Hello everyone,
I’ve been working through Acts 27:1 and came across a construction that puzzled me:
Ὡς δὲ ἐκρίθη τοῦ ἀποπλεῖν ἡμᾶς εἰς τὴν Ἰταλίαν, παρέδιδον τόν τε Παῦλον καί τινας ἑτέρους δεσμώτας ἑκατοντάρχῃ ὀνόματι Ἰουλίῳ σπείρης Σεβαστῆς.
What stands out to me is the use of the genitive articular infinitive τοῦ ἀποπλεῖν paired with its subject ἡμᾶς in the accusative. Normally, I would expect the subject of the infinitive to agree in case with the construction, but here it seems to stand in accusative after the genitive article.
My questions are:
Should we understand ἡμᾶς as an example of the accusative functioning as the logical subject of the infinitive, even when the infinitive is governed by a genitive article?
Is there a broader syntactical principle that allows for this case shift, or is this an irregular construction unique to Luke’s style?
Do you know of other New Testament or extra-biblical examples where the subject of a genitive articular infinitive appears in the accusative instead of the genitive?
I would be very interested in your insights or references to grammars that discuss this nuance.
Thank you in advance for any clarification or examples you can provide.
Accusative Participle as Object of Preposition in Acts 27:1
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Re: Accusative Participle as Object of Preposition in Acts 27:1
Yes, and the fact that you saw this means that you are reading carefully and noticing details that matter.laurawoods wrote: ↑September 4th, 2025, 12:17 am What stands out to me is the use of the genitive articular infinitive τοῦ ἀποπλεῖν paired with its subject ἡμᾶς in the accusative. Normally, I would expect the subject of the infinitive to agree in case with the construction, but here it seems to stand in accusative after the genitive article.
Here's the trick: The subject of the infinitive takes accusative, regardless of the article’s case. Actually, calling ἡμᾶς the “subject of the infinitive” is a convenient shorthand, but strictly speaking it’s not a grammatical subject in the way a nominative would be. Greek infinitives are verbal nouns, not finite verbs. Because they don’t inflect for person and number, they can’t carry a nominative subject the way a finite verb does. So when Greek wants to show who is performing the infinitive’s action, it uses the accusative of reference (often called “the accusative subject of the infinitive”).
The verb ἐκρίθη (“it was decided”) regularly takes a genitive articular infinitive as its complement, in this case τοῦ ἀποπλεῖν, “it was decided that someone should sail.” ἡμᾶς is an accusative of reference that tells you who that someone is.
ἐξίσταντο δὲ πάντες καὶ διηποροῦντο, ἄλλος πρὸς ἄλλον λέγοντες, τί θέλει τοῦτο εἶναι;
http://jonathanrobie.biblicalhumanities.org/
http://jonathanrobie.biblicalhumanities.org/
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Re: Accusative Participle as Object of Preposition in Acts 27:1
Thank you for taking the time to analyze and share your detailed opinions.Jonathan Robie wrote: ↑September 5th, 2025, 12:01 pmYes, and the fact that you saw this means that you are reading carefully and noticing details that matter.laurawoods wrote: ↑September 4th, 2025, 12:17 am What stands out to me is the use of the genitive articular infinitive τοῦ ἀποπλεῖν paired with its subject ἡμᾶς in the accusative. Normally, I would expect the subject of the infinitive to agree in case with the construction, but here it seems to stand in accusative after the genitive article.
Here's the trick: The subject of the infinitive takes accusative, regardless of the article’s case. Actually, calling ἡμᾶς the “subject of the infinitive” is a convenient shorthand, but strictly speaking it’s not a grammatical subject in the way a nominative would be. Greek infinitives are verbal nouns, not finite verbs. Because they don’t inflect for person and number, they can’t carry a nominative subject the way a finite verb does. So when Greek wants to show who is performing the infinitive’s action, it uses the accusative of reference (often called “the accusative subject of the infinitive”).
