction. Then, in the final section, the plural construction in the NT will be investigated briefly to see what the actual semantic range is.

Two Entirely Distinct Groups, Though United The grammars are agreed that even when two entirely distinct groups are in view, the fact that the article precedes only the first- named group indicates that they are united somehow. Thus, by way of illustration,¹⁵ in the clause, "The Democrats and Republicans approved the bill unanimously," the two political parties, though distinct, are united on a particular issue. Illustrations of this kind are numerous, e.g., "the mothers and children," "the fathers and daugh- ters," "the coaches and athletes," etc. This particular semantic nuance is diagrammed in Chart 1.¹⁶ Two Overlapping Groups It is theoretically possible that the plural construction in the NT could refer to two overlapping groups. That is, some members of the first-named group could belong to the second-named group and vice- versa. The idea of this nuance would probably be expressed in modem English by "The X and/or Y" and vice-versa. We could preoccupation with this very question, they lock themselves into a binary system which does not allow them to see other alternatives; and (2) as James Barr laments in his The Semantics of Biblical Language (Oxford: Oxford University, 1961), most theological students (myself included) rarely have any substantial training in modem linguistics (pp. 288-96). Since this is the case, we should not necessarily expect that those who have been trained in theology as a prior discipline should be able to ask all the right linguistic questions of the article-noun-kai<-noun plural construction.

¹⁵ In this and the following sections, English illustrations will be used only to demonstrate, via analogy, that a particular semantic nuance is possible. I am not implying by such illustrations that the English idiom is identical with the Greek.

¹⁶ In this and the following charts, the definite article before the first noun and the kai< between the two nouns are omitted because these charts are intended to depict the semantics, not the structure, of the article-noun-kai<-noun plural construction. It is assumed that the reader is well acquainted with the structure under consideration.

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Chart I illustrate this with such phrases as "the student council members and football players," "the blind and elderly," "the scientists and Chris- tians," "the healthy and wealthy and wise," "the poor and miserable."

It is possible in each of these constructions that some overlap could take place, given a particular context. This particular semantic nuance is diagrammed in Chart 2.

Chart 2 First Group Sub-Set of Second The third possibility is that the first-named group is a sub-set of the second, i.e., it is entirely included with the second-named group. The idea then would be "The X and [ other] Y. " Thus, by way of illustration, one could speak of "the angels and created beings, " "the southern Baptists and evangelicals," "the deaf and handicapped," "the saints and sinners." This particular semantic nuance is diagrammed in

Chart 3.

Second Group Sub-Set of First The fourth possibility is that the second-named group is a sub-set of the first. The idea then would be "The X and [in particular] Y." This could be illustrated with such phrases as "the created beings and
THE ARTICLE-NOUN-KAI’-NOUN PLURAL CONSTRUCTION 69

Chart 3 angels," "the handicapped and deaf," "the teachers and professors," etc. This particular semantic nuance is diagrammed in Chart 4.

Chart 4 Two Groups Identical Finally, the groups may be entirely identical. The idea may be expressed, "The X who are Y ," or "The X even Y." Thus, by way of illustration, one could speak of "The Los Angeles Dodgers and world champions of baseball," "the evil and wicked," "the Gentiles and outsiders," "the powerful and mighty," etc. This particular semantic nuance is diagrammed in Chart 5.

Chart 5
70 GRACE THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL As far as I can tell, these five nuances comprise the antecedently possible semantic range of the article-noun- kai<-noun plural con-struction. It remains to be seen whether this is the actual semantic range in the NT.