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John 1:29-42

(1:29)

ἐπαύριον = “on the next day” under BDAG 360a.

ἀμνός, οῦ, ὁ = “lamb” under BDAG 54b.

αἴρω = “to raise to a higher place or position, lift up, take up, pick up; to lift up

and move from one place to another; take/carry (along); carry away, remove; to

take away, remove, or seize control without suggestion of lifting up, take away,

remove; to make a withdrawal in a commercial sense, withdraw, take; to keep in

a state of uncertainty about an outcome, keep someone in suspense; to raise a

ship’s anchor for departure, weigh anchor, depart” under BDAG 28b.

κόσμος, ου, ὁ = “that which serves to beautify through decoration, adornment,

adorning; condition of orderliness, orderly arrangement, order; the sum total of

everything here and now, the world, the (orderly) universe; the sum total of all

beings above the level of the animals, the world; planet earth as a place of

habitation, the world” under BDAG 563b.

(1:30)

ὀπίσω = (adverb) “marker of a position in the back of something, behind; marker

of position behind an entity that precedes, after” under BDAG 716a.

ἔμπροσθεν = “pertaining to a position in front of an object; (indicating more

immediate presence of the object that is in front, with ἔ. functioning as preposition

with genitive) in front of, before; (of position without reference to motion toward)

before, in the presence of; (of appearance before a large assemblage to discharge

and obligation) before, in the sight of; before, ahead of; on the front surface of

something, in front” under BDAG 325a.

ἦν - imperfect active εἰμί.

(1:31)

ᾔδειν - pluperfect active οἶδα.

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φανερωθῇ - aorist passive subjunctive φανερόω = “to cause to become visible,

reveal, expose publicly (with relatively more focus on the sensory aspect than on

the cognitive); to cause to become known, disclose, show, make known; (passive

with intransitive sense) show (or) reveal oneself; (passive with intransitive sense)

be made known” under BDAG 1048b.

ὕδωρ, ὕδατος, τό = “water; transcendent life-giving medium, water” under BDAG

1024b.

Compare the structure of the verse in Greek to how it is normally translated into

English.

κἀγὼ οὐκ ᾔδειν αὐτόν, ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα φανερωθῇ τῷ Ἰσραὴλ διὰ τοῦτο ἦλθον ἐγὼ ἐν

ὕδατι βαπτίζων.

I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that

he might be revealed to Israel. (NRSV)

(1:32)

μαρτυρέω = “to confirm or attest something on the basis of personal knowledge or

belief, bear witness, be a witness; (passive) be witnessed to, have witness borne

by someone; to confirm, bear witness to, declare, confirm (active); bear witness,

testify, be a witness (unto death), be martyred; to affirm in a supportive manner,

testify favorably, speak well (of), approve; (passive) be well spoken of, be

approved” under BDAG 617b.

τεθέαμαι - perfect middle θεάομαι = “to have an intent look at something, to take

something in with one’s eyes, with implication that one is especially impressed,

see, look at, behold; to see for the purpose of visiting, come to see, visit; to

perceive something above and beyond what is merely seen with the eye, see,

behold, perceive” under BDAG 445b.

καταβαῖνον - present active participle καταβαίνω = “to move downward,

come/go/climb down; to suffer humiliation” under BDAG 514b-.

περιστερά, ᾶς, ἡ = “pigeon (or) dove” under BDAG 806a.

3

ἔμεινεν - aorist active μένω = “remain, stay; to continue to exist, remain, last,

persist, continue to live (intransitive); wait for, await (transitive)” under BDAG

630b.

Grammatical note = Grammatical Note = Dramatic Perfect. See 1:41 below.

For more examples of the present state perfect see… John 1:32 (τεθέαμαι). See

KMP, 301 and n57.

(1:33)

κἀγὼ οὐκ ᾔδειν αὐτόν - Second time John says this. This is important for helping

us understand how John reacts to Jesus later. “Are you the one who is coming? Or

are we to wait for another?”

πέμψας - aorist active participle πέμπω = “to dispatch someone, whether human or

transcendent being, usually for purposes of communication, send; to dispatch

something through an intermediary, send” under BDAG 794a.

βαπτίζειν - present active βαπτίζω.

ἴδῃς - aorist active subjunctive ὁράω.

