19
VERBS: PART 9
FUTURE INDICATIVE VERBS
19.1. This is a relatively straightforward chapter. The future tense-form in Greek is closer in meaning and usage to the future tense in English than most other Greek tense-forms are to the English tenses with similar names, though there are some differences as well. The future tense-form expresses expectation, which is most commonly rendered in English as future time. The Greek future tense-form is actually more closely related to the category of mood than of tense.[1] It has an unusual history in the language, and scholars have puzzled over it for a long time, but that is a far more technical issue than we want to tackle in the first year.
19.2. The future tense-form in Greek is used in a somewhat broader range of contexts than its namesake in English. We can illustrate some of the different ways it is used with the following examples. In each sentence the italicized words are the translation of a Greek future tense-form verb.
Prospective contexts (future referring): Matt. 7:22, “Many will say to me in that day . . .”
This use is the most like English and represents the most common use of the future in both Greek and English.
Commanding contexts (functions as an imperative): 1 Pet. 1:16, “Be holy, because I am holy.”[2]
An imperative statement, if obeyed, will of necessity be in the future, but this is quite different from a predictive statement, since the speaker is expressing a desire, not predicting a future situation.
Deliberative contexts: Matt. 21:37, “They will respect my son.”
This is not a prediction but the vineyard owner thinking to himself—deliberating on the consequences of his contemplated action.
Temporally unrestricted contexts: Gal. 6:16, “As for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them” (ESV); “Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule” (NIV).
This is not a statement true only of the future. It is equally true of the present. Most English translations do not translate the verb in Gal. 6:16 as a future tense in English but instead use a simple English present—entirely appropriate to the use of the future in this context (RSV, NIV, ESV, REB, NJB, CEB, HCSB, NLT, GNT, GW, NCV, ISV). A few translations do use an English future tense at this point (NASB, NRSV, NET).
Grammar of the Future Tense-Form
19.3. The Greek future tense-form is probably best viewed as aspectually vague. That is, from the form alone it is not possible to say that the writer is viewing the situation either as a process, as a complete event, or as a state.[3]
The future tense-form almost always refers to future time in some way; it is never used in a statement that is limited to past or present, but it may sometimes be temporally unrestricted.[4] This is the one form that is almost always related to a particular time; it is very different from the present and aorist tense-forms in that regard.
A common English equivalent of the standard paradigm verb λύω is the simple English future tense: “I will loose.” If you discover that the context makes clear, for example, an imperatival force, then you will need to tweak your understanding of the form in that instance.
The Future Active and Middle Indicative Forms
19.4. This section will introduce you to both the active- and middle-voice forms of the future. There is a distinct form for the future passive, which you will meet later in this chapter.
Formation of the Future
The future is EASY! There are no new endings to learn. To make a future form, we just add the letter sigma as a form marker between the stem and the connecting vowel. (You will remember that the first aorist tense-form used σα as a form marker.) Compare the following future formulas with the ones you already know for other tense-forms.
Formula for Future Active Indicative Verbs
stem + form marker σ + connecting vowel + A personal endings
Formula for Future Middle Indicative Verbs
stem + form marker σ + connecting vowel + C personal endings
Note that the second formula is only middle voice, never passive. There is a separate form for the future passive that uses a different form marker. Many verbs used in the future middle form do not have active forms; they are middle-only forms. For now, the future active indicative stem will be the same as the present active indicative stem. In similar contexts English equivalents for the future active and future middle will be identical (since English does not have a middle voice). The meaning of the middle voice (subject focus) in the future tense-form is the same as it is in present middle indicative verbs.
19.5. Forms of the Future Active Indicative
Future Active Indicative of λύω
| Form | c.v. + A p.e. | Gloss | |
| 1S | λύσω | ω | I will loose |
| 2S | λύσεις | εις | You will loose |
| 3S | λύσει | ει | He/she/it will loose |
| 1P | λύσομεν | ομεν | We will loose |
| 2P | λύσετε | ετε | You will loose |
| 3P | λύσουσιν | ουσι(ν) | They will loose |
19.6. Examples of the Future Active Indicative
| Luke 1:33, βασιλεύσει ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰακὼβ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. | He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. |
| Matt. 8:7, λέγει αὐτῷ, Ἐγὼ θεραπεύσω αὐτόν. | He said to him, “I will heal him.” |
| Rev. 5:10, βασιλεύσουσιν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. | They will reign on the earth. |
| Gen. 5:29, ἐπωνόμασεν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Νῶε λέγων (saying), Οὗτος διαναπαύσειa ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τῶν ἔργων ἡμῶν καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν λυπῶν τῶν χειρῶν ἡμῶν καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς, ἧς κατηράσατο κύριος ὁ θεός. | They named him Noah, saying, “He will give us rest from our labors and from the grief of our hands and from the ground that the Lord God cursed.” |
a διαναπαύω, “I allow to rest a while” |
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19.7. Forms of the Future Middle Indicative
Future Middle Indicative of λύω
| Form | c.v. + C p.e. | Gloss | |
| 1S | λύσομαι | ομαι | I will loose |
| 2S | λύσῃ | ῃ | You will loose |
| 3S | λύσεται | εται | He/she/it will loose |
| 1P | λυσόμεθα | ομεθα | We will loose |
| 2P | λύσεσθε | εσθε | You will loose |
| 3P | λύσονται | ονται | They will loose |
19.8. Examples of the Future Middle Indicative
| Acts 28:28, τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἀπεστάλη (it has been sent) τοῦτο τὸ σωτήριον τοῦ θεοῦ· αὐτοὶ καὶ ἀκούσονται. | This salvation from God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will also listen. |
| Luke 15:18, πορεύσομαι πρὸς τὸν πατέρα μου καὶ ἐρῶ (I will say) αὐτῷ, Πάτερ, ἥμαρτον εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ ἐνώπιόν σου. | I will go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I sinned against heaven and before you.” |
| Gen. 24:19, εἶπεν, Καὶ ταῖς καμήλοις σου ὑδρεύσομαι,a ἕως ἂνb πᾶσαι πίωσιν (they have drunk). | She said, “For your camels also I will draw water until they have all drunk.” |
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a ὑδρεύω, “I draw or carry water” b ἕως ἂν, “until” |
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19.9. Examples of Future Active and Middle Indicative Verbs
| Matt. 1:23, καλέσουσιν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἐμμανουήλ. | They will name him Emmanuel. |
The expression καλέσουσιν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ sounds odd to us if it is translated formally in English, since we do not say it this way (“to call someone a name” is derogatory in English); we would say simply, “They will name him Emmanuel.” This idiom occurs in several other examples in this chapter.
