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Present Indicative Middle

Class Notes

The Present Indicative Middle in Greek is a grammatical mood, voice, and tense used to describe action that the subject performs with the emphasis on the subject’s involvement, either on himself or for his own benefit.

The middle voice represents the subject as acting with reference to himself. I wash myself (λούομαι); I buy for myself (ἀγοράζομαι).

The Present Indicative Middle in Greek follows the typical present indicative conjugation patterns, but with specific middle voice endings. In the present tense, the middle has the following personal endings:

Person	Singular	Plural
1st	ομαι	ομεθα
2nd	ῃ (ει)	εσθε
3rd	εται	ονται

Present Indicative Middle of λούω (“I wash myself”)

Person	Form	Translation
1st sg.	λούομαι	I wash myself
2nd sg.	λούῃ (or λούει)	You wash yourself
3rd sg.	λούεται	He washes himself
1st pl.	λουόμεθα	We wash ourselves
2nd pl.	λούεσθε	You all wash yourselves
3rd pl.	λούονται	They wash themselves

λούεσθαι (loúesthai) – “to wash oneself”

Thematic Vowel in the Present Indicative Middle

The thematic vowel is inserted between the verb stem and the middle endings. The thematic vowels are ο and ε, depending on the form, and they follow this pattern:

ο before -μαι, -μεθα, -νται.
ε before –ται, -σαι (contracted to ῃ or ει), and -σθε.

Present Indicative Middle Personal Endings:

Person	Singular	Plural
1st Person	-μαι	-μεθα
2nd Person	-σαι	-σθε
3rd Person	-ται	-νται

-σαι (contracted to ῃ or ει)

Present Indicative Middle thematic vowel:

Person	Form	Thematic Vowel	Translation
1st sg.	λούομαι	ο	I wash myself
2nd sg.	λούεσαι (λούῃ)	ε	You wash yourself
3rd sg.	λούεται	ε	He washes himself
1st pl.	λουομεθα	ο	We wash ourselves
2nd pl.	λούεσθε	ε	You all wash yourselves
3rd pl.	λούονται	ο	They wash themselves

Examples:

Matthew 15:2 “Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash (νίπτονται) their hands when they eat bread.”

2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war (στρατευόμεθα) according to the flesh.

Galatians 1:9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches (εὐαγγελίζεται) any other gospel to you than what you have received, let […]

Present Indicative MiddleLuther Walker2024-10-05T08:47:05-07:00

Idle (ἀργός)

Idle (ἀργός) describes someone who has nothing to do or is unwilling to work and, therefore, lazy.

Words are important. Men will give account for every idle utterance that comes out of the mouth, Matthew 12:36. This is because the mouth speaks out from the abundance of the heart, Matthew 12:34. A good man will store up good treasure in his heart, where a malignantly evil one will bring forth malignantly evil things from the treasury of his heart.

Socialism is not a standard for the Church. As with secular socialism, when people are taken care of and allowed to be idle rather than work, they become lazy. However, within the assembly, the sharing of possessions can and should be done out of love. We are a community that cares for each other. Sharing is not to encourage laziness, for one who does not work is not to be permitted to eat, 2 Thessalonians 3:10. When a woman within the assembly becomes a widow, who is truly destitute having no living relatives, the local assembly is to care for her needs. This type of caring demonstrates our unity and love for the saints. However, if she is young or has other family members who can care for her, she is not to be financially provided for by the Church because of the danger of her becoming idle; instead, she is to marry, bear children, and manage the household, 1 Timothy 5:13.

The standards for a Pastor are essential for the assembly to know and to hold him accountable to. Paul left Titus in Crete to put things in order and appoint elders (pastors) in each of the cities, abiding by the guidance that Paul gave him, […]

Idle (ἀργός)Luther Walker2024-07-25T05:49:45-07:00

Mental (κάμνω) and Physical (ἐκλύω) Weariness

Mental weariness (κάμνω) is an exhaustion of the soul that impacts the mind. It can result from continual struggles, long, arduous journeys, or the accusing of the conscience for wronging another person.

