"An Opened Door" - Revelation 3:8 and the New World Translation

This is an excerpt from Mounce's Basics of Biblical Greek:

"Exegetical Insight

IDOU DEDWKA ENWPION SOU QURAN HNEWGMENHN (Rev 3:8). "Behold, I have set before thee an open door" (KJV); "See, I have placed before you an open door" (NIV); "Behold, I have put before you an open door" (NASB).

Here is a classic example of the weakness or inadequacy of translations. In the first place each of these versions obscures the basic meaning of the verb, DEDWKA, telling the reader that it means "I have set," or "I have placed," or "I have put," when it really means, "I have given." The resurrected, exalted Christ personally addresses the hearer of this word (note the SOU ["you"], second person singular) and says, "Look, I have given you something special right before your eyes-it is my permanent (the force of the perfect tense, DEDWKA) gift to you!"

And in the second place they all translate the words stating what this gift is, QURAN HNEWGMENHN as "an open door." In doing so they fail to communicate to the reader that it is not just "an open door," as if by chance it happened to be "open." It is in fact "an opened door," since the adjective modifying door, HNEWGMENHN is a participle in the passive voice, a "divine passive," implying that the door is not simply open, but that it is a divinely opened door-a door opened by God.

And further, something that is especially important for this lesson , none of these translations takes note of the fact that this passive participle is also in the perfect tense, the tense that stresses the idea that not only did God open the door, but having done so it stands presently and permanently open. Is it any wonder, then, that the speaker from heaven here goes on to say, "Hence, no one is able to shut it.""

The Kingdom Interlinear Translation has "I have given" for DEDWKA. Interestingly though, after
checking the regular mainstream Bibles, like the ones mentioned above, and also the NEB, NAB, HCSB, NKJV, NRSV etc, none translate it as "opened." But the New World Translation does, proving again its usefulness. As an aside, Wesley, YLT, TEV, Dy, and the NLT do also.

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