Acts 14:16 — ExegesisTAB

The verse opens with the relative pronoun hos {ὃς | hòs} “who,” which syntactically links back to the previously mentioned subject and introduces a relative clause that describes His past activity. The prepositional phrase en tais paroichemenais geneais {ἐν ταῖς παρῳχημέναις γενεαῖς | en taîs parōichēménais geneaîs} “in the generations having passed” functions adverbially, setting the temporal sphere in which the main action occurred and emphasizing long stretches of prior history. The main verb eiasen {εἴασεν | eíasen} “allowed” takes as its direct object panta ta ethne {πάντα τὰ ἔθνη | pánta tà éthnē} “all the nations,” a comprehensive expression that portrays universal scope beyond Israel. The infinitive poreuesthai {πορεύεσθαι | poreúesthai} “to walk” forms a complementary infinitive construction with eiasen, expressing what He permitted them to do. The dative phrase tais hodois auton {ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτῶν | taîs hodoîs autôn} “their ways” specifies the sphere or manner of that walking, conveying the idea of self-directed conduct and autonomous paths. In the formal rendering, the temporal phrase is kept close to the Greek order and eiasen is translated “allowed” to retain the sense of deliberate permission. In the dynamic rendering, “earlier generations” and “let all the nations go their own ways” capture the same permissive nuance in idiomatic contemporary English while preserving the clause relationships and emphasis on God’s forbearance.