the whole texture of the language the fourth Gospel is Hebraic?" [27:2]
Now my statements with regard to the language of the Apocalypse and
fourth Gospel are as follows. Of the Apocalypse I say: "The language in
which the book is written is the most Hebraistic Greek of the New
Testament;" [28:1] and further on: "The barbarous Hebraistic Greek and
abrupt, inelegant diction are natural to the unlettered fisherman of
Galilee." [28:2] Of the Gospel I say: "Instead of the Hebraistic Greek
and harsh diction which might be expected from the unlettered and
ignorant [28:3] fisherman of Galilee, we find, in the fourth Gospel, the
purest and least Hebraistic Greek of any of the Gospels (some parts of
the third synoptic, perhaps, alone excepted), and a refinement and
beauty of composition whose charm has captivated the world," &c. [28:4]
In another place I say: "The language in which the Gospel is written, as
we have already mentioned, is much less Hebraic than that of the other
Gospels, with the exception, perhaps, of parts of the Gospel according
to Luke, and its Hebraisms are not on the whole greater than was almost
invariably the case with Hellenistic Greek; but its composition is
distinguished by peculiar smoothness, grace, and beauty, and in this
respect it is assigned the first rank amongst the Gospels." [28:5] I
believe that I do not say another word as to the texture of the language
of the fourth Gospel, and it will be observed that my remarks are almost
wholly limited to the comparative quality of the Greek of the fourth
Gospel, on the one hand, and the Apocalypse and Synoptics on the other,
and that they do not exclude Hebraisms. The views expressed might be
supported by numberless authorities. As Dr. Lightfoot accuses me of
"wholly ignoring" the results at which Luthardt and others have arrived,
I will quote what Luthardt says of the two works: "The difference of the
_language_, as well in regard to grammar and style as to doctrine, is,
of course, in a high degree remarkable ... As regards _grammar_, the
Gospel is written in correct, the Apocalypse in incorrect Greek." He