Verb – εἰμί plural

ObjectivesLearning objectives

The morphology of present εἰμί pl
The use of the present tense to refer to present habits and states

VocabularyVocabulary

Greek	Gloss	Part of speech	Paradigm
τὸ δεῖπνον, -ου	the supper	noun	B.a.β.ii
τὸ ἔργον, -ου	the deed	noun	B.a.β.ii
τὸ μέτρον, -ου	the amount	noun	B.a.β.ii
ἀνοίγω τήν	(I) open the (acc)	verb	C.a.ζ
διδάσκω σε	(I) teach you (acc)	verb	C.a.ζ
πάντοτε	always	adverb

MorphologyMorphology: Verb – εἰμί plural

The endings for pl εἰμί are similar to the regular present tense verbs (e.g. 1p κράζομεν vs. ἐσμέν and 2p κράζετε vs. ἐστέ).
The 3p form has an initial εἰ instead of ἐσ followed by the normal present tense ending without the initial ου of the regular ending (e.g. τύπτουσι(ν) vs. εἰσί(ν), both with moveable ν).

Morphology: Verb – εἰμί plural

	Singular	Plural
1st Person	εἰμί	ἐσ-μέν
2nd Person	εἶ	ἐσ-τέ
3rd Person	ἐστί(ν)	εἰ-σί(ν)

SemanticsSemantics: Verb – Present Tense (3 – Present habit; 4 – Present State)

Verb – Present: all 5 parts on one page →Also in Lesson 1.4, Lesson 2.1, Lesson 9.4, Lesson 10.4

Some languages, like English, use a different form for states and events in the present tense, so we would normally say Rhoda loves soccer rather than * Rhoda is loving soccer, since the word love is a state (but the event Rhoda is playing soccer uses the be + - ing form). In Greek, there is no distinction in the verb form between actions that are in progress and states that hold in the present tense:

Example 57Present state with present tense form

ἔχει ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου [the son of man has] authority on earth to forgive sins (Matt 9:6)

In (57), a current state of the son of man is expressed with the same Greek form (the present tense) as an action currently in progress (see 1.4.4.2 and 2.1.4.2). We have called this imperfective aspect because the time of the event or state extends beyond the time being talked about. In other words, the end of the eventuality is not being referred to.

Because the Greek present tense can refer to either states or events, verbs that describe actions, such as eat, can be interpreted either as a habitual or as an event that is currently in progress. Habituals refer to events that happen regularly. The event happens multiple times, and it can safely be predicted to happen again because it is a characteristic of an individual. For example, Philip eats vegetables means that Philip characteristically eats vegetables, even though he may not be currently eating vegetables. On the other hand, Philip is eating vegetables means that Philip is currently eating vegetables, but he may or may not characteristically do so (he may be doing it against his will, for example). In a language like English, we can see the difference between these two meanings reflected in the form of the verbs (eats vs. is eating), but in Greek, the same form ἐσθίει is used for both meanings. Some examples are ambiguous:

Example 58Ambiguous between present progressive and habitual

And the scribes of the Pharisees saw that he ἐσθίει [was eating] with sinners and tax collectors, and they said to his disciples: ‘Why does he ἐσθίει [eat] (with sinners and tax collectors)?’ (Mark 2:16)

When the scribes of the Pharisees see that Jesus was eating with sinners and tax collectors, ἐσθίει describes what he is currently doing. They then ask his disciples why he ἐσθίει with tax collectors and sinners. This could be interpreted either as the scribes asking why Jesus is currently eating with tax collectors and sinners or why he does so as a habit. Most translations opt for the latter, and I would concur. The scribes are making a generalization about Jesus’ eating partners based on what he is currently doing, and they are correct. Jesus does characteristically eat with tax collectors and sinners. If this understanding is correct, the first instance of ἐσθίει should be translated into a language like English as ‘is eating’, while the second instance of ἐσθίει should be translated as ‘eats.’

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