Class Notes: November 17, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

NOTE: The next class will be Saturday, December 8. We will review Lessons 22 & 23, and preview Lesson 24.

Lesson 22: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

154. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words.

155. Note that some forms of liquid Future Indicatives look identical to their Present Indicative except for the accent.

156. Liquid First Aorist Indicative verbs do not have the σ in the tense formative.

157. Review the chart of Common Liquid Verbs.

158. and 159. Read these. Note that Possessive Adjectives are different than the genitive of Personal Pronouns even though they have the same semantic function (i.e., to indicate possession).

160. Do all the Exercises.

Lesson 23: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

161. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words.

162. Read this.

163. Learn/Memorize the Subjunctive forms. Note how they resemble and differ from forms you already know. Since it's not the Indicative Mood, the Aorist Subjunctive does not have the prefixed ε, but it does have the σ (First Aorist Active or Middle) or θ (First Aorist Passive) Aorist tense formative.

164. Study this.

165. As with all non-Indicative moods (i.e., Infinitive, Participle, Imperative, Optative, Subjunctive), the Present Subjunctive indicates continuous action (as opposed to "present time" action) and the Aorist Subjunctive indicates action viewed as a whole (as opposed to "past time" action).

166. Memorize the Present Subjunctive of ειμι. Note that it's simply the connecting vowel + ending of the Present Active Subjunctive, with a smooth breathing + circumflex accent on the first syllable.

167. Do all the Exercises.

We'll again continue our reading with Κατα Ιωαννην The Gospel According to John, 1:43.

Class Notes: November 10, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 21: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

144. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words.

145. Note, as Croy says, that "Contraction occurs only in the first principal part, that is, the present tense in all moods and modes and in the imperfect indicative." Also, the uncontracted forms are what you look up in the dictionary (lexicon), even though you will never see the uncontracted forms in the Greek text. E.g., the lexical entry is for ποιεω ("I do, make"), but the present active indicative 1st-person singular appears in the New Testament as ποιω, never ποιεω (ε+ω => ω).

146. Study the chart and points (1) - (8).

148. Read this and note the exception for καλεω.

149. Learn/memorize these reflexive pronouns. Note that there are no nominative forms, and that they are basically the corresponding forms of αυτος with a prefixed:
εμ- = "of myself" (singular)
σε- = "of yourself" (singular)
ε- = "of himself/herself/itself" (as well as the plurals "of ourselves/yourselves /themselves")

In the New Testament the personal pronoun αυτος can sometimes function as a reflexive.

150., 151. Memorize the forms of πας and read the section on its uses. This is a very common word, occurring 1243 times in the UBS4 Greek New Testament.

152. Do all the Exercises.

We'll again continue our reading with Κατα Ιωαννην The Gospel According to John, 1:43.

Class Notes: November 3, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 20: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

137. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words.

138., 139., and 140. Memorize the paradigms for the Aorist Passive and the Perfect Active and Middle/Passive Participles. Note the accents. Also note how similar they are to the Participles you have already learned. Focus on the differences/clues, i.e.:

• The Aorist Passive has θε (masculine and neuter) or θει (feminine) where the Aorist Active has σα between the stem and the ending.
  
• The Perfect Active masculine and neuter have reduplication and κ (κο) between the stem and the ending, with no ν as part of the ending.
• The Perfect Active feminine has reduplication and κ (κυι) between the stem and the ending.
• The Perfect Middle/Passive has reduplication and no connecting ο (Present Middle/Passive) or connecting σα (Aorist Middle) between the stem and the ending (cf. the Perfect Middle/Passive Indicative, which also has reduplication and no connecting vowel between the stem and the ending).

141. This is important. Periphrastic Participles are common in the New Testament, and can affect the translation and meaning of some verses.

142. We have discussed these nuances of the Adverbial Participle. You need to know them. I gave you a total of eight, i.e., the six here:

1. Time/Temporal: "when/while/after"
2. Manner/Modal: "in the manner of"
3. Means/Instrumental: "by means of"
4. Cause/Causal: "because of"
5. Condition/Conditional: "if"
6. Concession/Concessive: "although"

plus:

7. Telic/Purpose: "for the purpose of" (intended result)
8. Resultative: "as a result of" (results, whether intended or not)

143. Do all the Exercises.

We'll again continue our reading with Κατα Ιωαννην The Gospel According to John, 1:35, since we did not do any reading from John on November 3.