The next verse is a bit tricky (but not too bad). I have given you an English equivalent, but try to figure it out for yourself before you read it.
| John 3:12, εἰ τὰ ἐπίγειαa εἶπον ὑμῖν καὶ οὐ πιστεύετε, πῶς ἐὰν εἴπω (I speak) ὑμῖν τὰ ἐπουράνιαa πιστεύσετε; | If I spoke to you [about] earthly things and you did not believe, how will you believe if I speak to you [about] heavenly things? |
a The phrases τὰ ἐπίγεια and τὰ ἐπουράνια are both similar uses of the article: “the things on earth/heaven” = “the earthly/heavenly things.” |
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| Gen. 24:39, Μήποτε οὐ πορεύσεται ἡ γυνὴ μετ᾿ ἐμοῦ. | Perhaps the woman will not go with me. |
| Matt. 27:42, βασιλεὺς Ἰσραήλ ἐστιν,a καταβάτωb νῦν ἀπὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ καὶ πιστεύσομεν ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν. | |
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a The first phrase is sarcastic. Read the context in your English Bible. b “Let him come down!” |
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| Acts 17:32, Ἀκούσαντες (having heard of) δὲ ἀνάστασιν νεκρῶν οἱ μὲνa ἐχλεύαζον,b οἱ δὲ εἶπαν, Ἀκουσόμεθά σου περὶ τούτου καὶ πάλιν. | |
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a The use of μέν . . . δέ introduces a series of alternatives: “on the one hand . . . on the other hand.” In this verse, as used with the article οἱ, it means “some mocked, but others said.” b χλευάζω, “I mock” |
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| Exod. 6:6, Ἐγὼ κύριος καὶ ῥύσομαι ὑμᾶς ἐκ τῆς δουλείας. | |
| Exod. 24:7, καὶ λαβὼν (taking) τὸ βιβλίον τῆς διαθήκης ἀνέγνω εἰς τὰ ὦτα τοῦ λαοῦ, καὶ εἶπαν, Πάντα, ὅσα ἐλάλησεν κύριος, ποιήσομεν καὶ ἀκουσόμεθα. | |
Contract Verbs in the Future Tense-Form
19.11. The stem vowel of a contract verb usually lengthens when a form marker (in this case sigma) is added.[5] Remember that a contract verb is one whose stem ends with one of the three short vowels, ε, ο, α, which lengthen to η, ω, η respectively. The normal pattern looks like this first plural example: ἀγαπήσομεν (i.e., rather than ἀγαπάσομεν). There are a few less-common instances in which the stem vowel of some verbs does not lengthen. The first singular future form of καλέω is καλέσω, not καλήσω (see the example in Luke 1:13 below).[6]
Future Active and Middle Indicative of ἀγαπάω
| Active | Middle | |
| 1S | ἀγαπήσω | ἀγαπήσομαι |
| 2S | ἀγαπήσεις | ἀγαπήσῃ |
| 3S | ἀγαπήσει | ἀγαπήσεται |
| 1P | ἀγαπήσομεν | ἀγαπησόμεθα |
| 2P | ἀγαπήσετε | ἀγαπήσεσθε |
| 3P | ἀγαπήσουσιν | ἀγαπήσονται |
19.12. Examples of Future Contract Verbs
| Matt. 4:19, λέγει αὐτοῖς, Δεῦτε (follow!) ὀπίσω μου, καὶ ποιήσωa ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων. | He said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of people.” |
a ποιέω = ε ► η |
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| Matt. 9:18, Come and place τὴν χεῖρά σου ἐπ᾿ αὐτήν, καὶ ζήσεται.a | Come and place your hand on her, and she will live. |
a ζάω = α ► η |
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| Matt. 11:16, Τίνι δὲ ὁμοιώσωa τὴν γενεὰ ταύτην; | To what shall I compare this generation? |
a ὁμοιόω = ο ► ω |
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| Luke 1:13, ἡ γυνή σου Ἐλισάβετ γεννήσει υἱόν σοι καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰωάννην. | |
| John 14:23, ἀπεκρίθη Ἰησοῦς καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Ἐάν τις ἀγαπᾷ (loves) με τὸν λόγον μου τηρήσει, καὶ ὁ πατήρ μου ἀγαπήσει αὐτὸν καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐλευσόμεθα (we will come) καὶ μονὴν παρ᾿ αὐτῷ ποιησόμεθα. | |
| Exod. 34:20, πρωτότοκον ὑποζυγίου λυτρώσῃ προβάτῳ. πᾶν πρωτότοκον τῶν υἱῶν σου λυτρώσῃ. οὐκ ὀφθήσῃ ἐνώπιόν μου κενός. | |
The Square of Stops and the Future Tense-Form
19.14. Now here is a perplexity for you to think about:
The future of βλέπω is βλέψω.
