| 30. Linguistic Exegesis The sentence begins with the genitive absolute Paulou boulomenou {Παύλου βουλομένου | Paú-lou bou-lo-mé-nou} ‘when Paul wished,’ providing the temporal setting. The infinitive eiselthein {εἰσελθεῖν | ei-sel-theîn} conveys his intended action, governed by that participle, while the prepositional phrase eis ton dēmon {εἰς τὸν δῆμον | eis ton dê-mon} specifies his destination. The negative imperfect eiōn {εἴων | eí-on} expresses ongoing refusal by the disciples (hoi mathetai {οἱ μαθηταί | hoi ma-thē-taí}), with auton {αὐτὸν | au-tón} as the object. In translation, the genitive absolute becomes a temporal clause and the imperfect is rendered “would not permit/let” to reflect continuous denial. |