Language keeps springing surprises on us. Although I know a fair bit about languages, I was still surprised to learn recently that Greek consists not simply of ancient and modern. There is a range and a hierarchy of ancient Greeks, with distinct differences between the Greek of the marketplace (Koine) the Greek used by poets such as Homer (Epic), and that used by thinkers such as Socrates (Attic).
Unsurprising, though, is that God uses Koine Greek – Koine literally means “common” – as the main language of the New Testament and not the Greek of the thinkers or the poets, of the highborn or the highly educated. God’s promise to Abraham is that all peoples will be blessed through Him (Gen.12v3). All peoples. In giving His Word to everyone, God reinforces the dignity of humankind that bears His image, overturning the human constructs of hierarchy, and demonstrating that no one is outside of his love and grace.
What a gift it is, what a blessing, how respectful it is to others when we engage with them in a language which is familiar to them, better yet, in the language of their own hearts, even if only a little. Christ has died! Christ is risen! Christ will come again! Following the victory of the cross, why not spread the Good News of Jesus in the language that was readily accessible to everyone from everywhere in the eastern region of the Roman Empire at that time, whether it was their first language or not?
