This verse captures a powerful moment of disbelief from the resurrection narrative, using tightly structured Greek clauses to contrast hearing with rejection: κἀκεῖνοι ἀκούσαντες ὅτι ζῇ καὶ ἐθεάθη ὑπ’ αὐτῆς, ἠπίστησαν from Mark 16:11. The grammar balances participles and indicative verbs to portray the theological tension between testimony and resistance — between resurrection truth and human doubt.
The Greek Text in Focus
κἀκεῖνοι ἀκούσαντες ὅτι ζῇ καὶ ἐθεάθη ὑπ’ αὐτῆς, ἠπίστησαν (Mark 16:11)
“And they, having heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, did not believe.”
Grammatical Highlights
- κἀκεῖνοι — crasis of καὶ + ἐκεῖνοι (“and those ones,” i.e., they); subject of the sentence.
- ἀκούσαντες — aorist participle active, masculine plural nominative; “having heard.”
- ὅτι ζῇ — subordinate clause introduced by ὅτι (“that”), with ζῇ as present indicative active, third singular (“he lives”).
- ἐθεάθη — aorist passive indicative, third singular (“he was seen”).
- ὑπ’ αὐτῆς — preposition + genitive (“by her”), marking agency.
- ἠπίστησαν — aorist indicative active, third plural; the main verb (“they did not believe”).
Aorist Participles: Hearing Before Unbelief
The participle ἀκούσαντες precedes the main verb ἠπίστησαν. This is classic Greek narrative technique: the participle expresses an action that occurs prior to the main verb. The grammar shows that they did not disbelieve out of ignorance — they heard, and then they disbelieved. The unbelief was not due to lack of evidence but in spite of it.
Double Testimony: Life and Sight
The content of what they heard is given in two coordinated clauses: ὅτι ζῇ (“that he lives”) and καὶ ἐθεάθη ὑπ’ αὐτῆς (“and he was seen by her”). The first is present tense — ζῇ — showing ongoing life; the second is aorist passive — ἐθεάθη — a completed event of being seen. Greek balances continual reality (he lives) with a past fact (he appeared), creating a full testimonial report. Yet the reaction is disbelief.
The Weight of ἠπίστησαν
The verb ἠπίστησαν (from ἀπιστέω) is aorist indicative active. The aorist denotes a decisive action — not ongoing doubt, but a settled response: “they refused to believe.” The verb stands at the end of the sentence, giving it rhetorical and emotional punch. Greek often places the most significant element at the end for emphasis — and here it is their tragic decision to reject the resurrection testimony.
| Word | Form | Function | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| κἀκεῖνοι | Crasis of καὶ + ἐκεῖνοι | Subject | And they |
| ἀκούσαντες | Aorist Participle Active, Nom. Pl. Masc. | Action prior to main verb | Having heard |
| ζῇ | Present Indicative Active, 3rd Sing. | Verb of subordinate clause | He lives |
| ἐθεάθη | Aorist Indicative Passive, 3rd Sing. | Passive testimony | He was seen |
| ὑπ’ αὐτῆς | Preposition + Genitive Pronoun | Agent of passive verb | By her |
| ἠπίστησαν | Aorist Indicative Active, 3rd Plural | Main verb | They did not believe |
The Grammar of Rejected Resurrection
In Mark 16:11, grammar is not neutral — it reveals layers of spiritual crisis. The aorist participle places hearing before unbelief; the coordinated clauses show the fullness of the testimony; the climactic aorist verb marks a tragic final decision. In Greek, the rejection of the resurrection is not just emotional — it is grammatically deliberate. Even in disbelief, the language holds us accountable to what we have heard.