Grammatical note = Infinitives. Purpose. A purpose infinitive communicates the

goal or intent of an action or state expressed by the controlling verb. Students

oftentimes have difficulty distinguishing between a purpose and a result infinitive.

The main difference is that a purpose infinitive indicates an intended result,

whereas a result infinitive indicates what has actually already resulted (or a

conceived result). The function of a purpose infinitive is similar to ἱνα + infinitive.

A purpose infinitive can be tested by adding the words “in order to” or “for the

purpose of” directly in front of the infinitive. Purpose infinitives can be identified

when they are the objects of prepositions. Although they can occur as simple

infinitives… they also occur with the article του or after the prepositions εις το and

προς το. It is usually sufficient simple to translate the purpose infinitive with “to” +

the verbal meaning. At times, it might be better to use “that”, “so that”, “in order

that” or “in order to”. “Purpose clauses often occur after verbs of motion (such as

ἐροχομαι, -βαινω, and πορευομαι, sending (such as ἀποστελλω), giving (such as

διδωμι), and choosing (such as ἐκλεγομαι)”.

It is possible for the infinitive to be related to a verb that is not the “main” verb of a

sentence or phrase. For example in John 1:33 it is related to a substantival

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participle. In this example the controlling verb is a substantival participle. See

KMP, 362 and n19.

(1:34)

ἑώρακα - perfect active ὁράω.

μεμαρτύρηκα - perfect active μαρτυρέω.

ὁ υἱός1

Grammatical note = Consummative Perfect. Whereas the intensive use of the

perfect emphasizes the resulting state of a past action, the consummative use

emphasizes the completed action that brought about the resulting state. In other

words “the accomplishment of the action is so emphasized that the resulting state is

merely the vague condition of ‘the occurrence having actually taken place on a

particular occasion or, more generally, at least once in the past”. Verbs that fit into

this category are often transitive in nature (they can take a direct object). It is

usually best to translate this type of perfect with the English present perfect

(“have/has” + past tense). See KMP, 299.

ἑώρακα καὶ μεμαρτύρηκα ὅτι οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ (John 1:34) I have seen and testified that He is the Son of God!

See KMP, 299.

(1:35)

εἱστήκει - pluperfect active ἵστημι.

μαθητής, ῆς, ὁ = “one who engages in learning through instruction from another,

pupil, apprentice; one who is rather constantly associated with someone who has

a pedagogical reputation or a particular set of views, disciple, adherent” under

BDAG 609b. Toward the end of my 18 years of ministry with international

students and visiting scholars we frequently translated this as “graduate students”.

1 {B} ὁ υἱός 66, 75, 120 2א A B C L Wsupp Δ Θ Ψ… Byz [E F G H N P] Lect itaur, c, f, ff2e, l, q vg syrp, h,

palmss cop

bo arm… Chrysostom John-Damascus; Augustine

3/4. ὁ ἐκλεκτός 106vid א* itb, e, ff2* syrc, s

Ambrose Augustine1/4

REB BJ. ὁ ἐκλεκτός υἱός ita vg

mss syr

palms (syr

palms ὁ μονογενὴς υἱός) cop

sa.

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Grammatical note = Past State Pluperfect. This category applies to certain verbs

that convey a past state with no antecedent action. This type of usage is found with

verbs that are stative in nature with no implication of a previous act that produced

the state. Verbs in this category are οιδα, ἱστημι, εἰωθα, and παριστημι. Because of

the frequent use of the pluperfect form of οιδα (occurring 33 times), this is the

most common pluperfect category. For more examples of the past state perfect of

(1) ἵστημι see… John 1:35. See KMP, 306 and n71.

(1:36)

ἐμβλέψας - aorist active participle ἐμβλέπω = “to look at something directly and

therefore intently, look at, gaze on someone; to give serious thought to something,

look at, consider” under BDAG 321b.

περιπατοῦντι - present active participle περιπατέω = “go about, walk around,

(figurative) (of the) walk of life, live, conduct oneself” under BAGD 649a.

(1:37)

ἤκουσαν - aorist active ἀκούω.

λαλοῦντος - present active participle λαλέω.

ἠκολούθησαν - aorist active ἀκολουθέω = “to move behind someone in the same

direction, come after; to follow or accompany someone who takes the lead,

accompany, go along with; to follow someone as a disciple, be a disciple, follow;

to comply with, follow, obey; to come after something else in sequence, follow”

under BDAG 36b.

