Wermuth’s GREEKBOOK Endorsements

Dr.  Samuel  Lamerson — Associate  Professor  of  New Testament  and  Dean  of  Faculty,  Knox Seminary; Assistant Pastor,  Coral  Ridge  Presbyterian  Church,  Ft.  Lauderdale, Florida

“Robert Wermuth’s  GREEKBOOK is a great help to those who need to see the noun and verb  charted completely,  and even for those who don’t. This book has charts that no other book  (that  I  am  familiar  with)  has.”

 

Rev.  Chris  Smith — Founding  Pastor,  Resurrection Presbyterian  Church,  Carondelet,  Missouri

“Studying, understanding, and delighting in language is in Robert Wermuth’s blood, and his first love among languages is New Testament Greek. Robert’s  passion is teaching others, and not only is his enthusiasm infectious, but his methods are effective in helping his students get a firm handle on Greek. Through years of personal study, tutoring individuals, and teaching in a classroom setting, Robert has reshaped and  refined his material into the book you have before you. In a very short period of time, using the methods  that Robert developed, I was able to recapture the Greek that I’d  first learned in seminary. I eagerly commend to you Wermuth’s GREEKBOOK. I’m certain that it will be a great help to those who wish to read and understand the New Testament in the original language.”

 

Rev.  Robert  Smart — Lead Pastor, Christ Church (PCA), Bloomington-­Normal, Illinois; Adjunct Homiletics Instructor, Covenant Theological Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri 

“The first discoveries of the original languages of Holy Scripture play a big factor in how long  and  joyfully a bible student will keep digging for new treasures. Robert Wermuth’s masterful  way of  teaching not only introduced me to Greek but gave me confidence to go on from this  strong foundation to life-­changing exegesis.”

 

Rev. Jeffrey J. Meyers — Pastor, Providence Reformed Presbyterian Church, Crestwood, Missouri

“If you are interested in learning Greek for the first time or need to bone up on your knowledge for New Testament studies, I highly recommend Wermuth’s GREEKBOOK. At Covenant Seminary, Robert’s note-taking skills and ability to systematize complex subjects in charts and diagrams were legendary. Robert brings his love of Greek and his hands-on understanding of pedagogy to this newer work. The charts alone are worth the price on the book.”

 

Luke B. Bobo — Director and  Assistant Professor of Christian Ministry Studies, Lindenwood College of Individualized Education (LCIE), Lindenwood University, St. Charles, Missouri

“I  am impressed with Robert’s teaching style.  He makes learning an ancient language exciting. God has blessed him with a rare gift.”

 

Dr. Daniel W. Zink — Assistant Professor of Practical Theology, Covenant Theological Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri

“Learning a language is never easy, but, in my experience, Robert Wermuth’s materials made it easier. The systems  built into his approach made learning logical and efficient. Robert has done the work of finding the patterns that,  when learned, allow the student to build new learning on  top of what he has previously learned. In this way, the  new things are not as new as they might initially appear.”

 

Timothy Butler — Assistant Pastor of Discipleship, Grace Presbyterian Church, St. Charles, Missouri 

“During the year I studied Greek under Mr. Wermuth at Lindenwood University, he gave me many helpful insights into the logic of  the language, completely eliminating the whole idea of memorizing every variant of every verb and noun individually. He demonstrated the patterns behind those variations, so that studying Greek became a process of understanding and not just memorization. It is extremely exciting to see this wonderfully useful information, most of which I have not seen in any previous Greek grammar or aid I tried, put into one logically organized book. To an introductory Greek student, the techniques of Wermuth’s   GREEKBOOK make a daunting project seem attainable and, for a continuing Greek student, it is an essential reference.”

 

Mark Schutzius — Youth and Discipleship Pastor, Mt. Vernon (TN) Baptist Church; MDiv. 2011 and PhD candidate 2015, Mid-­America Baptist Theological Seminary, Cordova, Tennessee

“You really should know how much help your book has been for me down here . . . People call your book the ‘magic book’!”

