πυνθάνεσθαι

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 πυνθάνεσθαι

   pyn-THA-nes-thai

   to inquire
2. sentence🔊 εἶπεν δὲ ὅτι Οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι συνέθεντο τοῦ ἐρωτῆσαί σε ὅπως αὔριον τὸν Παῦλον καταγάγῃς εἰς τὸ συνέδριον ὡς μέλλον τι ἀκριβέστερον πυνθάνεσθαι περὶ αὐτοῦ

   EI-pen de HO-ti hoi i-ou-DAI-oi sy-NE-thehn-to tou e-rô-TÊ-sai se HO-pôs AU-ri-on ton PAU-lon ka-ta-GA-gêis eis to sy-NE-dri-on hôs MEL-lon ti a-kri-VES-te-ron pyn-THA-nes-thai pe-RI au-TOU

   he said and that the Jews agreed to to ask you so that tomorrow the Paul you bring down into the council as though about to something more accurately to inquire about him

Exegesis

The participial phrase mellon ti akribesteron pynthanesthai peri autou {μέλλον τι ἀκριβέστερον πυνθάνεσθαι περὶ αὐτοῦ | mél-lon ti a-kri-bés-te-ron pyn-thá-nes-thai pe-rì au-toû} literally means ‘being about to inquire something more accurately about him’. Here mellon, a present participle, functions with the complementary infinitive pynthanesthai to express intended future action, and akribesteron, an accusative neuter singular comparative, is used adverbially to describe the manner of the inquiry. Syntactically, the structure creates a clear hierarchy: main reporting verb (eipen), main conspiratorial clause (hoi Ioudaioi synethento), articulated purpose for the addressee (hopos … katagages), and a comparative clause that frames their stated aim as a pretext. The translations preserve this layering by keeping the conspiratorial agreement, the requested action, and the deceptive “as though” inquiry distinct but closely coordinated.