The verb ἐκρίθη (“it was decided”) regularly takes a genitive articular infinitive as its complement, in this case τοῦ ἀποπλεῖν, “it was decided that someone should sail.” ἡμᾶς is an accusative of reference that tells you who that someone is.
Re: Accusative Participle as Object of Preposition in Acts 27:1
Hi Laura!
If an infinitive clause has a subject that is different from the subject of the main clause, the infinitive subject is always accusative in the accusative case. It does not matter whether the infinitive is articular and that article is governed by another case. The subject will still be an accusative.
Wikipedia actually has a good discussion:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infinitiv ... infinitive
Here are some more examples from the NT pulled from random:
Genitive Article:
Matthew 6:8 μὴ οὖν ὁμοιωθῆτε αὐτοῖς, οἶδεν γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὧν χρείαν ἔχετε πρὸ τοῦ ὑμᾶς αἰτῆσαι αὐτόν.
The case of the article here is determined by the requirements of the preposition πρὸ. The case of the the subject ὑμᾶς is accusative because infinitives take accusative subjects.
Dative Article:
Luke 8:40 Ἐν δὲ τῷ ὑποστρέφειν τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἀπεδέξατο αὐτὸν ὁ ὄχλος, ἦσαν γὰρ πάντες προσδοκῶντες αὐτόν.
Again, the case of the article is determined by the requirements of the preposition and the subject of the infinitive is an accusative.
(And of course) Accusative article:
2 Thessalonians 2:11 καὶ διὰ τοῦτο πέμπει αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς ἐνέργειαν πλάνης εἰς τὸ πιστεῦσαι αὐτοὺς τῷ ψεύδει
The preposition εἰς requires an accusative object and the infinitive πιστεῦσαι takes a subject in the accusative
I can't think of an example where the article would be nominative and govern an infinitive that also has a subject distinct from the subject of the main verb. So I doubt you'd find that combination.
If an infinitive clause has a subject that is different from the subject of the main clause, the infinitive subject is always accusative in the accusative case. It does not matter whether the infinitive is articular and that article is governed by another case. The subject will still be an accusative.
Wikipedia actually has a good discussion:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infinitiv ... infinitive
Here are some more examples from the NT pulled from random:
Genitive Article:
Matthew 6:8 μὴ οὖν ὁμοιωθῆτε αὐτοῖς, οἶδεν γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὧν χρείαν ἔχετε πρὸ τοῦ ὑμᾶς αἰτῆσαι αὐτόν.
The case of the article here is determined by the requirements of the preposition πρὸ. The case of the the subject ὑμᾶς is accusative because infinitives take accusative subjects.
Dative Article:
Luke 8:40 Ἐν δὲ τῷ ὑποστρέφειν τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἀπεδέξατο αὐτὸν ὁ ὄχλος, ἦσαν γὰρ πάντες προσδοκῶντες αὐτόν.
Again, the case of the article is determined by the requirements of the preposition and the subject of the infinitive is an accusative.
(And of course) Accusative article:
2 Thessalonians 2:11 καὶ διὰ τοῦτο πέμπει αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς ἐνέργειαν πλάνης εἰς τὸ πιστεῦσαι αὐτοὺς τῷ ψεύδει
The preposition εἰς requires an accusative object and the infinitive πιστεῦσαι takes a subject in the accusative
I can't think of an example where the article would be nominative and govern an infinitive that also has a subject distinct from the subject of the main verb. So I doubt you'd find that combination.
Mike Aubrey, Linguist
SIL International
Koine-Greek.com
SIL International
Koine-Greek.com
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Re: Accusative Participle as Object of Preposition in Acts 27:1
You’re right to notice that. With infinitives in greek, the “subject” doesn’t go in the nominative like with normal verbs. Instead, it shows up in the accusative. So even if the article is genitive, dative, or whatever, the actor of the infinitive still goes in the accusative. That’s just how greek handles it—it’s a standard pattern, not an exception.