(1:38)

στραφεὶς - aorist passive participle στρέφω = “to change the position of something

relative to something by turning, turn; turn around, turn toward (passive with

active force); (in a transferred sense of 1a compounded of change of mind and

direction); to carry something back to its previous location, bring back, return; to

turn something into something else, turn, change; to turn away so as to

disassociate oneself, turn; to experience an inward change, turn, change” under

BDAG 948b.

θεασάμενος - aorist active participle θεάομαι.

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ἀκολουθοῦντας - present active participle ἀκολουθέω.

ζητεῖτε - present active ζητέω = “try to find something, seek, look for (in order to

find); to seek information, investigate, examine, consider, deliberate; to devote

serious effort to realize one’s desire or objective, strive for, aim (at), try to obtain,

desire, wish (for); ask for, request, demand (something)” under BDAG 428a.

μεθερμηνευόμενον - present passive participle μεθερμηνεύω = “translate” under

BDAG 625a.

Grammatical note = Iterative Present. The present tense-form is sometimes used

to describe an action that is performed repeatedly, regularly, or customarily or is a

state that is ongoing or continuous. This use is quite common and is frequently

found with imperative verbs. In order to communicate the iterative use of the

present, it is often helpful to supply the words “keep on”, “customarily”,

“normally”, or “always” (in many cases the context itself includes such words).

For more examples of the iterative present see… John 1:38 (ζητεῖτε). See KMP,

257-258 and n11.

(1:39)

ἔρχεσθε - present middle imperative ἔρχομαι.

ὄψεσθε - future middle ὁράω. Note the tense-form.

εἶδαν - aorist active ὁράω. Again note the tense-form.

ἔμειναν - aorist active μένω.

ὥρα, ας, ἡ = “an undefined period of time in a day, time of day; a period of time as

division of a day, hour; a point of time as an occasion for an event, time” under

BDAG 1102b.

Grammatical note = Conditional Imperative. Like the subjunctive, the imperative

can be used to state a condition. The construction consists of an imperative

followed by a future indicative (or a subjunctive or another imperative – both

functioning like a future indicative) connected by και. Though this use is not

common, there are at least 20 such imperatives in the NT. Wallace rightly argues

that Ephesians 4:26 “Be angry and do not sin” ὀργιζεσθε… does not belong in this

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category. Grammatically, in all the other examples, the trailing verb, in this case

ἁμαρτανετε, functions as a future indicative. The meaning would then be, “If you

are angry, you will not sin”, which hardly can be the meaning. In addition, the

conditional imperatives still retain their imperative force. In other words, the

author or speaker is still issuing a command. With Ephesians 4:26 it would thus

communicate, “If you are angry – and I want you to be angry – you will not sin”.

Wallace maintains that the imperatives should be interpreted as a command and

prohibition. “Be angry and do not sin”. He then explains the meaning of this verse:

“one should not give a place to the devil by doing nothing about the sin in the

midst of the believing community. Entirely opposite of the ‘introspective

conscience’ view, this text seems to be a shorthand expression for church

discipline, suggesting that there is a biblical warrant for δικαια ὀργη (as the Greeks

put it) – righteous indignation. For more examples of the conditional imperative

see… John 1:39 (ἔρχεσθε). See KMP, 211-212 and n59.

(1:40)

ἀκουσάντων - aorist active participle ἀκούω.

ἀκολουθησάντων - aorist active participle ἀκολουθέω.

Ἦν Ἀνδρέας ὁ ἀδελφὸς Σίμωνος Πέτρου εἷς ἐκ τῶν δύο τῶν ἀκουσάντων παρὰ

Ἰωάννου καὶ ἀκολουθησάντων αὐτῷ· - The structure of this verse seems strange.

Literally “was Andrew the brother of Simon Peter one of the two who heard John

and followed him = One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was

Andrew, Simon Peter's brother (NRSV)”.

Grammatical note = Apposition. Two nominative substantives can stand in

apposition to each other. When this takes place, the first nominative is the subject

and the second further explains or identifies the subject. This can be done by

clarification, description, or identification. Wallace lists the four features that are

present in an appositional relationship: (1) two adjacent substantives, (2) in the

same case, (3) referring to the same person or thing, and (4) sustaining the same

syntactical relationship with the rest of the clause.

