The meanings of kephalē (“head”) and hypotassō* (“submit to”): After 30 years of controversy,

where are we?

Wayne Grudem

*Today*Today’’s presentation will not consider s presentation will not consider hypotasshypotassō

Introduction:

The word kephalē “head” is crucial for understanding Eph. 5:22-23: “Wives, submit to your own husbands . .

. . For the husband is the head of the wife”1 Cor. 11:3: “the head of a wife is her husband, and

the head of Christ is God.” Question: Does kephalē “head” mean

(1) “authority over” or

(2) “source” (as many were claiming in 1985) or

(3) (more recently) “prominent, preeminent”?

A. Background: A. Background:

19851985: : "Does kephalē ("head") Mean "Source" or "Authority Over" in Greek Literature? A Survey of 2,336 Examples," Trinity Journal 6 NS (Spring 1985), 38-59.

[+ plenary session debate at ETS, 1986, Atlanta]

19901990: : "The Meaning of kephalē ("Head"): A Response to Recent Studies," Trinity Journal 11NS (Spring, 1990), 3-72.

20012001: : "The Meaning of kephalē, (“head”): An Analysis of New Evidence, Real and Alleged,” JETS 44/1 (March, 2001), 25-65.

[+ earlier paper at ETS, Santa Clara, CA, 1997]

Conclusions of this paper:

LEXICONS:

6 of 7 Greek lexicons relevant to NT now give “authority over, ruler, leader” as a meaning of kephalē

(7 of 7 if count correction from LS editor)

1 of 7 now give “source” as a meaning of kephalē (0 of 7 if count correction from LS editor)

0 of 7 have ever given “prominent, preeminent” as meaning of kephalē

SPECIFIC GREEK TEXTS: SPECIFIC GREEK TEXTS:

In all 56 examples in Greek that take the form,In all 56 examples in Greek that take the form,

““Person A is the kephalē of person(s) B,”

person A always has authority over person(s) B.

No example has ever been discovered where No example has ever been discovered where

A does not have authority over B

0 examples have ever been discovered where the sense “source without governing authority” would fit the context.

0 examples have ever been discovered where the sense “prominent or preeminent person without governing authority” would fit the context.

Why should we translate Eph. 5:23 and 1 Cor. 11:3 in a Why should we translate Eph. 5:23 and 1 Cor. 11:3 in a way that lacks this component of meaning that is present in way that lacks this component of meaning that is present in every known example of this construction?every known example of this construction?

B. Greek lexicons

1. BDAG (2000), 542: A being of high status, head (a) in the case of living beings, to denote superior

rank ….Of the father as head of the family…. Of the husband in relation to his wife…. Of Christ in relation to the Christian community…. But Christ is the head… Of the universe as a whole… And of every cosmic power

(b) of things the uppermost part, extremity, end, point  

[“source” not mentioned. “prominent” not mentioned] 

Walter Bauer, Griechisch-deutsches Wörterbuch6 (Berlin and New York: de Gruyter, 1988), lists for kephalē no such meaning as “source” but does give the meaning “Oberhaupt” (“chief, leader”) (pp. 874-875).

2. Danker, The Concise Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2009), 200: (b) in transferred sense of (a) [an anatomical term], as directing agent within a ranking system 1 Corinthians 11:3; Ephesians 1:22; 5:23; Colossians 1:18

3. Louw-Nida: Johannes P. Louw and Eugene E. Nida, Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1988): “one who is of supreme or pre-eminent status, in view of authority to order or command—’one who is the head of, one who is superior to, one who is supreme over’” Ephesians 4:15… 1 Corinthians 11:3 (vol. 1, p. 739) 4. Lust, J., E. Eynikel, and K. Hauspie, A Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint (Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1996), 254: “head, leader”

5. Lampe, Patristic Greek Lexicon (1961), page 749: B. of persons; 1. head of the house, Herm.sim. 7.3; 2. chief, head-man...3. religious superior ... 4. of bishops, kefalai ekklhsiwn [other examples include “of the bishop of the city of Rome, being head of all the churches]...5. kefalh einai c. genit. [to be head, with genitive] take precedence of  6. T. Muraoka, A Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint (Louvain: Peeters, 2009), “he who or that which plays a leading role: in a societal group (?),” 396

7. Liddell-Scott: Greek-English Lexicon edited by H. G. Liddell and Robert Scott, and revised by Henry Stuart Jones (ninth edition; Oxford: Clarendon, 1968; revision of 9th edition of 1940), p. 945: II. 1. Of things, extremity

a. In Botanyb. In Anatomyc. Generally, top, brim of a vessel...capital of a columnd. In plural, source of a river, Herodotus 4.91 (but singular, mouth);

generally, source, origin, Orphic Fragments 21a; starting point [examples: the head of time; the head of a month].