Class Notes: October 27, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 19: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

129. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words.

130., 131., 132., and 133. Memorize the paradigms for the First and Second Aorist Active and Middle Participles. Note that the 2nd-Aorist Participles use the same endings you learned in Lesson 18 for the Present Active and Middle Participles, except for the accent. Since Participles don't have a time sense (i.e., past, present or future), but only an aspect sense (Present Participles: continuous action; Aorist Participles: action viewed as a whole), there is no prefixed ε before the Aorist stem.

The 1st-Aorist Active and Middle Participles are also like the Present Active and Middle Participles in most instances, except they have σα between the stem and the ending instead of ο. The 1st-Aorist Active Feminine Participle has σα instead of ου between the Aorist stem and the ending.

Study the listing of the more common 2nd-Aorist Participles in Section 132.

134. Read this, and also read the section on Participles in the Greek New Testament Insert, pp. 30-37.

135. This is very important. The Genitive Absolute is a frequent New Testament construction. Do the Exercises to become familiar with its syntax.

136. Do all the Exercises.

We'll again continue our reading with Κατα Ιωαννην The Gospel According to John, 1:35, since we did not do any reading from John on October 27.

Class Schedule

Our class schedule without interruptions (noted in parentheses) is below:

October 27, 2007: Review 18, Preview 19
November 3: Review 19, Preview 20
November 10: Review 20, Preview 21
November 17: Review 21, Preview 22
November 24: Review 22, Preview 23 (not meet)
December 1: Review 23, Preview 24 (I'll be gone this day or 12/15)
December 8: Review 24, Preview 25
December 15: Review 25, Preview 26 (I'll be gone this day or 12/1)
December 22: Review 26, Preview 27 (not meet)
December 29: Review 27, Preview 28 (not meet)
January 5, 2008: Review 28, Preview 29
January 12: Review 29, Preview 30
January 19: Review 30, Preview 31
January 26: Review 31, Preview 32
February 2: Review 32

For my benefit and your own, if we skip one week, I don't want us to miss a Lesson, so I'd have you do 2 Lessons for the 2 weeks between classes. If you get stuck during those 2 weeks, you can call or email me with any questions you have or problems you encounter.

However, if we have to skip more than 1 week (see below), then I will only expect you to do 2 Lessons during those weeks. Thus, the probable schedules will be as follows, and we will only fall behind by 2 weeks overall:

If I am absent December 1:
October 27, 2007: Review 18, Preview 19
November 3: Review 19, Preview 20
November 10: Review 20, Preview 21
November 17: Review 21, Preview 22 & 23
November 24: (not meet) Thanksgiving
December 1: (not meet, as I'll be gone)
December 8: Review 22 & 23, Preview 24
December 15: Review 24, Preview 25 & 26
December 22: (not meet) Christmas
December 29: (not meet) New Year's
January 5, 2008: Review 25 & 26, Preview 27
January 12: Review 27, Preview 28
January 19: Review 28, Preview 29
January 26: Review 29, Preview 30
February 2: Review 30, Preview 31
February 9: Review 31, Preview 32
February 16: Review 32

If I am absent December 15:
October 27, 2007: Review 18, Preview 19
November 3: Review 19, Preview 20
November 10: Review 20, Preview 21
November 17: Review 21, Preview 22 & 23
November 24: (not meet) Thanksgiving
December 1: Review 22 & 23, Preview 24
December 8: Review 24, Preview 25 & 26
December 15: (not meet, as I'll be gone)
December 22: (not meet) Christmas
December 29: (not meet) New Year's
January 5, 2008: Review 25 & 26, Preview 27
January 12: Review 27, Preview 28
January 19: Review 28, Preview 29
January 26: Review 29, Preview 30
February 2: Review 30, Preview 31
February 9: Review 31, Preview 32
February 16: Review 32

If you personally have to miss a scheduled class, I still expect you to stay on schedule. Again, you can always call or email me with any questions you have or difficulties you encounter.

If you do your daily work, esp. during the vacation weeks, you will not fall behind.

Class Notes: October 20, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 18: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

121. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words.

