Aorist Participles

In the previous chapter, we introduced participles, focusing our attention on the present tense form (imperfective aspect). In this one, we will consider aorist participles and, in the next chapter, perfect participles. This chapter will also explain how participles are negated. Finally, we will cover ordinal and cardinal numbers.

A participle is a verbal adjective. As such, it has some verbal qualities (tense, voice, and mood) and some adjectival qualities (gender, case, and number). Like all participles, aorist participles don’t communicate time since the timing of the action is dependent on the main verb. Aorist participles present an action as a whole, which often (but not always) overlaps with the participle being past time from the perspective of the writer/speaker/narrative. Thus, aorist participles are often translated into English with “-ed” added to the verb stem (e.g., the fixed camera).

You have likely heard the Great Commission (Matt 28:18–20) quoted countless times. Did you know that these three verses include five participles? (Note the participles in parentheses below.)

Jesus came up (προσελθών) and spoke to them, saying (λέγων), “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go (πορευθέντες) therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing (βαπτίζοντες) them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching (διδάσκοντες) them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (NASB)

Let’s focus on the aorist participle translated “go” above. Although some maintain that πορευθέντες should be viewed as a temporal (adverbial) participle and should therefore be translated “as you go,” the best evidence supports taking it as a participle of attendant circumstance (see 18.6). A participle of attendant circumstances takes on the mood of the main verb, which in this case is an imperative (μαθητεύσατε, “make disciples”). Thus, the participle πορευθέντες should also be translated as an imperative. This use of the participle is confirmed by looking at similar constructions in both the Septuagint (an early Greek translation of the Old Testament) and the New Testament, especially in the Gospel of Matthew.

First, there are several key texts in the Septuagint that demonstrate that the aorist participle of πορεύομαι paired with an explicit imperative of another verb often functions imperatively.

• Rebekah tells her son Jacob, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go (πορευθείς), bring (ἔνεγκέ) them to me” (Gen 27:13). Interestingly, in the Hebrew text, both of these verbs are imperatives. Also, it would not make sense to translate the participle temporally (“as you go, bring”) since it clearly bears an imperatival force (“go, bring”).

• Jacob instructs his son Joseph, “Go (πορευθείς) now, see (ἰδέ) if it is well with your brothers and with the flock, and bring me word” (Gen 37:14). As with the previous example, the Hebrew has an imperative that the Septuagint translators rendered as a participle.

• Pharaoh commands the people of Israel, “Go (πορευθέντες) now and work (ἐργάζεσθε). No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks” (Exod 5:18).

• The sons of the prophets say to Elisha concerning Elijah, “Please let them go (πορευθέντες) and seek (ζητησάτωσαν) your master” (2 Kgs 2:16).

These texts confirm that the aorist participle of πορεύομαι often took on the imperatival flavor of an explicit imperative of another verb with which it was paired.

Other uses in Matthew’s Gospel also confirm the attendant circumstance use of the participle. Not only does Matthew use this construction often, but he uses the construction with the same verb (πορεύομαι) as an aorist participle, followed by an aorist imperative.

• King Herod urgently commands the wise men, “Go (πορευθέντες) and search (ἐξετάσατε) diligently for the child” (2:8).

• Jesus states, “Go (πορευθέντες) and learn (μάθετε) what this means” (9:13).

• Jesus told John’s disciples, “Go (πορευθέντες) and tell (ἀπαγγείλατε) John what you hear and see” (11:4).

• Jesus instructs Peter, “Go (πορευθείς) to the sea and cast (βάλε) a hook and take the first fish that comes up” (17:27).

• The angel at the empty tomb tells the women, “Then go (πορευθεῖσαι) quickly and tell (εἴπατε) his disciples that he has risen from the dead” (28:7).

Instead of using two coordinate imperatives, it was common to use a participle followed by an imperative. It was understood that the participle mirrored the mood of the imperative, being taken as a command. In each case, it would not make sense to translate the participle as “when/as you go”; instead, the participle clearly functions as an imperative. Therefore, when we come to Matt 28:19 (“Go [πορευθέντες] therefore and make disciples [μαθητεύσατε] of all nations”), it is natural to read the participle as an imperative. In Matthew’s Gospel, every instance of the aorist participle of πορεύομαι preceding an aorist main verb is clearly attendant circumstance. This interpretation is represented by most English Bible versions which consistently translate πορευθέντες as an imperative.

