| 20. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the adverb houtos {οὕτως | hoú-tōs} “thus, in this way,” which functions as a summary marker, drawing together the preceding narrative into a concluding statement. The prepositional phrase kata kratos {κατὰ κράτος | katá krát-os} is an idiomatic expression, where the preposition with an accusative noun forms an adverbial modifier meaning “mightily” or “with great power,” intensifying the manner of the growth that follows. The genitival phrase tou kyriou {τοῦ κυρίου | toû kyr-í-ou} modifies ho logos {ὁ λόγος | ho lóg-os}, yielding the subject phrase “the word of the Lord,” which emphasizes that the message belongs to and proceeds from the Lord Himself. The two imperfect verbs, euxanen {ηὔξανεν | eúx-a-nen} “was increasing” and ischyuen {ἴσχυεν | ís-chy-en} “was prevailing,” appear in coordination with kai {καὶ | kaí}, forming a compound verbal predicate that portrays continuous, ongoing expansion and victorious effectiveness. English word order follows the Greek progression from summarizing adverb, to manner, to subject, to process (“was growing and prevailing”), preserving both the durative aspect of the verbs and the emphasis on the powerful advance of the Lord’s word. |