Conjunctions and discerning time/sequencing

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Tim Evans
Posts: 91
Joined: July 10th, 2015, 1:40 am

Conjunctions and discerning time/sequencing

Post by Tim Evans »

It seems to me that there are certain places where it is unambiguously clear that the author of particular narratives in the NT is intending to describe sequence, i.e. "on the day before the passover", "on the great day of the feast", etc...

When the NT is not so explicitly clear, are there particular prepositions that imply time sequence, or can they all be understood to be particularly vague? i.e. can we take Mark's use of 'euthus'/immediately as a point where he is representing exact sequence as opposed to a more general 'kai' and so on?
Wes Wood
Posts: 692
Joined: September 20th, 2013, 8:18 pm

Re: Conjunctions and discerning time/sequencing

Post by Wes Wood »

Tim Evans wrote:It seems to me that there are certain places where it is unambiguously clear that the author of particular narratives in the NT is intending to describe sequence, i.e. "on the day before the passover", "on the great day of the feast", etc...

When the NT is not so explicitly clear, are there particular prepositions that imply time sequence, or can they all be understood to be particularly vague? i.e. can we take Mark's use of 'euthus'/immediately as a point where he is representing exact sequence as opposed to a more general 'kai' and so on?
When you say "it is unambiguously clear that the author of particular narratives in the NT is intending to describe sequence" is the clarity of these passages the result of the specific words that were used or of the context of each specific passage? In your first example "on the day before the passover" there is a two day sequence where the Passover appears to be the primary reference point and "the day before" the Passover is mentioned to establish the temporal setting of the utterance that is associated with that clause. In English the word before is used to show the relationship between these two days and there are Greek words that correspond to this idea (πρὶν [ἢ], πρὸ, ἕως ἂν + subjunctive, etc.) In your second example as well ("on the great day of the feast"), there is a temporal sequence implied--if there is a great day of a feast, one would assume that the feast lasts at least two days--but knowing which day is the great day of the feast from this example would require knowledge that goes beyond the words themselves. What your examples illustrate are that there are specific conjunctions that establish temporal sequence and that Greek also has ways to imply sequence without relying on prepositions. These include, but are not limited to, specific verbs, adverbs, and other phrases.

If you don't mind my asking, how much Greek do you know? It would help me make any future responses more helpful. I am inclined to think that your question is about expressing temporal sequence generally rather than on "prepositions." Your example εὐθύς is one that I would classify, if I had to as an adverb. Based on this, I am assuming--and may well be wrong--that you are still in the early stages of learning Greek. If this is the case, the best place for you to start in studying this topic is to examine the uses of words that refer to time or sequence. Words like σήμερον (τήμερον Classical), (ἐ)χθές, and αὔριον can be used to show temporal setting and can be used to show sequence. Words like μετά, ὕστερον, ὀψέ, ἐπειδέ, ἐπειδή, ὡς, ποτέ, τότε, εἶτα, etc. are frequently used to show sequence, but many of them are used for other things as well. Greek particles that convey these ideas are much trickier to classify and understand. If you are hoping to examine these, your command of Greek should already be quite good, or you won't be likely to find discussions about those topics helpful.
I hope some of this helps you, and good luck on your future studies! If you keep your eyes peeled, you will see all types of unusual expressions, like the "past" used for the "future".

Mark 14:1 ¶ Ἦν δὲ τὸ πάσχα καὶ τὰ ἄζυμα μετὰ δύο ἡμέρας.
Ἀσπάζομαι μὲν καὶ φιλῶ, πείσομαι δὲ μᾶλλον τῷ θεῷ ἢ ὑμῖν.-Ἀπολογία Σωκράτους 29δ
Tim Evans
Posts: 91
Joined: July 10th, 2015, 1:40 am

Re: Conjunctions and discerning time/sequencing

Post by Tim Evans »

If you don't mind my asking, how much Greek do you know? It would help me make any future responses more helpful. I am inclined to think that your question is about expressing temporal sequence
Thanks for your detailed reply. I've completed a basic grammar, I've not yet moved onto an intermediate book. You guess is correct, I'm not specifically interested in conjunctions/prepositions, but more generally dealing with time sequence. Im not sure I am ready to deal with Wallace yet, but I am wanting to start to read greek more, and hence these types of questions come up. I don't want to waste anyone's time, I am more than happy to be directed to a resource that discusses time/sequence in greek, but is there one?

Long story short, I am mostly just interested in finding out if there are clues/hints as to when NT narratives are intending to represent a literal time sequence, vs when the author might be being a little more ambiguous.
Wes Wood
Posts: 692
Joined: September 20th, 2013, 8:18 pm

Re: Conjunctions and discerning time/sequencing

Post by Wes Wood »

I don't know how well this matches your goals, but this entry from the Encyclopedia of Ancient Greek Language and Linguistics won't hurt. At the very least, the bibliography should help point you in the right direction. http://www.academia.edu/9060617/Temporal_clauses.
Ἀσπάζομαι μὲν καὶ φιλῶ, πείσομαι δὲ μᾶλλον τῷ θεῷ ἢ ὑμῖν.-Ἀπολογία Σωκράτους 29δ
Tim Evans
Posts: 91
Joined: July 10th, 2015, 1:40 am

Re: Conjunctions and discerning time/sequencing

Post by Tim Evans »

Wes Wood wrote:I don't know how well this matches your goals, but this entry from the Encyclopedia of Ancient Greek Language and Linguistics won't hurt. At the very least, the bibliography should help point you in the right direction. http://www.academia.edu/9060617/Temporal_clauses.
Looks like it might be a good start, thanks!
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