Identifying Adjectives in New Testament Greek: A Practical Guide

Spotting adjectives in New Testament Greek can be a bit tricky at first, but there are some key patterns and grammar rules to help. This guide offers practical tips for recognizing adjectives in New Testament Greek, an essential skill for accurate reading and translation. Here are the main ways to identify adjectives in NT Greek:

1. Adjectives Agree in Gender, Number, and Case with the Noun

Adjectives in Greek must match the noun they modify in gender (masculine, feminine, neuter), number (singular or plural), and case (nominative, genitive, dative, accusative).

Example: In ἀγαθὸς ἄνθρωπος (good man), the adjective ἀγαθός, (good) agrees with the noun ἄνθρωπος, (man) in gender, number, and case.… Learn Koine Greek

Posted in Grammar | Leave a comment

Learning New Testament Greek: Avoiding Common Student Mistakes

Learning New Testament Greek can be challenging, and students often encounter several common pitfalls. Here are some mistakes that new students typically make and suggestions on how to avoid them:

1. Neglecting Vocabulary

Mistake: Students often focus too much on grammar and overlook the importance of vocabulary, leading to difficulty in reading and comprehension.

Solution: Regularly practice vocabulary using flashcards or apps. Try to learn a set number of new words each week and review them frequently.

 

2. Ignoring Context

Mistake: Students may translate phrases in isolation without considering the broader context of the passage, leading to misunderstandings.

Solution: Always read the surrounding verses or chapters.… Learn Koine Greek

Posted in Grammar | Leave a comment

If That’s the Case: Marriage and Discipleship in Matthew 19:10

λέγουσιν αὐτῷ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ· Εἰ οὕτως ἐστὶν ἡ αἰτία τοῦ ἀνθρώπου μετὰ τῆς γυναικός, οὐ συμφέρει γαμῆσαι

After Jesus’ strict teaching on divorce, the disciples respond with an almost stunned objection. Their words in Matthew 19:10 are brief but packed with realism—and their grammar reflects that intensity. This isn’t a question, it’s a conclusion. Their reaction reveals just how radical Jesus’ view of marriage sounded in a first-century context.

Grammatical Foundations

The verb λέγουσιν is present active indicative, 3rd person plural: “they say.” Combined with the dative pronoun αὐτῷ, it introduces direct speech to Jesus. The speakers are identified next: οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ—his disciples.… Learn Koine Greek

Posted in Grammar | Tagged | Leave a comment

Power in Weakness: Divine Strength and the Subjunctive of Purpose in 2 Corinthians 12:9

καὶ εἴρηκέ μοι· ἀρκεῖ σοι ἡ χάρις μου· ἡ γὰρ δύναμίς μου ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελειοῦται. ἥδιστα οὖν μᾶλλον καυχήσομαι ἐν ταῖς ἀσθενείαις μου, ἵνα ἐπισκηνώσῃ ἐπ’ ἐμὲ ἡ δύναμις τοῦ Χριστοῦ. The Grammar of Surrender and Strength

2 Corinthians 12:9 records the Lord’s personal word to Paul in response to his plea for relief. But the answer is unexpected and transformative: not deliverance, but grace. Not removal of weakness, but infusion of power. And it is Greek grammar—specifically the use of the perfect tense, present indicative, and subjunctive of purpose—that unfolds this paradox. In this verse, divine power is not revealed despite weakness, but through it, and the syntax itself teaches us to embrace God’s logic of grace.… Learn Koine Greek

Posted in Exegesis | Leave a comment

Matthew 11:29 and the Language of Invitation

Matthew 11:29 ἄρατε τὸν ζυγόν μου ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς καὶ μάθετε ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ, ὅτι πρᾷός εἰμι καὶ ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ, καὶ εὑρήσετε ἀνάπαυσιν ταῖς ψυχαῖς ὑμῶν· Literal English Translation

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Layered Meanings in Common Vocabulary ἄρατε τὸν ζυγόν μου ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς The verb ἄρατε is the 2nd person plural aorist active imperative of αἴρω—”lift, take up.” In Classical Greek, this verb often implies burden or removal (e.g., lifting off a siege). Here, it forms a paradox: taking up a burden leads to rest.… Learn Koine Greek
Posted in Ancient Greek | Tagged | Leave a comment

When the Evil One Comes”: A Study of Ellipsis and Implicit Action in Matthew 13:19

παντὸς ἀκούοντος τὸν λόγον τῆς βασιλείας καὶ μὴ συνιέντος, ἔρχεται ὁ πονηρὸς καὶ αἴρει τὸ ἐσπαρμένον ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ· οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ παρὰ τὴν ὁδὸν σπαρείς. The Parable of the Sower and the Hidden Verb

In Matthew 13:19, Jesus begins to interpret the parable of the sower — explaining what happens to the seed sown along the path. The verse opens with a participial construction that appears complete but contains a subtle grammatical gap:

