| 38. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the subject Paulos {Παῦλος | Paû-los} ‘Paul’, followed by the contrastive conjunction de {δὲ | dè} linking his stance to the preceding action concerning Barnabas. The main verb exiou {ἠξίου | hē-xí-ou} ‘was deeming worthy’ governs the infinitival clause introduced by the negative particle me {μὴ | mḕ} and the present active infinitive sumparalambanein {συμπαραλαμβάνειν | sum-pa-ra-lam-bá-nein} ‘to take along together’, which expresses Paul’s evaluative judgment. Its object touton {τοῦτον | toû-ton} ‘this one’ is described by two aorist active participles—apostanta {ἀποστάντα | a-po-stánt-a} ‘having departed’ and sunelthonta {συνελθόντα | su-nel-thón-ta} ‘having gone together’—joined by kai {καὶ | kaì} and marked with me {μὴ | mḕ} to indicate the grounds for exclusion. The relational phrase ap autōn {ἀπ᾽ αὐτῶν | apó autōn} ‘from them’ highlights separation, while apo Pamphylias {ἀπὸ Παμφυλίας | apò Pam-phu-lí-as} ‘from Pamphylia’ provides geographical context. The phrase eis tò ergon {εἰς τὸ ἔργον | eis tò ér-gon} ‘into the work’ frames the intended sphere of ministry. The double negation underscores Paul’s conviction that the deserter should not accompany them. For clarity, the participles are rendered as relative clauses, and the infinitive with me as a subordinate clause conveying evaluative nuance. |