| 3. Linguistic Exegesis The verse is structured with two parallel exhortations followed by a single theological rationale. It begins with the substantival participial phrase ho esthiōn {ὁ ἐσθίων | ho esthí-ōn} “the one who eats” as the grammatical subject, followed by the object ton mē esthionta {τόν μὴ ἐσθίοντα | tón mē esthí-on-ta} “the one not eating,” and the prohibitive construction mē exoutheneitō {μὴ ἐξουθενείτω | mē ex-ou-the-neí-tō} “let him not despise.” The negative particle mē directly precedes the imperative, forming a prohibition. The second clause, introduced by the postpositive de {δὲ | de}, mirrors the first: ho mē esthiōn {ὁ μὴ ἐσθίων | ho mē esthí-ōn} “the one not eating” is the subject, ton esthionta {τόν ἐσθίοντα | tón esthí-on-ta} “the one eating” the object, and mē krinetō {μὴ κρινέτω | mē kri-né-tō} “let him not judge” the corresponding prohibition. This symmetrical syntax underscores mutual responsibility and forbids both contempt and judgment from either side of the dietary practice divide. The final clause, ho theos gar auton proselabeto {ὁ θεὸς γὰρ αὐτὸν προσελάβετο | ho the-ós gar au-tón pro-se-lá-be-to} “for God has received him,” uses gar to introduce the ground for both commands. The aorist middle of proselambanō conveys a completed, personally engaged act of divine acceptance. In translation, the participles are rendered as “the one who eats / does not eat” in the formal version to preserve the individualized focus, while the dynamic version generalizes to “those who eat / do not eat” to communicate the distributive, representative sense more naturally in contemporary English. The prohibitions retain their parallelism, and the causal “for/because” clearly ties the communal ethic to God’s prior, decisive welcome. |