The future of ἔχω is ἕξω.[7]
The future of πείθω is πείσω.
Why? Why are these forms not spelled ἔχσω, βλέπσω, and πείθσω? Is that not what the formula specifies? Do you remember the square of stops? Of course you do, and the heading for this section was a helpful reminder, wasn’t it? When a sigma (the future form marker) is added to a verb stem ending in a stop, they will combine. This functions the same as did similar combinations in third-declension nouns and in aorist verb forms.
Square of Stops
| + σ = | ||||
| π | β | φ | ψ | |
| κ | γ | χ | ξ | |
| τ | δ | θ | σ |
| Luke 20:13, εἶπεν ὁ κύριος τοῦ ἀμπελῶνος (vineyard), Πέμψω τὸν υἱόν μου τὸν ἀγαπητόν. | The owner of the vineyard said, “I will send my beloved son.” |
| Mark 14:28, μετὰ τὸ ἐγερθῆναί μεa προάξω ὑμᾶς εἰς τὴν Γαλιλαίαν. | After I have been raised I will go before you into Galilee. |
a μετὰ τὸ ἐγερθῆναί με, “after I have been raised” |
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| Matt. 1:23, Ἰδοὺ ἡ παρθένος ἐν γαστρὶ ἕξειa καὶ τέξεταιb υἱόν, καὶ καλέσουσιν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἐμμανουήλ. | |
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a ἐν γαστρὶ ἕξει is an idiom: “she will have in belly” = “she will be pregnant.” b The formation of τέξεται from τίκτω is really complicated (see MBG, 262nn6–8). For now, be content that the xi is a form marker affected by the square of stops. If you are really curious (you do not have to know this), the root is *τκ, which uses iota reduplication to form the present stem, τιτκ-, which then undergoes metathesis (reversal of letters) to form τικτ-, and thus the present is τίκτω. The future form is built from the root *τκ, which experiences vowel gradation with the insertion of ε (thus τεκ-), and κ + σ = ξ, so the future form is τέξομαι. |
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| Matt. 12:19, οὐκ ἐρίσει οὐδὲ κραυγάσει, οὐδὲ ἀκούσει τις ἐν ταῖς πλατείαις τὴν φωνὴν αὐτοῦ. |
Verbs that end in -ιζω or -αζω also act like square-of-stops forms in the future just as they did in the aorist—and for the same reason: their stems typically end in a delta. Two of the three futures in this verse are formed this way.
| Pss. Sol. 13.6, ὅτι δεινὴa ἡ καταστροφὴ τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ, καὶ οὐχ ἅψεταιb δικαίου οὐδὲνc ἐκ πάντων τούτων. | |
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a δεινή is from δεινός, ή, όν, not δεῖνα. b ἅπτω can take a genitive direct object. c Since οὐδέν is a neuter form, it could be either nominative or accusative; here it is nominative. |
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This verse can serve as a good test of how well you understand the grammar and syntax you have been learning, since it is from a book that you have probably never read and almost certainly have never memorized. The Psalms of Solomon are part of the OT Pseudepigrapha (not the Apocrypha). You will need your lexicon handy. You will have to supply a verb in the first clause.
19.17. You also need to know the future forms of εἰμί—they occur nearly 200 times in the NT (191 to be precise) and far more than that in the LXX (1,726 times). These are the only future forms of εἰμί. They are parsed as middle voice because they use the C set of personal endings, but since there is no alternate choice (there is no future active form of εἰμί), the fact that these forms are middle is not significant.[8]
Future [Middle] Indicative Forms of εἰμί
| 1S | ἔσομαι | I will be |
| 2S | ἔσῃ | You will be |
| 3S | ἔσται | He/she/it will be |
| 1P | ἐσόμεθα | We will be |
| 2P | ἔσεσθε | You will be |
| 3P | ἔσονται | They will be |
You need to be able to recognize these forms, but you do not necessarily need to memorize the paradigm. They are not hard to recognize: whenever you see what appears to be a personal ending with a sigma form marker and all there is for a stem is the letter epsilon, you are almost certainly dealing with a future form of εἰμί. The third singular is by far the most common: 118 of the 186 total occurrences of future forms of εἰμί in the NT, and 1,263 of the 1,726 total occurrences of future forms of εἰμί in the LXX; the third plural is next with only 31 NT and 242 LXX forms. Here is a sample of each of the six forms in context.