Just as with present participles, we will first present a few representative charts with possible translations of the substantival usage. Then we will include comprehensive charts giving all regular aorist participial forms. Note that the particular usage and translation of any participle can only be determined by a careful consideration of the context. Ancient native speakers made these decisions subconsciously and intuitively, but as non-native speakers living thousands of years later, we must be more deliberate and methodical in our approach.

First Aorist Active

Like the present tense-form, the masculine and neuter aorist active forms follow the third declension endings (masc: -ς/-, -ος, -ι, -α, -ες, -ων, -σιν, -ας; neut: -ς/, -ος, -ι, -ς/-, -α, -ων, -σιν, -α). The feminine forms follow a mixed form of the first declension endings, similar to the adjective πᾶς, using both the alpha (α) and eta (η) patterns (λύσασα, λυσάσης, λυσάσῃ, λύσασαν; compare, πᾶσα, πάσης, πάσῃ, πᾶσαν).

Masculine and neuter active participles have a distinctive -ντ- infix (λύσαντος). This morpheme communicates that the participle is in the active voice. In addition, a sigma (σ) is added to the stem and the connecting vowel changes to an alpha (α): λύσαντος.

Liquid verbs will drop the sigma (σ), similar to the indicative mood:

First Aorist Middle

As with aorist indicative verbs, aorist participles (and all other non-indicative moods) have distinct middle (λυσάμενος) and passive (λυθείς) forms.

Like the present tense-form middle/passive participles, aorist middle endings are regular for all genders. In other words, the endings of the participle are the same as the first and second noun declension endings. The only difference with the present forms is that the sigma was added to the stem and the variable vowel is changed to an alpha.

The -μεν- infix communicates that the voice is middle (λυσάμενος), with the addition of a sigma added to the stem and an alpha connecting vowel (λυσαμένη).

First Aorist Passive

As stated above, with the aorist tense-form, the middle and passive forms are distinct. The characteristic morpheme of the passive form is a -θε- (λυθέντος; see the passive indicative ἐλύθην). As for the endings, they are the same as the active forms following third declension (masculine and neuter) or first declension mixed (feminine) endings.

Importantly, aorist participles do not have augments. In fact, all non-indicative aorist forms lack the augment. The reason for this is that the augment communicates that the time of the action is in the past, and participles do not convey such information.

Some verbs have passive forms but are really middle in meaning (e.g., Mark Matt 2:21; 22:15). In the Koine Greek period, passive endings commonly convey a middle idea.

If a verb has a second aorist form in the indicative, it will likewise have a second aorist form as a participle. Since second aorist participles use the same endings as present participles, and since there is no augment, the only difference between them is the stem. Below are some second aorist participal forms. If you know the indicative second aorist forms, there is no need to memorize this additional list. You will be able to recognize them.

A few second aorist passive forms lack the theta (θ): ἀποστέλλω → ἀποσταλέντος.

The use of aorist participles is identical to the present tense-form. Because a participle is an adjective, it can be placed into one of the three adjectival positions and thus has three main uses: attributive, substantival, and adverbial. Below is a quick recap of what was presented in the previous chapter with specific reference to the aorist tense-form.

Attributive Use

With the attributive use, the article (when present) occurs directly in front of the participle which modifies an expressed noun or pronoun. It is often best to translate an attributive participle with an English relative clause (“who” or “which/that”).

The participle agrees with the noun it modifies in gender, case, and number. Participles can also take direct objects or can be modified by other parts of speech (e.g., adverbs, prepositional phrases, or negative particles).

Substantival Use

A substantive is an adjective (or another part of speech) that functions as a noun. The article (when present) occurs directly in front of the participle which modifies an unexpressed noun or pronoun.