This definition “source” was for This definition “source” was for pluralplural, under category , under category “things;” and “things;” and singularsingular kephalēkephalē referred to “mouth” of river referred to “mouth” of river

meant “end point” (as ends of poles that carried ark of covenant meant “end point” (as ends of poles that carried ark of covenant in LXX), in LXX),

did did notnot take the form “ take the form “personperson A is head of A is head of person(sperson(s) B”) B”

But in about 1997 I sent my 1990 article to: But in about 1997 I sent my 1990 article to:

““Editor, Liddell-Scott Greek Lexicon, Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford, England”Editor, Liddell-Scott Greek Lexicon, Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford, England”

April 14, 1997 letter from P. G. W. Glare, editor of Liddell-Scott Lexicon: Supplement, to Wayne Grudem (I had sent 1990 article): “The entry under this word in LSJ is not very satisfactory. . . . I have no time at the moment to discuss all your examples individually and in any case I am in broad agreement with your conclusions. I might just make one or two generalizations. κεφαλή is the word normally used to translate the Hebrew rosh and this does seem frequently to denote leader or chief without much reference to its original anatomical sense, and here it seems perverse to deny authority. The supposed sense ‘source’ of course does not exist and it was at least unwise of Liddell and Scott to mention the word. At the most they should have said ‘applied to the source of a river in respect of its position in its (the river's) course’.

By NT times the Septuagint had been well established and one would only expect that a usage found frequently in it would come easily to such a writer as St. Paul …. I hasten to add that in most cases the sense of the head as being the controlling agent is the one required and that the idea of preeminence seems to me to be quite unsuitable, and that there are still cases where κεφαλή can be understood, as in the Septuagint, in its transferred sense of head or leader.

Once again, thank you for sending me the article. I shall file it in the hope that one day we will be able to embark on a more thorough revision of the lexicon.

 Yours sincerely, Peter Glare

8. Summary of lexicons:  “authority over, ruler, leader”: 6 of 7, w/ P. Glare letter: 7 of 7 “source”: 1 of 7 (LS) but under heading, “of things, extremity” applied to source of river in plural, but applied to mouth of river in singular;

0 of 7 give person as “source” of other persons now w/ P. Glare letter: “source” 0 of 7 lexicons

 “pre-eminent, prominent”: 0 of 7 lexicons

C. Actual citations from ancient literature  I. Literal “head” said to rule over body

(1) Plato: “the head . .. is the most divine part and the one that reigns over all the parts within us” (Timaeus 44D). (5th/4th cent. B.C.). (2) Philo, The Special Laws 184: “Nature conferred the sovereignty of the body on the head” (1st cent. A.D.). 

(3) Plutarch, Table Talk 6.7 (692.E.1): “We affectionately call a person ‘soul’ or ‘head’ from his ruling parts.”

II. “Head” as a simile for leader (1) Plutarch, Pelopidas 2.1.3: In an army, “The light-armed troops are like the hands, the cavalry like the feet, the line of men-at-arms itself like chest and breastplate, and the general is like the head” (1st/2nd cent. A.D.). 

III. Examples of kephalē meaning “authority over / ruler” (where a person in authority is metaphorically called the head of others under his authority)

(56 exx in EFBT, Appx)

(6) Judges 11:11, LXX: “So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and all the people made him head and leader over them” (2nd cent. B.C.).

 (7) 2 Kings (2 Samuel) 22:44, LXX: David says to God, “You shall keep me as the

head of the Gentiles: a people which I knew not served me” (2nd cent. B.C.). (8) 3 Kings (1 Kings) 8:1 (A), LXX: “Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel

with all the heads of the tribes” (2nd cent. B.C.).

(16) Lamentations 1:5, LXX: [of Jerusalem] “Her foes have become the head, her enemies prosper, because the Lord has made her suffer for the multitude of her transgressions; her children have gone away, captives before the foe” (2nd cent. B.C.).

(17-19) 1 Cor 11:3: “I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God.” (1st cent. A.D.).

 

(20) Eph 1:22: “He has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church” (1st cent. A.D.). (22-23) Eph 5:22–24: “Wives, be subject to your husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. As the church is subject to Christ, so let wives also be subject in everything to their husbands” (1st cent. A.D.).

(25) Col 2:10: “And you have come to fullness of life in him, who is the head of all rule and authority” (1st cent. A.D.).

But couldn’t kephalē mean “source” in Eph. 4:15?