| Titus 3:9, μωρὰς δὲ ζητήσεις καὶ γενεαλογίας καὶ ἔρεις καὶ μάχας νομικὰς περιΐστασο (avoid!). | But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law. |
| Sir. 33:33, ἐν ποίᾳ ὁδῷ ζητήσεις αὐτόν; | On what road will you seek him? |
19.18. Examples of the Future of εἰμί
| 2 Cor. 6:18, ἔσομαι ὑμῖν εἰς πατέρα καὶ ὑμεῖς ἔσεσθέ μοι εἰς υἱοὺς καὶ θυγατέρας, λέγει κύριος παντοκράτωρ. | “I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters,” says the Lord Almighty. |
| Mark 13:4, Εἰπόν (tell!) ἡμῖν, πότε ταῦτα ἔσται; | Tell us, when will these things happen? |
| Gen. 12:2, ποιήσω σε εἰς ἔθνος μέγα καὶ εὐλογήσω σε καὶ μεγαλυνῶ τὸ ὄνομά σου, καὶ ἔσῃ εὐλογητός. | I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, and you will be blessed. |
| Jdt. 5:21, ἐσόμεθα εἰς ὀνειδισμὸν ἐναντίον πάσης τῆς γῆς. | We will be a disgrace before all the earth [i.e., before everybody]. |
| Mark 10:8, ἔσονται οἱ δύο εἰς σάρκα μίαν. | |
| 1 Tim. 4:6, καλὸς ἔσῃ διάκονος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ. | |
| 1 John 3:2, Ἀγαπητοί, νῦν τέκνα θεοῦ ἐσμεν, καὶ οὔπω ἐφανερώθη (it has appeared) τί ἐσόμεθα. οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἐὰν φανερωθῇ (he appears), ὅμοιοι αὐτῷ ἐσόμεθα,, ὅτι ὀψόμεθα (we will see) αὐτὸν καθώς ἐστιν. | |
| Exod. 4:16, αὐτός σοι προσλαλήσει πρὸς τὸν λαόν, καὶ αὐτὸς ἔσται σου στόμα, σὺ δὲ αὐτῷ ἔσῃ τὰ πρὸς τὸν θεόν.a | |
a τὰ πρὸς τὸν θεόν, “the things pertaining to God” (This is an odd phrase that does not reflect the Hebrew text well.) |
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| Gen. 26:3, ἔσομαι μετὰ σοῦ καὶ εὐλογήσω σε· σοὶ γὰρ καὶ τῷ σπέρματί σου δώσωa πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ταύτην. | |
a δώσω, “I will give” (1st sg. fut. act. ind. ► δίδωμι, stem δο-). You will study μι verbs in chaps. 32–33, but if you know the stem for δίδωμι, you can easily identify the future form. |
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19.20. The future passive has a form distinct from the future middle. This is unlike the present and imperfect tense-forms, in which the middle form can also be passive if there is an agent marker in the context. The future passive tense-form follows the same pattern as the aorist passive; whatever the aorist passive does in terms of stem and form marker, the future passive follows suit.
Formula for Future Passive Indicative Verbs
aor. pass. stem + form marker θησ + connecting vowel + C personal endings
There is no augment, because this is a primary form, not secondary. You might think of the θησ form marker as the aorist passive form marker and the future active form marker combined. (It is not, but it may help you remember it.) The endings are the C set of personal endings. The stem of a future passive will always be identical to the aorist passive stem. While this is often the same as the present stem, if it does change in the aorist passive, it will use the same stem in the future passive. Both a form marker and a connecting vowel are used, because the form marker ends with a consonant (sigma), thus another vowel is needed to connect the personal ending.
Future Passive Indicative of λύω
| Form | c.v. + C p.e. | Gloss | |
| 1S | λυθήσομαι | ομαι | I will be loosed |
| 2S | λυθήσῃ | ῃ | You will be loosed |
| 3S | λυθήσεται | εται | He/she/it will be loosed |
| 1P | λυθησόμεθα | ομεθα | We will be loosed |
| 2P | λυθήσεσθε | εσθε | You will be loosed |
| 3P | λυθήσονται | ονται | They will be loosed |
19.21. Examples of the Future Passive Indicative
| Mark 5:28, ἔλεγεν γὰρ ὅτι Ἐὰν ἅψωμαιa τῶν ἱματίων αὐτοῦ σωθήσομαι. | For she said, “If I touch his cloak, I will be healed.” |
a ἅψωμαι ► ἅπτομαι, “I touch” (This is a woman speaking in reference to Jesus.) |
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| Mark 9:49, πᾶς γὰρ πυρὶ ἁλισθήσεται.a | For everyone will be salted with fire. |
a ἁλίζω, “I salt.” This is one of Jesus’ most enigmatic statements. It is not difficult to understand what the words say, but it is most puzzling to interpret. |
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| Gen. 2:23, εἶπεν Ἀδάμ, Τοῦτο νῦν ὀστοῦν ἐκ τῶν ὀστέων μου καὶ σὰρξ ἐκ τῆς σαρκός μου· αὕτη κληθήσεται γυνή, ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς αὐτῆς ἐλήμφθη αὕτη. | Adam said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she will be called ‘woman’ because she was taken from her husband.” |
| Col. 3:4, ὑμεῖς σὺν αὐτῷ φανερωθήσεσθε ἐν δόξῃ. Matt. 24:14, κηρυχθήσεται τοῦτο τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς βασιλείας ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ. |
In this example, the verb is κηρύσσω, and the stem is κηρυγ-. A good lexicon such as BDAG will help you with many forms that may otherwise puzzle you. Unfortunately, CL does not provide any help on this particular form. (If you do not find the help you need in your lexicon, check the morphology catalog in app. B.) The first part of the entry for κηρύσσω in BDAG reads like this:
κηρύσσω impf. ἐκήρυσσον; fut. κηρύξω; 1 aor. ἐκήρυξα, inf. κηρύξαι . . . ; pf. inf. κεκηρυχέναι . . . pass.: 1 fut. κηρυχθήσομαι; 1 aor. ἐκηρύχθην; pf. κεκήρυγμαι . . .
