In an internet conversation which I
was following several weeks ago about a particular passage in the Letter to the
Romans, a pastor began a comment with, “We must look at the Greek at the
beginning of chapter 2.” His comment was
immediately answered by another that asked, “Why must we look at the
Greek? We know what it says.”
This exchange started me thinking
about the nature of language and the challenges of translation. In an essential way, the function of language
is to limit. When I say that I am looking
at a chair, I have immediately limited the hearer’s understanding of what the
object of my gaze could be. It is not a
lamp; it is not a ham sandwich; it is not a surfboard. It is a piece of
furniture with a seat, legs, and back, upon which someone can sit.
