| 23. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the coordinating conjunction kai {καί | kaí}, linking this action to the wider crucifixion narrative. The imperfect verb edidoun {ἐδίδουν | e-dí-doun} ‘they were giving’ conveys an ongoing or attempted action, presenting the offering of the drink as a process rather than a single completed event. The indirect object auto {αὐτῷ | au-tôi} ‘to him’ specifies the recipient, contextually Jesus. The participle esmurnismenon {ἐσμυρνισμένον | e-smur-nis-mé-non} ‘having been mixed with myrrh’ precedes its object oinon {οἶνον | oî-non} ‘wine’, forming a participial modifier that emphasizes the prepared, altered nature of the drink. The relative pronoun hos {ὃς | hos} introduces a relative clause, with Jesus as its antecedent: hos de ouk elaben {ὃς δὲ οὐκ ἔλαβεν | hos dè ouk é-la-ben} ‘who, however, did not take it’. The particle de {δέ | dé} marks a mild contrast between the offer and the response, while ouk {οὐκ | ouk} negates the aorist verb elaben {ἔλαβεν | é-la-ben} ‘he took’, portraying His refusal as a definite, completed decision. In translation, the durative force of the imperfect is conveyed with “were offering” / “tried to give,” and the relative clause is rendered as a coordinated clause in smooth English (“but He did not take it / refused to accept it”), while still preserving the contrastive structure between the offered narcotic drink and Jesus’ deliberate rejection. |