1. to make an official announcement, announce, make known, by an official herald or one who functions as such . . .
2. to make public declarations, proclaim aloud
| Gen. 2:24, ἕνεκεν τούτουa καταλείψει ἄνθρωπος τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ προσκολληθήσεται πρὸς τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔσονται οἱ δύο εἰς σάρκα μίαν. | |
a ἕνεκεν τούτου, “for this reason” |
A Deceptive Form
19.23. Watch out for forms like ἐγεννήθησαν and ἐφοβήθησαν in the next two examples. Check the endings carefully (which quadrant are they: A, B, C, or D?) as well as the first letter of the word. Are these two verbs future passive forms? They do have θησ in front of an ending.
| John 1:12–13, ὅσοι ἔλαβον αὐτόν, ἔδωκεν (he gave) αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν τέκνα θεοῦ γενέσθαι (to be), τοῖς πιστεύουσιν (ones who believe) εἰς τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ, οἳ οὐκ ἐξ αἱμάτων οὐδὲ ἐκ θελήματος σαρκὸς οὐδὲ ἐκ θελήματος ἀνδρὸς ἀλλ᾿ ἐκ θεοῦ ἐγεννήθησαν. | All who received him, to them he gave the capability to be children of God, to the ones who believe on his name, who were begotten, not out of bloods, neither out of the will of the flesh, nor out of the will of man, but from God.a |
a A fairly formal English equivalent has been given for John 1:13. There are some idiomatic expressions here that would communicate more effectively if a functionally equivalent expression were used. See NIV and NET for some ways to do this. |
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| John 6:19, θεωροῦσιν τὸν Ἰησοῦν περιπατοῦντα (walking) ἐπὶ τῆς θαλάσσης, καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν. | They saw Jesus walking on the lake, and they were afraid. |
These verbs are third plural aorist passive forms, not future passive. This aorist passive ending is the only time that a θησ following a verb stem is not a future passive form marker. The aorist passive form marker is still only θη; the sigma is part of the personal ending. Watch for the augment as a reminder that it is an aorist (there is no augment on the future form). Also watch for the ending: -σαν and -αν are secondary endings; the third plural C ending (which the future would have) is -ονται.
| Mark 2:2, συνήχθησαν πολλοί, καὶ ἐλάλει αὐτοῖς τὸν λόγον. |
Think through the parsing of συνήχθησαν step by step, following these questions.
Is θησ the future passive form marker?
What is the ending?
Is there an augment?
If you answer those questions correctly, you should realize that this is an aorist passive with a third plural ending. So we would parse it as a third plural aorist passive indicative, but of what word? Does the pattern συν-ηχ-θη-σαν tell us that this is a form of συνέχω? That sounds reasonable, but it is always wise to verify your conclusion with the lexicon. In this case, if you look up συνέχω in BDAG or in the morphology catalog in appendix B of this book, you would find that the aorist active form is συνέσχον—and though a separate aorist passive form is not listed, the spelling of the aorist active form ought to be sufficiently different to give you pause. Remember the square of stops? The χ is formed from κ, γ, or χ. Check your lexicon just as it is spelled: συνήχθησαν. You will not find the third plural form, but you will probably find the first singular, συνήχθην. For example, if you are looking at CL, you would find this entry:
συνήχθην 1 aor. pass. ind. of συνάγω
Here is what you would find in BDAG:
συνάγω fut. συνάξω; 1 aor. συνῆξα (. . .), inf. συνάξαι Lk 3:17 v.l. (. . .); 2 aor. συνήγαγον. Pass.: 1 fut. συναχθήσομαι; 1 aor. συνήχθην; pf. 3 sg. συνῆκται LXX (Hom. et al.)
1. to cause to come together, gather (in)—a. things: . . . b. of persons bring or call together, gather a number of persons . . .—Pass., either in the passive sense be gathered or brought together . . . ; or w. act. force gather, come together, assemble . . .
2. to effect renewed relations, bring together, reconcile . . .
3. to bring together with, lead or bring (to) . . .
4. to extend a welcome to, invite/receive as a guest . . .
5. intr. . . . to move to another position, advance, move . . .—M-M.
19.25. Watch the punctuation in BDAG (and other lexicons) carefully. Periods, semicolons, and commas all have significance and divide the entry into discrete sections. Here the designation “pass.:” (in the first paragraph that gives the morphology) governs all the forms that follow. That is, the listings “1 fut. συναχθήσομαι; 1 aor. συνήχθην; pf. 3 sg. συνῆκται” are all passive forms: first future passive indicative, first aorist passive indicative, and perfect passive indicative. Also note that there is a separate listing for the meaning of this word when it is used in the passive voice (1.b.). It need not have an actual passive meaning in that there may not be someone or something that is doing the gathering. Even though the form is morphologically “passive” (i.e., it has a θη form marker), it may have a meaning that BDAG designates as active (“w. act. force”). A “θη-middle” designation would be a better description in this instance.
