| 20. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the approximating particle hos {ὡς | hōs} ‘about’ combined with the dative of duration etesi tetrakosiois kai pentekonta {ἔτεσι τετρακοσίοις καὶ πεντήκοντα | étesi tetrakosíōis kaí pentḗkonta} ‘for about four hundred and fifty years.’ The coordinating conjunction kai {καὶ | kaí} ‘and’ links this span with the subsequent marker meta tauta {μετὰ ταῦτα | metà taûta} ‘after these things,’ signaling a new phase in Israel’s history. The main verb edoken {ἔδωκεν | édōken} ‘he gave’ with its object kritas {κριτὰς | kritàs} ‘judges’ presents leadership as a divine gift. The conjunction heos {ἕως | héōs} ‘until’ introduces the temporal boundary in heos Samouel tou prophētou {ἕως Σαμουὴλ τοῦ προφήτου | héōs Samoûēl toû prophḗtou} ‘Samuel the prophet,’ where tou prophētou is appositional, marking the transition to prophetic oversight. English renders the dative with ‘for,’ preserves ‘after these things,’ and retains ‘until’ to mirror the Greek sequence |