σὺ

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 σὺ

   sy

   you
2. clause🔊 ⸀Οὐχὶ σὺ εἶ ὁ χριστός;

   ou-KHI sy EI ho khri-STOS

   not you are the Christ
3. sentence🔊 Εἷς δὲ τῶν κρεμασθέντων κακούργων ἐβλασφήμει αὐτόν ⸀λέγων· ⸀Οὐχὶ σὺ εἶ ὁ χριστός;

   heis DE tôn kre-mas-THEN-tôn ka-KOUR-gôn e-blas-PHÊ-mei au-TON LE-gōn ou-KHI sy EI ho khri-STOS

   one but of the of the ones having been hanged criminals was blaspheming him saying not you are the Christ

Exegesis

The reported speech is structured as a simple condition introduced by ei {Εἰ | ei} ‘if’, followed by the clause sy ei ho Christos {σὺ εἶ ὁ Χριστός | sy ei ho Christos} ‘you are the Christ’, and then the aorist imperative sōson seauton kai hēmas {σῶσον σεαυτόν καὶ ἡμᾶς | sōson seauton kai hēmas} ‘save yourself and us’. The aorist imperative presents the demanded action as a decisive, immediate rescue. In translation, the initial imperfect is rendered with a past progressive (“was blaspheming” / “insulted …” with contextual sense of ongoing action), while the participle legōn becomes “saying” to smoothly lead into direct quotation. The conditional ei-clause is reproduced with “If You are…” to preserve the taunting, testing tone that challenges Jesus’ messianic identity and demands visible proof through deliverance.

Root and etymology

paraginomai🔊 παραγίνομαιpa-ra-gi-no-mai

“to arrive with, be present with”