123. and 124. Memorize the Present Active and Present Middle/Passive Participle. If you've been studying the chart I gave you and/or if you've learned the 3rd Declension endings for the last lesson, you already know the masculine and neuter Active forms. The feminine Active forms all use -ουσα and follow the "mixed" α/η 1st-declension pattern like δοξα (Lesson 3 Section 18.). The Middle/Passive forms all end with -μεν and use 1st (feminine) and 2nd Declension (masculine and neuter) endings.

125. Read this important section. Participles are everywhere in the New Testament, and learning their forms, meanings and uses is extremely important. Also read the section on Participles in the Greek New Testament Insert, pp. 30-37, both this week and for the next two weeks when we discuss Aorist and Perfect Participles and the grammatical significance and uses of Participles.

127. Memorize the Present Participle of ειμι. Note that it's simply the endings from section 123. (Present Active Participle), with a smooth breathing mark and the accent on the first syllable (except for the feminine plural genitive).

128. Do all the Exercises. Spend time each day learning the Lesson grammar and your new vocabulary, and then do all or most of the Exercises, for that is where all the learning and application takes place.

We'll again continue our reading with Κατα Ιωαννην The Gospel According to John, 1:35, since we did not do any reading from John on October 20.

Class Notes: October 13, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 17: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

115. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words.

117., 118., and 119. Read and learn these Sections and these 3rd Declension endings. You will learn a few more 3rd Declension endings in Lesson 25. The page I handed out in class on "Third Declension Helps" can be downloaded and printed from the link in the sidebar.

120. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. If time gets away from you, do at least every other Exercise, and if time really gets away from you, don't worry about the English to Greek translations.

We'll continue our reading with Κατα Ιωαννην The Gospel According to John, 1:35.

Class Notes: October 6, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 16: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

107. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words, including the extra words. Note that many of this Lesson's words are not new words, just new forms (Principal Part) for words you already know.

Two "extra" words I forgot to write on the board in class:

• αρα - "therefore, consequently"
  NOTE THE ACCENT - i.e., an acute accent on the penult. The same word with a circumflex accent on the penult is an interrogative and is used in direct questions. There is also a form with an acute accent on the ultima, and it's a noun meaning "a wish or prayer" (or "a curse").
• αποκαλυπτω - "I reveal, unveil"

LXX/NT vocabulary:

• ηξει is in the word list, but the lexical form is ηχω = "I have come" (translated as a Perfect)
• ισχυω = "I am strong" is the lexical form for ισχυσατε and ισχυσεν

109., 111., and 112. Memorize the paradigms for the Aorist and Future Passive Indicatives, and the Aorist Passive Infinitive.

110. 2nd Aorist Passives differ from 1st Aorist Passives by not having a θ in the tense suffix (tense formative).

113. Study these Aorist Passive forms.

114. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. If time gets away from you, do at least every other Exercise, and if time really gets away from you, don't worry about the English to Greek translations.

Again, memorize the Present Active Participle forms, as shown on the Present Active Participle Chart in the Sidebar, noting the 3rd Declension endings as shown in the Chart. I also gave you a copy of the chart at class September 22.

We'll continue our reading with Κατα Ιωαννην The Gospel According to John, 1:19.

Class Notes: September 29, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 15: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

97. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words, including the extra words, as well as for audio files of the vocabulary. Several of these vocabulary words are "irregular" Perfects - i.e., the Perfect forms of these verbs involve stem changes and not just consonant reduplication and κα endings.

γεγονα is an example of a 2nd Perfect. The main difference between 1st and 2nd Perfects is that 2nd Perfects lack the κ in the Active endings.

Compare

λελυκα, λελυκας, λελυκε(ν), λελυκαμεν, λελυκατε, λελυκασι(ν)/-καν

with

γεγονα, γεγονας, γεγονε(ν), γεγοναμεν, γεγονατε, γεγονασι(ν)/-αν

99. Read this, as well as the section on the Perfect Tense in the Greek New Testament Insert (pp. 29-30).

100., 101., and 102. Memorize the paradigms for the Perfect Active, Perfect Middle/Passive, and Perfect Infinitive (Active and Passive).

103. Read this carefully so you'll understand the variations from the regular formation of the Perfect Tense. Note that the letter ζ is considered a "double consonant" (some Greek grammars give its pronunciation as "dz" or "zd"). As the book points out, an ε at the beginning of such words serves as a form of "reduplication." Do not confuse such Perfects with Aorists or Imperfects that have an ε augment.

