| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The verse presents a balanced contrast built around two clauses that share the implicit subject “love” from the preceding context. The negative clause begins with ou {οὐ | ou} ‘not’, which directly precedes the verb chairei {χαίρει | khaí-rei} ‘rejoices’, placing strong emphasis on what love categorically refuses to do. The prepositional phrase epi tē adikia {ἐπὶ τῇ ἀδικίᾳ | e-pí tēi a-di-kíāi} functions as a dative of sphere, indicating the realm “at” or “over” which joy would be expressed, here marked as morally improper. The second clause is introduced by the contrastive particle de {δὲ | de} ‘but’, pivoting from prohibition to affirmation. The verb sugchairei {συγχαίρει | syg-khaí-rei} ‘rejoices with’ is cognate with chairei but intensified by the syn- prefix, conveying shared, communal rejoicing. Its complement, tē aletheia {τῇ ἀληθείᾳ | tēi a-lē-théiāi} ‘the truth’, again in the dative, parallels the earlier dative phrase and highlights the proper moral sphere of love’s joy. English renderings mirror this antithetical parallelism (“not rejoice at… but rejoice with…”) and preserve the progression from solitary gloating over evil to shared delight in what is true. |