| 5. Linguistic Exegesis Each finite verb in this verse is preceded by the negative particle ouk or ou {οὐκ/οὐ | ouk/ou}, creating a tight series of four coordinated negated clauses that further define agapē from the previous context. The main verbs aschēmonei {ἀσχημονεῖ | a-schē-mo-neî}, zētei {ζητεῖ | zē-teî}, paroxynetai {παροξύνεται | pa-ro-xý-ne-tai}, and logizetai {λογίζεται | lo-gí-ze-tai} are all in the present tense, portraying settled patterns of behavior rather than single events. The clause zētei ta heautēs {ζητεῖ τὰ ἑαυτῆς | zē-teî tà he-au-tês} literally “seeks the things of itself” uses the article plus neuter plural with the reflexive pronoun in the genitive to express the idea of pursuing one’s own interests. Paroxynetai {παροξύνεται | pa-ro-xý-ne-tai}, a middle/passive deponent, depicts being stirred up or provoked, likely to anger, emphasizing inner agitation rather than mere annoyance. Logizetai to kakon {λογίζεται τὸ κακόν | lo-gí-ze-tai tò ka-kón} employs accounting imagery; “reckoning the evil” pictures keeping an internal ledger of wrongs. The English renderings preserve the parallelism and repeated negatives, maintain present tense to mirror the durative aspect, and recast idiomatic phrases (“seeks the things of itself,” “reckons the evil”) into clear contemporary expressions that still reflect the underlying metaphors of self-interest, provocation, and bookkeeping. |