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John 8:4


80a

The word "ἐπαυτοφώρῳ" (epautophōrō) occurs only once here in the NT. Generally when a special word shows up in the NT there is a really good reason for it. 

  1. "ἐπί" (epi): A preposition meaning "upon" or "in."

  2. "αὐτόφωρος" (autopōros): An adjective derived from "αὐτό" (auto), meaning "self," and "φωρός" (phōros), meaning "watching" or "observation." "ἐπαυτοφώρῳ" (epautophōrō) functions as an adverbial form of "αὐτόφωρος" (autopōros).

So, "ἐπαυτοφώρῳ" (epautophōrō) means "upon oneself being caught" or "caught in the act by oneself," indicating that the action described happened while the subject was directly observed or caught in the act.

The literal translations of "ἐπαυτοφώρῳ" (epautophōrō) are:

  1. Upon self-observation.
  2. Caught by oneself.
  3. Self-caught.
  4. Caught in the act by oneself.
  5. Caught red-handed by oneself.

When context is determined by bias, and in turn, a unique word construct is ignored or concealed in favor of that context, is it still honest translation? At the same time, the text is foretelling the dishonest translation of itself, and the "traditions of men" violently forced up on it.