| 24. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with ho de apokritheis {ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς | ho dè apokritheís} “but the one having answered,” where the nominative article ho plus the aorist passive participle apokritheis functions as a circumstantial participial clause, identifying the subject (Jesus) and presenting His response as a reaction to the previous speech. This participial construction is followed by the main verb eipen {εἶπεν | eîpen} “he said,” forming the core narrative frame. The clause introduced by Ouk apestalēn {Οὐκ ἀπεστάλην | ouk apestálēn} “I was not sent” uses aorist passive indicative to portray a completed commissioning event in the past, with the passive voice highlighting Jesus as the One commissioned by Another. The restrictive structure ei mē {εἰ μὴ | ei mē} “except” tightly limits the scope of this sending, creating an exclusivizing focus. The prepositional phrase eis ta probata ta apololota {εἰς τὰ πρόβατα τὰ ἀπολωλότα | eis ta próbata ta apolōlóta} “to the sheep, the lost ones” uses an articular participle (ta apololota) modifying probata, so that the sheep are defined specifically as those in a state of having been lost, the perfect tense underscoring a settled condition with ongoing implications. The genitive phrase oikou Israēl {οἴκου Ἰσραήλ | oíkou Israḗl} “of the house of Israel” is a subjective genitive indicating the covenant community to which these sheep belong, evoking national and familial imagery. In translation, the restrictive force of ei mē is represented by “not … except” in the formal rendering and “only” in the dynamic, while the articular participle is preserved through the phrase “lost sheep,” maintaining the metaphor and ongoing state. The genitive oikou Israēl is rendered as “house of Israel” formally and “people of Israel” dynamically to convey the underlying corporate identity expressed by the household metaphor. |