(21) Eph 4:15: “We are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is supplied, when each part is working properly, makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love” (1st cent. A.D.).

 

Here Christ Here Christ functionsfunctions as the as the sourcesource of bodily growth of bodily growth

And he also functions as the And he also functions as the recipientrecipient of growth of growth

But that does not mean But that does not mean ““headhead”” meansmeans ““sourcesource”” or or ““recipientrecipient””

Put “Savior” here: “We are to grow up in every way into him who is the Savior, into Christ, from

whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is supplied, when each part is working properly, makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love”

Would Would ““SaviorSavior”” now mean now mean ““sourcesource””? ?

Sound lexicography should cause us to be cautious about adopting a new meaning for a word based on one difficult passage, or one passage where it "could" have that meaning. This was emphasized by John Chadwick in reflecting on his many years of work on the editorial team for the Liddell-Scott Lexicon:  

A constant problem to guard against is the proliferation of meanings….It is often tempting to create a new sense to accommodate a difficult example, but we must always ask first, if there is any other way of taking the word which would allow us to assign the example to an already established sense….As I have remarked in several of my notes, there may be no reason why a proposed sense should not exist, but is there any reason why it must exist?

(--- (--- John Chadwick, Lexicographica Graeca: Contributions to the Lexicography of Ancient Greek (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1996), 23-24.)

Example:Example:

““I was carrying a birthday cake with both hands, so I used my head to open the I was carrying a birthday cake with both hands, so I used my head to open the door.”door.”

Does “head” now mean “door opener”?Does “head” now mean “door opener”?

No, it just functioned as a door opener but the word “head” did not take No, it just functioned as a door opener but the word “head” did not take on a new meaning.on a new meaning.

Other examples:

(27) Josephus, War 4.261: Jerusalem is the “head of the whole nation” (1st cent. A.D.).

 (28) Philo, Moses 2.30: “As the head is the ruling place in the living body, so

Ptolemy [Ptolemy Philadelphos] became among kings” (1st cent. A.D.).

(33) Plutarch, Galba 4.3: “Vindex … wrote to Galba inviting him to assume the imperial power, and thus to serve what was a vigorous body in need of a head” (1st/2nd cent. A.D.).

(40) Athanasius, Work 005, 89.2.3 (NPNF series 2, vol. 4, p. 147; TLG, Athanasius, Work 005, 89.2.3.): He refers to “the bishops of illustrious cities,” as “the heads of great churches” (4th cent. A.D.).

 

(53) Chrysostom, Homily 20 on Ephesians (NPNF series 1, vol. 13, pp. 146-147; TLG Work 159, 62.140.51 to 62.141.13): “The wife is a second authority let not her then demand equality, for she is under the head; nor let him despise her as being in subjection, for she is the body; and if the head despise the body, it will itself also perish. But let him bring in love on his part as a counterpoise to obedience on her part . . . . Hence he places the one in subjection, and the other in authority, that there may be peace;

(56) Chrysostom, Homily 15 on Ephesians (NPNF series 1, vol. 13, p. 12; TLG Work 159, 62.110.21 to 62.110.25): [to a woman, on how to treat a servant girl] Consider that thou art her mistress, and that she ministers unto thee. If she be intemperate, cut off the occasions of drunkenness; call thy husband, and admonish her . . . . Yea, be she drunkard, or railer, or gossip, or evil-eyed, or extravagant, and a squanderer of thy substance, thou hast her for the partner of thy life. Train and restrain her. Necessity is upon thee. It is for this thou art the head. Regulate her therefore, do thy own part. [a woman is called the head of her maidservant] (4th cent. A.D.).

D. Conclusion abt meanings where person A is said to be “head” of person(s) B:

1. “authority over, ruler, leader” is clearly established by over 50 examples 2. person as “source”: No lexicon includes this meaning b/c no example in any

period of Greek requires it.  3. “prominent, preeminent, foremost” “one who is preeminent”: No lexicon

includes this meaning b/c no example in any period of Greek requires it.  

Q: Where is one example in all of ancient Greek literature where a person is called “head” of a person or group and that person is not in a position of authority over the other person or group?

