Active Voice

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Todd
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Joined: November 11th, 2023, 9:31 am

Active Voice

Post by Todd »

My understanding of the active voice is that the subject is doing the action of the verb. I have been meditating on 2Co 7:1
"Therefore having these promises, beloved, we should cleanse ourselves from every defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

Here the first verb is "cleanse". Cleanse is in the active voice. However, when I go look for the subject in this verse, I can't find it. I thought "we" was the subject doing the action, only to find out "we" is a direct object that appears to be doing the action yet the direct object is supposed to be the receiver of the action. So my question is, can the active voice ALSO show the direct object is performing the action of the verb? In my search, I can only find that the active voice is supposed to show the subject doing the action. Maybe I am supposed to back up to the promises to find the subject?

Thanks!
Todd Sumrall
My YouTube Channel Blood Covenant
https://www.youtube.com/c/BloodCovenant
Jason Hare
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Re: Active Voice

Post by Jason Hare »

Todd wrote: November 12th, 2023, 9:27 am My understanding of the active voice is that the subject is doing the action of the verb. I have been meditating on 2Co 7:1
"Therefore having these promises, beloved, we should cleanse ourselves from every defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

Here the first verb is "cleanse". Cleanse is in the active voice. However, when I go look for the subject in this verse, I can't find it. I thought "we" was the subject doing the action, only to find out "we" is a direct object that appears to be doing the action yet the direct object is supposed to be the receiver of the action. So my question is, can the active voice ALSO show the direct object is performing the action of the verb? In my search, I can only find that the active voice is supposed to show the subject doing the action. Maybe I am supposed to back up to the promises to find the subject?

Thanks!
Technically, “active” just refers to specific sets of endings (-ω/-μι, -εις, -ει, -ομεν, -ετε, -ουσι(ν); -ον, -ες, -ε(ν), -ομεν, -ετε, -ον; etc.). We deal with Greek text directly here rather than with translations.

2 Corinthians 7.1: Ταύτας οὖν ἔχοντες τὰς ἐπαγγελίας, ἀγαπητοί, καθαρίσωμεν ἑαυτοὺς ἀπὸ παντὸς μολυσμοῦ σαρκὸς καὶ πνεύματος ἐπιτελοῦντες ἁγιωσύνην ἐν φόβῳ θεοῦ.

The word “we” is included in the ending -σωμεν (aor. act. subj.). You don’t need an explicit subject pronoun.

In the following, I’m using “should” to indicate that this is modal (subjunctive). Subjunctives need to be translated according to context. “Should” is just convenient here. In the case of the verse you’ve provided, it is a 1cp cohortative use of the aorist subjunctive (“let us...”).

καθαρίσω - I should cleanse
καθαρίσῃς - you (sg.) should cleanse
καθαρίσῃ - he/she/it should cleanse
καθαρίσωμεν - we should cleanse
καθαρίσητε - you (pl.) should cleanse
καθαρίσωσι(ν) - they should cleanse


Where are you in Mounce’s text? He doesn’t begin to deal with verbs for some time, IIRC.
Jason A. Hare
The Hebrew Café
Tel Aviv, Israel
Todd
Posts: 12
Joined: November 11th, 2023, 9:31 am

Re: Active Voice

Post by Todd »

Thanks. I'm in the nouns right now in the latest course, though I have skipped ahead watching his videos from the previous version of "Greek for Everyone Else".

I will make sure to include the Greek text next time. I wasn't thinking!

Basically, I am hearing from your answer that "we", is not necessarily the direct object and can be treated as the subject. Is this correct?
Todd Sumrall
My YouTube Channel Blood Covenant
https://www.youtube.com/c/BloodCovenant
Jason Hare
Posts: 951
Joined: June 2nd, 2011, 5:28 pm
Location: Tel Aviv, Israel
Contact:

Re: Active Voice

Post by Jason Hare »

Todd wrote: November 12th, 2023, 5:53 pm Thanks. I'm in the nouns right now in the latest course, though I have skipped ahead watching his videos from the previous version of "Greek for Everyone Else".
So you will come to see that λύω means “I loose, release,” and λύουσιν means “they release.” The person and number are contained in the ending that is added to the stem. In these two cases, λυ- contains the meaning of “set free, loose, destroy, release,” -ω means “I,” and -ουσιν means “they.” You’ll see that there are primary and secondary endings for verbs and that the various moods take their own endings. The verb that you asked about has the ending -σωμεν, which is first aorist (marked by the sigma infix: καθαριζ + -σ- → καθαρισ-) subjunctive (marked by the long vowel) active (because of the set of endings, -σωμεν rather than -σωμεθα, for example) first-person plural (-μεν).

You’ll get this as you get into verbs. You need to look for the stem and then identify the additions to it. It will take time to get there, but nothing is missing from καθαρίσωμεν. If you added ἡμεῖς, the pronoun would be emphatic and intended to distinguish “we” from a different group that is in discussion.
Jason A. Hare
The Hebrew Café
Tel Aviv, Israel
Todd
Posts: 12
Joined: November 11th, 2023, 9:31 am

Re: Active Voice

Post by Todd »

It will take a while. But I really enjoy learning this.
Todd Sumrall
My YouTube Channel Blood Covenant
https://www.youtube.com/c/BloodCovenant
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