Καὶ ὁ τρίτος ἄγγελος ἐσάλπισε, καὶ ἔπεσεν ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἀστὴρ μέγας καιόμενος ὡς λαμπάς, καὶ ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ τὸ τρίτον τῶν ποταμῶν καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς πηγὰς τῶν ὑδάτων. (Revelation 8:10)
And the third angel sounded the trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell upon a third of the rivers and upon the springs of waters.
When Declensions Map Cosmic Catastrophe
This apocalyptic trumpet vision uses declensions to anchor a chaotic scene in grammatical precision. Nominatives identify the celestial actors, genitives frame the source and scope of disaster, and accusatives pinpoint its objects. The grammar not only describes the event but also structures its prophetic intensity.
Declension Analysis Table
| Greek Word | Morphology | Case & Syntactic Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ὁ τρίτος ἄγγελος | 2nd declension masculine nominative singular with article and ordinal adjective | Subject of ἐσάλπισε | The third in sequence of trumpet angels |
| ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ | Preposition + 2nd declension masculine genitive singular with article | Genitive of source | “From heaven”—origin of the falling star |
| ἀστὴρ μέγας | 3rd declension masculine nominative singular noun with adjective | Subject of ἔπεσεν | “A great star”—grammatical agent of falling |
| καιόμενος | Present middle/passive participle, nominative masculine singular from καίω | Attributive participle modifying ἀστὴρ μέγας | “Burning” or “being set ablaze” — intensifies the image of judgment |
| ὡς λαμπάς | ὡς + accusative singular feminine of λαμπάς | Accusative of comparison | “Like a torch” — preposition ὡς governs the accusative in a simile |
| ἐπὶ τὸ τρίτον | Preposition + accusative neuter singular | Accusative of direction/target with ἐπί | “Upon a third” — identifies the portion of the whole affected |
| τῶν ποταμῶν | 2nd declension masculine genitive plural with article | Partitive genitive | “Of the rivers”—objects partially affected |
| τὰς πηγάς | 1st declension feminine accusative plural with article | Accusative object of preposition | “The springs”—secondary targets of the star’s fall |
| τῶν ὑδάτων | 3rd declension neuter genitive plural with article | Genitive of description or content | Specifies that the springs are springs “of waters” |
Genitives that Define Source and Scope
– ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ: genitive of origin — cosmic source of the falling star.
– τῶν ποταμῶν and τῶν ὑδάτων: partitive and descriptive genitives that define the objects impacted.
Accusatives that Mark Direct Impact
– ἐπὶ τὸ τρίτον: accusative with preposition ἐπί marking the fraction targeted.
– τὰς πηγάς: paired with τῶν ὑδάτων to identify a second category of water sources affected.
Declensions that Anchor Prophetic Imagery
In this vivid scene, nominatives name the actors (the angel, the star), genitives trace both the star’s celestial origin and the extent of its destructive reach, and accusatives pinpoint the exact objects struck. The precision of these declensions keeps the apocalyptic vision from being vague: it is not “water” in general but one-third of the rivers and springs of waters. The grammar thus frames and focuses the terror of the vision.
