| 15. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with an inferential rhetorical question, ti oun estin; {τί οὖν ἐστιν; | tí oûn É-stin} ‘What then is it?’, which functions as a discourse marker summing up the preceding argument about intelligibility in corporate worship. Two closely parallel clauses follow, each in the future tense first person singular, expressing Paul’s resolved intention: proseuxomai tō pneumati, proseuxomai de kai tō noi {προσεύξομαι τῷ πνεύματι, προσεύξομαι δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ | pro-seú-xo-mai tôi pneú-ma-ti, pro-seú-xo-mai dé kaí tôi no-ï} and psalō tō pneumati, psalō de kai tō noi {ψαλῶ τῷ πνεύματι, ψαλῶ δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ | psa-lô tôi pneú-ma-ti, psa-lô dé kaí tôi no-ï}. The repeated futures convey a firm, programmatic decision. The dative constructions with tō pneumati and tō noi indicate means or sphere (“with/by the spirit,” “with/by the mind”), highlighting that both inner spiritual engagement and cognitive understanding are involved in prayer and singing. The particles de and kai create tightly balanced parallelism and a both–and structure, countering any either–or division between “spirit” and “mind.” The English renderings preserve the rhetorical question, the two paired commitments, and the symmetry of the parallel clauses to reflect Paul’s emphasis on integrated, intelligible worship. |