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Greek Lessons
- The Word Near You: Syntax, Faith, and the Internalization of Truth in Romans 10:8
- Synonyms: Image and Likeness: εἰκών, ὁμοίωσις, and ὁμοίωμα in the Greek New Testament
- Obedience and Retaliation: Conditional Justice and Grammatical Warfare in 2 Corinthians 10:6
- The Body Prepared: Syntax and Sacrifice in Hebrews 10:5–6
- Names, Appositions, and the Grammar of Betrayal
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Category
Tag Archives: Mark 9:23
If You Can Believe: Conditional Syntax and the Power of Faith in Mark 9:23
Ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτῷ· τὸ εἰ δύνασαι πιστεῦσαι, πάντα δυνατὰ τῷ πιστεύοντι. (Mark 9:23)
And Jesus said to him: “If you are able to believe, all things are possible for the one who believes.”
The Conditional That Shifts the WorldIn Mark 9:23, Jesus responds to a father’s desperate plea with a phrase that balances on a grammatical edge: τὸ εἰ δύνασαι πιστεῦσαι. The ambiguity here—intensified by the abrupt syntax and word placement—has sparked centuries of discussion. Is Jesus quoting the father’s doubtful words with irony, or offering a conditional statement full of promise? The answer lies in the Greek structure.… Learn Koine Greek