Wim Hendriks, «'Euteos' beyond the Temporal Meaning.», Vol. 25 (2012) 21-35
The Greek lexeme euteos should be understood primarily as an adverb of quality, rather than regularly be taken as an adverb of time in the New Testament. Three problematic passages with euteos will be discussed. They are 3 John 14, Galatians 1:15-17, and a variant reading in Acts 14:8-10. As background to this discussion the meaning of the adjective euteos is considered, as well as its use in various derivative and compound words. Next the formation of adverbs of manner and their place in the Greek sentence or phrase is envisaged. Four meanings of euteos as an adverb of quality, drawing on extra-biblical and New Testament sources, are identified before proceeding to discuss the three problematic passages, indicating how euteos is to be understood and translated.
30 Wim Hendriks
Mark 5:36 according to N.022: ἀκούσασ εὐθέωσ τὸν λόγον
λαλούμενον, after hearing exactly that spoken word (εὐθέωσ determines
τὸν λόγον).
3.4 rightly, justly, naturally, as a matter of course
Xenophon, Cyropaedia II 4.18: οὕτω δὴ ὁ μὲν κυαξάρησ εὐθέωσ
πρὸσ τὰ φρούρια ἤθροιζεν ἱππέασ καὶ πεζούσ, so then Cyaxares rightly
tried to muster cavalry and infantry for the hill-forts.20
Polybius, Historiae I 36.5: εὐθέωσ ἐγίνοντο πρὸσ τὸ καταρτίζειν τὸν
στόλον, the Romans rightly directed their efforts to preparing their fleet.
Polybius, Historiae I 49.9: διόπερ εὐθέωσ τὰ μὲν πληρώματα συνῆγε
πρὸσ τὸν αἰγιαλόν, τοὺσ δ’ ἐκ τῆσ πόλεωσ μισθοφόρουσ ἥθροιζε μετὰ
κηρύγματοσ, he therefore rightly collected the crews on the beach and
summoned the mercenaries from the city by proclamation.
Polybius, Historiae II 68.9: εὐθέωσ οἱ μὲν ἰλλυριοὶ τὴν κατάστασιν
ἐλάμ́βανον, rightly the Illyrians occupied the place where they had stood.
Aristeas, Letter to Philocrates 45: εὐθέωσ οὖν προσηγάγομεν ὑπὲρ
σοῦ θυσίασ, of course we brought sacrifices on your behalf.
Philo, De opificio mundi 10.37 (speaking about the firmament): εἶτ’
εὐθέωσ οὐρανὸν προσεῖπεν αὐτόν, εὐθυβόλωσ καὶ πάνυ κυρίωσ, next
he rightly gave the name ‘heaven’ to it, rightly hitting the mark and in all
respects as a master.
Herodian, Historiae VIII 4.6: κεκμηκότι δὲ αὐτῷ προσβαλεῖν εὐθέωσ
οὐκ ἔδοξε, weary as he was, he rightly did not decide to make an assault
(that day, but after one day’s rest they put the city under continuous
siege).
Luke 5:39: καὶ οὐδεὶσ πιὼν παλαιὸν εὐθέωσ θέλει νέον, and of course
no one after drinking old wine wants new.21
Luke 12:54: ὅταν ἴδητε τὴν νεφέλην ἀνατέλλουσαν ἀπὸ δυσμῶν
εὐθέωσ λέγετε ὅτι ὄμβροσ ἔρχεται καὶ γίνεται οὕτωσ, when (at the end
of the summer) you see the cloud rising from the west you rightly say ‘rain
is coming’ and so it happens!22
20
The adverb εὐθέωσ occurs only three times in the Cyropaedia (I 5.4: αὐτόσ τε εὐθέωσ
ὅσα ἐδύνατο ἀντιπαρεσκευάζετο, he rightly made what counter preparations he could
himself; II 4.18: ὁ μὲν κυαξάρησ εὐθέωσ … ἥθροιζεν, Cyaxares rightly tried to muster; V
3.16: εὐθέωσ συσκευασάμενοσ, he rightly packed up his own baggage), whereas εὐθύσ
appears 73 times (εὐθύ once).
21
The text with εὐθέωσ is found in A C2 Θ Π Ψ φ (~ 28) plurimi f q z δ vg syp syh.
22
In the last week before the end of September 1966, prior to leaving the Near East for
the first time, I saw in Beirut the cloud (namely: the expected cloud, with the article as in P45
D W Θ 070 plurimi Basil) and concluded rightly that rain would come (see 1 Kings 18:44:
‘Look, a little cloud no bigger than a person’s hand is rising out of the sea’).