Luke 3:18 Syntax

G. Ross gfross at dnai.com
Fri Oct 9 05:13:58 EDT 1998


Thank you!  I see from your explanation that it is possible for (some) verbs in the middle voice to be transitive.  I had thought, mistakenly, that such verbs were always intransitive.  The question of deponent vs. non-deponent comes to mind here, also.  From what you have said, I infer that Luke used EUAGGELIZOMAI in the same sense as another might use EUAGGELIZW, that is, as a deponent verb.  Now my question is Do non-deponent verbs in the middle voice take objects in the accusative case?

Gordon Ross
gfross at dnai.com

    -----Original Message-----
    From: Carl W. Conrad <cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu>
    To: Biblical Greek <b-greek at franklin.oit.unc.edu>
    Cc: Biblical Greek <b-greek at franklin.oit.unc.edu>
    Date: Thursday, October 08, 1998 6:13 PM
    Subject: Re: Luke 3:18 Syntax
    
    
    At 3:39 PM -0500 10/8/98, G. Ross wrote:
    
        I would appreciate it if someone would be kind enough to explain to me the syntax of Luke 3:18.
        
        POLLA MEN OUN KAI hETERA PARAKALWN EUHGGELIZETO TON LAON.
        
        I am currently reviewing the form and use of present (continuous) participles as presented in chapter 27 of Mounce's _Basics of Biblical Greek_. The verse given above is part of a translation exercise in the workbook that accompanies Mounce's BBG.
        
        What puzzles me is the use of the middle voice of EUANGGELIZW. Do POLLA and hETERA function as the grammatical subjects of EUHGGELIZETO (neuter compound subject with a verb in the singular) and consequently TON LAON as the direct object of PARAKALWN?
        
    
    Luke regularly uses the verb as EUAGGELIZOMAI--only in the middle voice. POLLA and hETERA are best understood, I'd say, as objects of PARAKALWN (or some might say that they are "adverbial" accusatives with PARAKALWN). They are definitely NOT the subject of EUHGGELIZETO. Read the sentence, I'd say: "So offering also many other exhortations, he evangelized the people." 
    Carl W. Conrad
    Department of Classics/Washington University
    One Brookings Drive/St. Louis, MO, USA 63130/(314) 935-4018
    Home: 7222 Colgate Ave./St. Louis, MO 63130/(314) 726-5649
    cwconrad at artsci.wustl.edu OR cconrad at yancey.main.nc.us
    WWW: http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/ 
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