Lesson 4 | The Greek Article and Pronouns

Grammar Point 2: Greek Pronouns

In this lesson, we will learn about three kinds of Greek pronouns: relative pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, and personal pronouns (we will learn about other pronouns in later lessons). Spend time studying the different forms, but you do not need to memorize all the forms for each pronoun. If you know the first and second noun patterns, you should be able to parse each form. However, you should memorize the forms of the first and second personal pronouns.

Relative Pronouns
In Greek, the relative pronoun describes or stands in for a noun by introducing a relative clause. The relative pronoun matches the noun it describes in gender and number. However, its case depends on its role in the relative clause.
Here are the forms of the relative pronoun. Pay attention to the accents and breathing marks so that you can distinguish the relative pronoun from other parts of speech that look similar (like the article). You do not need to memorize this chart. Instead, remember that relative pronouns: 
Have rough breathing marks
Follow the first and second noun pattern, with the exception of the nominative and accusative neuter singular form
Are similar to the forms of the article, only without a τ
Once you feel confident that you can recognize and parse relative pronouns, use this quizlet to practice.


Examples from the Greek NT
Παῦλος δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ, κλητὸς ἀπόστολος ἀφωρισμένος εἰς εὐαγγέλιον θεοῦ, ὃ προεπηγγείλατο διὰ τῶν προφητῶν αὐτοῦ ἐν γραφαῖς ἁγίαις (NA28)

—Romans 1:1–2
I bolded the relative clause. Here, the relative pronoun ὃ describes a noun further by introducing a relative clause. Can you parse the relative pronoun? It is accusative, neuter, singular. Remember, the relative pronoun matches the noun it describes in gender and number. So, the noun described by this relative pronoun is neuter and singular. Can you find a neuter and singular noun that precedes this relative pronoun? εὐαγγέλιον. Here then, the relative pronoun describes εὐαγγέλιον (its antecedent) by introducing a relative clause. Why is the relative pronoun in the accusative case? It is not because εὐαγγέλιον is in the accusative case. It is because the relative pronoun is functioning as the direct object of the verb (προεπηγγείλατο). Paul uses the relative pronoun to describe the gospel as that “which [God] promised through his prophets in the holy Scriptures.”
ἀλλ᾿ αὐτοὶ ἐν ἑαυτοῖς τὸ ἀπόκριμα τοῦ θανάτου ἐσχήκαμεν, ἵνα μὴ πεποιθότες ὦμεν ἐφ᾿ ἑαυτοῖς ἀλλ᾿ ἐπὶ τῷ θεῷ τῷ ἐγείροντι τοὺς νεκρούς· ὃς ἐκ τηλικούτου θανάτου ἐρρύσατο ἡμᾶς καὶ ῥύσεται, εἰς ὃν ἠλπίκαμεν ὅτι καὶ ἔτι ῥύσεται (NA28)

—2 Corinthians 1:9-10
There are three relative clauses in verse 10:
ὃς ἐκ τηλικούτου θανάτου ἐρρύσατο ἡμᾶς
καὶ ῥύσεται (Here the relative pronoun is implied from the previous clause)
εἰς ὃν ἠλπίκαμεν
Can you parse the first relative pronoun? It is nominative, masculine, singular. Since, the relative pronoun matches the noun it describes in gender and number, we should look for a masculine and singular noun: θεῷ. Why is the relative pronoun in the nominative case if θεῷ is in the dative case? Because the case of the relative pronoun depends on its role in the relative clause. This first relative pronouns serves as the subject of the verb in the relative clause. Thus, it is in the nominative case. The first relative clause describes θεῷ in verse 9 as the one “who delivered us out of so great a death.” 
The second relative clause assumes the relative pronoun from the first clause: “who will deliver us.”
Can you parse the relative pronoun in the third relative clause (εἰς ὃν ἠλπίκαμεν)? It is accusative, masculine, singular. This third relative pronoun’s gender and number tell us that it connects back to θεῷ through the first relative pronoun (see diagram below). Its case and the fact that it comes right after the preposition tell us that it is functioning as part of the prepositional phrase: “on whom we have set our hope.”


Ἰωάννης μαρτυρεῖ περὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ κέκραγεν λέγων· οὗτος ἦν ὃν εἶπον· ὁ ὀπίσω μου ἐρχόμενος ἔμπροσθέν μου γέγονεν, ὅτι πρῶτός μου ἦν.  (NA28)

—John 1:15
Once again, I bolded the relative clause. Here the relative clause stands in for a noun by functioning as the predicate nominative: “This one was about whom I said...”


Diagramming and Translating the Relative Pronoun
The relative pronoun connects a relative clause to the noun it describes or introduces a relative clause that stands in for a noun. The relative pronoun matches the noun it describes in gender and number. However, its case depends on its role in the relative clause. Diagramming a relative pronoun involves two steps:
Diagram the relative clause
Connect the relative pronoun to its antecedent with a dashed line.
Here is an example from the text we used for our devotional.


Demonstrative Pronouns
Just like the relative pronoun, demonstrative pronouns stand in for other nouns. Unlike the relative pronoun, demonstrative pronouns do not usually introduce clauses that describe a noun. Instead, they just replace the noun. 
There are two kinds of demonstrative pronouns in Greek: the near demonstrative pronoun (often translated as “this”) and the far demonstrative pronoun (often translated as “that”). Once again, you do not need to memorize these forms because they follow the first and second noun patterns.


Once you feel like you know these forms well enough, practice parsing them by using this quizlet.


Examples from the Greek NT
καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν φόβον μέγαν καὶ ἔλεγον πρὸς ἀλλήλους· τίς ἄρα οὗτός ἐστιν ὅτι καὶ ὁ ἄνεμος καὶ ἡ θάλασσα ὑπακούει αὐτῷ; (NA28)

And they were terrified with a great terror and were saying to one another: “So then, who is this man that even the wind and the sea obey him?

—Mark 4:41
Notice that I translated the pronoun in a way that reflects its gender (masculine) and number (singular). When we translate pronouns, it is good to communicate the gender and number when it is possible to do so. By looking at the diagram, you can see how the demonstrative pronoun in this sentence (οὗτός) stands in for a noun.

Θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακεν πώποτε· μονογενὴς θεὸς ὁ ὢν εἰς τὸν κόλπον τοῦ πατρὸς ἐκεῖνος ἐξηγήσατο (NA28)

Nobody has ever seen God. The Only Begotten God, who was with the Father, that one made him known.

—John 1:18

In both of these examples, the demonstrative pronouns stand in for nouns. Demonstratives can also function as adjectives, but we will look at that in a future lesson.

Personal Pronouns
Like the other pronouns, personal pronouns stand in for nouns. There are three sets of personal pronouns: 1st (ἐγώ/ “I”), 2nd (σύ/ “you”), and 3rd (αὐτός/ “he/she/it”). The 1st and 2nd person pronouns have number but not gender. The 3rd person pronoun has both number and gender. 
You should memorize the first and second personal pronouns. You do not need to memorize the third person pronoun because it follows the first and second noun patterns.



Once you feel like you know these forms well enough, test yourself by using this quizlet.