| 21. Linguistic Exegesis The clause begins with katangellousin {καταγγέλλουσιν | katanggéllousin} ‘they proclaim’, a present active indicative verb indicating an ongoing public declaration. Its direct object ethē {ἔθη | éthē} ‘customs’ is specified by the relative clause ha ouk exestin hēmin paradechesthai oude poiein {ἃ οὐκ ἔξεστιν ἡμῖν παραδέχεσθαι οὐδὲ ποιεῖν} ‘which it is not lawful for us neither to accept nor to do’, with the impersonal exestin {ἔξεστιν | éxestin} governing the dative hēmin {ἡμῖν | hēmîn} and two coordinated infinitives paradechesthai {παραδέχεσθαι | paradéchesthai} and poiein {ποιεῖν | poieîn}, reflecting internal reception and external practice. The final participial phrase Rhōmaiois ousin {Ῥωμαίοις οὖσιν | Rhōmaíois oûsin} ‘being Romans’ functions circumstantially to provide the legal basis for the prohibition. The translations preserve this structure by conveying the formal linkage of the relative clause and infinitives, while the dynamic version emphasizes the persuasive intent of the accusation. |