| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the article–conjunction–name sequence ho de Iesous {ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς | ho de Iē-soûs}, where the article functions as a discourse marker attaching to the proper name and de signals a mild shift in the narrative, introducing Jesus as the speaker. The aorist indicative eipen {εἶπεν | eî-pen} is a standard narrative verb of speaking that introduces the direct discourse that follows. Within the speech, aphete auten {Ἄφετε αὐτήν | Á-phe-te au-tḗn} uses the second person plural aorist imperative to issue a decisive, urgent command to the surrounding group, protecting the woman as the direct object. The interrogative clause ti aute kopous parechete {τί αὐτῇ κόπους παρέχετε | tí au-tê kó-pous pa-ré-khe-te} places the interrogative pronoun ti at the front for emphasis, followed by the indirect object aute and the object kopous, with the present indicative parechete at the end. This word order highlights both the person being affected (“to her”) and the nature of the action (“troubles”) before revealing the ongoing causation (“are you causing”). The phrase kalon ergon ergasato {καλὸν ἔργον ἠργάσατο | ka-lón érg-on ēr-gá-sa-to} consists of an adjective–noun object followed by an aorist middle verb. Fronting kalon before ergon accentuates the quality of the deed as morally and aesthetically “good,” while the middle voice of ergasato underscores the woman’s personal involvement in performing the act. The prepositional phrase en emoi {ἐν ἐμοί | en e-moí} literally reads “in Me,” but in context with a verb of doing a work toward a person it functions idiomatically as “for Me” or “to Me,” expressing that the good work is directed to Jesus Himself. In translation, the imperative and interrogative forces are preserved, and the idiomatic en emoi is rendered “for Me” to communicate relational direction without awkwardness in English. |