Adverbial Use

With the adverbial use, the participle is in the predicate position (meaning that the article is not directly in front of the participle). Several of the more common uses include temporal, causal, means, and purpose. With an aorist tense-form temporal participle, the action of the participle typically occurs before the action of the main verb—whether the main verb is past, present, or future). Most adverbial participles are in the nominative case. In English translation, it is difficult to distinguish whether the underlying Greek adverbial participle is present or aorist. As a general rule, the present participle is selected to present the action as unfolding, while the aorist participle presents the action as a whole (including beginning and ending without attention to its unfolding).

• Temporal: communicates the time in which the action was performed in relation to the main verb (add “after” or “when”).

καὶ ἐλθὼν ἐκεῖνος ἐλέγξει τὸν κόσμον περὶ ἁμαρτίας καὶ περὶ δικαιοσύνης καὶ περὶ κρίσεως, “[W]hen he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment” (John 16:8).

• Causal: communicates the reason why the verbal idea is performed (add “because” or “since”).

Δημᾶς γάρ με ἐγκατέλιπεν ἀγαπήσας τὸν νῦν αἰῶνα, “Demas has deserted me, since he loved this present world” (2 Tim 4:10).

• Means: communicates how the verbal idea is accomplished (add “by” or “by means of”).

Χριστὸς ἡμᾶς ἐξηγόρασεν ἐκ τῆς κατάρας τοῦ νόμου γενόμενος ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν κατάρα, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Gal 3:13).

• Attendant Circumstance: communicates an action that is coordinate or parallel to the main verb, thus taking on the mood of the verb and is translated as a finite verb with “and” inserted between the two verbal ideas.

καὶ ἐγερθεὶς ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ, “He got up and went home” (Matt 9:7).

Just as οὐ (or οὐκ, οὐχ) negates indicative verbs, μή negates non-indicative verbs (such as participles). For example, ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν οὐ κρίνεται· ὁ δὲ μὴ πιστεύων ἤδη κέκριται, “Anyone who believes in him is not condemned; and anyone who does not believe is already condemned” (John 3:18). Notice that in the first half of the verse, οὐ is used because it negates an indicative verb (κρίνεται). In the second half, however, μή is used because it negates a substantival participle (πιστεύων). It is common for the postpositive δέ and the particle μή to be sandwiched between the article and the substantival participle (ὁ δὲ μὴ πιστεύων).

There are two different types of numbers: cardinals and ordinals. Cardinal numbers are used for counting (one, two, three) whereas ordinal numbers are used for ordering (first, second, third).

Some numbers decline (1–4), whereas others do not (5–12). The paradigms for εἷς (masc) and ἕν (neut) are similar to third declension forms whereas the paradigm for μία (fem) is similar to the first declension alpha pattern.

Be sure to distinguish εἷς (“one,” masc) from εἰς (“into”) and ἕν (“one,” neut) from ἐν (“in”). Notice that the numbers are accented and have rough breathing marks.

Whereas εἷς, μία, and ἕν have no plural form, the declinable numbers δύο, τρεῖς, and τέσσαρες have no singular form.

Numbers are essentially adjectives and therefore can be used attributively, substantively, and predicatively.

Attributive: εἷς κύριος, μία πίστις, ἓν βάπτισμα, “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Eph 4:5).

Substantival: καὶ ἐποίησεν τοὺς δώδεκα, “He appointed the twelve” (Mark 3:16).

Predicate: εἷς ὁ θεὸς, “God is one” (Rom 3:30 ESV).

For counting, ancient Greeks used letters with an oblique stroke above and to the right of the letters (α΄ = 1, β΄ = 2, γ΄ = 3 … ι΄ = 10, κ΄ = 20, λ΄ = 30 … ρ΄ = 100, σ΄ = 200, τ΄ = 300). Several archaic Greek letters were used in this system.

Finally, the word οὐδείς is a combination of οὐ (“no, not”) and εἷς (“one”), with a delta (δ) in between for pronunciation purposes.

A. Paradigms: Memorize the aorist active, middle, and passive participle paradigms of λύω (masc only) (see section 18.3). Then write out each paradigm ten times from memory.

