| 4. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with the narrative formula ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθείς εἶπεν, combining the nominative articular participle apokritheis {ἀποκριθείς | apokritheís} ‘having answered’ with the finite verb eipen {εἶπεν | eîpen} ‘he said’. This participle-verb sequence functions as a standard discourse marker introducing direct speech, with the subject understood from context as Jesus. The interrogative challenge is expressed through the negative aorist indicative ouk anegnōte {Οὐκ ἀνέγνωτε | Ouk anégnōte} ‘have you not read’, a rhetorical question presuming familiarity with Scripture and emphasizing the authority of the written text. The clause introduced by hoti {ὅτι | hóti} ‘that’ contains a nominal subject expressed by the articular participle ho ktisas {ὁ κτίσας | ho ktísas} ‘the One who created’, which functions substantively to denote the Creator. The prepositional phrase ap’ archēs {ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς | ap’ archês} ‘from the beginning’ gives temporal framing, pointing back to the creation account and underscoring original divine intent. The coordinated accusatives arsen kai thēly {ἄρσεν καὶ θῆλυ | ársen kaí thḗly} ‘male and female’ are the objects of epoiēsen {ἐποίησεν | epoíēsen} ‘he made’, specifying the differentiated yet paired nature of humanity as created. The pronoun autous {αὐτούς | autoús} ‘them’ gathers the pair into a single human unit. In translation, the rhetorical question is retained with a present perfect-like sense (“have you not read”), ho ktisas is rendered as “the One who created” or “the Creator” to preserve its personal and active nuance, and the word order “made them male and female” is maintained to mirror the emphasis of the Greek. |