James writes of the vow of faith by those who are mentally weary. In the early Church, the Elders (Pastors) would assist those who were physically sick (ἀσθενέω), praying over them and anointing them with oil, which was used for relief from sickness. However, for those who are having a mental issue, it is the vow of faith that will provide calmness. This vow is to correct a wrong done, which is causing a negative impact on the mind because of the weariness of the soul.

And the vow of faith will save the mentally ill and the Lord will raise him up and if he has done a sin, it will be forgiven him – James 5:15.

A physical weariness (ἐκλύω) can cause a person to lose heart. During His earthly ministry, Jesus fed a large crowd that had come out to hear Him speak on the Kingdom of the Heavens. He has compassion on them because they were exhausted from their journey, Matthew 9:36. A person who sows should not exhaust their strength, for in due time, he will reap from his work, Galatians 6:9. Sowing righteousness will take more time to reap than sowing to the flesh, which seeks instant gratification. Patience in doing good and taking time to rest is essential so we do not grow weary in overcoming what is wrong with good. As sons of God, He corrects us when we do wrong. We are not to become physically exhausted by this child-training, for the Lord rebukes those […]

Mental (κάμνω) and Physical (ἐκλύω) WearinessLuther Walker2024-04-04T13:48:14-07:00

Persuade (πείθω)

Persuading (πείθω) involves convincing someone to follow a particular viewpoint or course of action.

The High Priests and elders of Israel persuaded the people to request a murderer be set free while condemning a righteous man, Matthew 27:20. After they had Him crucified by the hand of Pilate, standing at the cross, they mocked Christ, saying, “He was persuaded on the basis of God. Now, let Him deliver Him if He desires, for He said that I am the Son of God.” Knowing that Jesus was the Messiah and that He stated if they destroyed His body, He would raise it in three days, the High Priests and elders persuaded Pilate to seal the tomb and put a guard at it so no one could steal the body. However, three days later, some of the guards assigned to the tomb came into the city and told the High Priest of the angel and the tomb opening, for the One they had condemned to death and mocked God answered and raised Him out from the dead. Concerned over this news, the High Priest and elders offer the guards a large sum of money to say the disciples overtook them while they slept. And if the governor hears of this, they will persuade him and make them secure, Matthew 28:14. The absurdity of such a statement is shocking, for if they were caught sleeping, they would be killed, and if they failed in their duties, they would face execution. During Christ’s earthly ministry, while addressing the Pharisees, who were fond of money, He speaks of a rich man and Lazarus. This is not a parable but a historical record of two men: one who trusted in his […]

Persuade (πείθω)Luther Walker2024-03-03T20:59:14-08:00

To Gain a Firm Mental Grasp (ἐπίσταμαι)

Having a firm mental grasp or acquiring information is expressed by ἐπίσταμαι (epistamai). Its root means to stand (ιστημι). Therefore, it expresses standing with a firm mental grasp because of the information a person is acquainted with.

In Peter’s denial of Christ, when questioned by a young servant girl if he was with Christ, he adamantly denied it, saying that he neither intuitively knows nor has acquired knowledge concerning Christ, Mark 14:68. After Peter is restored from the attack by Satan that caused him to deny Christ, God uses him to show the Jews that the Gentiles are also being accepted into the Church. In Cornelius’ house, Peter states that they have a firm mental grasp on the fact that it is not permissible for a Jew to fellowship or enter into a place with another nation, Acts 10:28. However before Cornelius sent for Paul, God showed him that he is not to call any man common or unclean and, therefore, Peter came without objection.

During the council in Acts chapter fifteen concerning whether or not the Gentiles should be circumcised and obey the law of Moses, Peter spoke up concerning what God had been doing. The elders and apostles present had acquired knowledge concerning the situation when God instructed Peter to enter into the house of a Gentile so they could hear the gospel. They were neither circumcised nor immersed before the Holy Spirit came upon them in the same manner as He did on the day of Pentecost to show the Jews a sign, Acts 15:5.

When Apollos came to Ephesus, he was mighty in the Scripture; however, he was only familiar with (had a firm mental grasp) the immersion of John, Acts […]

To Gain a Firm Mental Grasp (ἐπίσταμαι)Luther Walker2024-02-15T08:03:08-08:00

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