| 23. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the participial clause epithentes autois {ἐπιθέντες αὐτοῖς | epithéntes autoîs} ‘having inflicted on them’, where the aorist active participle epithentes sets the scene. The noun plegas {πληγὰς | plēgàs} ‘blows’ serves as the direct object of both epithentes and the main verb ebalon {ἔβαλον | ébalon} ‘they threw’. The prepositional phrase eis phylakēn {εἰς φυλακὴν | eis phylakḗn} ‘into prison’ marks the spatial goal. Parangeilantes {παραγγείλαντες | parangeílantes} ‘having commanded’ is a second aorist participle in attendant circumstance, taking the dative tō desmophylaki {τῷ δεσμοφύλακι | tôi desmophýlaki} ‘to the jailer’ and completing its action with the infinitive tērein autous {τηρεῖν αὐτούς | tēreîn autoús}, qualified by the adverb asphalōs {ἀσφαλῶς | asphalôs} ‘securely’ to indicate the strict manner of confinement. |