Meaning of "make trim of"

Question

In the Life of Flavius Josephus, as translated by Whiston in the 18th century, Josephus says:

Moreover, when I was a child, and about fourteen years of age, I was
commended by all for the love I had to learning; on which account the
high priests and principal men of the city came then frequently to me
together, in order to know my opinion about the accurate understanding
of points of the law. And when I was about sixteen years old, I had a
mind to make trim of the several sects that were among us.

What does "make trim of" mean? Try on for size? Evaluate?

Ben Crowell · Answer

I'm not sure if the following self-answer is correct, but here's what I found out.
The original Greek is this:

γενομενος εβουληθην των παρ ημιν αἱρέσεων ἐμπειρίαν λαβειν

My Greek is pretty poor, but I think γίγνομαι=to become, and βούλομαι=to wish, ἐμπειρία=experience, practice. Maybe αἱρέσεων is some other koine usage of a word that has to do with import duties. So anyway, it seems like he wants to become experienced. The translation by Thackeray on the right-hand side across from the Greek is "gain personal experience," which seems to match this word-by-word translation.
So it seems like the idea that Whiston is trying to represent in English with "make trim of" is something that means "gain personal experience." If it's a reference to tailoring, then it probably does mean "try on for size."

Meaning of "make trim of"

One Answer

Add your own answers!

Ask a Question