| 39. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the imperfect verb ezetoun {ἐζήτουν | ezḗ-toun} ‘were seeking’, which frames the action as ongoing and repeated rather than momentary. Oun {οὖν | oun} ‘therefore’ ties this attempt to what has just happened in the surrounding context, while palin {πάλιν | pá-lin} ‘again’ makes the renewed hostility explicit. The object auton {αὐτόν | au-tón} ‘him’ is followed by the infinitive piasai {πιάσαι | pi-á-sai} ‘to seize’, which functions as a purpose clause and shows what the opponents intended to do. The conjunction kai {καί | kaí} links the next clause, but in English the context requires a contrastive rendering because the expected arrest fails. Exelthen {ἐξῆλθεν | ex-êl-then} ‘He went out’ is an aorist that presents the departure as decisive and complete. The phrase ek tes cheiros auton {ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῶν | ek tês kheirós autôn} ‘out of their hand’ uses cheir {χειρ | kheír} idiomatically for power, control, or domination; the formal rendering preserves the image, while the dynamic rendering makes the metaphor transparent as hostile grip. |