| 37. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the nominative article ho {ὁ | ho} followed by the postpositive particle de {δὲ | dé}, producing a mild connective “but/and” that links this explanation to the prior context. The aorist passive participle apokritheis {ἀποκριθεὶς | apokritheís} combined with the finite verb eipen {εἶπεν | eîpen} forms a common narrative response formula, literally “having answered, he said,” which in English is best rendered as the simple finite sequence “answered and said/replied.” The second clause opens with the article Ho {Ὁ | ho} governing the participle speiron {σπείρων | speírōn}, yielding the substantival participial phrase “the one sowing,” which identifies a specific agent rather than a generic activity. The object phrase to kalon sperma {τὸ καλὸν σπέρμα | tó kalón spérma} places the article and adjective before the noun, emphasizing the character of the seed as “good” in quality. The copula estin {ἐστὶν | estín} links this subject phrase to the predicate nominative ho huios tou anthropou {ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου | ho huiós tou anthrópou}, literally “the son of the man,” a recognized messianic self-designation used by Jesus. English word order is adjusted to a more typical subject–verb–complement sequence, and the substantival participle is rendered with a relative-like construction “the one who sows/plants” to preserve its ongoing action while remaining idiomatic. The repeated articles in Greek signal specificity and definiteness, which are retained where natural with “the” and otherwise left implicit. |