| 28. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the aorist passive participle apokritheis {Ἀποκριθεὶς | apokritheís} ‘answering’, linking Peter’s words to the prior narrative. The coordinating conjunction de {δὲ | dè} advances the scene with a mild adversative nuance. The dative pronoun autō {αὐτῷ | autô} establishes Jesus as addressee before the subject noun ho Petros {ὁ Πέτρος | ho Pétros} identifies the speaker. The verb eipen {εἶπεν | eîpen} introduces direct speech. Inside the quotation, the vocative Kyrie {Κύριε | Kýrie} invokes Jesus’ authority. The conditional protasis ei sy ei {εἰ σὺ εἶ | ei sŷ eî} ‘if you are’ seeks identity confirmation, with the pronoun sy placed before the verb for emphasis. The apodosis uses the aorist imperative keleuson {κέλευσόν | kéleuson} to request a decisive command, and the infinitive clause me elthein {με ἐλθεῖν | me eltheîn} serves as its content. The paired prepositional phrases pros se {πρὸς σὲ | pròs sè} ‘toward you’ and epi ta hydata {ἐπὶ τὰ ὕδατα | epì tà hýdata} ‘upon the waters’ specify direction and location. This structure underlines Peter’s reliance on Jesus’ authoritative word and frames the forthcoming miracle of walking on the sea. |