You might be asking, Refuting error with 'The' what?

My answer is with THE word 'The'

Does it sound interesting enough to read on?

I hope so!

When I took a year of Greek in Bible college over twenty five years ago, I basically goofed off.

I'm the type that has to see how learning applies to real life issues before I can learn and retain things

The Greek exam was coming up and I knew I had to do something to catch up.

So I got a Greek Tutor outside the college.

She made Greek interesting and showed me a passage where knowing the importance of the Greek article, 'The' , made all the difference in scripture.

For those that are KJV only, the following might offend you, but the KJV really doesn't do the best job in presenting the truth.

My teacher quoted, Titus which says, ' Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and OUR Saviour Jesus Christ; ' (Titus 2, KJV)

This is the KJV rendering that makes it look like 'Great God' AND 'Saviour of us' could possibly be two separate persons.

However, most other translations present the Great God and saviour of us as the same, Jesus Christ.

How is this possible?

But understanding the word 'The'

When two nouns are separated by kai (and) and only one definite article (the) is used for both, then both nouns are speaking of  the same person.

To be more exact this is called the Granville Sharpe Rule and is defined as such. In NT Greek, this is called Granville Sharpe construction. One article is used for both nouns. The Greek KAI ("and") connects the two nouns. This means that the appositive, Jesus Christ, must be referring to both "God" and "Savior". [Titus 2:13]

Winer Scmeidel (_Grammatik_, pg. 158) : "Grammar demands that one person be meant". A.T. Robertson (_Word Pictures In The New Testament_, Vol. 6, pg. 147): "One person not two." Others that agree - Moulton (_Grammar_, Vol. 3, pg. 181), Dana and Mantey (_A Manual Grammar of New Testament Greek_, pg. 147).

http://www.biblestudymanuals.net/granville_sharpe.htm

The JW's get this wrong in their translation which sounds more like the KJV rendering.

"While we wait for the happy hope and glorious appearing of the Great God and of [the] Saviour of us, Christ Jesus." (NWT)

This presents the possibility of the Great God and Saviour being two separate persons.

They even suggest that there is a definite article before Saviour by putting 'the' in [], which is not the case in Greek.

However, the Watchtower/JW's contradict themselves in another publication of theirs called the Diaglott, which I have in my possession.

This Diaglott is a Greek interlinear Bible which has the english in the right column, and the Greek with the english directly below in the left hand column.

In the Right hand column it says:

"waiting for the Blessed hope, even the appearing of the Glory of our Great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.."

This sounds like Jesus is both our Great God and Saviour.

In the english below the Greek in the left hand column it says:

"...the great God and saviour OF US Jesus anointed "

The right hand column confirms modern translations that accept the Granville Sharpe rule and the fact that Jesus is both 'The Great God' and 'Our Saviour.

The left hand column sounds more like the KJV, even though it doesn't prove two separate persons, it leaves room for it.

Most of the Modern translations get it right.

But it is indisputable that if one looks at the greek and the use of only one article (THE), that Jesus Christ is both our Great God and saviour.

"awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ," (Titus 2; RSV)