| 12. Linguistic Exegesis The sentence begins with the fronted temporal frame pro de touton panton {Πρὸ δὲ τούτων πάντων | Prò dè toútōn pántōn} “before all these things,” placing the suffering ahead of the larger events in the discourse. Two future indicatives, epibalousin {ἐπιβαλοῦσιν | epibaloûsin} and dioksousin {διώξουσιν | diṓxousin}, present the hostility as certain and sequential. The first is sharpened by the bodily phrase eph hymas tas kheiras auton {ἐφʼ ὑμᾶς τὰς χεῖρας αὐτῶν | eph hymâs tàs kheîras autṓn}, while the second is expanded by the participle paradidontes {παραδιδόντες | paradidóntes}, which moves the action from attack to formal handover. The accusative participle apagomenous {ἀπαγομένους | apagoménous} keeps the same victims in view and depicts them as being led before basileis kai hegemonas {βασιλεῖς καὶ ἡγεμόνας | basileîs kaì hēgemónas}. The closing causal phrase heneken tou onomatos mou {ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματός μου | héneken toû onomatós mou} gives the motive for the persecution and centers the conflict on Jesus’ own name, so the whole verse reads as a prophetic escalation from physical abuse to institutional trial to name-based opposition. |