"EVERY SUNDAY"
Hugo McCord
A careful Bible student asks why my translation of the New Testament (FHV) has the two words "every Sunday" in 1 Corinthians 16:2:
Every Sunday, let each one of you lay aside by himself, if he earns anything, and put it into the treasury; so that there will be no collections when I come." (FHV)
I. "EVERY"
The KJV, NKJV, and the ASV do not say "every," while the NASV, NIV, and the RSV include "every." What did Paul say? Preceding Paul’s words mian sabbatou ("the first day of the week") is kata, a word with a variety of meanings. One of those meanings grammarians call kata’s "distributive use" (Thayer, 328; B-G-D, 406; Abbott-Smith, 232).
Paul Southern’s doctoral thesis at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville, KY.) was entitled "The Distributive Use of kata." He cited kata as meaning "every" not only in 1 Corinthians 16:2, "every first day of the week," but also in many other verses: "his parents went to Jerusalem every year" (Luke 2:41); "a certain rich man" was "faring sumptuously every day" (Luke 16:19); "appoint elders in every city" (Titus 1:5); "they appointed for them elders in every church" (Acts 14:23).
Both Thayer (p. 506) and B-G-D (p. 406) translate Paul’s words kata mian sabbatou "on the first day of every week." Other citations of kata’s meaning "every" include "every city" (Luke 8:1, 4; Acts 15:21; 20:23); "every house" (Acts 5:42; 8:3); "every synagogue" (Acts 22:19); "every month" (Revelation 22:2); and "every day" or "daily" (Matthew 26:55).
Furthermore, since every week has a first day, the word "every" is understood in the translations that omit "every": "upon the first day of the week ..." (KJV, NKJV, ASV). Also, "every" is understood in an Old Testament verse that omits "every": "Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy" (Exodus 20:8).
Alexander Campbell in 1826 published a New Testament translation called THE LIVING ORACLES, saying in 1 Corinthians 16:2:
On the first day of every week, let each one of you lay somewhat by itself, according as he may have prospered, putting it into the treasury; that when I come, there may be then no collections.
Barton W. Stone in 1830, having read THE LIVING ORACLES, wrote: "Whenever the church shall be restored to her former glory, she will again receive the Lord’s Supper on every first day of the week."
II. "SUNDAY"
I used the word "Sunday" in my translation because it is used more often by people in general than "the first day of the week." However, I was inconsistent, for I used "the first day of the week" in Acts 20:7. For the 4th edition of my translation, 1 Corinthians 16:2 will say:
On the first day of every week, let each one, if he has earned anything, lay by a contribution, and put it into the treasury, so that when I come no collections will be taken.
1-27-99