 

The Brookmans (Marianne, Janet, Abigail, and Grace) — homeschool family, St. Louis, Missouri     

“We are a homeschool family that  as thoroughly enjoyed taking New Testament Greek from Robert Wermuth. This GREEKBOOK puts together many of the helpful references he provided to us in class. It is a wonderful resource that will enable the Greek student to better understand God’s amazing Word.”

 

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Greek Adjectives: Formation, Uses and Translation

Adjectives   are   declined   in   all   three   declensions.  With   the exception  of   certain   3rd   Declension   adjectives   (like πᾶς,  πᾶσα,   πᾶν   –   all,   each,   every),   the   Masculine   adjective   forms   like   the   2nd   Declension   noun,   λόγος,   ὁ.  Τhe Feminine   adjective   normally   forms   like   1st   Declension   Feminines   whose   nominative   singular   case   ends   in   “-­η.” Finally,   the   Neuter  adjective  forms  like  2nd  Declension Neuter  nouns  (e.g.,  τέκνον,  τὸ). The  Definite   Article   also   displays   these   forms,   with   the   exception   of   the   Neuter   Nominative   and   Accusative  singular  forms,  which  do  not retain  the  final  “ν.”

Frequently  Used  3rd  Declension  and  Irregular Adjectives:     

There   are   several   frequently   occurring   Greek   adjectives   which,   although   “irregular,”   are   formed   using   all   three   Greek   declensions. The   declensions   of   ἀληθής,   -­ες   (true),   πολύς,  πολλή,  πολύ  (much,  many),  and  µέγας,  µεγάλη,  μέγα (great)  can  be  observed   in  the  following  paradigm:

Uses  and  Translation  

Adjectives  will always agree in  gender,  case,  and  number  with the  substantives  (nouns,   pronouns,  or  other  adjectives) they modify. Hence,  τοῦ  πιστοῦ  δοῦλου  =  of  the  faithful   servant   (all   masculine,   genitive,   singular),   or   τῇ   πρωτῇ   ἡµέρᾳ   =   on   the   first   day   (all   feminine,  locative,  singular). Based  on its  position  in  the  Greek  sentence,  an  adjective will  always modify  a  substantive  in  one  of  two  ways:

(1)  Attributively   as   an   adherent   description.  The   attributive position   of   the   Greek   adjective   is   always   immediately   following   a   definite   article,   regardless   of   whether   the   adjective  precedes  or  follows  the  substantive  it  modifies.

Examples:                                                     

ὁ  πίστος δοῦλος
                                 =    the  faithful  servant

ὁ  δοῦλος  ὁ  πίστος

(2) As  a  Predicate  adjective,  presenting  an  additional statement.  The  predicate  position     of   the   Greek   adjective   occurs   wherever   the   adjective   does   not   immediately   follow a   definite  article.    In  these  instances,  the  predicate  (is,  are) should  be  supplied. 

Examples:                                                     

ὁ  δοῦλος πίστος 
                                 =    the servant is faithful  

πίστος ὁ  δοῦλος

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Okay, What’s It’s Gonna Be, “Yes” or “No”?

One of two Greek negatives— οὐ or μή —is found in direct questions to indicate the specific kind of answer the questioner expects. For beginning Greek students, it’s helpful to remember that when translating these Greek questions with negatives into English, your translation should be worded in a way that “puts the expected answer” into your reader’s/hearer’s mind.

