Greek on J. David Stark

How to Use Zotero to Properly Cite Grammars in SBL Style

Mon, 14 Jun 2021 13:00:00 +0000

You might think citing a grammar according to the “SBL Handbook of Style” would be straightforward. It is, but there are several special cases to account for.

Daily Gleanings: Johannine Grammar (25 October 2019)

Fri, 25 Oct 2019 16:00:51 +0000

Daily Gleanings about Edwin Abbott’s “Johannine Grammar.”

Daily Gleanings: Greek Articles (1 October 2019)

Tue, 01 Oct 2019 16:00:25 +0000

Daily Gleanings about “The Article in Post-classical Greek.”

Daily Gleanings: Greek New Testament (2 August 2019)

Fri, 02 Aug 2019 16:00:06 +0000

Daily Gleanings about Nijay Gupta’s critical introduction to 1–2 Thessalonians and KoineGreek.com’s videos of Mark’s gospel in Greek.

Daily Gleanings: Open Access References (15 July 2019)

Mon, 15 Jul 2019 16:00:34 +0000

Daily Gleanings about open access references for Greek personal names and subsequent transmission of classic Greek literature.

Daily Gleanings: Book Reviews (28 June 2019)

Fri, 28 Jun 2019 16:00:59 +0000

Daily Gleanings about Mike Aubrey’s discussion of new books in Greek linguistics and Mark Ward’s review of Dirk Jonkind’s “Introduction to the GNT.”

Daily Gleanings: Open, Free Access Resources (27 June 2019)

Thu, 27 Jun 2019 16:00:36 +0000

Daily Gleanings about the final EAGLE conference proceedings and Cairo Geniza texts, transcriptions. Both are freely available online.

Daily Gleanings (6 June 2019)

Thu, 06 Jun 2019 16:00:00 +0000

Daily Gleanings about criteria for determining authenticity and Brill’s “Dictionary of Ancient Greek.”

Daily Gleanings (24 May 2019)

Fri, 24 May 2019 16:00:00 +0000

University College London has posted on YouTube their 1971 documentary Greek Papyri: The Rediscovery of the Ancient World.

HT: Tommy Wasserman

Sean Hadley, one of our current PhD students in Humanities, positively reviews Robbie Castleman, Darian Lockett, and Stephen Presley’s edited volume Explorations in Interdisciplinary Reading: Theological, Exegetical, and Reception Historical Perspectives (Pickwick, 2017). Along the way, Sean provides some kind comments about my contribution in the volume.

Daily Gleanings (20 May 2019)

Mon, 20 May 2019 16:00:00 +0000

Mike Aubrey points to a full set of video recordings of lectures from the recent SEBTS conference on linguistics and NT Greek. I’ve included this playlist below as well. The “hamburger” button in the upper left-hand corner will expand the playlist contents with a list of speakers and their topics.

Larry Hurtado reviews Michael Dormandy’s recent TC essay, “How the Books Became the Bible: The Evidence for Canon Formation From Work-Combination in Manuscripts.”

Daily Gleanings (3 May 2019)

Fri, 03 May 2019 16:00:00 +0000

Gleanings about Greek, linguistics, and saint cults in late antiquity and the early middle ages.

Krüger's Griechische sprachlehre

Thu, 17 May 2018 20:50:56 +0000

Google Books as a combined full-text PDF of K. W. Krüger’s Griechische sprachlehre für Schulen (1861). The two tomes make for a combined PDF of just over 1100 pages.

Cascadia Syntax Graphs of the Greek Bible

Sat, 02 Sep 2017 04:52:49 +0000

Logos Bible Software offers syntax graphs for “the LXX Deuterocanon/Apocrypha.”

Greek lexica

Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:00:34 +0000

The post has been up for some time, but Charles Sullivan’s site has a list of links to where full texts of several several older Greek lexica can be found online.

HT: Rick Brannan, SCS.

Creating series in Logos

Thu, 01 Jun 2017 13:00:47 +0000

Under the heading of “keeping your Greek and Hebrew skills sharp,” Mark Ward has some helpful advice about creating a serial biblical text in Logos Bible Software. For instance, if you create a series between BHS and NA28 and you have BHS open, you can type a New Testament passage in the go box and run straight there. Logos will treat the two resources as combined.

