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Bible Dictionaries
Protevangelium
Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament
or PROTEVANGELIUM.—See art. Fall in vol. i. p. 571bf.
PROVERB is the rendering of παραβολή in Luke 4:23 (Revised Version NT 1881, OT 1885 ‘parable’) and of παροιμία in John 16:25; John 16:29 ((Revised Version margin) ‘parable’). In John 10:6 παροιμία is rendered ‘parable’ ((Revised Version margin) ‘proverb’). Ordinarily παραβολή means ‘parable’ παροιμία ‘proverb’; but the words are sometimes interchanged in Hellenistic Greek. Both represent the Heb. mâshâl, the primary meaning of which is ‘comparison.’ Such comparison lies at the base of many proverbs as well as parables; in fact many proverbs are only condensed parables; and a proverb usually sets up a single case as the type of a whole class. In the LXX Septuagint mâshâl is nearly always rendered παραβολή, even when a proverb is clearly meant (1 Samuel 10:12; 1 Samuel 24:13 (14), 1 Kings 4:32 (28), Ezekiel 12:22-23; Ezekiel 18:2-3; in some of these places Aq. [Note: Aquila.] or Symm. [Note: Symmachus.] substitutes παροιμία). παροιμία is found in the canonical OT only in Proverbs 1:1; Proverbs 25:1 (Aא2 [Note: designates the particular edition of the work referred] ; Bא1 [Note: designates the particular edition of the work referred] have παιδεῖαι); it occurs 5 times in Sirach, παραβολή 10 times; at Sirach 39:3; Sirach 47:17 they stand together. Thus Lk., like the LXX Septuagint , uses παραβολή for ‘proverb’ as well as ‘parable’; while Jn., on the contrary, uses παροιμία in the sense of ‘figurative language, allegory’ (John 10:6), or ‘dark saying’ (John 16:26; John 16:29) rather than ‘proverb’; perhaps, ‘figure’ best represents his use of the word. On our Lord’s use of proverbs see following article.
Literature.—Cremer, Lexicon, 8.v. πκραβολή; Trench, Parables, ch. 1; art. ‘Proverb’ in Hasting's Dictionary of the Bible (by König) and Encyc. Bibl. (by Paterson); Königsmann in Hase and Iken, Thes. Nov. ii. 501; Driver, LOT [Note: OT Introd. to the Literature of the Old Test.] 6 [Note: designates the particular edition of the work referred] ) p. 349.
Harold Smith.
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Hastings, James. Entry for 'Protevangelium'. Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hdn/p/protevangelium.html. 1906-1918.
