καὶ

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 καὶ

   KAI

   and
2. sentence🔊 Καὶ ἔσονται σημεῖα ἐν ἡλίῳ καὶ σελήνῃ καὶ ἄστροις καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς συνοχὴ ἐθνῶν ἐν ἀπορίᾳ ἤχους θαλάσσης καὶ σάλου

   KAI E-so-ntai sê-MEI-a en hê-LI-oi KAI se-LÊ-nê KAI AS-trois KAI e-PI tês gês sy-no-KHÊ e-THNÔN en a-po-RI-a Ê-khous tha-LAS-sês KAI SA-lou

   And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity roaring of the sea and waves

Exegesis

The opening kai {καὶ | kaí} joins the clause to what precedes, while esontai {ἔσονται | ésontai} ‘they will be’ is placed before semeia {σημεῖα | sēmeîa} ‘signs’, giving the future event prominence.

The prepositional phrase en heliō kai selēnē kai astrois {ἐν ἡλίῳ καὶ σελήνῃ καὶ ἄστροις | en hēlíō kaí selḗnē kaí ástrois} gathers the celestial bodies into one compressed list, and the repeated kai {καί | kaí} creates a cumulative, escalating rhythm.

The closing genitive chain ēchous thalassēs kai salou {ἤχους θαλάσσης καὶ σάλου | ḗchous thalássēs kaí sálou} can be read as the cause or source of that distress, linking the nations’ confusion to the threatening auditory image of the sea and its surge. English therefore needs to unfold the Greek compression into a fuller causal phrase while preserving the verse’s apocalyptic progression.

Root and etymology

kairos🔊 καιρόςkappa alpha iota rho omicron sigma

“appointed time, fitting season”