Journal of Greco-Roman Christianity and Judaism (2016)

Thu, 06 Apr 2017 13:00:48 +0000

During 2016, the “Journal of Greco-Roman Christianity and Judaism” published several noteworthy articles.

Justin's Dialog with Trypho in Greek (redux)

Wed, 22 Feb 2017 14:00:50 +0000

[caption id="" align=“alignright” width=“175”] Justin Martyr presents a book to the emperor, paper etching, print made by Jacques Callot, published by Israël Henriet, 1632–1635 [ PD-1923][/caption]To date, one of this site’s more popular posts has been this one about W. Trollope’s Greek edition of Justin Martyr’s Dialog with Trypho.

Jesus and the right hand

Mon, 06 Feb 2017 14:00:08 +0000

Some time ago, Larry Hurtado posted some thoughts about how Jesus is characterized as ἐκ δεξιῶν or ἐν δεξιᾷ. Recently, he’s followed up with “another possible factor” for how the language coalesces and a “bonus” post on the importance of being data-driven in developing hypotheses about such phenomena.

Greek Prepositions @ Tyndale House

Thu, 02 Feb 2017 14:00:10 +0000

On 30 June–1 July, Tyndale House is set to host a workshop on Greek prepositions that focuses on cognitive linguistics, lexicography, and theology. Registration opens 1 March.

For further discussion and background, see Septuaginta &c.

Why Searching Shouldn't Replace Reading

Wed, 28 Oct 2015 16:13:35 +0000

Yes, search, but also read, note, and remember.

Advice for Learning Greek

Fri, 16 Oct 2015 15:12:08 +0000

Advice from Murray Harris:

As for the study habit that has proved most helpful in my academic career, it is this. There is no better way to become proficient in Greek, to gain a “feel” for the language, and to become enriched by the theology of the New Testament than the regular memorization of the Greek text. Paste a photocopy of verses or sections of the text on to cards and carefully reflect on it as you go about your daily exercise.

Milligan on the Papyri

Wed, 01 Oct 2014 19:38:02 +0000

Rob Bradshaw has made available George Milligan’s essay, “The Greek Papyri: With Special Reference to Their Value for New Testament Study,” Journal of the Transactions of the Victoria Institute 44 (1912): 62–78.

Nicoll, Expositor's Greek Testament (vol. 5) Free @Logos

Mon, 01 Jul 2013 13:03:13 +0000

As their free book of the month, Logos Bible Software is giving away volume 5 of the Expositor’s Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll. Volume 5 includes:

J. H. A. Hart, “The First Epistle General of Peter”
R. H. Strachan, “The Second Epistle General of Peter”
David Smith, “The Epistles of John”
J. B. Mayor, “The General Epistle of Jude”
James Moffatt, “The Revelation of St. John the Divine”

For more information about the text and to download this volume, please see here.

The Perseus Catalog 1.0

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:57:55 +0000

According to the Perseus Digital Library at Tufts University:

The Perseus Digital Library is pleased to announce the 1.0 Release of the Perseus Catalog.

Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 56, no. 1

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 22:16:41 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

The latest issue of the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society arrived in yesterday’s mail and includes the following:

Paul House, “Investing in the Ruins: Jeremiah and Theological Vocation”
Daniel Block, “‘What Do These Stones Mean?’: The Riddle of Deuteronomy 27”
Paul Tanner, “The Cost of Discipleship: Losing One’s Life for Jesus’ Sake”
Greg Rhodea, “Did Matthew Conceive a Virgin?: Isaiah 7:14 and the Birth of Jesus”
Daniel Wallace, “Sharp’s Rule Revisited: A Response to Stanley Porter”
Stanley Porter, “Granville Sharp’s Rule: A Response to Daniel Wallace, Or Why a Critical Book Review Should Be Left Alone”
Daniel Wallace, “Granville Sharp’s Rule: A Rejoinder to Stan Porter”
Walter Schultz, “Jonathan Edwards’s Concept of an Original Ultimate End”
Shawn Bawulski, “Reconciliationism, a Better View of Hell: Reconciliationism and Eternal Punishment”