As long as we are looking at BDAG, let me point out a few other things. The information in parentheses at the end of the first paragraph indicates the range of usage for this word: the oldest known use is found in Homer (= Hom.), and it is found regularly from that time onward. The various forms are fairly self-explanatory. The abbreviation v.l. after “Lk 3:17” indicates a textual variant (varia lectio) in which the aorist infinitive is found. The “(. . .)” portion of the entry immediately following the v.l. (elided in the excerpt above) contains bibliographical information on this variant reading. At the end of the entry, the “M-M” note tells you that this word is listed in Moulton and Milligan’s specialized lexicon of the papyri (Vocabulary of the Greek New Testament)—this is helpful since M-M does not list every word; with BDAG’s help you know that it is worth consulting M-M.
Second Future Passive Indicative Forms
19.26. All you need to know about second future passives is that the theta drops out, so the form marker appears to be ησ instead of θησ. You do not have to know if it is a first or second future, just that it is future. There are not many of these forms; only 17 words have second future passive forms in the NT, occurring a total of only 30 times. The LXX has a greater number of such forms, but only one verb is particularly common, στρέφω, and its compound forms occur about 60 times.[9]
19.27. Examples of Second Future Passive Indicative Forms
| Matt. 7:7, κρούετε (knock!) καὶ ἀνοιγήσεται ὑμῖν. | Knock, and it will be opened for you. |
| Matt. 21:37, ὕστερον ἀπέστειλεν πρὸς αὐτοὺς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ λέγων, Ἐντραπήσονται τὸν υἱόν μου. | Last of all he sent his son to them, saying, “They will respect my son.” |
| Sir. 50:28, μακάριος ὃς ἐν τούτοις ἀναστραφήσεται, καὶ θεὶς (placing) αὐτὰ ἐπὶ καρδίαν αὐτοῦa σοφισθήσεται. | Blessed is the one who will live by these things, and placing them on his heart he will be wise. |
a The expression θεὶς αὐτὰ ἐπὶ καρδίαν αὐτοῦ has the idea that might be expressed by a similar English idiom: “taking them to heart.” The participle θείς might be temporal (“when he takes them to heart”) or conditional (“if he takes them to heart”). We will study participle options like this in chaps. 23 and 24. |
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| 1 Cor. 15:51, πάντες οὐ κοιμηθησόμεθα, πάντες δὲ ἀλλαγησόμεθα.a | |
a This form may puzzle you at first. Remember that the future passive follows the same pattern as the aorist passive. If the stem changes in the aorist passive, the future passive will do the same thing. The lexicons do not usually list a form with the ἀλλαγ- stem, but you will find the help you need in the morphology catalog (see the “Odd Forms” section) in app. B. Can you figure it out from there? |
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| Num. 22:34, καὶ νῦν εἰ μή σοι ἀρέσκει, ἀποστραφήσομαι. Ps. 33:21 (34:20 Eng.), κύριος φυλάσσει πάντα τὰ ὀστᾶa αὐτῶν, ἓν ἐξ αὐτῶν οὐ συντριβήσεται. |
|
a ὀστᾶ, neut. pl. acc. ► ὀστέον, ου, τό, “bone”; the paradigm is irregular (see BDAG for details). |
|
| 1 Kgdms. (1 Sam.) 20:5, εἶπεν Δαυὶδ πρὸς Ἰωναθάν, Ἰδοὺ δὴ νεομηνία αὔριον, καὶ ἐγὼ οὐ καθήσομαι μετὰ τοῦ βασιλέως φαγεῖν, καὶ ἐξαποστελεῖς με, καὶ κρυβήσομαι ἐν τῷ πεδίῳ ἕως δείλης.a | |
a δείλη, ης, ἡ, “late afternoon, evening” |
|
19.29. As illustrated earlier in the chapter (see “Uses of the Future Tense-Form”), the future can be used in place of an imperative form. For example, in 1 Pet. 1:16 you would read διότι γέγραπται ὅτι Ἅγιοι ἔσεσθε, ὅτι ἐγὼ ἅγιός εἰμι, which English translations give as: “for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy’” (NIV). Or in Matt. 22:37 you read, ὁ δὲ ἔφη (he said) αὐτῷ, Ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ καρδίᾳ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ ψυχῇ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ σου. That is not a prediction. Instead it is a command: “He said to him, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind’” (HCSB). Although this may seem surprising to you, we do use the future this way in English, though rarely. For example, when a mother or father says to a son or daughter, “You will clean your room tonight!” the form is future, but the meaning is clearly imperatival, not predictive.
