| 17. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with sēmeia {σημεῖα | sē-meî-a} “signs” as the fronted subject, giving prominence to the miraculous phenomena that will characterize believers. The connective de {δὲ | dè} links this statement to the preceding context while introducing a slight development in thought. The dative phrase tois pisteusasin {τοῖς πιστεύσασιν | toîs pis-teú-sa-sin}, composed of the article and an aorist active participle, functions substantivally as “those who have believed,” marking the group to whom the signs pertain. The demonstrative tauta {ταῦτα | taû-ta} “these things” follows the dative phrase and precedes the verb parakolouthēsei {παρακολουθήσει | pa-ra-ko-lou-thḗ-sei}, forming the core clause: “these signs will follow.” The verb is third person singular, agreeing with the neuter plural sēmeia understood collectively, a common Greek syntactic feature that treats neuter plurals as a singular whole. The prepositional phrase en tō onomati mou {ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου | en tô o-nó-ma-ti mou} “in My name” is placed before the series of future verbs, highlighting that the entire sequence of actions is carried out within the sphere and authority of Jesus’ name. The plural future verb ekbalousin {ἐκβαλοῦσιν | ek-ba-loû-sin} “they will cast out” takes daimonia {δαιμόνια | dai-mó-ni-a} “demons” as its direct object, while the following future verb lalēsousin {λαλήσουσιν | la-lḗ-sou-sin} “they will speak” governs the dative phrase glōssais kainaīs {γλώσσαις καιναῖς | glṓs-sais kai-naîs} “with new tongues.” These coordinated future indicative verbs share the implied subject “they,” referring back to “those who have believed,” and present the actions as sure results rather than mere possibilities. The dative glōssais with the adjective kainaīs indicates the manner or medium of speaking, emphasizing the qualitative “newness” of the tongues. In translation, the main clause structure was preserved (“these signs will follow/accompany those who believe”), with the two future plural clauses rendered as coordinated promises. The prepositional phrase “in My name” was kept close to the beginning of the second part of the sentence to maintain its role as the overarching basis for both exorcism and inspired speech. |