1.  What is grammatical criticism?

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
(Jn 1:1)

The prologue or introduction to the Gospel of John is well-known. Much can be learned from the given rendering of the passage. For instance, the passage begins with a reflection concerning Christ's nature, i.e. Christ was not made, Christ always was and is. If we were to apply historical criticism of this passage, we could possibly compare the creation account of Genesis to the as there seems to be some overlapping ideas. Further, the second phrase in the above passage seems to suggest a relationship between God the Creator and God as the Word. Lastly, this passage also proclaims the divinity of Christ as the Word. What more can we learn from the passage? If we were to examine the the grammar, i.e. the rules by which meaning is conveyed through the language, even more meaning is found within Jn 1:1. The mention of grammar can be somewhat daunting. Perhaps it invokes images of elementary school and being forced to diagram sentences at length or standing up and reciting seemingly unimportant rules of grammer. If you have ever studied Greek or Latin perhaps the term "grammar" reminds you of endlessly conjugating verbs or worrying about which syllable is  to be stressed or how many stories about farmer-soldiers were written in the ancient world? Grammar is far more than a set of rules; grammar is the meta-ground of meaning. As soil can produce produce, so too does grammar support meaning. And as a farmer might study the soil in order to increase their harvest, we can study grammar in order to have a more fecund understanding of a passage. Grammatical criticism analyzes passages through a study of specific words or phrases in order to more clearly understand the meaning of that passage.

Francis Moloney, within the Sacra Pagina Commentary on the Gospel of John, has translated Jn 1:1 somewhat differently than the translation given above. His translation is based on a knowledge of the original language (in this case Greek) and on the grammar of the passage:

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was turned toward God,
and what God was the Word also was.
(Moloney, p. 33)

One of the more striking differences in translation centers around the prepositional phrase "with God." The Greek is pros ton theon. Pros can be translated as "with" - within modern English it is common to speak of being "pro" something (meaning you are for or with an idea). Moloney suggests that the static understanding of pros (meaning "with") is not adequate. He suggests that the prepositional phrase is describing something far more dynamic than the Word and God simply being together. As we might gravitate towards an idea, perhaps the "with" of the above passage is suggesting the Word moving towards God. Perhaps as we imitate and worship the Word, we too move towards the Creator. Also note the use of the Greek "logos" or Word. A word is that which is uttered. Thus, Christ as the Word, becomes an utterance of God. The utterance is both revealing and creative. It seems that the final clause of the above passage tells us much about Christ but also tells us much about God. That is why Moloney has translated the passage as "and what God was the Word also was." The typical translation addresses the Word as subject, i.e. as that about which we are learning. But if we examine the grammar of the passage, it is evident that both the creator and the Christ are proper subjects or referents of the passage.

As one more example of grammatical criticism, I offer the following:

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law,
though testified to by the law and the prophets,
the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.
(Romans, 3:21 - 22)

The key phrase of the passage is "through faith in Jesus Christ." The English translation seems to suggest that if we have faith in Christ, i.e. if Christ is the object of our faith, then righteousness is possible. If we were to examine the Greek, however, another meaning of the passage is possible. The Greek can also be translated as "through the faith of Jesus Christ." In the latter translation, our righteousness is made possible through Christ's faith and in the example of Christ's faith. Any card carrying grammarian would   know that I am making  the distinction between an "objective genitive" and a "subjective genitive."

II. Tools of the Trade

The Hayes & Holladay suggests three tools for the beginning exegete to employ when attempting grammatical criticism ( pp. 60 - 61):

1.  Bible Dictionaries and encyclopedias
2.  Lexicons
3.  Concordances