104. Learn the Pluperfect Active paradigm. Note the ει in the endings. Sometimes the ε augment is missing.

105. Study these Perfect forms.

106. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. These will give you practice with the Perfect Tense. See the Sidebar for Exercises Answers.

Again, memorize the Present Active Participle forms, as shown on the Present Active Participle Chart in the Sidebar, noting the 3rd Declension endings as shown in the Chart. I also gave you a copy of the chart at class September 22.

We may start the Gospel of John, as you've now learned a lot of the forms (imperfects, aorists) that would have made it too difficult before. For those of you who missed the class, we read through The Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. A link for this is in the sidebar.

Class Notes: September 22, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 14: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

90. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words, including the extra words, as well as for audio files of the vocabulary. ειδον is the 2nd Aorist of οραω, a word you'll meet in Lesson 21 when you're introduced to "Contract Verbs" - i.e., verbs whose stems ends in α (αγαπαω), ε (ποιεω), or ο (πληροω), which contract with the connecting ε or ο per the chart in Lesson 21 Section 146.

91. Read this.

92., 93. and 94. Memorize the 2nd Aorist Active and Middle Indicative and Active and Middle Infinitive. The endings are the same as for the Imperfect Active and Middle/Passive (Lesson 10 Section 65 and Lesson 11 Section 70.). The Aorist Passive is a separate form that you'll learn in Lesson 16 (but I've already given it to you on the Indicative Verbs Chart). Also, even though the 2nd Aorist Active and Middle Infinitive have the same endings as the Present Active and Middle/Passive Infinitives (i.e., -ειν and -εσθαι), the accent is not on the verb stem but on the -ειν ending of the Active Infinitive and on the -εσ of the -εσθαι ending of the Middle Infinitive.

95. Memorize all these forms of 2nd Aorists. Read the "final note" about the verbs that are a mix of 1st and 2nd Aorists.

96. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. See the Sidebar for Exercises Answers. For the English to Greek Exercises, you can refer to the "Greek to English Vocabulary" section in the back of the book for aorist forms of verbs to see if you figured them out correctly. Alternatively, you can look at the Principal Parts lists in the Greek New Testament Insert or look up the verbs in the Dictionary in the back of your Greek New Testament. (Note: if a verb is regular in its principal parts formation, the textbook and the GNT Dictionary may not list the principal parts.)

Memorize the Present Active Participle forms, as shown on the Present Active Participle Chart in the Sidebar, noting the 3rd Declension endings as shown in the Chart. I also gave you a copy of the chart at class September 22.

Our reading next week will continue at Mark 2, if we continue in Mark. I'm thinking, though, that we may start the Gospel of John, as you've now learned a lot of the forms (imperfects, aorists) that would have made it too difficult before.

Class Notes: September 15, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

See Class Notes: September 8, 2007. Due to limited attendance and a couple new students today, our class was a review and no new material was introduced. So next week will be like this week would have been. ;^)

Also: Memorize the Present Active Participle forms, as shown on the Present Active Participle Chart in the Sidebar.

Class Notes: September 8, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 13: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

82. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words, including the extra words, as well as for audio files of the vocabulary. Note that ολος is used in the predicate position - i.e., ολος ο λαος = "the whole people"

83. See the Comments from last week's class on "principal parts," as well as the "Indicative Verbs Chart" in the sidebar under the "VERBS" section for a chart that lays out the patterns and formations for verbs.

84. Read this, and if you have the Greek New Testament Insert (I'll have copies for everyone else next Saturday), read the following sections on Verbs beginning on p. 19:

• "The Verbs: Tense and Aspect" (pp. 19-21)
• "Time, Aspect, and Verbal Mood" (p. 22)
• "Voices" (pp. 22-23)
• "Moods" (pp. 23-24)
• "Indicative Verbs" (pp. 24-30)

Memorize the forms of the Future Active and Middle Indicative (the Future Passive will be learned in Lesson 16 Section 111). Note that (for regular verbs) they are identical to the Present Active and Middle Indicative except for the inclusion of a σ between the stem and the ending.

85.-87. Memorize these forms of the First Aorist.

88. Read/study this Section (see Section 78 re: the final stem consonant changes). You should have the chart in Section 78 memorized - better yet, see the more complete chart I refer you to in my Comments on Section 78 from last week, which shows what the consonants change to when they combine with a σ.

89. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. See the Sidebar for Exercises Answers. For the English to Greek Exercises, you can refer to the "Greek to English Vocabulary" section in the back of the book for aorist forms of verbs to see if you figured them out correctly. Alternatively, you can look at the Principal Parts lists in the Greek New Testament Insert or look up the verbs in the Dictionary in the back of your Greek New Testament. (Note: if a verb is regular in its principal parts formation, the textbook and the GNT Dictionary may not list the principal parts.)

Our reading next week will continue at Mark 2, if we continue in Mark.

Class Notes: September 1, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 12: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

74. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words, including the extra words, as well as for audio files of the vocabulary.

75. Greek verbs have six "principal parts," and when you see a verb in a lexicon or in the Greek to English Vocabulary in the back of the textbook, the verb's principal parts will be listed. (If there is a --, that means that there is no New Testament occurrence of that principal part of that verb.) The six principal parts in order are:

1. Present
2. Future
3. Aorist
4. Perfect Active
5. Perfect Passive
6. Aorist Passive (from which the Future Passive is formed)

A regular verb may be "deponent" in one or more of its principal parts. Some verbs are very irregular, and some of their principal parts may use stems that are quite different from the Present stem. With "regular" verbs like λυω, one can easily figure out the other five principal parts from the Present stem once one knows the regular principal parts patterns. With irregular verbs (i.e., verbs that have different stems for one or more principal parts), one has to memorize or learn to recognize the various principal parts for those verbs. Fortunately, few verbs have more than three different stems that are used for the principal parts, and some of those that do are common verbs that you'll encounter a lot and thus become familiar with (e.g., λεγω, ερχομαι).

The basic principal part formations for regular verbs (i.e., where the same stem occurs in all six principal parts) are as follows:

1. Present: present stem + thematic vowel (ε or ο) + ending: λυ-ω (the ο thematic vowel contracts with the ω ending in the 1st-person singular) (Imperfect: ε augment + present stem + thematic vowel + ending: ε-λυ-ο-ν)
   
2. Future: present stem + σ + thematic vowel + ending: λυ-σ-ω (the ο thematic vowel contracts with the ω ending in the 1st-person singular)
3. (1st) Aorist: ε augment + present stem + σα + ending: ε-λυ-σα (no ending in the 1st-person singular) (2nd Aorist follows the Imperfect pattern)
   
4. (1st) Perfect Active: reduplicated initial consonant + ε + present stem + κα + ending: λ-ε-λυ-κα (no ending in the 1st-person singular) (2nd Perfect Active has no κ)
   
5. Perfect Passive: reduplicated initial consonant + ε + present stem + ending: λ-ε-λυ-μαι
6. (1st) Aorist Passive: ε augment + present stem + θη + ending: ε-λυ-θην ((1st) Future Passive: present stem + θησ + thematic vowel + ending: λυ-θησ-ο-μαι) (2nd Aorist/Future Passive has no θ)
   

See the "Indicative Verbs Chart" in the sidebar under the "VERBS" section for a chart that lays out the patterns and formations for verbs.

76. & 77. Memorize the forms of the Future Active and Middle Indicative (the Future Passive will be learned in Lesson 16 Section 111). Note that (for regular verbs) they are identical to the Present Active and Middle Indicative except for the inclusion of a σ between the stem and the ending.

78. Memorize this "chart" of how the various consonants change when they are combined with the σ of the Future tense. I discussed this in more depth when I was using Story & Story's textbook GREEK TO ME (hence my references to "Story" in what I write), which you can read here if you're interested. Read this whole section, as future forms of some of the verbs you know or need to know are discussed.

79. Memorize all of these irregular Future verb forms.

80. Memorize the Future Indicative of ειμι. In the Indicative mood ειμι occurs only in the Present ("I am"), Imperfect ("I was") and Future ("I will be"), so once you learn this, you will know all the Indicative forms of ειμι. There are no Aorist ("I was" as a simple past) or Perfect ("I have been") or Pluperfect ("I had been") forms of ειμι; instead, forms of γινομαι ("I become") or υπαρχω ("I exist") are used.

81. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. See the Sidebar for Exercises Answers. As I mentioned, I may only post the answers to the English to Greek Exercises, as you can view Croy's Answer Key for the Practice and Review Exercises, and you can use your New Testament and Old Testament (or translation of the Septuagint) to check your LXX and NT Exercises.

