| 34. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the contrastive construction alloi de {ἄλλοι δὲ | álloi dè} ‘but others’, which sets up parallel, conflicting shouts in allo ti epephōnoun {ἄλλο τι ἐπεφώνουν | állo ti epephōnoun} ‘they were shouting some other thing’. The locative phrase en tō ochlō {ἐν τῷ ὄχλῳ | en tō óchlō} places this within the crowd. A genitive absolute clause mē dynaménou de autoû gnōnai {μὴ δυναμένου δὲ αὐτοῦ γνῶναι | mē dynaménou dè autoû gnōnai} ‘since he was not able to know’ provides the causal basis for the ensuing command, with the infinitive gnōnai functioning as the complement of dynaménou. The nominalized adjective to asphalés {τὸ ἀσφαλὲς | tò asphalés} ‘the certainty’ denotes the reliable information sought, while dia ton thórybon {διὰ τὸν θόρυβον | diá tón thórybon} ‘because of the uproar’ identifies the barrier to clarity. The main verb ekéleusen {ἐκέλευσεν | ekéleusen} ‘he ordered’ governs the infinitive ágèsthai {ἄγεσθαι | ágèsthai} ‘to be brought’, with autón {αὐτὸν | autón} as its object. Finally, eis tēn parembolḗn {εἰς τὴν παρεμβολήν | eis tēn parembolḗn} ‘into the barracks’ shifts the scene from disorder to controlled custody. In English, the genitive absolute is rendered as a causal clause and the infinitives as complements to convey sequence and rationale. |