In the NT the imperatival use of the future tense-form is most common in Matthew, but it is also found elsewhere. The NT frequency is due largely to the influence of the OT, mediated through the LXX, where this usage is quite common. The first example above (1 Pet. 1:16) is quoted from Lev. 19:2, and the second (Matt. 22:37) is from Deut. 6:5. This usage is not common outside the NT, but it is a recognized Greek usage.[10]
19.30. Examples of Future Active and Middle Indicative Verbs
| Mark 9:35, Εἴ τις θέλει πρῶτος εἶναι, ἔσται πάντων ἔσχατος καὶ πάντων διάκονος. | If anyone desires to be first, he must be last of all and servant of all. |
| Luke 1:31, καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦν. | You are to name him Jesus. |
| Matt. 19:18, λέγει αὐτῷ, Ποίας; ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν, Τὸa Οὐ φονεύσεις, Οὐ μοιχεύσεις, Οὐ κλέψεις, Οὐ ψευδομαρτυρήσεις . | He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus answered, “Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness.” |
a The article τό probably looks odd to you since it is followed by a series of negated verbs. This article functions as a nominalizer, indicating that the entire series of verbs that follows serves as the content of what Jesus said and the direct object of the verb εἶπεν. |
|
| Acts 18:15, ὄψεσθε αὐτοί·a κριτὴς ἐγὼ τούτων οὐ βούλομαι εἶναι. | See to it yourselves. I don’t want to be a judge of such things. (HCSB) |
a Did you remember the function of αὐτός is this construction? You will want to read the context of this statement in an English Bible to make sense of it. |
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| Matt. 6:5, οὐκ ἔσεσθε ὡς οἱ ὑποκριταί. | |
| Gal. 5:14, Ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν. Gen. 24:38, εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ πατρός μου πορεύσῃ καὶ εἰς τὴν φυλήν μου καὶ λήμψῃa γυναῖκα τῷ υἱῷ μου ἐκεῖθεν. |
|
a 2nd sg. fut. mid. ind. ► λαμβάνω (root *λαβ; the α lengthens to η, a μ is added, and the square of stops β + σ = ψ produces the future stem, λημψ-); this is a middle-only form in the future. |
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| Exod. 18:19, ἀνοίσειςa τοὺς λόγους αὐτῶν πρὸς τὸν θεόν. | |
a From ἀναφέρω, second future stem ἀνοι-, root *οι. This is one of the verbs with multiple roots; see §18.8. |
|
| Exod. 20:3–5, 7, οὐκ ἔσονταί σοι θεοὶ ἕτεροι πλὴν ἐμοῦ. οὐ ποιήσεις σεαυτῷ εἴδωλον. οὐ προσκυνήσεις αὐτοῖς οὐδὲ μὴ λατρεύσῃςa αὐτοῖς· ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι κύριος ὁ θεός σου. οὐ λήμψῃ τὸ ὄνομα κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ σου ἐπὶ ματαίῳ. | |
a οὐδὲ μὴ λατρεύσῃς, “neither serve” (double negative) |
|
A Time Is Coming
25ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἔρχεταιa ὥρα καὶ νῦν ἐστιν ὅτε οἱ νεκροὶ ἀκούσουσιν τῆς φωνῆς τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ οἱ ἀκούσαντες (ones who hear) ζήσουσιν. 26ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ἔχει ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ, οὕτως καὶ τῷ υἱῷ ἔδωκεν (he gave) ζωὴν ἔχειν (to have) ἐν ἑαυτῷ. 27καὶ ἐξουσίαν ἔδωκεν (he gave) αὐτῷ κρίσιν ποιεῖν, ὅτι υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἐστίν. 28μὴ θαυμάζετεb τοῦτο,c ὅτι ἔρχεται ὥρα ἐν ᾗ πάντες οἱ ἐν τοῖς μνημείοις ἀκούσουσιν τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ 29καὶ ἐκπορεύσονται οἱd τὰ ἀγαθὰ ποιήσαντες (who have done) εἰς ἀνάστασιν ζωῆς, οἱd δὲ τὰ φαῦλα πράξαντες (who have done) εἰς ἀνάστασιν κρίσεως.
a Notice the future use of the present form; it recurs again later in the paragraph.
b This is actually an imperative form (the μή is one clue; indicative verbs normally use οὐ), so you would say: “Do not be amazed.”
c To make good English here we have to supply “at”—“at this.”
d Both articles marked above govern a verbal form several words later in the clause with the verb’s object intervening: οἱ ποιήσαντες and οἱ πράξαντες. (The verbal forms are both participles, but with the article they act like nouns. You will learn this construction in chap. 25.) The article tells you how they are functioning in the sentence.
There are fifteen future forms in this passage. See if you can identify all of them before you begin reading. Three of the fifteen future forms you have not met yet; they are underlined and translated for you.
The Coming of the Son of Man
20προσεύχεσθε (pray!) δὲ ἵνα μὴ γένηται (it should not be) ἡ φυγὴ ὑμῶν χειμῶνος μηδὲ σαββάτῳ. 21ἔσται γὰρ τότε θλῖψις μεγάλη οἵα οὐ γέγονεν (has been) ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς κόσμου ἕως τοῦ νῦν οὐδ᾿ οὐ μὴ γένηται (it will be). 22καὶ εἰ μὴ ἐκολοβώθησαν αἱ ἡμέραι ἐκεῖναι, οὐκ ἂν ἐσώθη πᾶσα σάρξ· διὰ δὲ τοὺς ἐκλεκτοὺς κολοβωθήσονται αἱ ἡμέραι ἐκεῖναι. 23τότε ἐάν τις ὑμῖν εἴπῃ (should say), Ἰδοὺ ὧδε ὁ Χριστός, ἤ, Ὧδε, μὴ πιστεύσητε (you believe)· 24ἐγερθήσονται γὰρ ψευδόχριστοι καὶ ψευδοπροφῆται καὶ δώσουσιν (they will do/perform) σημεῖα μεγάλα καὶ τέρατα ὥστε πλανῆσαι, εἰ δυνατόν, καὶ τοὺς ἐκλεκτούς. 25ἰδοὺ προείρηκα (I have told in advance) ὑμῖν. 26ἐὰν οὖν εἴπωσιν (they should say) ὑμῖν, Ἰδοὺ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ἐστίν, μὴ ἐξέλθητε (you go out)· Ἰδοὺ ἐν τοῖς ταμείοις, μὴ πιστεύσητε (you believe)· 27ὥσπερ γὰρ ἡ ἀστραπὴ ἐξέρχεται ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν καὶ φαίνεται ἕως δυσμῶν, οὕτως ἔσται ἡ παρουσία τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου· 28ὅπου ἐὰν ᾖ (it should be) τὸ πτῶμα, ἐκεῖ συναχθήσονται οἱ ἀετοί.
