| 30. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the coordinated verbs apekrithesan kai eipan {ἀπεκρίθησαν καὶ εἶπαν | apekrithēsan kai eipan} ‘they answered and said’, a conventional dialogue introduction that frames the statement as a formal response. The dative auto {αὐτῷ | autō} ‘to him’ marks the recipient of the reply. The conditional frame ei mē {εἰ μὴ | ei mē} ‘if not’ sets up a negative premise, and the imperfect en {ἦν | ēn} ‘was’ presents a past state under discussion. The demonstrative houtos {οὗτος | houtos} ‘this one’ refers to Jesus by distance rather than by name, and the participial phrase kakon poion {κακὸν ποιῶν | kakon poiōn} ‘doing evil’ describes the alleged conduct as ongoing, not merely momentary. The apodosis ouk an ... paredokamen {οὐκ ἄν ... παρεδώκαμεν | ouk an ... paredōkamen} ‘would not have delivered’ is counterfactual: the modal particle an with the aorist indicative expresses what would not have occurred in the past. The dative soi {σοι | soi} ‘to you’ identifies Pilate as the authority to whom custody would have been transferred. Taken together, the syntax presents a legal justification, with the accusation supplying the reason for the claimed transfer. |