(1) When a “Yes” answer is expected to a Greek question, οὐ is used:

οὐ τῷ ὀνόματι ἐπροφητεύσαμεν; (Matt. 7:22).
“Did we not prophesy by Thy name?” (Ans.: “Yes.”)
“We prophesied by Thy name, didn’t we?” (Better—more clearly expecting the “Yes” answer)

(2) Using μή + Indicative mode in direct questions expecting a “No” answer, the questioner would be shaking his head (“No”) from side to side:

εἶπεν οὖν ὁ Ἰησους τοῖς δώδεκα μή καὶ ὑμεῖς θέλετε ὑπάγειν; (John 6:67)
“Then Jesus said to the Twelve, You do not wish to go away also, do you?” (Ans.: “No.”)

A practical, everyday, contemporary way of understanding this is to think about how you would phrase questions in English where you are expecting either a “Yes” or a “No” answer.  Put within the realm of parents conversations with their children, it might sound something like this:

Question expecting a “No” answer: “You don’t want Mommy/Daddy to spank you, do you?”  (“Nope.”)

Question expecting a “Yes“ answer:  “You’d like to go get some ice cream, wouldn’t you?” (“Absolutely yes!”)

 

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Greek Indicative Verb Tenses Formation Charts & PowerPoint

Indicative Mode Greek verbs can be readily learned utilizing a memory system that encapsulates the verb’s personal endings into a numbering system that can be plugged into an easily recognizable and memorable “formula” for each of the Greek verb tenses and voices. All other Greek verbal modes (as well as Participles, which are verbal-adjectives) can be memorized under similar systems which are included within Wermuth’s GREEKBOOK.

 

Using an “odd” and “even” numbering system which re-codes the verb column numbers with the endings’ thematic vowel, this memory paradigm can be reduced to four basic columns of verb endings that need to be mastered. All of the Greek Indicative Mode tenses and their respective voices can be formed off of variations of these four basic columns of verb endings. Click here to download the “PowerPoint” presentation. Similar paradigms can be utilized for all Greek modes, including the Subjunctive, Imperative, and Optative Modes, as well as Participles.

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“Abso-tively, Posi-lutely” Unusual: The Greek “Genitive Absolute” Construction!

Yes, the Greek “Genitive Absolute” construction is “abso-tively, posi-lutely unusual!! But . . . you can still translate this unusual Greek construction. Here are five plausible steps for recognizing and translating the  “Genitive Absolute” —

(1) Identify the “Genitive Absolute” construction = a circumstantial participle and a noun or pronoun, both occurring in the genitive case in a “dependent” clause.

EXAMPLES:

1. χρονίζοντος δὲ τοῦ νυμφίου ἐνύσταξαν πᾶσαι καὶ ἐκάθευδον.(Matt. 25:5)

“And while the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.”

2.τοῦ δὲ ‘Ιησοῦ γεννήθεντος ἐν Βηθλέεμ . . . ἰδοῦ μάγοι ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν παρεγένοντο εἰς ’Ιεροσόλυμα.(Matthew 2:1)

“And after Jesus was born in Bethlehem . . . behold wise men from the East arrived in Jerusalem.”

(2) Translate the main (“independent”) clause of the sentence (the part not containing the “genitive absolute” construction).

(3) Identify the time frame (present or past time) of the Indicative verb in the main (“independent”) clause. The time frame of the participle in the “genitive absolute” construction will be translated either as being “simultaneous” with the time frame of the Indicative verb of the main (“independent”) clause, or as occurring “prior” to the time frame of the main Indicative verb (see point 5, below).

(4) Translate the noun or pronoun in the “genitive absolute” construction (“dependent” clause) as if it were in the Nominative case. And finally . . .

(5) Translate the genitive participle as an indicative verb, preceded by the adverbial, circumstantial word “While…” if the participle is a Present tense participle, or with the word “After…” if the participle is in the Aorist tense.

Click here for a downloadable PDF, also available anytime from the sidebar under the category GREEK “UNUSUAL CONSTRUCTIONS”.

