| 2. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the substantival participle apeithēsantes {ἀπειθήσαντες | hoí apeithḗsantes} combined with Ioudaioi {Ἰουδαῖοι | Ioudaîoi} to identify “the unbelieving Jews,” contrasted by the postpositive de {δὲ | dè} “but.” Two coordinated aorist verbs, epēgeiran {ἐπήγειραν | epḗgeiran} “stirred up” and ekakōsan {ἐκάκωσαν | ekákōsan} “harmed,” linked by kai {καὶ | kaí}, portray a sequence of hostile actions. The direct object tas psychas tōn ethnōn {τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἐθνῶν | tàs psychàs tōn ethnṓn} literally “the souls of the nations,” uses psychas to emphasize inner disposition rather than physical persons. The prepositional phrase katà tōn adelphōν {κατὰ τῶν ἀδελφῶν | katà tōn adelphṓn} “against the brothers” indicates antagonism toward the Christian community. The formal uses “made… hostile” to render the embittering sense of ekakōsan, while the dynamic employs “provoked” and “soured” to convey the stirring and corrupting impact on cognition and emotions. |