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NASB | John 15:16 "You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 15:16 "You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed and placed and purposefully planted you, so that you would go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit will remain and be lasting, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name [as My representative] He may give to you. |
Subject: Did the disciples have a choice? |
Bible Note: Greetings Greg! I'm sorry if I put words in your mouth! I thought you were making the opposite point! :-) However, an imperative in a conditional clause is still an imperative. An imperative, by definition is a command. Let's use an English example. Suppose my son comes to me and says, "What do I need to do in order to earn an allowance?" I reply, "If you want an allowance, clean your room!" The 'if' speaks to my son's frame of mind, but the command is still a command. If he cleans his room, I will give him an allowance. If he doesn't clean his room, I won't give him an allowance. Mt. 19:21 is the same way. The 'if' speaks to the man's stated desire, but does not negate the command. Further, I could take the Calvinistic approach and say that 'if' here really means 'since'. Thus, the clause is affirming the reality of his desire, not making it a condition. But, I think almost all occurances of 'ei' really mean 'if' not 'since'! :-) A similar construction (conditional clause followed by a command) is found in Mt. 6:42 - "He went away a second time and prayed, ‘‘My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”" Should we then conclude that Jesus wasn't really commanding God's will to be done because His command was preceded by a conditional clause? Well, I've got to get to bed! I have to work tonight! :-( Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |