Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary

GL960: Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts

Directed Study Any Term
Instructor: Dr. Roy E. Ciampa

Office hours: http://www.viceregency.com/OfficeHours.htm
If the posted hours are not convenient for you please call for an appointment.
Office: AC144
Email: RCiampa@gordonconwell.edu

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course introduces a select set of advanced concepts in biblical Greek, including
consideration of diachronic and synchronic approaches to Greek grammar (the
importance of understanding the language at any given time in terms of both historical
developments in the history of its use and the systematic relationships between parts of
the language system and its usage at that given time), the history of Greek lexicography,
discourse features, lexical and verbal aspect and their relationship to questions of tense
(and temporal significance) and Aktionsart (the expression of a particular type of event
structure) Special attention will be given to the application of these concepts to the
interpretation of New Testament texts. (Note that the history of the Greek language,
questions of phonology, morphology, poetry, and textual transmission are among issues
that will not normally be covered in this course.) This Th.M.-level course is open to
M.Div. and M.A. students willing to do Th.M. level work. Prerequisites for this course
include a year of basic Greek, NT502 and either Intermediate Greek or at least one course
in New Testament exegesis or Greek readings.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

Having completed this course:

1. The student will demonstrate an understanding of debates regarding verbal aspect in NT
(and Hellenistic) Greek and will have formulated their own initial conclusions on various
facets of the subject and understand their implications for the interpretation of NT texts
(Mission statements 1 & 2).
2. The student will demonstrate an understanding of and ability to evaluate recent proposals
regarding discourse features of NT Greek in the light of their study of NT texts (Mission
statements 1 & 2).
3. The student will demonstrate understanding of the history of NT lexicography and the
ability to assess lexicographical work and to carry out such work according to the highest
standards yet achieved (Mission statements 1 & 2).
4. The student will have developed a greater sensitivity to more subtle features of NT Greek
and their contributions to the communication of biblical texts (Mission statements 1 & 2).
5. The student will have gained an overview of the subject area and enjoyed the opportunity
to explore more advanced concepts in the study of biblical Greek (Mission statements 1
& 2).

GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 2
REQUIRED TEXTS
Campbell, Constantine R. Basics of Verbal Aspect in Biblical Greek. Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 2008. ISBN-13: 978-0310290834
Lee, John A. L. A History of New Testament Lexicography. Studies in biblical Greek, 8.
New York: P. Lang, 2003. ISBN-13: 978-0820434803
Levinsohn, Stephen H. Discourse Features of New Testament Greek A Coursebook on the
Information Structure of New Testament Greek. Dallas, TX: SIL International,
2000. ISBN-13: 978-1556710933
Runge, Steven. Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament: A Practical
Introduction to Discourse Features for Teaching and Exegesis. Peabody, Mass.:
Hendrickson, 2010 (also: Bellingham, Wash.: Logos Research Systems, 2009).
ISBN-13: 978-1598565836
See other required readings in the course outline below.

RECOMMENDED TEXTS
Caragounis, Chrys C. The Development of Greek and the New Testament Morphology,
Syntax, Phonology, and Textual Transmission. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker
Academic, 2006. [Note: See also the review by Silva in WTJ] ISBN-13: 978-
0801032301
Fanning, Buist M. Verbal Aspect in New Testament Greek. Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1990. ISBN 9780198267294
Porter, Stanley E. Idioms of the Greek New Testament. Biblical Languages: Greek 2.
Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1992. ISBN-13: 978-1850753797
Porter, Stanley E. Verbal Aspect in the Greek of the New Testament, with Reference to
Tense and Mood. Studies in Biblical Greek, 1. New York: Peter Lang, 1989.
ISBN 978-0820424231.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1. Meetings and Participation: The student(s) will meet with the professor at least four
times over the course of the semester to discuss the readings and any questions about the
work. At least 48 hours before the scheduled meeting the student(s) should send the
professor an email with an indication of the questions or topics they would like to discuss.
Students should be prepared to translate assigned texts and discuss the application of the
relevant concepts to those texts.
2. Verbal Aspect paper: Each student will write a brief (1,250 word) original research
paper in which they study the use of a particular NT verb in ancient Greek (within or up
to the Hellenistic period) and seek to explain patterns in the uses of tenses/aspects.
Explanation will be given during supervision periods regarding the types of verbs that
might be studied and how the study should proceed.
3. Linguistic Commentary Paper: Each student will write a paper on a passage in which
they comment on discourse features, questions of lexical and verbal aspect and related
issues (e.g., how temporal features are communicated), issues of lexicography, all in the
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 3
light of the required readings, course lectures and discussions. The paper should be
between 15 and 20 pages, double-spaced (except for footnotes), with one-inch margins
and size 12 Times New Roman (or equivalent) font.
4. Reading Report: A final reading report, indicating how much of the required reading
was completed (detailing pages of each assignment) and the total percentage of completed
required reading must be submitted by the deadline for the submission of written work.
COURSE EVALUATION

Linguistic Commentary Paper: 40 %
Verbal Aspect Paper: 20 %
Student Prep/Participation 10 %
Reading Report: 30 %
100 %

ACADEMIC POLICIES

Inductive Study
The final paper must demonstrate the use of the tools/steps/methods taught in NT502 and in this
course. A paper that primarily reflects a selection of insights from commentaries or other
secondary sources will not be acceptable.

Plagiarism
All use of sources must be properly indicated. Read the document on plagiarism carefully and
remember that use of authors words is indicated with quotation marks and a footnote and use of
their ideas, but not their words, is indicated with a footnote.

COURSE OUTLINE/PROPOSED SCHEDULE (subject to change at professors discretion)

Topics Readings, Assignments
Questions of Lexical and Verbal
Aspect
Tools for the study of verbal
aspect (including TLG and its
grammatical tools, the LXX and
ancient versions)
Aspect and constraints



1 Cor. 7:10-11, 20-21; 11:6; 15:33-34
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguistics
Essays by Porter, Fanning and Silva in Porter and Carson,
eds., Biblical Greek Language and Linguistics: Open
Questions in Current Research.
Caragounis, Chrys C. The Development of Greek and the
New Testament Morphology, Syntax, Phonology, and
Textual Transmission, pages 316-36
The review of Caragounis by Silva in WTJ (posted online).
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 4
Verbal aspect, continued
(including the question of
temporal reference)
Luke 22:63-65; 23:20-21; John 9:8-9; Acts 7:26-28; 16:16-
18; 26:11; 28:23-24; 1 Thess. 3:4;
Campbell, Basics of Verbal Aspect in Biblical Greek
Rothstein, Structuring Events: A Study in the Semantics of
Lexical Aspect, pp. 24-28 (posted online).
Steven E. Runge, Contrastive Substitution and the Greek
Verb: Reassessing Porters Argument.
Ciampas notes on verbal aspect and on ancient Greek
references to the temporal features of verbs.
Recommended: Rijksbaron, The Syntax and Semantics of the
Verb in Classical Greek, 1-48.
On textual presentation and
meaning (differences between
our GNT and that of the original
readers)
Word formation
Sentence structures as
traditionally analyzed
Diglossia and Register
Modalities
Voice, deponency and topical
focus
Emphatic pronouns
Luke 1:1-4; Heb. 1:1-4; Eph. 1:3-6
BDF pages 5569, 23956 (102126, 458484) scan for
main points (not detailed discussion)
Conrad, New Observations on Voice in the Ancient Greek
Verb;
Pennington, Jonathan T. Deponency in Koine Greek: The
Grammatical Question and the Lexicographical
Dilemma;
Pennington, Is Deponency a Valid Category for Koine
Greek?
Ciampas PowerPoint handout with excerpts from Allan,
Rutger J. The Middle Voice in Ancient Greek: A Study in
Polysemy. Amsterdam: J.C. Gieben, 2003. The whole
volume is highly recommended. The original dissertation
may be downloaded for free here:
http://dare.uva.nl/en/record/108528.
Discourse Grammar:
Foundations (including
conjunctions and asyndeton)
Luke 24:13-21
Runge, Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament,
pages, 1-57.
Levinsohn, Discourse Features of New Testament Greek,
pages 69-131.
Discourse Grammar: Forward-
Pointing Devices (Part 1)

Gal. 1:6-12; Heb. 9:1-11; Acts 2:41-42
Runge, Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament,
pages, 59-124.
Levinsohn, Discourse Features of New Testament Greek,
pages 169-213.
Discourse Grammar: Forward-
Pointing Devices (Part 2)
Mark 14:26-37
Runge, Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament,
pages, 125-77.
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 5
Discourse Grammar: Information
Structuring Devices (Part 1)
Gal 5:12-14; Rom 5:1-11
Runge, Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament,
pages, 179-242.
Levinsohn, Discourse Features of New Testament Greek,
pages 1-67, 133-67.
Discourse Grammar: Information
Structuring Devices (Part 2)
Matt 28:16-20; Rom. 12:9-13
Runge, Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament,
pages, 243-313.
Levinsohn, Discourse Features of New Testament Greek,
pages 215-84.

Discourse Grammar: Thematic
Highlighting Devices and
Summary
Gal. 1:1-5; Rom. 1:1-7
Runge, Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament,
pages, 315-91.
Levinsohn, Discourse Features of New Testament Greek,
pages 169-213
Past, Present and Future of Greek
Lexicography
Acts 17:10-15
Lee, A History of New Testament Lexicography.
Ciampa, Examined the Scriptures? The Meaning of
in Acts 17:11, Journal of
Biblical Literature 130, no. 3 (2011): pages 513528.
Green, Lexical Pragmatics and the Lexicon, Bulletin for
Biblical Research 22 (2012): 315-33.
Recommended:
Mueller, The Semantics of Biblical Hebrew: Some Remarks
from a Cognitive Perspective
All written work (research paper, text comparison sheets, reading report) due on the last
day to submit written work (including any earlier date indicated by the registration office
for students graduating at the end of the semester.

Select Bibliography
History of the Greek Language
Caragounis, Chrys C. The Development of Greek and the New Testament Morphology,
Syntax, Phonology, and Textual Transmission. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker
Academic, 2006. [Note: See also the review by Silva in WTJ]
Christides, A.-F. ed. A History of Ancient Greek from the Beginnings to Late Antiquity.
Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
Horrocks, Geoffrey C. Greek: A History of the Language and Its Speakers. Longman
Linguistics library. London: Longman, 1997.
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 6
Discourse Analysis
Black, David Alan, et al, eds. Linguistics and New Testament Interpretation: Essays on
Discourse Analysis. Nashville, Tenn.: Broadman, 1992.
Carson, D. A., and Stanley E. Porter. Discourse Analysis and Other Topics in Biblical
Greek. Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 113. Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press, 1995.
Levinsohn, Stephen H. Discourse Features of New Testament Greek A Coursebook on the
Information Structure of New Testament Greek. Dallas, TX: SIL International,
2000.
Runge, Steven E. Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament: A Practical
Introduction to Discourse Features for Teaching and Exegesis. Peabody, Mass.:
Hendrickson, 2010 (also: Bellingham, Wash.: Logos Research Systems, 2009).
Runge, Steven E., ed. Discourse Studies & Biblical Interpretation: A Festschrift in Honor
of Stephen H. Levinsohn. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2011.
Westfall, Cynthia Long. A Discourse Analysis of the Letter to the Hebrews: The
Relationship between Form and Meaning. London: Continuum, 2006.
Verbal Aspect
Brook, Matt. Authorial Choice and Verbal Aspect in the NT: An Investigation Using
Corpus Linguistics to Identify Patterns of Aspectual Usage Linked with Lexis,
Syntax and Context. 2 vols. M.Div. thesis, Gordon-Conwell Theological
Seminary, May 1997.
Campbell, Constantine R. Basics of Verbal Aspect in Biblical Greek. Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 2008. [160 pages?] [I highly recommend Susan Rothstein, Structuring
Events: A Study in the Semantics of Lexical Aspect (Explorations in Semantics;
Malden, Mass.: Blackwell, 2004 [197 pages, esp. pp. 25-28]) for more detailed
discussion of lexical aspect and its relationship to Aktionsart.]
Campbell, Constantine R. Verbal Aspect and Non-Indicative Verbs: Further Soundings in
the Greek of the New Testament. Studies in Biblical Greek, v. 15. New York:
Peter Lang, 2008.
Campbell, Constantine R. Verbal Aspect, the Indicative Mood, and Narrative: Soundings
in the Greek of the New Testament. Studies in Biblical Greek, v. 13. New York:
Peter Lang, 2007.
Caragounis, Chrys C. The Development of Greek and the New Testament Morphology,
Syntax, Phonology, and Textual Transmission. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker
Academic, 2006. [Note: See also the reviews by Silva in WTJ and by Fanning in
BBR.]
Decker, Rodney J. Temporal Deixis of the Greek Verb in the Gospel of Mark with
Reference to Verbal Aspect. Studies in Biblical Greek, vol. 10. New York: Peter
Lang, 2001.
Fanning, Buist M. Verbal Aspect in New Testament Greek. Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1990.
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 7
Hovav, Malka Rappaport, Edit Doron and Ivy Sichel, eds. Lexical Semantics, Syntax, and
Event Structure. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.
Mathewson, David. Verbal Aspect in the Apocalypse of John: An Analysis of
Revelation 5, Novum Testamentum 50 (2008), 58-77.
Mathewson, David. Verbal Aspect in the Book of Revelation: The Function of Greek Verb
Tenses in John's Apocalypse. Leiden: Brill, 2010.
McKay, K. L. A New Syntax of the Verb in New Testament Greek: An Aspectual
Approach. Studies in Biblical Greek, vol. 5. New York: Peter Lang, 1994.
Olsen, Mari Broman. A Semantic and Pragmatic Model of Lexical and Grammatical
Aspect. New York: Garland, 1997.
Porter, Stanley E. Verbal Aspect in the Greek of the New Testament, with Reference to
Tense and Mood. Studies in Biblical Greek, 1. New York: Peter Lang, 1989.
Porter, Stanley E., and D. A. Carson, eds. Biblical Greek Language and Linguistics:
Open Questions in Current Research. JSNTSS 80. Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press, 1993.
Rothstein, Susan Deborah. Structuring Events: A Study in the Semantics of Lexical
Aspect. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2004.
Greek (and some Hebrew) Lexicography
Bauer, Walter. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian
Literature. Third edition. Revised and edited by Frederick William Danker. Based
on Walter Bauers Griechisch-deutsches Wrterbuch zu den Schriften des Neuen
Testaments und der frhchristlichen Literatur, sixth edition, ed. Kurt Aland and
Barbara Aland, with Viktor Reichmann and on previous English editions by W. F.
Arndt, F. W. Gingrich, and F. W. Danker. Chicago: University of Chicago Press,
2000. [BDAG]
Chamberlain, Gary Alan. The Greek of the Septuagint: A Supplemental Lexicon. Peabody,
Mass.: Hendrickson, 2011.
Ciampa, Roy E. Examined the Scriptures? The Meaning of in
Acts 17:11, Journal of Biblical Literature 130, no. 3 (2011): pp. 513528.
Ciampa, Roy E. Revisiting the Euphemism in 1 Corinthians 7:1, Journal for the Study
of the New Testament 31.3 (2009); pp. 325-338.
Green, Gene L. Lexical Pragmatics and the Lexicon, Bulletin for Biblical Research 22
(2012): 315-33.
Hasselbrook, David S. Studies in New Testament Lexicography. WUNT 2.303. Tbingen:
Mohr Siebeck, 2011.
Lee, John A. L. A History of New Testament Lexicography. Studies in biblical Greek, 8.
New York: P. Lang, 2003.
Mueller, Enio R. Semantics of Biblical Hebrew: Some Remarks from a Cognitive
Perspective
(http://www.sdbh.org/documentation/EnioRMueller_SemanticsBiblicalHebrew.pdf).
Silva, Moiss. Biblical Words and Their Meaning: An Introduction to Lexical Semantics.
Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 1995.
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 8
Taylor, Bernard, John A. L. Lee, R. Burton Peter and Richard E. Whitaker, eds. Biblical
Greek Language and Lexicography. Grand Rapids, Mich: Eerdmans, 2004.
van der Merwe, Christo H. J. Lexical Meaning in Biblical Hebrew and Cognitive
Semantics: A Case Study, Biblica 87/2 (2006): 85-89.
Greek Grammars
Blass, F., Debrunner, A., and R. Funk. A Greek Grammar of the New Testament and
Other Early Christian Literature. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1962.
Burton, Ernest DeWitt. Syntax of the Moods and Tenses in New Testament Greek. 3rd
ed. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1898.
Funk, Robert W. A Beginning-Intermediate Grammar of Hellenistic Greek, 3 vols.
Missoula: Scholars Press, 1973.
Moule, C. F. D. An Idiom Book of New Testament Greek. 2nd ed. Cambridge: at the
University Press, 1959.
Moulton, James Hope, W. F. Howard, and Nigel Turner. A Grammar of New Testament
Greek. 4 vols. Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 1908, 1929, 1963, 1976.
Porter, Stanley E. Idioms of the Greek New Testament. Biblical Languages: Greek 2.
Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1992.
Robertson, A. T. A Grammar of the Greek New Testament in the Light of Historical
Research. Nashville: Broadman Press, 1914.
Siebenthal, Heinrich von. Griechische Grammatik zum Neuen Testament.
Neubearbeitung und Erweiterung der Grammatik Hoffmann / von Siebenthal.
Gieen: Brunnen, 2011.
Smyth, Herbert Weir. Greek Grammar [1910]. Revised by Gordon M. Messing.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1956.
Wallace, Daniel B. Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax of the
New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996.
Young, Richard A. Intermediate New Testament Greek: A Linguistic and Exegetical
Approach. Nashville: Broadman and Holman, 1994.
Zerwick, Maximilian. Biblical Greek: Illustrated by Examples. Translated and adapted
by Joseph Smith. Rome: Scripta Pontificii Instituti Biblici, 1963.
Deponency in NT Greek
Conrad, Carl W. New Observations on Voice in the Ancient Greek Verb November
19, 2002 (http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~cwconrad/docs/NewObsAncGrkVc.pdf).
Pennington, Jonathan T. Deponency in Koine Greek: The Grammatical Question and
the Lexicographical Dilemma, Trinity Journal 24 (2003): 55-76.
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 9
Pennington, Jonathan T. Is Deponency a Valid Category for Koine Greek? SBL 2003
(http://jonathanpennington.com/wp-content/uploads/Pennington_Middle_Voice.pdf).
Pennington, Jonathan T. Setting Aside Deponency and Rediscovering the Middle
Voice for New Testament Studies, in Stanley Porter and Matthew Brook ODonnell
(eds.), Studying the Greek New Testament: Papers from the SBL Greek Language
and Linguistics Section. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix, 2009.
Cognitive Linguistics
Geary, James. I Is an Other The Secret Life of Metaphor and How It Shapes the Way We
See the World. New York: HarperCollins, 2011. (popular introduction)
Geeraerts, Dirk, and H. Cuyckens, eds. The Oxford Handbook of Cognitive Linguistics.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. (academic introduction)
GL960 - Biblical Greek: Advanced Concepts / 10
General Bibliography
Arzt-Grabner, Peter, et al. 1. Korinther. Papyrologische Kommentare zum Neuen
Testament 2. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2006.
Black, David Alan. Linguistics for Students of New Testament Greek: A Survey of Basic
Concepts and Applications. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 2002.
Black, Stephanie L. Sentence Conjunction in the Gospel of Matthew: , , , ,
and Asyndeton in Narrative Discourse. London: Sheffield Academic, 2002.
Danove, Paul L. Grammatical and Exegetical Study of New Testament Verbs of
Transference A Case Frame Guide to Interpretation and Translation. London: T
& T Clark, 2009.
Evans, T. V. Verbal Syntax in the Greek Pentateuch: Natural Greek Usage and Hebrew
Interference. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.
ernnde, Juan. Scribal Habits and Theological Influences in the Apocalypse: The
Singular Readings of Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus, and Ephraemi. Tbingen: Mohr
Siebeck, 2006.
Kwong, Ivan Shing Chung. The Word Order of the Gospel of Luke Its Foreground
Messages. London: T & T Clark, 2005
Martn-Asensio, Gustavo. Transitivity-Based Foregrounding in the Acts of the Apostles:
A Functional-Grammatical Approach to the Lukan Perspective. Sheffield:
Sheffield Academic Press, 2000.
Porter, Stanley E., ed. Diglossia and Other Topics in New Testament Linguistics.
Sheffield, Eng: Sheffield Academic Press, 2000.
Porter, Stanley E., and D. A. Carson, eds. Biblical Greek Language and Linguistics:
Open Questions in Current Research. Journal for the Study of the New Testament
Supplement Series, 80. Sheffield, England: JSOT Press, 1993.
Porter, Stanley E., and D. A. Carson, eds. Linguistics and the New Testament: Critical
Junctures. Sheffield, England: Sheffield Academic Press, 1999.
Porter, Stanley E., and Matthew Brook O'Donnell, eds. The Linguist As Pedagogue:
Trends in the Teaching and Linguistic Analysis of the Greek New Testament.
Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix, 2009.
Rijksbaron, Albert. The Syntax and Semantics of the Verb in Classical Greek: An
Introduction. 3
rd
edition. Chicago & London: University of Chicago Press, 2002.
Royse, James Ronald. Scribal Habits in Early Greek New Testament Papyri. Atlanta:
Society of Biblical Literature, 2010.
Sailhamer, John. The Translational Technique of the Greek Septuagint for the Hebrew
Verbs and Participles in Psalms 3-41. Studies in Biblical Greek, vol. 2. New
York: Peter Lang, 1991.
Silva, Moiss. Interpreting Galatians: Explorations in Exegetical Method. Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Baker Academic, 2001.

See also: http://www.greek-language.com/Palmer-bibiography.html