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Principal Parts of Frequently Encountered “Irregular” New Testament Greek Verbs

        

The verb tenses in Greek are divided into six basic “systems” called Principal Parts (“mouse-over” images, then click, and click again for enlarged viewing). Each system has a distinct verb stem, from which all the various tenses and their respective “voices” are built (first image). In order to recognize a Greek verb, it is necessary to be familiar with its principal parts.The “regular” principal parts system is represented by the normal, “model” Greek verb λύω. The Principal Parts chart represented within the above image files delineates in alphabetical order the principal parts of many frequently encountered “irregular” verbs occurring in the Greek New Testament. To view all the pages at full-page size or to download the entire PDF, click here or view/download anytime from the sidebar, opposite.

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I’ll Not Remain “Mute” About This!

I’ll not remain mute about this.  I’ll teach you something about “Mute Stem” changes (JPEG) within Greek verbs, so you won’t need to remain “mute” about the subject, either!  As a New Testament Greek student it can be helpful in the “short run” (or longer) if you can visualize in your “mind’s eye” certain critical pieces of information.  Some of that critical information is this: “What happens when certain Greek consonants collide with other Greek consonants, and why?“ Please read the following treatise on “Mute Stem” changes where, below the following chart, I will give you a fairly easy way to “set up this chart” in your mind.

The basic components (the “labials,” “gutterals” and “dentals”) of the above “Mute Stems Changes”chart can be fairly easily replicated in your mind if you remember this “set up” process.  While these three categories of Greek letters (“labials,” “gutterals” and “dentals”) are listed horizontally as they function within the chart, it’s easier to set them up vertically. Here’s how:

(1) Start reciting the Greek alphabet: α…β…γ...δ…then start writing the letters (vertically) as soon as you get to β, γ, δ. You now have the first letter of each of the three categories of letters.

(2) Next, vertically write (with Greek letters) the first letters of the acronym:“preachers’ kids (are) terrific”…or…π, κ, τ. Now you have the second letters of each row.

(3) For the final vertical row, add the Greek equivalent of an“h” to the letters you just wrote (π, κ, τ), resulting in: φ, χ, θ. With this done, you can now more easily memorize the results of collisions with various consonants that occur.

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Participle = “Verbal Adjective”

When you see a Greek word that looks like a verb at its beginning that has declined endings, that word must be a Participle. It is critically important that the beginning Greek student learn the declension of the 3rd Declension noun ἀρχῶν, ὁ (ruler). From this noun active participle endings are derived, and the noun’s stem (ἀρχ-) is replaced with a verbal stem (or, as I like to say in class, “We’re putting Noah back into the ‘ark’ [ἀρχ-] and sending him on a vacation.”  The resultant verb stem + declined endings = a verbal-adjective, the grammatical description for a participle (e.g., λύων, λύοντος…).

When studying and memorizing participle endings, it is helpful to remember the nominative singular forms of each of the active, middle and passive endings that occur. Including thematic vowel changes, there are four active forms of participle endings (one of them used “passively” with Aorist passives) and three middle/passive forms. Since participles are verbal adjectives, the student will observe a verbal stem with declined endings in all three genders. The active endings (nominative singular) are represented by: -ων,    -ουσα, -ον (Present, 2nd Aorist); -ας, -ασα, -αν (1st Aorist); -εις, -εισα, -εν (1st & 2nd Aorist passive; remember: Aorist Passives always utilize “active looking” endings); and -ως, -υια, -ος (Perfect). Since each of these groups of endings are declined in a similar way with the masculines and neuters in the 3rd declension and the feminines in the 1st declension (like γλῶσσα), knowledge of the nominative singulars becomes a “jumping off” point in the student’s mind for recognition of any other case forms he may encounter. The middle/passive endings are much more simple, occuring in the 2nd declension for masculine and neuter forms, and the 1st declension for the feminines (like ἀγάπη) and represented by; -ομενος, –ομενη, –ομενον (Present, 2nd Aorist); -αμενος, -αμενη, -αμενον (1st Aorist); –μενος, -μενη, -μενον (Perfect).

