| 6. Linguistic Exegesis The sentence opens with hoti {ὅτι | hó-ti} introducing a causal clause that explains the basis for the judgment just pronounced. The object haima hagiōn kai prophētōn {αἷμα ἁγίων καὶ προφητῶν | haî-ma ha-gí-ōn kaí pro-phē-tōn} forms a genitive chain “blood of saints and prophets,” in which the genitives specify whose blood is in view. The aorist verb exechean {ἐξέχεαν | ex-É-khe-an} functions as the main verb of this causal clause, portraying the shedding of blood as a completed, culpable act. The second clause, kai haima autois dedōkas piein {καὶ αἷμα αὐτοῖς δέδωκας πιεῖν | kaí haî-ma au-toîs dé-dō-kas pi-eîn}, shifts to direct address with an implied second person subject, linking the coordinated “and blood” to the perfect verb dedōkas. The perfect tense highlights the settled, completed nature of the divine response: blood has been given to them to drink, with piein as an infinitive of purpose or result. The repetition of haima establishes an ironic reversal: those who poured out blood are compelled to drink it. The final independent clause axioi eisin {ἄξιοί εἰσιν | á-xi-oi eî-sin} functions as a judicial verdict, placed at the end for emphatic evaluation of the punishment’s fairness. In English, the causal relationship introduced by hoti is preserved with “Because” in the formal rendering, while the dynamic version uses “so now” within the second clause to make the consequence explicit, and the short verdict clause is kept climactic in both. |