252 clare k. rothschild
158.10: the manuscript reads ἀφάπαξ, but according to Vitelli31 should be
understood as: ἐφ’ ἅπαξ. In his interpretation, however, stählin focuses
exclusively on new testament examples concluding that, in the new tes-
tament, ἐφάπαξ is a technical term for “the definitiveness and therefore
the uniqueness or singularity of the death of christ and the redemption
thereby accomplished.”32 ceslas spicq, in his TLNT article, “ἅπαξ, ἐφάπαξ /
hapax, ephapax, once,” also notes the presence of ἐφάπαξ in documentary
papyri, qualifying, however, that it is unattested before the sixth century.33
spicq takes p.lond. II 483.89 as seventh century,34 p.lond. V 1708.242 as
sixth century, and rejects attestation of ἀφάπαξ in p.Flor. II 258.10 (verso)
(third century) altogether.35 with or without p.Florence, currently no
papyrological occurrences of ἐφάπαξ predate the new testament. this
documentary evidence is important because Koiné Greek often prefers
compounds where attic avoids them.36 were it not for the dearth of non-
literary (documentary and inscriptional) evidence, we might have con-
cluded that ἐφάπαξ is primarily an oral expression, occurring only rarely
in literary form.37
Finally, baG (1957) places an asterisk at the end of the entry ἐφάπαξ to
denote that its references for both the first meaning: “at once, at one time”
(e.g., 1 cor 15:6, p.lond. II 483.88; V 1708.242; p. Flor. II 158.10) and the
31 In F. preisigke, Berichtungsliste der griechischen Papyrusurkunden aus Ägypten
(berlin/leipzig, 1913; leiden: brill, 2002–), 1:150.
32 TDNT, 1:383.
33 cf. also TLNT, 1:139–42.
34 616 ce according to bdaG, s.v. ἐφάπαξ.
35 TLNT, 1:142. papyri: Papiri greco-egizii, Papiri Fiorentini, Supplementi
Filologico-Storici
ai Monumenti Antichi: Vol. II, “papiri
letterari ed epistolary” (ed. d. comparetti; Florence:
Vitelli, [1908–1910], nos.
106–278); and Greek Papyri in the British Museum II (ed. F. G.
Kenyon; london: british museum, [1898]
nos. 139–484); V (ed. H. I. bell; london: british
museum, [1917], nos. 1647–1911).
36 bdF §114. It is a tendency of Koiné to prefer compound rather than simplex forms,
with the compounded elements sometimes carrying very little meaning. on the general
tendency see bdr/bdF §116.1. the most extensive collection of evidence is the moulton-
Howard grammar (Vol. 2 of the moulton Howard turner Grammar). For secular, roman
period literary Koiné, see d. a. russell’s brief comments: “... many of the verbs are com-
pound hardly seen before in which the prepositional element of seems to have no obvious
force” (An Anthology of Greek Prose [oxford: oxford university press, 1991], xx). also: “the
combination of preposition with adverb is common in the nt (schmid IV 625; Hatzid.
213; mlt 99f. [159]; also mGr, thumb2 §158)” (bdF §203). a common feature of language
development in general is increased numbers of intensive forms, especially adjectives and
adverbs, with barely perceptible difference in meaning from non-intensive form. Finally,
there is little possibility of a Hebraistic circumlocution (bdF §217). polybius’s usage, e.g.,
argues against it.
37 this type of innovation is a feature of early christian literature.