E. Commentaries 1. Eph. 5:23: Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. (Eph 5:22-24 ESV) a. Authority over, leader: - nearly all the major commentaries since 1990: 10

Lincoln, 1990Bruce, 1995O’Brien, 1999Hoehner, 2002Klein, 2006Witherington, 2007Chapell, 2009Larkin, 2009Arnold, 2010Thielman, 2010

 b. “Source”: 0 c. “Prominence”: Liefeld (IVPNTC), 1997 (p. 144)

2. 1 Cor. 11:3: But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.  a. Authority over: 5

Kistemaker, 1993Barnett, Paul, 2000 Fitzmyer (AB), 2008 (mildly, w/ ref. to other views) Ciampa and Rosner (PNTC), 2010Taylor, Mark (NAC), 2014 (mildly; reports other views)

 b. “Source”: 1

Fee (NIC),1987 Fee, Discov. Bibl. Equality, 2004: source/ ground

 c. “Prominent, preeminent, honored member”: 6

Blomberg, 1995 “honored or prominent part” (92)Thiselton (NIGTC), 2000 “preeminent, foremost” (811-823)Garland (BECNT), 2003 “one who is preeminent” (516)Marshall, I. H., Disc. Bib. Equality, 2004 (hard to classify) Johnson, Alan (IVPNTC), 2004 “honored member, honored source of the pair” (191)Keener, 2005 “honored part” (92)

F. Objections to the meaning “prominent or honored part, honored member” 1. Found in no lexicon (therefore apparently required by no ancient text) 2. Removes the one component of meaning that is found in every single ancient example where person A is head of person or group B: person A is in authority over B 3. Involves linguistic sleight-of-hand: changes noun to adjective, then supplies noun

“the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God” Substitute “leader”: makes sense the “leader of/authority over” of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. Substitute: “preeminent” “the preeminent of a wife is her husband” ??  Therefore supply noun: “member” The “preeminent member of a wife is her husband” -- doesn’t work: husband is not a member of his wifeThe “honored member of a wife is her husband” ???

Note on Thiselton:

While Thiselton rightly notes that metaphors usually carry multiple layers of meaning in any language, that is not true of his translation. The Greek text contains a metaphor of the head in relation to the body. But Thiselton “translates” not the mere word but the metaphor itself in a way that renders it no longer a metaphor but an explanation of only one possible component of meaning - “man is foremost in relation to woman,” yet he himself had said that the metaphor has “multiple meanings.” In his rendering, there is no metaphor left for English readers, and no opportunity even to consider multiple meanings.

 Why did he make this move? He says he cannot translate it simply as “head”

because “in English-speaking contexts ‘the head’ almost always implies leadership and authority” (p. 817).

So he is removing the one component of meaning (leadership and authority) that is present in every single example of person A being the “head” of person or group B.

why must we try to avoid the one meaning that is represented in all the lexicons and is unmistakably present in every instance of this kind of construction, the idea of authority?

G. Dictionary of Paul and His Letters: 1. C. Kroeger article, “Head” (1993, Kindle 2009) a. Head = “source” “John Chrysostom declared that only a heretic would understand Paul’s use of “head” to mean “chief” or “authority over.” Rather one should understand the term as implying “absolute oneness and cause and primal source” (PG 61.214, 216).”  “church fathers argued vehemently that for Paul head had meant "source." Athanasius (Syn. Armin. 26.3.35; Anathema 26. Migne PG 26, 740B), Cyril of Alexandria (De Recte Fide ad Pulch. 2.3, 268; De Recte Fide ad Arcadiam 1.1.5.5(2).63.), Basil (PG 30.80.23), Theodore of Mopsuestia, Eccl. Theol. 1.11.2-3; 2.7.1) and even Eusebius, Eccl. Theol. 1.11.2-3; 2.7.1) were quick to recognize the danger of an interpretation of 1 Corinthians 11:3 which could place Christ in a subordinate position relative to the Father.”  b. I analyzed this article extensively in 2001 article in JETS, and Appendix in 2001 EFBT. - numerous examples of erroneous citations, references that on inspection do not even contain the term kephalē, deceptive omissions of crucial information, and outright false statements

- unfortunately, this article in DPL, a standard reference work, has never been corrected by IVP

H. Conclusion: 30 years after:

19851985: : "Does kephalē ("head") Mean "Source" or "Authority Over" in Greek Literature? A Survey of 2,336 Examples," Trinity Journal 6 NS (Spring 1985),

38-59.

[+ plenary session debate at ETS, 1986, Atlanta]

The meaning The meaning ““authority over, ruler, leaderauthority over, ruler, leader”” is firmly is firmly establishedestablished

The meaning The meaning ““sourcesource”” is dying its last breath is dying its last breath

The meaning The meaning ““preeminent, honored memberpreeminent, honored member”” has some has some advocates, but no support in any lexicon, ever, and it has advocates, but no support in any lexicon, ever, and it has the fatal flaw of removing the one component of meaning the fatal flaw of removing the one component of meaning that is present in every ancient example. that is present in every ancient example.

It should also be rejected.It should also be rejected.