λέγουσιν

Alphabet Analysis

The word

1. word🔊 λέγουσιν

   LE-goo-sin

   they say
2. phraseyour reading level🔊 λέγουσιν γὰρ καὶ οὐ ποιοῦσιν.

   LE-goo-sin GAR KAI OO poi-OO-sin

   for they say and not they do
3. sentence🔊 πάντα οὖν ὅσα ⸀ἐὰν εἴπωσιν ὑμῖν ⸂ποιήσατε καὶ τηρεῖτε⸃, κατὰ δὲ τὰ ἔργα αὐτῶν μὴ ποιεῖτε, λέγουσιν γὰρ καὶ οὐ ποιοῦσιν.

   PAN-ta OON HO-sa e-AN EI-pô-sin hy-MEEN poi-Ê-sa-te KAI tê-REI-te ka-TA DE TA ER-ga au-TÔN MÊ poi-EI-te LE-goo-sin GAR KAI OO poi-OO-sin

   therefore do and keep all things whatever if they may say to you but not do according to the works their for they say and not they do

Exegesis

The explanatory clause legousin gar kai ou poiousin {λέγουσιν γὰρ καὶ οὐ ποιοῦσιν | lé-gou-sin gár kaí poi-oû-sin} employs present indicative verbs to depict an ongoing habit: their constant saying is not matched by corresponding doing. In translation, the inferential oun is rendered as “therefore” or “so” to connect the statement to the preceding context, the conditional structure is smoothed into “whatever they tell you” while preserving the breadth indicated by panta and hosa, and the parallelism of “say / do” is maintained to keep the sharp contrast between profession and practice that is central to the verse’s rhetorical force.