The Noble and Good Heart: Καλοκὰγαθία in Luke's Parable
THE NOBLE AND GOOD HEART: Καλοκὰγαθία IN LUKE’S PARABLE OF THE SOWER John B. Weaver Among the gospel accounts of the Parable of the Sower, Luke’s nar- rative is unique in its description of a “noble and good heart” (καρδία καλὴ καὶ ἀγαθή) wherein the seeds of God’s word are planted and grow (Luke 8:15). It is widely recognized in the commentary tradition that the phrase καλὸς καὶ ἀγαθός was a conventional expression used in Greco-Roman culture to designate those of high status, particularly high moral status.1 Despite these passing references in commentaries on Luke, and the faint echo of the ancient topos in modern translations (e.g., “honest and good heart” in the KJV and “noble and good heart” in the NIV), investigation of the interpretive signifi cance of this ancient 1 This observation is standard and unelaborated in commentaries, e.g., François Bovon, Luke 1: A Commentary on the Gospel of Luke 1:1–9:50 (Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2002), 311: “In order to make comprehensible the special character of Christian existence, Luke uses the Greek concept of ideal existence, καλοκὰγαθία (‘noble goodness’).” Similarly, Hans Klein, Das Lukasevangelium (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2006), 308; Luke Timothy Johnson, The Gospel of Luke (SP 3; Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical, 1991), 133; Joseph Fitzmyer, The Gospel according to Luke I–IX (AB 28; Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1981), 714; Frederick Danker, Jesus and the New Age (St. Louis: Clayton, 1972), 177; Birger Gerhardsson, “The Parable of the Sower and Its Interpretation,” NTS 14 (1968): 184; Jacques DuPont, “La Parabole du Semeur,” FoiVie 66 (1967): 20; W.
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