It is probably wrong to ask the question: "Does the expression "Kath' Oikion" used at Acts 5:42 mean "From "house to house" " because no answer can be given to such a question. Rather I would think the proper question is: "Can it mean such"?
The reason for this dilemma is because the phrase Kath' Oikion can actually have two meanings. And whereas in most texts the meanings can be distinguished, in a few, such as this verse, a measure of ambiguity persists. It can have an "idiomatic" or a "distributive" meaning. If in the context of Acts 5:42, the phrase under discussion has a "distributive" meaning then it may very well be translated "from house to house" as do several translations of this passage.[See NASB, NET, Barklay etc]
If it has an idiomatic meaning, as evidenced by a majority of translations [NKJB NJB RSV NLT AMP NEB REB NAB and even one WT approved version BY] then it would mean "privately" or some variant like "at home" or "in private homes" etc. This is the majority view because the expression "Kath Oikion" is used at Acts 2:46, where the distributive sense cannot be sustained. Otherwise we would have the improbable notion that the early Christians went from house to house breaking bread. In fact it is pertinent to point out that here the NWT does translate the phrase as "in private homes" Go figure.
The problem for us here lies with the word "Kata" which, among its various applications flowing from its basic meaning of "According to" is a distributive one. For instance take a look at Mar 6:40, where NASB has "And they laid themselves down in companies of one hundreds and fiflties" NWT is virtually the same except for the use of "groups" instead of "companies" A literal rendering of this verse would be "They laid themselves down group by group in hundreds and fifties" [ Brown/Comfort Lit version] In a case such as this, the distributive application of Kata is clear.
So we may concede that, were we to take advantage of the relative ambiguity in this verse as the WTS does, that Acts 5:42 could be rendered "House to house" as the WTS would have us believe. However we still have to account for the context. In this verse it tells us that "They" went from house to house and were in the Temple. Has any WTS follower ever asked the simple question who the "They" are in this verse? Hmmm? Does it refer to the whole community of believers, as the WTS insists on pressuring us with?
The context is established by reading from Vs 18, where "they" are first mentioned. It turns out that this entire chapter is speaking about the Church leadership at time, as exercised by the Apostles. They are the "they" who are spoken of. 1They were accused 2They were beaten 3They were tried by the Sanhedrin 4They were charged not to preach in the name of Jesus. 5 They refused 6 They were finally released 7They preached in the Temple and from House to house
Now in all the cases above, according to the WTS the "They" who are mentioned, is admitted to be the Apostles, except for the one, the last, which by some strange alchemy, morphs into the whole community of believers. I will believe the WTS requirement for the entire community to be encumbent with the house to house preaching if the WTS can explain how a small group like the 12 Apostles can be transformed into a community of believers numbering at least 10 000.
I will also believe the WTS interpretation of this text, when I see the WTS leadership, headed by Ted Jaracz out in the field service, distributing the very literature they produce. Not just once a month, not just for one hour, but every bloody day [that's what Acts 5:42 requires] slogging it out in the heat and biting cold, from dawn to dusk. If Ted and his arrogant flunkies have a "love" for jehovah that they so boastfully claim to have, then let them go first, establish the custom, then maybe, I might follow.
It is the most outrageous filth to see these "leaders" comfortable in their luxury, with undisclosed amounts on their credit cards, winging their way around the world in arrogant splendour, making imperious statements from behind the security and anonymity of the platforms they speak from, and the literature they spew out, about how others should act, when they do nothing to alleviate the burdens they themselves impose on their followers.
Do NOT believe, nor be afraid of, these evil and blasphemous men. Nowhere in the NT is there ever a need for every single member of the community of believers to preach from house to house or otherwise. That is not your responsibity, nor is it mine. It is the work of the Holy Spirit. For those who have neither the gift nor the temperment for it, the Holy Spirit will raise up, not just others who do have this gift and temperment, but hundreds and thousands of others. It is only when a faithless and carnal group of men, consumed by their own prominence, and unaware of the power of the Holy Spirit, that such unnessessary commands become apparent.
Cheers
