| 25. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the temporal dative phrase tetarte de phylake tes nyktos {τετάρτῃ δὲ φυλακῇ τῆς νυκτὸς | tetártē dè phylakḗ tēs nyktós} “during the fourth watch of the night,” where the dative indicates the time when. The postpositive conjunction de {δὲ | dé} links this moment to earlier events. The central verb elthen {ἦλθεν | ḗlthen} “he came” is an aorist portraying a decisive action of arrival. The phrase pros autous {πρὸς αὐτοὺς | pros autoús} “toward them” specifies the disciples as the goal. The participle peripaton {περιπατῶν | peripatôn} “walking” serves as a manner participle, further defined by epi ten thalassan {ἐπὶ τὴν θάλασσαν | epì tēn thálassan} “upon the sea,” highlighting the miraculous context of movement over water. In English, the temporal phrase is fronted for emphasis on the late hour, and the participle is preserved in its manner sense to convey how He arrived. |