Our reading next week will continue at Mark 2, if we continue in Mark.

Some Comments on the Greek Middle-Passive

From
http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/b-greek/2007-August/044099.html

Why the Middle Voice can represent passive sense

On Aug 16, 2007, at 9:10 PM, Kevin Riley wrote:

... I am still puzzling over how a form that is subject focused - the middle - came also to be used to represent the passive where the subject is not the focus, and need not appear at all. ...

I've been meaning to respond to the above question -- or puzzlement -- for several days, but I've decided that I'll forgo a longer and fuller response at this point and try do deal directly with the question why one set of endings associated fundamentally with middle voice, could also be used to represent the passive.

The simple answer is that the middle (or middle-passive) forms (and that's BOTH the μαι/σαι/ται, μην/σο/το endings of the present, imperfect, aorist, future, perfect, and pluperfect -- and a piddling number of non-periphrastic future perfects like κεκλησομαι (not in the GNT) -- AND the -θη- endings in the aorist and future) are all fundamentally marked for subject-affectedness, and this includes verbs and verb-forms where the subject is patient, undergoer, beneficiary or recipient).

When the verb in question is really transitive, then the middle-passive form can have a passive sense because the patient of the process has become the subject of the verb, but in several other cases -- and especially in the case of intransitive verbs -- the middle-passive form simply indicates that the subject is:

• BOTH subject and patient (direct reflexive, e.g., χυραται ο Γοργιας, "Gorgias shaves himself"), or
• BOTH subject and beneficiary or recipient (indirect reflexive, e.g., λυεται ο ιππευς την ιππον, "The rider unties his mare"), or
• BOTH subject and undergoer (intransitive, e.g., εγειρεται το παις, "The child wakes up").

One of the major difficulties for English-speakers trying to understand the Greek middle-passive is that they tend to think of voice in terms of transitive verbs and an active-passive polarity, whereas the Greek voice-system is not so much concerned with transitivity as it is with verbs UNmarked for subject-affectedness and verbs MARKED for subject-affectedness.

- Carl W. Conrad
Department of Classics, Washington University (Retired)

No Class August 18 & 25 - Next Class September 1

Per my August 16 email, due to the absence of most people and the church consecration on August 25 (see below), I'm asking you to work on your own these next three weeks. I.e.:

• The Week of August 18-24: Read and study Lesson 10, memorize the vocabulary and verb paradigms, and do all the Exercises. Imperfect Active Indicative, and Imperfect forms of ειμι.


• The Week of August 25-31: Read and study Lesson 11, memorize the vocabulary and verb paradigms, and do all the Exercises. Imperfect Middle/Passive Indicative.

Though this is new material, it is not difficult, and if you do your daily work, you will easily master the material. That's what I like about Croy - he gives you the essentials, he gives it to you in small sizes, and he gives you lots of Exercises to put your new knowledge to use. The Exercises really are the key: If you study the grammar and memorize the vocabulary, you should be able to do the Exercises and get most of them correct - which means that you have learned the material.

I'll post the Answers to the Lesson 10 and 11 Exercises here on the class blog in plenty of time for you to do the work and review your answers. I already have audio files through Lesson 15, and I'll get the vocabulary posted, too. (Note: You already have the full vocabulary for the course in this file, Class Vocabulary, which lists the words in Lesson order; my vocabulary lists are just cut-and-pasted from this master list.)

WE WILL NEXT MEET ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, AT 9:15 A.M. We'll briefly review Lessons 10 & 11 (and the Exercises you did), and have a quiz on the material, and we will preview Lesson 12. Thus, we'll stay on track and won't miss a beat.

Call or email me with any questions you have or any problems you encounter. Those of you who have been on vacation have told me that you are keeping pace on your own. BE SURE TO KEEP READING THE BLOG.

Class Notes: August 11, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 9: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

53. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words, including the extra words, as well as for audio files of the vocabulary.

55. & 56. Memorize the forms of the Present Middle and Passive Indicative. Note that the endings are identical.

57. Memorize the form of the Present Middle/Passive Infinitive.

60. As I mentioned in class, "Deponent Verbs" is the usual term for these verbs that have Middle/Passive forms with Active meanings, and for which there are no Present "Active" forms of the verb (i.e., forms that end with -ω, -εις, -ει, -ομεν, -ετε, -ουσι) in the literature. Dr. Carl Conrad has written several essays on why he thinks the term "deponent" mischaracterizes these verbs. You can read his essays here. I will continue to refer to them as "deponent verbs" because that is how the textbook treats them.

62. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. See the Sidebar for Exercises Answers.

Our reading next week will continue at Mark 1:35.

Aids to Learning Prepositions

Here is a diagram showing the spatial meanings of many of the prepositions you will be learning. I found this on the Internet, and if I find a better one, I'll use that.


And ... here are some fun pictures from Teach Yourself New Testament Greek by D. F. Hudson that someone posted on the Internet:

John Rylands Papyrus 470

Read my post about John Rylands Papyrus 470, our oldest copy of a still-used prayer to the Theotokos.

Class Notes: August 4, 2007

Class Notes and Comments

Lesson 8: Important Sections and points (but read all the Sections):

48. See the Sidebar for the vocabulary list of all words, including the extra words, as well as for audio files of the vocabulary.

49. Memorize the forms of the Demonstrative Pronoun.

50. This section is important. In simple terms, demonstrative pronouns used with a noun are in the predicate position, but are translated as attributive adjectives (e.g., "this man," not "this is the man"). When standing alone, they function as a pronoun and can be translated as "this/that (man/woman/thing)," "these/those (men/women/things)"; or "he/she/it," "they."

51. This section is very important to understand. The position of αυτος in the Greek is like its position in English. E.g.:

• INTENSIVE ("self"): Predicate - "The man αυτος" or "αυτος the man" = "The man himself" or "Himself the man"
  
• IDENTICAL ("same"): Attributive - "The αυτος man" or "The man the αυτος" = "The same man" or "The man, the same [one]"

Since as a pronoun (Lesson 7) αυτος is third person, whenever you see it used with a 1st- or 2nd-person personal pronoun (εγω, συ, ημεις, υμεις) and a corresponding 1st- or 2nd-person verb ending (-ω, -εις, -ομεν, -ετε) (even if the subject is not expressed), you know αυτος is modifying the 1st- or 2nd-person pronoun as an intensive adjective, and is not functioning as a personal pronoun. I.e., it's "I myself," "you yourself," "we ourselves," "y'all yourselves" is/are doing (whatever the verb says), and not "he/she/it/they" is/are doing (whatever the verb says).

52. Do all the Exercises and check your answers. See the Sidebar for Exercises Answers.

Our reading next week will continue at Mark 1:25.

Doing the Exercises

As I mentioned at our last class (July 21), the most important thing in this course is for you to do all the Exercises for each Lesson (after first learning the vocabulary and grammar for the Lesson).

Attending all the classes won't ultimately benefit you if you aren't doing the work. Conversely, if you read all the Lessons and do all the Exercises, you can largely master the material without attending the classes.*

I know it can seem like a bit of drudgery at times, but be faithful in doing all the Exercises and coming to the classes and you will be pleased a few weeks from now with what you have learned and how far you have come since the course began. Once we learn a few more verb tenses, and especially when we begin studying participles, you will begin to see how understanding New Testament Greek can enhance your Scripture studies in ways that no amount of reading English translations can do.

* Someone may ask: "Well, then, why should we come to the classes, since the Answers to the Exercises are on the class Blog?"

• For one, you won't know what you might be doing wrong if don't have me to ask.
• For another, while you will know what you know by working on your own, you won't know what you don't know. Croy's book gives the basic and most important information, but sometimes the topics need a bit more explanation, and I'll try to give you that when it seems necessary. I'll also tell you what I think is of greater or lesser importance, as well as occasionally give you tips on how best to learn the material.
• For a third, you won't get the class interaction and reading and pronunciation practice if you simply do this on your own. Being able to read the Greek text by sight and out loud is an important part of learning the language and becoming comfortable with it. The links in the Blog Sidebar as well as the Greek Pronunciation CD will help you with pronunciation - if you have not already done so, listen to all the lessons on the CD so you'll know how all the letters and letter combinations are to be pronounced. (If you're opting for the Phonemic Koinê Pronunciation, pronounce η as the "ay" in "say," and both υ and οι as a French "u"; on the CD these are all pronounced as "ee.")
• And finally, if no one comes to the classes, then I'll stop teaching the course, including posting on the Blog, and you really will be on your own!!