Why is Anepsios used instead of Adelphos?

[Triumphant_Of_Christ]

Yo, what’s goin’ on faithful Catholics? So I heard from Catholics that the word Adelphos sometimes can be used to refer to the cousins or relatives of Jesus but I noticed in 2 places in the Bible that Adelphos was not being used when referring to cousin.

Examples:

1. Colossians 4:10 uses Anepsios (not Adelphos) when referring to Mark as the cousin of Barnabas.
2. Tobit 7:2 (Septuagint) uses Anepsios to when referring to Tobit as a cousin.

Since Adelphos can be used to refer to cousin then why doesn’t Tobit which was written in Aramaic or Hebrew and Colossians 4:10 both not use Adelphos to refer to cousin?

Please correct me if I said something unrealistic.

 

[JerryZ]

Well, for Tobit, correct me if I am wrong but in Aramaic there is no word for “cousin”
So whoever made that translation inferred the relationship from the context and NOT from the text.

 

[Bithynian]

Since Adelphos can be used to refer to cousin then why doesn’t Tobit which was written in Aramaic or Hebrew and Colossians 4:10 both not use Adelphos to refer to cousin?

The simplest answer without wading into a prolonged philological analysis is that authors had their stylistic preferences in choosing words with analogous meaning. Some authors simply preferred one word over another, and this might have been due to their own dialect, or the dialect of their audience, a particular emphasis (or lack of one), or for variety.

Tobit 7:2 (Septuagint) uses Anepsios to when referring to Tobit as a cousin.

Two things:

(1) We have only have very fragmentary Aramaic and Hebrew manuscripts of Tobit, and so most modern translations are based on the more complete Greek translations (the Septuagint).

(2) The Septuagint is not one monolithic translation. There are two Greek texts of Tobit: GI (shorter) and GII (longer). GI is based on the Codices Alexandrinus and Vaticanus and uses ἀνέψιος anepsios, whilst GII is based on the Codex Sinaiticus and uses ἀδελφός adelphos. GII is considered more reliable due to its similarities with the Dead Sea Scrolls.

 

[otjm]

Since Adelphos can be used to refer to cousin then why doesn’t Tobit which was written in Aramaic or Hebrew and Colossians 4:10 both not use Adelphos to refer to cousin?

Because they were written in the language Tobit used, not in Greek - which both words are (Greek).

The question you are asking is why, when the words Tobit used, were they not translated into Greek differently? And considering that occurred 2,000 or so years ago, it would take someone with a PhD or more to wrangle out an answer. And considering that there are two sets of Tobit and a plethora of scholars who have worked on the manuscripts, it would make for a good pub discussion and a pint or two.

 

[BartholomewB]

In Tobit 7:2, the Hebrew term is ben dod, “uncle’s son.” The same term is used in Numbers 36:11, again translated as anepsios in the Septuagint.

In Acts 23:16, Luke uses a similar construction in Greek to describe Paul’s nephew, ho huios tés adelphés, literally “the son of the sister.”

 

[Julius_Caesar]

Maybe a little more proof for the stepbrothers argument.

 

[otjm]

In Tobit 7:2, the Hebrew term is ben dod , “uncle’s son.” The same term is used in Numbers 36:11, again translated as anepsios in the Septuagint.

In Acts 23:16, Luke uses a similar construction in Greek to describe Paul’s nephew, ho huios tés adelphés, literally “the son of the sister.”

So it appears to be a translator’s choice if I am reading you right as well as other commentary on Tobit.

Somewhere along the way I read that adelphoi was used not just for male children, but also used for children - including females. One can easily find battles being made over the NT use of the term, and I ahve to wonder if our modern day issues about females would be upheld by ancient writers, or if they were male dominant as some would have it.

In any event, it has been more than 5 decades since I studied any koinae.

 

[Bithynian]

that adelphoi was used not just for male children, but also used for children - including females

This is right. Ptolemy II, whom tradition holds to have commissioned the Septuagint, and his wife Arsinoe II were together venerated by the Egyptians under the cult of θεοὶ ἀδελφοί theoi adelphoi ‘Sibling Gods’ (keeping in mind that, per Egyptian tradition, pharaohs married their sisters).