29Εὐθέως δὲ μετὰ τὴν θλῖψιν τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐκείνων
ὁ ἥλιος σκοτισθήσεται,
καὶ ἡ σελήνη οὐ δώσει (it will give) τὸ φέγγος αὐτῆς,
καὶ οἱ ἀστέρες πεσοῦνται ἀπὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ,
καὶ αἱ δυνάμεις τῶν οὐρανῶν σαλευθήσονται.
30καὶ τότε φανήσεται τὸ σημεῖον τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐν οὐρανῷ, καὶ τότε κόψονται πᾶσαι αἱ φυλαὶ τῆς γῆς καὶ ὄψονται τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐρχόμενον (coming) ἐπὶ τῶν νεφελῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ μετὰ δυνάμεως καὶ δόξης πολλῆς· 31καὶ ἀποστελεῖ (he will send)a τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ μετὰ σάλπιγγος μεγάλης, καὶ ἐπισυνάξουσιν τοὺς ἐκλεκτοὺς αὐτοῦ ἐκ τῶν τεσσάρων ἀνέμων ἀπ᾿ ἄκρων οὐρανῶν ἕως τῶν ἄκρων αὐτῶν.
a 3rd sg. fut. act. ind. ► ἀποστέλλω. This is a form you have not met yet; one lambda and the sigma form marker both drop out. You will learn why in chap. 21.
19.34. Vocabulary for Chapter 19
| Part of Speech | Definition | Possible Glosses | Frequency | |
| Word | NT | LXX | ||
| Nouns | ||||
| μέρος, ους, τό | A piece or part of a whole (wide usage depending on context: body part, geographical area, party, etc.) | part, member; region; party | 42 | 139 |
| χιλιάς, άδος, ἡ | A group of one thousand (collective noun) | (group of) a thousand | 23 | 340 |
| σκηνή, ῆς, ἡ | A temporary, movable shelter | tent, hut, booth, tabernacle | 20 | 434 |
| Preposition | ||||
| ἀντί | A preposition used with the genitive case indicating correspondence in which one thing is to be replaced by or substituted with or for another | (prep. + gen.) instead of, for, in behalf of | 21 | 391 |
| Verbs | ||||
| (1) ἅπτω; (2) ἅπτομαι | (1) To cause to burn or give light (act.); (2) to make contact with something (for various purposes) [1 and 2 are homonyms, but 2 is a middle-only verb] | (1) I kindle, ignite (act.); (2) I touch, take hold of, cling to (mid.) | 39 | 134 |
| δικαιόω | To render a favorable verdict, pronounce innocent; in Pauline theology, a judicial act in which God declares the believing sinner righteous | I justify, vindicate | 39 | 51 |
| περισσεύω | (1) Intransitive: to be in abundance (number, amount, quality, etc.); to be wealthy; (2) transitive: to cause something to exist in abundance | (1) I abound, am rich, have an abundance; (2) I cause to abound | 39 | 9 |
| πλανάω | To cause someone to go astray, lead them from the right path (act.); to depart from the right path (mid.); to be misled, deceived (pass.) | I lead astray, deceive (act.); I go astray (mid.); I am misled, deceived (pass.) | 39 | 126 |
| ἀσθενέω | To experience physical weakness as a result of sickness or some other incapacity; to lack capacity for something whether physical or otherwise | I am weak/sick; I am deficient | 33 | 77 |
| ἐλπίζω | To have confidence of something positive coming to pass | I hope, hope for; I expect | 31 | 117 |
| φεύγω | To seek safety by fleeing from a place or situation; to avoid something due to danger | I flee, escape; I avoid, shun | 29 | 250 |
| καταλείπω | To leave someone or something behind by departure or death; to depart from a place | I leave behind, leave alone; I leave, depart | 24 | 289 |
| μιμνῄσκω | To remind someone of something (act.); to recall information from one’s own memory (mid.); to be reminded (pass.) (never act. in the NT or LXX; often listed as μιμνῄσκομαι) | I remind (act.); I remember, mention (mid.); I am reminded (pass.) | 23 | 262 |
| βασιλεύω | To exercise royal authority as king; to become king | I am king, I rule/reign as king; I become king | 21 | 402 |
| ἐντέλλω | To give authoritative instructions | I command, order | 15 | 424 |
19.35. Key Things to Know for Chapter 19
Can you list more than one way in which the future tense-form is used, that is, more than as a simple temporal, predictive statement regarding the future?
What are the two future form markers, and for which forms are they used?
What are the formulas for the three future indicative forms in this chapter (active, middle, and passive)?
What happens to the spelling of a contract verb when a form marker is added in the future? How is this similar to an aorist verb?
Can you still reproduce the square of stops from memory? If not, you should review it.
Do you recognize future forms of εἰμί when you spot them in a text?
In what one case is a θησ not a future form marker? What are your clues to remember this form?
What is different about a second future passive?