[B-Greek] (B-Greek) Deponent verbs - classification
Dr. Dale M. Wheeler
dalemw at multnomah.edu
Tue Aug 17 14:26:43 EDT 2004
"Don Doherty" <ddoherty at powerup.com.au> wrote:
>Dear List-members,
>
>Page 212 of Wenham's The Elements of NT Greek says: "Whether a Deponent
>verb is Middle or Passive is discovered by looking at the forms of the
>Aorist, which are different for the two voices".
>
>On the previous page he lists 3 classifications
>- Deponent Middle verbs,
>- Deponent Passive verbs, and
>- Deponent verbs with some Middle and some Passive forms.
>
>In the Deponent Middle classification he lists ERCOMAI (I come) and its
>compounds. On p.101 he gives the verb's 2nd Aorist as HLQON, and also the
>2nd Aorist stem with 1st Aorist ending as HLQA. But aren't both of these
>Aorists clearly Active in form and sense, not Middle?
>
>If so, how does Wenham manage to classify ERCOMAI as a Middle
>Deponent? Is ERCOMAI really classifiable in these terms?
>
>Many thanks,
>
>Don Doherty
>Alexandra Headland QLD
>Australia
>email: ddoherty at powerup.com.au
Don:
While I agree with Carl about deponency in the main, the answer to your
specific question is that ERCOMAI is determined to be middle based on its
future form, ELEUSOMAI, which is middle (not ELEUQHSOMAI). What Wenham,
and other grammars, say about discovering the middle or passive "deponent"
form should be amended to include the future, when the aorist is not
available (as here), and the "deponent" form should be considered m/p when
middles occur in the aorist, but passives in future (or vice versa),
something which some folks don't take into consideration.
Having said that...none of this is really valid in terms of how Greeks are
actually using the middle and the passive; its just a convenient
simplification which we still tell our 1st year Greek students to shield
them from unnecessary complication at the beginning of their Greek
careers...in the same way we only tell them about 1st and 2nd aorists,
etc. Read Carl's, et.al.'s articles previously mentioned to see what's
really going on.
******************************************************************
Dale M. Wheeler, Ph.D.
Prof., Biblical Languages/Bible Multnomah Bible College
8435 NE Glisan St. Portland, OR 97220
V: 503-251-6416 E: dalemw at multnomah.edu
******************************************************************
More information about the B-Greek
mailing list