| 3. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the temporal adverb tote {τότε | tó-te} introducing the next step in the narrative. The explicit subject Paulos {Παῦλος | Paû-los} precedes the verb eipen {εἶπεν | eî-pen}, forming a straightforward subject–verb sequence, while the prepositional phrase pros auton {πρὸς αὐτὸν | prós au-tón} specifies the addressee of Paul’s speech. Within the direct discourse, the infinitive typtein {Τύπτειν | Týp-tein} combined with mellei {μέλλει | mél-lei} and the subject ho theos {ὁ θεός | ho the-ós} expresses an imminent future (“God is about to strike”), with the infinitive functioning as the complement of mellei. The vocative phrase toiche kekoniamene {τοῖχε κεκονιαμένε | toî-che ke-ko-ni-a-mé-ne} stands as a sharp metaphorical address, where the perfect participle emphasizes a completed, ongoing state of “whitewashing,” suggesting outward respectability that conceals inner corruption. The clause kai sy kathe krinōn me kata ton nomon {καὶ σὺ κάθῃ κρίνων με κατὰ τὸν νόμον | kaí sý ká-thē krí-nōn me katá ton nó-mon} presents a contrastive coordination: the finite verb kathe {κάθῃ | ká-thē} (“you sit”) is modified by the participle krinōn {κρίνων | krí-nōn} (“judging”), and the prepositional phrase kata ton nomon {κατὰ τὸν νόμον | ka-tá tón nó-mon} specifies the claimed standard of legal judgment. The following coordinated participial construction kai paranomōn {καὶ παρανομῶν | kaí pa-ra-no-mōn} introduces an adversative nuance (“and yet, while acting unlawfully”), in tension with the earlier appeal to “the law.” The final clause keleueis me typtesthai {κελεύεις με τύπτεσθαι | ke-leú-eis me týp-te-sthai} uses an object complement structure: the finite verb “you command” takes the pronoun me as object and the passive infinitive typtesthai {τύπτεσθαι | týp-te-sthai} as the content of the command, providing concrete evidence of the unlawful behavior. The English translations preserve the fronted vocative for rhetorical force and render the participles krinōn and paranomōn as finite or subordinate clauses to maintain natural flow while retaining the contrast between judging “according to the law” and at the same time violating it. |