Danove, "Features of the Conceptualization of Transference"

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 12:51:45 +0000

Paul Danove has the latest article in Biblical and Ancient Greek Linguistics, “Features of the Conceptualization of Transference in the New Testament”:

This article develops five features that describe the conceptualizations of the event of transference grammaticalized by New Testament verbs, and uses these features to formulate a model of the possible New Testament usages of transference. The discussion resolves all New Testament occurrences of verbs that designate transference into one of eighteen usages with distinct feature descriptions, and considers the usages of transference predicted by the feature model but not realized in the New Testament.

Funk, Beginning-Intermediate Grammar

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 13:51:47 +0000

Robert Funk

A single-volume edition Robert Funk’s Beginning-Intermediate Grammar of Hellenistic Greek is due out in April and is now available for pre-order from Polebridge. According to the publisher’s description,

Originally published in three volumes in 1973, Robert Funk’s classic Beginning-Intermediate Grammar of Hellenistic Greek utilizes the insights of modern linguistics in its presentation of the basic features of ancient Greek grammar. Now redesigned and reformatted for ease of use, this single-volume third edition makes Funk’s ground-breaking work available once more.

On the Web (February 8, 2013)

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:33:46 +0000

On the web:

Rod Decker shares an update on his forthcoming Greek grammar.
Logos Bible Software is wishing everyone a happy International Septuagint Day today with a substantial sale on their release of the Göttingen Septuagint (HT: Brian Davidson, Abram K-J).
Jim Davila excerpts a Cambridge News story about funding that Cambridge and Oxford are seeking to keep together the Lewis-Gibson Genizah Collection at Westminster College.

Syntax Queries in Perseus

Thu, 17 Jan 2013 20:36:21 +0000

Bridget Almas notes the availability of a new syntax search utility that presently covers about 400,000 words of Perseus’s Greek and Latin texts (HT: Charles Jones).

Patristics @Logos

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 16:26:20 +0000

J. P. Migne’s two massive compilations of Patristic literature have now made their way onto Logos Bible Software’s community pricing platform ( Greek, Latin). Also appearing there now is some of René Graffin, Francois Nau, and Max de Saxe’s compilation of other Patristic texts not included in Migne’s anthologies.

Runge, "Relative Saliency and Information Structure in Mark's Parable of the Sower"

Wed, 24 Oct 2012 19:51:43 +0000

Steven Runge has the latest article in Biblical and Ancient Greek Linguistics: “Relative Saliency and Information Structure in Mark’s Parable of the Sower.” According to the abstract:

This study applies the cognitive model of Chafe and Givón, and the information-structure model of Lambrecht as applied by Levinsohn and Runge to the Markan explanation of the Parable of the Sower (4:14–20). The primary objective is to identify and analyze other linguistic devices, besides demonstratives, which might clarify the apparent prominence given to the unfruitful scatterings in Mark’s account. This study provides the necessary framework for comparing Mark’s pragmatic weighting of saliency to that found in Matthew and Luke’s accounts in order to determine whether Mark’s version is consistent with or divergent from the other traditions.

The Imaging Papyri Project

Thu, 11 Oct 2012 13:13:20 +0000

University of Oxford (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Oxford University Classics Faculty’s PINAX “is a digital library comprised of collections of displayed papyrus images and texts at Oxford.” Texts include papyri from Antinoopolis, Herculaneum, and Oxyrhynchus, as well as magical texts (HT: Charles Jones).

On the Web (June 25, 2012)

Mon, 25 Jun 2012 15:03:45 +0000

On the web:

Joseph Kelly discusses biblical theology and history of religion research.
Cary Nelson considers ownership issues for faculty-developed intellectual property.
Rod Decker comments on ζῶ.
Allison Friederichs discusses grade inflation.

Origen on the Web (June 22, 2012)

Fri, 22 Jun 2012 19:23:45 +0000

On the web:

Jim Davila reports the discovery of some previously lost Greek homilies on the Psalms, potentially by Origen ( 1, 2).
Peter Williams provides a link to a set of images of the manuscript.
Roger Pearse comments on the press release and quotes Jerome’s catalogue of Origen’s writings.
Alin Suciu passes along a letter from Lorenzo Perrone, provides several updates on the discussion, and releases a guest post from Mark Bilby.
Dirk Jongkind comments on a textual variant in the text’s quotation of 1 Corinthians.

Whence Comes Contrast?

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 16:01:37 +0000

Steve Runge has a good introduction to the question of contrast and conjunctions’ relationship to it. Overall, conjunctions “do not create contrast that wasn’t already there, they simply amplify it. If there is no contrast present, using a contrastive conjunction is infelicitous as the linguists say. It comes across as wrong.” For more, see Steve’s original post.

Get Metzger's Manuscripts of the Greek Bible on Kindle

Sat, 30 Oct 2010 12:21:24 +0000

Among the growing body of scholarly resources available on Kindle ( sans page numbers, unfortunately), is Bruce Metzger’s Manuscripts of the Greek Bible: An Introduction to Palaeography. Sounds like a good thing to read electronically in bright sunlight to me. :-)

Oxyrhynchus Papyri on Logos

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:40:23 +0000

The equivalent of 15 print volumes of over 1,800 Oxyrhynchus Papyri fragments are now available to order from Logos via their pre-publication discount program. Details about the module and a list of the papyri it will include are available here.

Gems from Justin

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:45:03 +0000

While reading around Justin Martyr’s First Apology this morning, I came across a few interesting points.

Historical In discussing the injustice of Christians’ condemnation, Justin says,

By the mere application of a name, nothing is decided, either good or evil, apart from the actions implied in the name; and indeed, so far at least as one may judge from the name we are accused of, we are most excellent people. But as we do not think it just to beg to be acquitted on account of the name, if we be convicted as evil-doers, so, on the other hand, if we be found to have committed no offence, either in the matter of thus naming ourselves, or of our conduct as citizens, it is your part very earnestly to guard against incurring just punishment, by unjustly punishing those who are not convicted. For from a name neither praise nor punishment could reasonably spring, unless something excellent or base in action be proved. And those among yourselves who are accused you do not punish before they are convicted; but in our case you receive the name as proof against us, and this although, so far as the name goes, you ought rather to punish our accusers. For we are accused of being Christians, and to hate what is excellent (Chrestian) is unjust (Justin, 1 Apol. 4; emphasis added).

Comment on Aspect and Actionsart

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:00:39 +0000

http://evepheso.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/aspect-aktionsart-one-more-time-part-ii/

Blass’s discussion slightly earlier [§56.1 – 1898, MacMillan, trans. H. St. J. Thackeray] affirms, perhaps slightly more explicitly, that the Greek tenses express time relations “absolutely, i.e. with reference to the stand-point of the speaker or narrator, and not relatively, i.e. with reference to something else that occurs in the speech or narrative” (italics added).

Blass’s subsequent discussion of the present in direct and indirect discourse (§56.9) also seems to illustrate your point about his view of the Greek tenses: “In the N.T. the use of oratorio obliqua is certainly not favored, and that of oratorio recta predominates; but it is noteworthy that subordinate sentences after verbs of perception and belief are assimilated to oratorio recta, and the tenses therefore have a relative meaning” (italics added). Blass then cites Matt 2:22 and John 6:24. In these cases, then, the tense in the quoted discourse is relative with respect to the writer who reports the discourse and absolute (see §56.1) with respect to the person(s) reported as constructing the discourse originally.

Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic Reader's Bible

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 03:20:05 +0000

John Dyer has developed an online reader’s Bible, primarily as a pedagogical tool, that will allow customized output of text, vocabulary, and morphology.

For instance, with just a few clicks and keystrokes, here’s a version of Gal 3:15–16 showing vocabulary that occurs 50 or fewer times in the New Testament.

Articles and Adjectives and Substantives: Oh, My!

