Acts 2:12:13Acts.2.12.W13TAB
εἶναι
einai
“to be”
- Transliteration
- EI-nai
- Extended
- EI-nai
- IPA
- /ˈei.nai/
Meaning by language
- English
- to be
Greek · tap a syllable to hear it
Alphabet Analysis
| Epsilon | e — as in met (short) | |
| Iota | i — as in machine | |
| Nu | n — as in new | |
| Alpha | ah — as in father | |
| Iota | i — as in machine |
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The word
Word in context
- word
EI-nai
- sentence
ek-SEES-tan-to de PAN-tes kai di-ê-PO-roun AL-los pros AL-lon LE-gon-tes TEE THE-lei TOU-to EI-nai
Exegesis
The construction thelei touto einai {θέλει τοῦτο εἶναι | thé-lei toû-to eî-nai} literally ‘what does this want to be’ uses thelei in a sense of ‘intend’ or ‘mean’, which in English is best captured by “What does this mean?” The syntax thus moves from collective emotional reaction to communal questioning, and the translation reflects this by preserving the sequence of amazement, perplexity, and interpretive inquiry.
In context — Acts 2:12
And all were amazed and were perplexed , one to another saying, “What does this mean ?”
About this coordinate
Acts 2:12:13 is a BCV:P reference — Book · Chapter · Verse · Word Position. It addresses word 13 of Acts 2:12, so the Greek word εἶναι (einai) can be cited, linked and studied at exactly this position rather than somewhere in the verse. In the Biblical Knowledge Coordinate System the same position is written Acts.2.12.W13, which extends further down to each syllable (Acts.2.12.W13.S1) and character.