Prototokos, Prototeon, Protogonos, Protoktistos?

 Firstborn in Col 1:15?

Prototokos, Prototeon, Protogonos, Protoktistos?

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Here we see that Paul highlights the pre-eminence of Jesus and he uses a particular word “πρωτεύων” [proteuon] and this term has the sense of ‘being first, pre-eminent, chief, to be first, first in rank, position…’ hence, in the above examples translations we have, “to have first place in everything” and “that in everything he might have the supremacy” also, “that in everything he might be preeminent”.

Proteuon?

If Paul wanted to reflect Jesus’ pre-eminence, reflected in the terms “over” and “supreme”, again, he would have employed the same term “proteuon” [‘being first, pre-eminent, chief, to be first, first in rank, position…’] but Paul in this instance, unlike v18, was not emphasising Jesus; pre-eminence, as reflected in the above terms, but, he did not choose that term, Paul employed another term, to highlight some other thing about Jesus, in that, he was not pre-eminent, but the first created, he used “firstborn” [prototokos] the term “proto” means “first…” but “tokos” is derived from “tikto” [the root being “tek”] and “tikto” can mean “birth, to bring forth, labour, produce, to bear…” in other words, “tikto” has the simple sense of bringing something to birth, bringing forth, to produce something…!

Protogonos?

Incidentally, had Paul wanted to use another expression to focus on Jesus as being “pre-eminent” he could have employed the Greek term “proto-gonos” [first as to: rank] and was more in popular use in extra-Jewish writings, than “prototokos” and in the LXX at Micah 7:1 it means first as to “rank” [position, class, category, title, order…] of the fruits of the field i.e. the choicest, ripest, best…!

Prototokos?

The actual lexical meaning of “prototokos” is “first created” as this line of reasoning agrees with Hebraic usage of the tradition, “firstborn” meant “first created” in the mind of a Hebrew, as in the mind of such “born” meant “created” (on the human level) in the sense of being “pro-created” in relation to ‘man’, the term “born” is typical of Hebrew poetry and meant, to be “created”; Jesus is therefore, part of the creative order of things, the intensity behind the partitive expression “prototokos” is not “over” or “supreme”* but is emphatic of Jesus actually being a creation and it is interesting to note, that at Col 1:15 b

The KJV and the Douay translators were on the right track, when rendering “κτίσεως” (ktiseos) as, “creature”, as, “ktiseos” is related to, “κτίσις” (ktisis), “κτίζω” (ktizo)…and has the basic meaning of ‘created, creature, a created thing, to institute, founding…’

The early church fathers.

Prototokos and Protoktistos?

It must be remembered that the fathers of the church, as in the time of Clement of Alexandria (c. 2nd/3rd cent. CE) used the term when speaking of Jesus, “protoktistos” [first-created] as well as “prototokos”, the two terms being interchangeable [no differentiation between the two terms in those days] as there were no Trinitarian disputes then at that period, it was only when Trinitarian notions, as to the relationship between Father and Son arose, that serious disputes caused the term “proto-ktistos” to eventually be dropped, the apostle Paul did not used the term “proto-ktistos” [first-created] as it had not come into fashionable use in his day, only later!