1 Corinthians 10:28 — ἐὰν δέ τις ὑμῖν εἴπῃ…
In this lesson we treat Paul’s conditional warning as a live linguistic doorway into how a Greek speaker of the first century would actually respond, not merely parse.
Our aim: to help you produce Koine while understanding its Classical ancestry.
I. The Living Clause
ἐὰν δέ τις ὑμῖν εἴπῃ, τοῦτο εἰδωλόθυτόν ἐστι…
Here Paul uses a protasis of real potentiality—precisely the kind likely used in daily speech: “If someone should say to you, ‘This is idol-offering…’”
The Koine conditional system evolves from the more baroque Classical one; however, it preserves the functional clarity of ἐάν + subjunctive while increasingly disfavoring elaborate optative structures.
Take-away for learners: Memorise ἐάν + subjunctive as your default living-Greek way to express open conditions.
II. Koine–Classical Contrast Table
| Feature | Koine Expression | Classical Analogue | Production Tip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Condition Form | ἐάν + subjunctive | ἐάν + subj.; εἰ + opt. in complex prose | γράψον ἐάν τι |
| Reported Speech Marker | εἴπῃ (aor. subj.) | εἴπῃ / εἴποι (opt.) depending on register | εἴπῃ φίλος μοι |
| Purpose/Reason Clarity | δι’ ἐκεῖνον + acc. | δι’ ἐκεῖνον / ἕνεκα ἐκείνου | ποίησον δι’ ἐμέ |
| Ethical Motivation | καὶ τὴν συνείδησιν | τὴν συνείδησιν ἕνεκα / διάνοιαν | φύλαττε τὴν συνείδησιν |
| Assertion of Divine Ownership | τοῦ γὰρ Κυρίου ἡ γῆ… | ἡ γῆ Κυρίου ἐστίν (elevated diction possible) | ἡ γῆ Κυρίου |
Take-away for learners: Let Koine’s simpler choices (subjunctive, direct prepositions, fewer optatives) guide your own composition.
III. Morphology Snap-Table
| Word | Parsing | Gloss |
|---|---|---|
| ἐάν | conditional particle + subj. | if (open) |
| δέ | contrastive particle | but / and |
| τις | indefinite pronoun nom. sg. | someone |
| ὑμῖν | 2nd pl. dat. | to you |
| εἴπῃ | aor. subj. act. 3 sg. | should say |
| τοῦτο | demonstrative acc. sg. | this |
| εἰδωλόθυτον | adj. acc. sg. substantivized | idol-offering |
| ἐστι | pres. ind. act. 3 sg. | is |
| μὴ ἐσθίετε | μὴ + pres. imperat. 2 pl. | do not eat |
| δι’ ἐκεῖνον | prep. διά + acc. | because of that person |
| τὸν μηνύσαντα | aor. part. act. acc. sg. | the one who reported |
| καὶ τὴν συνείδησιν | acc. sg. | and the conscience |
| τοῦ γὰρ Κυρίου | gen. sg. | for of the Lord |
| ἡ γῆ | nom. sg. | the earth |
| τὸ πλήρωμα | nom./acc. sg., neut. | the fullness |
| αὐτῆς | gen. sg. fem. | of it |
Take-away for learners: Master the aorist subjunctive of λέγω for everyday conditional speech.
IV. Syntax Sandbox
Original: ἐὰν δέ τις ὑμῖν εἴπῃ…
1. ἐν ἐὰν δέ τις ὑμῖν λέγῃ — present subjunctive: what ongoing nuance emerges?
2. εἰ δέ τις ὑμῖν εἴποι — optative: how does the register shift toward Classical elegance?
3. τις ἐὰν ὑμῖν εἴπῃ δέ — particle dislocation: what pragmatic emphasis changes?
4. ἐὰν δέ τις σοι εἴπῃ — singular pronoun: how does this personalize the condition?
Translate each aloud, noticing how aspect, particle movement, and person affect tone.
Take-away for learners: Small shifts in aspect or word order produce meaning-effects—experiment boldly when composing.
V. A Classical Echo
A plausible Attic analogue would be:
ἐάν τις σοι εἴποι, τοῦτο ἱερὸν ἔστιν, μὴ πράττε τοῦτο ἕνεκα ἐκείνου καὶ τῆς συνειδήσεως.
This Attic phrasing preserves the refined optative εἴποι in some registers, and substitutes ἱερόν for εἰδωλόθυτον to align with Classical sacrificial vocabulary.
Now imitate this Classical clause with a Koine twist: replace the optative with a subjunctive and drop δή.
ἐάν τις σοι εἴπῃ, τοῦτο ἱερὸν ἐστιν, μὴ πράττε δι’ ἐκεῖνον καὶ τὴν συνείδησιν.
Take-away for learners: Move comfortably between optative (Classical) and subjunctive (Koine) by practicing substitutions.
VI. ⚠ Koine Trap
Koine often collapses middle/passive distinctions—don’t confuse passive-sounding participles like ὁ μηνύσας with actual passives; voice syncretism can mislead beginners.
VII. Living Application: Ethical Greek for Ethical Speech
Paul’s argument is pragmatic: speech creates obligation. The grammar mirrors this: a simple conditional creates a chain of ethical causality.
To write Greek that “feels alive,” practice forming short ethical maxims using ἐάν + subjunctive, δι’ ἐκεῖνον, and conscience vocabulary.
Take-away for learners: Compose short ethical sayings using Koine conditionals—this is how Greek becomes speakable.
The Quiet Grammar of Conscience
Now bring everything together: condition, speech-verb, motive, and divine claim to the world. The grammar of 1 Cor 10:28 teaches that Greek ethics is expressed through structure as much as through vocabulary.
Now compose five Greek words that echo today’s grammar lesson and share them with a fellow learner.
