Unwritten Wonders: Koine Economy and Classical Fullness in John’s Epilogue

Πολλὰ μὲν οὖν καὶ ἄλλα σημεῖα ἐποίησεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐνώπιον τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ, ἃ οὐκ ἔστι γεγραμμένα ἐν τῷ βιβλίῳ τούτῳ·‘(John 20:30)

Many indeed also other signs Jesus did before his disciples, which are not written in this book.

Koine Greek Grammar and Syntax

• Πολλὰ μὲν οὖν καὶ ἄλλα: The adverbial correlative construction “μὲν οὖν … καὶ ἄλλα” expresses a summative and concessive force. The word order reflects Koine tendency toward fronting important elements (e.g., “many indeed also other signs”).
• ἐποίησεν: Aorist active indicative 3rd singular of ποιέω, indicating completed action. It encapsulates the miraculous acts of Jesus as a bounded whole.
• ὁ Ἰησοῦς … ἐνώπιον τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ: Standard nominative subject followed by a prepositional phrase indicating location or audience — Koine favors these explicit clarifications.
• ἃ: Neuter plural relative pronoun, linking back to σημεῖα.
• οὐκ ἔστι γεγραμμένα: Present indicative of εἰμί + perfect passive participle of γράφω. This periphrastic construction emphasizes the *present state* of the unwritten signs.
• ἐν τῷ βιβλίῳ τούτῳ: Locative prepositional phrase specifying the particular book — John’s Gospel — with τούτῳ showing textual deixis.

Comparison with Classical Greek Usage

• Classical Greek might use μὲν … δὲ more formally instead of μὲν οὖν, reserving οὖν for transitional or inferential connections rather than concessive setups.
• The Classical equivalent of ἐποίησεν would remain, but stylistically might be placed later in the sentence or subordinated in a more periodic structure.
• ἐνώπιον is more commonly seen in Hellenistic and Biblical Greek. Classical authors often preferred expressions like ἐναντίον or used dative constructions instead.
• The relative clause ἃ οὐκ ἔστι γεγραμμένα would likely appear with a more compact verb form in Classical Greek — perhaps simply οὐ γέγραπται.
• Use of βιβλίον was rarer in Classical Greek; scrolls (βιβλία) existed, but the term gained prominence in Koine and later Christian usage as codices emerged.

Semantic and Stylistic Shifts

• Koine favors straightforward narration, with clear subject–verb–object structures. The emphasis is on clarity and accessibility, reflecting the Gospel’s evangelistic intent.
• Classical Greek would lean toward a more artful, hypotactic structure, potentially embedding the statement within conditional or causal clauses.
• The periphrastic verb phrase ἔστι γεγραμμένα in Koine stresses an ongoing state — suitable for theological reflection on the authority of written Scripture. Classical style would more likely compress this for elegance.
• The Koine repetition of synonymous modifiers (πολλὰ … καὶ ἄλλα) intensifies the sense of abundance, a rhetorical device less common in Classical prose.

Summary Comparison Table