When the Greek “circumstantial” (temporal, adverbial) participle occurs (without an article) in the Present tense. The “temporal” (time-oriented) adverb used to translate a Present tense circumstantial participle is “As” (or “While”). The time frame of the “dependent” (temporal, circumstantial) clause should be consistent with the time frame of the indicative verb of the “independent” (main) clause.

(PRESENT) βλέπει τὸν κύριον ἐρχόμενον πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ …
“He is seeing the Lord (as He [the Lord] is) coming toward him and he is saying to him…” (John 1:29a)

When the Greek “circumstantial” participle occurs in the Aorist tense. The “temporal” (time-oriented) adverb used to translate an Aorist tense circumstantial participle is “After.” Again, the time frame of the “dependent” (temporal, circumstantial) clause is translated concurrent with the time frame of the indicative verb in the “independent” (main) clause. (ibid, p. 69)

(AORIST) ἐλθῶν οὖν ὁ Ἰησους εὖρεν αὐτὸν.
“Therefore after He came Jesus found him.” (John 11:17a)
(Better): “Therefore after Jesus came He [Jesus] found him.”

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“Okay, I’ll Make a ‘Contract’ (Verb) with You”

Here’s a look at “Contract Verbs” made a lot easier. Remember, the only two tenses that are impacted by “contractions” of vowels are the Present and Imperfect, since these are the only two tenses that utilize a “Present” stem (1st Principal Part) with nothing added to the end before it encounters the thematic vowel(s) of the personal endings.

Notice that I’ve set up this chart in a “logical” fashion, where the contract verb vowels (α, ε, or ο ) and the potential vowels that they can collide with in forming tenses and moods (modes).  These are listed in a logical progression, either alphabetically (above) or in a similar progress from short ε, to ει, to η (long “e”), to ῃ, to ο, ου, and ω.  Not only is this a logical way to set up a chart like this, it also reveals patterns of results of the collisions that make the entire chart more memorable in your head.

(1) Observe the collision of α with any “e-class” vowel: short (ε), diphthong (ει), and long “e” (η or ῃ) results consistently in α.  When colliding with “o-class” vowels:  short (ο) , diphthong (οι), or long (ω), the result is always as long as possible: ω.

(2) Moving on, the ε contract vowel when colliding with other vowels always gets longer, either a little longer:  to a diphthong (ει), or as long as possible (η or ω) within the category of vowel with which it’s colliding.

(3) The final contract vowel ο also gets longer through it’s collisions with other vowels— to an ου diphthong when meeting ε, an ο, or an ου; to an οι diphthong when colliding οι diphthong when colliding with anything that has an ι in it (ει, and ῃ); and to ω when it encounters any long vowel (η or ω).

Click image below for to view in a separate window, or click here for a downloadable image (JPEG also available from the sidebar). Also, click to download this PDF for an extended look at all the results of all the collisions for each type of “Contract Verb” in every “Present” and “Imperfect” tense situation where they occur.

**REMEMBER, too, that the predominant indicator that a “contraction” (collision) of vowels has occurred is the Greek circumflex (~) accent that appears (most often) over the location of the contraction.

NOTE:  For you language “geeks,” the English word “contract” comes from two Latin root words (cum + tractus) which mean “to draw together.” A legal “contract” is a “drawing up/together” of certain conditions.  A housing “contractor” also “draws together” certain skilled workers to complete the construction project. Other English derivatives would be “tractor” and “traction.”

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The “Bottom Line” on μι-Verbs

Don’t be intimidated by these “irregular” New Testament Greek verbs.  If you pay attention, they too reveal structural “patterns” that you can find some comfort level in recognizing in context. The primary “bottom line” characteristics of μι-Verbs are presented in the image below, and also as part of a downloadable PDF that includes μι–Verb Indicative Mode formation charts as well as a listing of the most frequently occurring μι-Verbs in the New Testament.

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