| 8. Linguistic Exegesis The verse begins with the temporal adverb tote {τότε | tó-te} “then,” marking a new stage in the parable’s sequence. The historic present legei {λέγει | lé-gei} “he says” heightens narrative immediacy, and the dative phrase tois doulois autou {τοῖς δούλοις αὐτοῦ | toîs doû-lois au-toû} “to his servants” identifies the recipients as the king’s commissioned agents within the story. The clause ho men gamos hetoimos estin {Ὁ μὲν γάμος ἕτοιμός ἐστιν | ho mén gá-mos hé-toi-mos é-stin} employs the contrastive men…de {μὲν…δὲ | mén…dé} structure, with the first half affirming that “the wedding is ready.” The subject gamos, modified by hetoimos, precedes the copula estin, giving emphasis to the readiness of the feast. The contrasting clause hoi de keklemenoi ouk esan axioi {οἱ δὲ κεκλημένοι οὐκ ἦσαν ἄξιοι | hoi dé ke-klē-mé-noi ouk ê-san á-xi-oi} sets “the invited ones” as the subject, described by the perfect passive participle keklemenoi, which underscores their previously established invitation that still stands. The imperfect esan with predicate adjective axioi “worthy” portrays an ongoing past assessment of unworthiness. In English, the men…de contrast is rendered with “indeed… but,” the participial phrase with “those who were invited,” and the word order is adjusted to standard subject–verb–complement while preserving the contrast between the prepared feast and the unfit invitees. |