Ἀνδρέας ὁ ἀδελφὸς Σίμωνος Πέτρου (John 1:40). Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.

See KMP, 56.

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(1:41)

εὑρίσκει - present active εὑρίσκω.

εὑρήκαμεν - perfect active εὑρίσκω.

πρῶτον2

Grammatical note = Adjectives. Adverbial Use. Frequently an adjective will

function adverbially rather than modifying a substantive. In such cases the

adjective is often (though not always) in the accusative case and in the neuter

gender. This type of usage pertains to a limited numbers of Greek words (such as

πρωτον and μονον) and has an affinity with the “accusative of respect” or

“accusative of time”. “And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone”.

This is an example of the adverbial use of the positive adjective.

For more examples of the adverbial use of the adjective see… John 1:41.

See KMP, 169-171 and n47.

Grammatical Note = Dramatic Perfect. The perfect tense-form is sometimes

used to vividly portray a past event or state of affairs. Robertson explains, “Here an

action completed in the past is conceived in terms of the present time for the sake

of vividness”. This usage is similar to the historical present which describes a past

event with the present tense-form by adding vividness to the event and draws the

reader into the story or gives literary prominence to some aspect of the story. It is

also similar to the dramatic use of the aorist which refers to an event that occurred

recently, and thus has present consequences. Due to the nature of the dramatic use

of the perfect, it occurs exclusively in narrative contexts (sometimes the narrative

is found in an epistle) and is usually translated into English as a simple past tense.

For more examples of the dramatic perfect see… John 1:41 (εὑρήκαμεν). See

KMP, 301 and n52.

Grammatical note = Present Periphrastic (present form of εἰμί + present

participle). For more examples of present periphrastics see… John 1:41. See KMP,

342 and n67.

2 {B} πρῶτον 66, 75 2א A B Θ Ψ… copsa, bo arm geo slav Epiphanius; Gaudentus. πρῶτος א* L

Wsupp

Δ… Byz [E F G H] Lect syrpal

? Chrysostomlem

Cyrillem

. πρωΐ itb, e, r1 vid

(itjvid

πρῶτον πρωΐ)

syrs. omit 1424 vg

ms syr

c Augustine.

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(1:42)

ἤγαγεν - aorist active ἄγω = “to direct the movement of an object from one

position to another, lead, bring, lead off, lead away; to take into custody, lead

away, arrest; to lead/guide morally or spiritually, lead, encourage (in the

direction of); to make use of time for a specific purpose, spend, observe; to move

away from a position, go” under BDAG 16a.

ἐμβλέψας - aorist active participle ἐμβλέπω.

κληθήσῃ - future passive καλέω = “to identify by name or attribute, call, call by

name, name, call; to request the presence of someone at a social gathering, invite;

to use authority to have a person or group appear, summon; choose for receipt of a

special benefit or experience, call” under BDAG 503b.

Ἰωάννου3

Grammatical note = Culminative Aorist. In contrast to the inceptive use of the

aorist that emphasizes the beginning of an action or state the culminative aorist

emphasizes the cessation of an action or state. This usage can be detected by the

presence of certain verbs whose lexical nature lends itself to this usage (verbs

whose inherent meanings imply effort or a process) or by the context where an

action was already in progress but the aorist signals its conclusion. It is often the

case that the act was stopped more than that it was completed though the lexical

meaning of the verb and the context can signal completion as well. Such verbs are

often translated with the English perfect tense. For more examples of the

culminative aorist see John 1:42 (ἤγαγεν). See KMP, 292-293 and n23.

3 {B} Ἰωάννου 66, 75, 106 א (B* Ἰωάνου) L Wsupp 33 ita, b, f, ff2, l, r1 vgmss copsa, bo Jerome. Ἰωνᾶ A

B2 Δ Ψ 0141… Byz [E F G H] Lect it

c, (q) (it

aur vg

mss Bariona) syr

s, p, h, pal cop

boms arm eth geo slav

Serapion Epiphanius Chrysostom Cyrillem

. Ἰωαννᾶ Θ (1241 Ἰωννᾶ) l 890 vgww, st

. frater Andreae

ite.

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