B. Parsing: Parse the following words.

1. ἐλθόντων

2. ἰδών

3. ἀπολυθέντες

4. ἀποθανών

5. ἀγαπήσαντος

6. λαλήσας

7. εἰσελθόντι

8. λαβόντας

9. ἀκούσαντες

10. μαρτυρήσας

C. Participle Usage: Indicate whether the following participles are used Attributively (A), Substantivally (S), or Adverbially (Adv).

D. Translation: Translate the following sentences.

1. ἐλθὼν οὖν ὁ Ἰησοῦς εὗρεν αὐτὸν τέσσαρας ἤδη (already) ἡμέρας ἔχοντα ἐν τῷ μνημείω (tomb) (John 11:17).

2. καὶ εὐθὺς ἐκ τῆς συναγωγῆς ἐξελθόντες ἦλθον εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν Σίμωνος καὶ Ἀνδρέου μετὰ Ἰακώβου καὶ Ἰωάννου (Mark 1:29).

3. καὶ ἰδὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τὴν πίστιν αὐτῶν εἶπεν τῷ παραλυτικῷ (paralytic) … τέκνον, ἀφίενταί (are forgiven) σου αἱ ἁμαρτίαι (Matt 9:2).

4. καὶ ἠγέρθη καὶ εὐθὺς ἄρας τὸν κράβαττον (mat) ἐξῆλθεν ἔμπροσθεν (in front of) πάντων (Mark 2:12).

5. ὁ δὲ ἐγερθεὶς παρέλαβεν (took along) τὸ παιδίον (παιδίον, child) καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰσῆλθεν εἰς γῆν Ἰσραήλ (Matt 2:21). (Note that the initial article here functions like a personal pronoun: “he.” It does not modify the participle ἐγερθείς.)

6. καὶ λαβὼν τοὺς πέντε ἄρτους καὶ τοὺς δύο ἰχθύας (fish) ἀναβλέψας (ἀναβλέπω, I look up) εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν εὐλόγησεν (he blessed) καὶ κατέκλασεν (he broke) τοὺς ἄρτους καὶ ἐδίδου (he was giving) [them] τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ (Mark 6:41).

7. καὶ ἀποκριθεὶς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἔλεγεν διδάσκων ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ, Πῶς (How) λέγουσιν οἱ γραμματεῖς ὅτι ὁ Χριστὸς υἱὸς Δαυίδ ἐστιν; (Mark 12:35).

8. καὶ ἀποκριθεῖσα ἡ μήτηρ αὐτοῦ εἶπεν, Οὐχί, ἀλλὰ κληθήσεται Ἰωάννης (Luke 1:60).

9. εὐθὺς κράξας ὁ πατὴρ τοῦ παιδίου (παιδίον, child) ἔλεγεν, Πιστεύω (Mark 9:24).

10. καὶ πάλιν ἀπελθὼν προσηύξατο τὸν αὐτὸν λόγον εἰπών (Mark 14:39).

11. καὶ ὁ θεωρῶν ἐμὲ θεωρεῖ τὸν πέμψαντά με (John 12:45).

12. καὶ ἐλθόντες εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν εἶδον τὸ παιδίον (child) (Matt 2:11).

13. καὶ ἀσπασάμενοι (ἀσπάζομαι, I greet) τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ἐμείναμεν ἡμέραν μίαν παρ᾽ αὐτοῖς (Acts 21:7).

14. πολλῷ οὖν μᾶλλον (πολλῷ μᾶλλον, much more) δικαιωθέντες (δικαιόω, declare righteous) νῦν ἐν τῷ αἵματι αὐτοῦ σωθησόμεθα δι᾽ αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τῆς ὀργῆς (wrath) (Rom 5:9).

15. ἀσπάζομαι (I greet) ὑμᾶς ἐγὼ Τέρτιος ὁ γράψας τὴν ἐπιστολὴν (letter) ἐν κυρίῳ (Rom 16:22).

E. Translation: Translate the following sentences into Greek.

1. He went out with his two disciples.

2. After speaking to the crowd, Jesus spoke to the Twelve.

3. The third apostle was released/loosed in his home.

4. The God who sent his Son manifested his glory.

5. The ones who did not believe were departing to the city.