Fri, 03 Apr 2009 10:00:04 +0000

Keeping the New Testament Greek, attributive adjective “position” classifications straight in one’s head can be challenging, but here is a short summary (see Porter 117):

Article-adjective-substantive (e.g., ὁ ἀγαθὸς ἄνθρωπος),
Article-substantive-article-adjective (e.g., ὁ ἄνθρωπος ὁ ἀγαθὸς),
Substantive-article-adjective (e.g., ἄνθρωπος ὁ ἀγαθὸς),
Adjective-substantive or substantive-adjective (e.g., ἀγαθὸς ἄνθρωπος or ἄνθρωπος ἀγαθὸς).

In contrast to these four basic patterns, the potentially legitimate structure article-adjective-article-substantive (e.g., ὁ ἀγαθὸς ὁ ἄνθρωπος) is not used ( Mounce §9.12).

All Grown Up

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 10:39:50 +0000

A third instance of ‘gospel’ language in the wider Greco-Roman context is the Gaius inscription (ca. 5 BC):

On the motion of the strategi Metrodorus son of Conon, Clinius, Musaeus, and Dionysius—

Whereas Gaius Julius Caesar, the eldest of the sons of Augustus has—as has been fervently prayed for—assumed in all its splendor the pure-white toga [of manhood] in place of the purple-bordered toga [of youth], and all men rejoice to see the prayers for his sons rising together to Augustus;

Happy Birthday

Mon, 16 Mar 2009 14:58:26 +0000

Another example of ‘gospel’ language in the Greco-Roman environment is the inscription found at Priene (ca. 9 BC) about Augustus:

It seemed good to the Greeks of Asia, in the opinion of the high priest Apollonius of Menophilus Azanitus: “Since Providence, which has ordered all things and is deeply interested in our life, has set in most perfect order by giving us Augustus, whom she filled with virtue that he might benefit humankind, sending him as a savior [σωτήρ], both for us and for our descendants, that he might end war [= ποιῇ εἰρήνην] and arrange all things, and since he, Caesar, by his appearance [ἐπιφανεῖν] (excelled even our anticipations), surpassing all previous benefactors, and not even leaving to posterity any hope of surpassing what he has done, and since the birthday of the god Augustus was the beginning of the good tidings for the world that came by reason of him [ἦρξεν δὲ τῷ κόσμῳ τῶν δἰ αὐτὸν εὐαγγελίων ἡ γενέθλιος τοῦ θεοῦ],” which Asia resolved in Smyrna (text and translation cited from Evans 2–3).

Greek Resources: Links Updated

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 12:44:11 +0000

The link list on the Greek resources page has been updated and expanded to include some additional, online resources for studying New Testament Greek and the Greek New Testament.

SBL Greek Font

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 10:11:47 +0000

The Greek font that the Society of Biblical Literature has developed is complete and available for download.

Good News . . . for Whom?

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 09:35:52 +0000

First century Christians were not unique in their use of ‘gospel’ language. In fact, this word group (which exhibits the εὐαγγελι- stem in Greek) actually comes into several connections in ancient literature. For instance, in his Jewish Wars, Josephus records the following:

So the men of power, perceiving that the sedition was too hard for them to subdue, and that the danger which would arise from the Romans would come upon them first of all, endeavored to save themselves, and sent ambassadors; some to Florus, the chief of whom was Simon the son of Ananias; and others to Agrippa, among whom the most eminent were Saul, and Antipas, and Costobarus, who were of the king’s kindred; and they desired of them both that they would come with an army to the city and cut off the sedition before it should be too hard to be subdued. Now this terrible message was good news [εὐαγγέλιον] to Florus; and because his design was to have a war kindled, he gave the ambassadors no answer at all ( Josephus, Jewish Wars 2.418–20).

New Testament Greek Resources

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:40:09 +0000

A new page is now available that will eventually house several resources for learning New Testament Greek. Currently, the page features MP3 audio recordings of the basic verb and noun paradigms as well as some songs that have been translated into Greek. Repeatedly hearing these paradigms and the songs in which they are used can provide one more way of cementing New Testament Greek in memory.

Right now, the Greek resources page basically reflects my old faculty page at Faulkner University, but expect more material to become available and a more friendly organization to develop over the coming weeks.