> “Every one who hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and takes away what was sown in his heart…”

This sentence is elliptical — it omits a finite verb that we instinctively supply based on context.… Learn Koine Greek

Posted in Grammar | Tagged | Leave a comment

Abounding in Grace: Subjunctive Purpose and Spiritual Fullness in 2 Corinthians 8:7

Ἀλλ’ ὥσπερ ἐν παντὶ περισσεύετε, πίστει καὶ λόγῳ καὶ γνώσει καὶ πάσῃ σπουδῇ καὶ τῇ ἐξ ὑμῶν ἐν ἡμῖν ἀγάπῃ, ἵνα καὶ ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ χάριτι περισσεύητε. (2 Corinthians 8:7) Overflowing in All Things: Context and Contrast

In 2 Corinthians 8, Paul exhorts the Corinthians to follow through in generosity toward the Jerusalem believers. He frames the appeal not as a command but as an invitation to participate in grace. Verse 7 uses grammatical symmetry and a subjunctive purpose clause to extend that invitation: as they abound in many spiritual virtues, so they should also abound in this particular χάρις — the grace of giving.… Learn Koine Greek

Posted in Exegesis, Grammar | Tagged | Leave a comment

Fragments that Speak: Greek Grammar in a Question of Memory

Today we analyze a single interrogative sentence from Jesus that is both grammatically intricate and theologically evocative: ὅτε τοὺς πέντε ἄρτους ἔκλασα εἰς τοὺς πεντακισχιλίους, καὶ πόσους κοφίνους κλασμάτων πλήρεις ἤρατε; λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· δώδεκα from Mark 8:19. It is a question designed not for information, but for confrontation — and grammar plays a crucial role in shaping that rhetorical impact.

The Greek Text in Focus

ὅτε τοὺς πέντε ἄρτους ἔκλασα εἰς τοὺς πεντακισχιλίους, καὶ πόσους κοφίνους κλασμάτων πλήρεις ἤρατε; λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· δώδεκα (Mark 8:19)

“When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?”… Learn Koine Greek

Posted in Grammar | Tagged | Leave a comment

Slaves Who Promise Freedom: Participles, Paradox, and Passive Conquest in 2 Peter 2:19

Ἐλευθερίαν αὐτοῖς ἐπαγγελλόμενοι, αὐτοὶ δοῦλοι ὑπάρχοντες τῆς φθορᾶς· ᾧ γάρ τις ἥττηται, τούτῳ καὶ δεδούλωται. (2 Peter 2:19) Deception in Voice and Form

This verse from 2 Peter delivers a scathing rebuke against false teachers who promise liberty, yet are themselves enslaved to corruption. The Greek construction powerfully reinforces this moral irony, through its layered participles, passives, and causal logic.

We will examine the verse’s core grammar using a structured table, highlighting:

– Present participles that describe deceptive activity and true condition – A genitive of subjection that defines the master – A dative of subjection that follows a perfect passive verb – A causal clause structured around identity and subjugation

Grammatical Analysis Table Greek Phrase Form & Morphology Function Meaning ἐλευθερίαν αὐτοῖς ἐπαγγελλόμενοι Present middle participle, nominative plural masculine from ἐπαγγέλλομαι Adjectival participle modifying the false teachers “promising them freedom” — deceptive appearance of liberty αὐτοὶ δοῦλοι ὑπάρχοντες τῆς φθορᾶς Present active participle (ὑπάρχοντες) + genitive of subjection Predicate description “they themselves are slaves of corruption” — contrasting reality to their message ᾧ γάρ τις ἥττηται Relative pronoun in dative + perfect passive indicative, 3rd sg.… Learn Koine Greek
Posted in Exegesis | Tagged | Leave a comment

Why Then Did Moses Command It? A Grammar Inquiry from Matthew 19:7

Λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· τί οὖν Μωσῆς ἐνετείλατο δοῦναι βιβλίον ἀποστασίου καὶ ἀπολῦσαι αὐτήν; (Matthew 19:7)

Modern Greek Pronunciation: légousin aftó̱: ti ú̱n Mōsís enetílato doúnai vivlíon apostasíou kai apolý̱sai aftín?

Literal English Translation: They say to him: Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?

Koine Greek Breakdown λέγουσιν – present active indicative 3rd person plural from λέγω, “they say”. αὐτῷ – dative masculine singular pronoun, “to him”. τί – interrogative pronoun, “why”. οὖν – particle, “then”, signaling inference or emphasis. Μωσῆς – proper noun, nominative masculine singular, “Moses”. ἐνετείλατο – aorist middle indicative 3rd singular from ἐντέλλομαι, “he commanded”.… Learn Koine Greek
Posted in Modern Greek | Tagged | Leave a comment