Reflections on Learning Greek

About a year ago I embarked upon a study of Koine Greek – the language that the New Testament was written in – which has brought me full circle to where I am not only learning Greek, but also am teaching it. A friend of mine was gracious enough to teach me the language (he having had a formal education in it, whereas mine would be on my own and through no school system), and we went through William D. Mounce’s The Basics of Biblical Greek at the rate of around 1.5 chapters per week, finishing the book in about nine months. Now that I have completed my first year and am ready to start second year, I have found myself a few students wishing to learn Koine so that I am now in the position of passing on information as my friend once was (and still is, actually).
Two weeks ago these fledgling Greek learners and I sat down to our first lesson and went over our motivations for learning the language. I thought that it would be important for them to have a solid and memorable foundation upon which their edification could be built so that it does not crumble under the strain of hours of Greek study. Towards this end I prepared a short list of reasons that I had come up with in the space of about an hour, and then I shared it with them. The conversation went well and I am very optimistic about the potential I see for an opportunity to bring alone fellow Christians and help them mature in the faith. What follows below is an elaboration upon my preliminary reflections in an attempt to solidify my own intentions in learning Koine Greek.
Before continuing on, however, I would like to place a special emphasis on the fact that I am not trying to say that Greek should be mandatory for all Christians nor even that it always necessary or helpful. I can imagine that it is possible for some particular individual to be unfortunately in the situation where learning Greek would hinder them so greatly that it could be to their disadvantage, and certainly I would not want them to pursue self-degradation. Nonetheless, here I will attempt to put forth a list of positive reasons for why a person who has the opportunity and time to learn Greek would see sufficient reason to do so (not necessarily strongly desiring to, but seeing good reason to).

1) Greek is a new way to study the Bible.
If studying the N.T. is a good thing, then Greek gives us another way to read it. But more to the point, it in fact gives us a more accurate way to read it. It is the closest thing to being there in the first century and dialoguing with the N.T. writers that we have. I often find that reading the N.T. in Spanish can help me to see a familiar passage in a new light (I have had roughly two years of college Spanish, and have been speaking it for three years). Imagine how much more insightful it would be to read the N.T. in the actual language of the writers and to bypass the need for a translation. It truly opens up the goldmine of metaphors, wordplays, and etymological history that are lost in translation.

2) Greek is for teaching Scripture.
Given that the significance of a certain passage of Scripture is dependent entirely upon the correct interpretation of the original text, then familiarity with the original is certainly a better way to interpret then familiarity with a translation. I will not in any way even suggest that Greek be mandatory for all Christians, but I would certainly come close to saying that it should be mandatory for all teachers of Scripture who have access to it.


3) There are so many good Greek resources out there.
In a country where we have the opportunity to research and learn so much about the Bible, why would we hold ourselves back from doing so? Again, I am not here suggesting that Greek is for everyone. Obviously some peopled do not have time for it, and others can serve God as He desires without a knowledge of Greek. However, the virtual universality of resources for learning Biblical Greek (William D. Mounce’s book The Basics of Biblical Greek can be found at my local library) certainly makes it a practical option for anyone interested in furthering their understanding of the New Testament. This is a very rare opportunity.

4) To fill our minds with instructive, useful, and vitally relevant information.
In the culture we live in, it is far too easy for one to fill their mind with volumes of meaningless and pointless information absorbed from sources like television, magazines, and other people (Christians, non-Christians, friends, etc., basically anyone). Why not take the time to fill our minds with something that is inherently good to know? Why not saturate ourselves with knowledge and information that we can dwell on, rather than have to fight against? We need positive support and teaching of the correct application of our mental faculties. Constantly combating the negative messages which we receive every day can take its toll on our strength and commitment to God. Reading Greek and discovering the various insights (and interesting wordplays) which are lost in translation can be a source of renewal and edification for the studious believer.

5) It is a step towards a greater commitment to God for those who can do it.
If our goal as Christians is not to remain immature in our love of God, then we must be instructed in all wisdom and admonishment, and a more critical look at the text of the N.T. is a step towards a greater desire to know what God has communicated to His people through His apostles and prophets. I could go on about this point, but I think that it would hinder the essence of what I am trying to say. Basically all I mean to state with this particular observation is that Greek is almost a certain way for a believer to take that next step toward a greater commitment to God through a commitment to knowing His Scriptures.

6) It is a gateway to another world of discussion with Christian believers.
If we remain at a basic and fundamental understanding of Christianity and its truth claims, then how do we expect to build each other up and stimulate personal development? A person can only sit and listen to a message so many times before it becomes monotonous and without impact on their life, so reiterating a surface-level understanding of the Bible to yourself again and again fails to gauge the depth of what is contained within it, and the power it has to change a person's life. In order that we become Christians who are brought-to-the-end (teleoi, translated as “perfect” in the N.T.) for which Christ labors in us, it would be extremely beneficial for us to form a community of thoughtful and well-balanced individuals. This seems a much better formula for discovering the truth of God’s revelation than reading the Bible purely as a devotional document and expecting God to open our minds to profound truth with a bypass of our mental faculties in an intense emotional experience.

With all that I have said above, I would like to reiterate that I am not attempting to imply that everyone should be learning Greek, or even that the majority of Christians should (maybe I would prefer it that way, but God knows better than I and certainly His plans could be different). Instead what I am trying to do is set forth my own motivations for learning Greek or how I have chosen to look at it, and in the process provide the individual reader with some questions to ask himself about his desire/lack of a desire to learn Greek. In the end I am in no position to judge who should and who should not be learning Greek. So what I then ultimately recommend is prayer over the issue if you are pondering this or any other significant investment of your time towards God’s kingdom. I don’t know exactly what you should pray, but I always start with being as honest as I can, and then follow with the appropriate kind of imploring or petition to God. If you really believe that He is good, and really do believe that He cares about you, then I see no reason not to trust that He will provide a way for you to find a place of belonging in His will – wherever that may be. Ultimately I would say that this is the more critical step towards deciding whether or not Greek is for you than evaluating any of the reasons I have given above.