The Perfect Tense Perfect Active, Middle and Passive Indicative The Greek perfect tense stands alone in its function. English had no corresponding tense adequate for expressing the significance involved. The English past tense translations “I have loosed” - λελυκα, are accommodations only. They do not express the full force of the Greek perfect. Perfect Greek tense: a completed (continuous) action with a resulting state of being. • The primary emphasis is on the resulting state of being. • There are 3 ideas involved in the Greek perfect: 1. an action in progress 2. it coming to a point of culmination 3. its existing as a completed result
Present Action in Progress w/ Culmination
Thus it implies a process, but looks upon the process as having reached a completion and existing as a completed state. The real nature of the Greek perfect is seen in the passive voice better than in the active. Hence “γεγραπται” (perfect. pas. part.) may be translated “it has been written ”, but is better translated, “It is written”, in which sense it pictures an act in progress, the point of culmination, and the existing result - “it has been written and it stands written”. Likewise “εγηγερται”, “he is risen”, and “χαριτι εστε σεσωσµενοι”, “by grace are you saved”, etc. (For fuller discussion of the significance of the perfect tense and the variety of its usage, see Dana and Mantey’s A Manuel Grammar of the Greek New Testament and Robertson’s Grammar of the Greek New Testament.) The perfect infinitives of λυω are: Act: λελυκεται to have loosed with continuing results Mid: λελυσθαι to have loosed (for) one’s self/and no other with continuing results Pas: λελυσθαι to have been loosed with continuing results •
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The pluperfect is the “perfect past time” and is translated, “I had loosed with continuing results”, etc. The future perfect passive is the perfect passive of the future time and is translated, “I will have been loosed with continuing results”, etc.
New Word: ηδη - already Special Focus: The “ινα ινα” ινα clause “ινα ινα” ινα can be translated 2 ways:
as telic - purpose: in order that as ecbatic - result: with the result that
There is no hint in the grammar as to which way to translate “ινα. ινα.” ινα. The only way to determine whether it is a purpose or result clause is by CONTEXT!
V-PAI-1S CONJ ερχοµαι ινα I am coming in order that
V-AAS-1P P-DSM ειπω αυτω. I may speak to/in/by/with him.