BBG Chapter 24 — Aorist and Future Passive Indicative¶
Files¶
Exercises¶
| Exercise | Description |
|---|---|
| exercises/ch24-aorist-future-passive-parsing/ | Aorist/Future Passive Parsing Drill — 20 forms to parse |
| exercises/ch24-passive-formation/ | Aorist vs. Future Passive Formation Drill — 20 items: classify θη-Aorist vs. θησ-Future, parse, translate |
Flashcards¶
| File | Description |
|---|---|
| ch24-vocab-deck.md | Human-readable card list — 8 vocabulary words |
| ch24-vocab-deck.txt | Anki import file (File → Import) |
| ch24-vocab-deck-fd.txt | Flashcards Deluxe import file |
Notebooks¶
| Notebook | What it shows |
|---|---|
| GNT Verb Morphology | Passive voice counts by tense; divine passive context |
| Genre Comparison | Passive voice distribution by tense and NT genre |
Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar, Mounce, 4th Edition Data: MACULA Greek TAGNT (~6,500 aorist passive + ~1,200 future passive tokens NT-wide)
1. The Passive Voice — Overview¶
Up through Ch23, students have worked with active and middle voices. The passive voice indicates that the subject receives the action of the verb. Greek introduces the passive system in stages:
- Present and Imperfect Passive: Identical to middle in form (introduced with present/imperfect paradigms)
- Aorist Passive: Introduced here — uses a new 6th principal part
- Future Passive: Built on the aorist passive stem
2. The Sixth Principal Part¶
The aorist passive uses the sixth principal part, which is completely independent of the other parts. For λύω:
| Principal Part | Form | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | λύω | Present active |
| 2nd | λύσω | Future active |
| 3rd | ἔλυσα | Aorist active |
| 4th | λέλυκα | Perfect active |
| 5th | λέλυμαι | Perfect middle/passive |
| 6th | ἐλύθην | Aorist passive |
3. The θη Tense Formant¶
The most distinctive marker of the aorist passive is the θη tense formant:
Augment + Aorist passive stem + θη + active secondary endings
The Surprise: Greek adds active secondary endings (not middle/passive endings) to the θη passive formant. This is a historical anomaly — the aorist passive endings are the same as the aorist active secondary endings. There is no logical reason; it must simply be memorized.
3.1 The θη vs. η Variation¶
Some verbs use η instead of θη as the passive formant (the θ is omitted). This is common with verbs whose stems end in certain consonants:
| Verb | Aorist Passive | Formant |
|---|---|---|
| λύω | ἐλύθην | θη (regular) |
| γράφω | ἐγράφην | η (θ assimilated) |
| στρέφω | ἐστράφην | η |
| βάλλω | ἐβλήθην | θη (with vowel change) |
| λέγω | ἐλέχθην / ἐρρήθην | θη (suppletive) |
4. Full Paradigm — Aorist Passive Indicative (λύω)¶
| Person/Number | Aorist Passive | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1sg | ἐλύθην | I was loosed |
| 2sg | ἐλύθης | You were loosed |
| 3sg | ἐλύθη | He/she/it was loosed |
| 1pl | ἐλύθημεν | We were loosed |
| 2pl | ἐλύθητε | You (pl) were loosed |
| 3pl | ἐλύθησαν | They were loosed |
Key Diagnostic: The combination of augment + θη + active secondary endings is unmistakable. The θη sequence in a past-tense form = aorist passive.
5. Aorist Passive Endings (Compared to Active)¶
| Person/Number | Aorist Passive | Aorist Active (1st) | Secondary Active |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | -θην | -σα | -ν |
| 2sg | -θης | -σας | -ς |
| 3sg | -θη | -σε(ν) | — |
| 1pl | -θημεν | -σαμεν | -μεν |
| 2pl | -θητε | -σατε | -τε |
| 3pl | -θησαν | -σαν | -ν |
6. The Future Passive¶
The future passive is formed from the aorist passive stem (6th principal part), not the present stem:
Aorist passive stem (without augment) + θησ + primary middle/passive endings
| Step | Form | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Aorist passive | ἐλύθην | 6th PP |
| Remove augment | λυθ- | Aorist passive stem |
| + θησ + endings | λυθήσομαι | Future passive 1sg |
6.1 Future Passive Paradigm (λύω)¶
| Person/Number | Future Passive | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1sg | λυθήσομαι | I will be loosed |
| 2sg | λυθήσῃ | You will be loosed |
| 3sg | λυθήσεται | He/she/it will be loosed |
| 1pl | λυθησόμεθα | We will be loosed |
| 2pl | λυθήσεσθε | You (pl) will be loosed |
| 3pl | λυθήσονται | They will be loosed |
Key Diagnostic: θησ + primary middle/passive endings = future passive. Compare: λύσ + middle endings = future middle.
7. Deponents in the Aorist Passive¶
Some verbs that are deponent in the present and future also use the aorist passive form with active meaning:
| Verb | Aorist "Passive" Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ἀποκρίνομαι | ἀπεκρίθην | "I answered" (active sense) |
| πορεύομαι | ἐπορεύθην | "I went/traveled" (active sense) |
| ἔρχομαι | (uses ἦλθον, 2nd aor.) | — |
| δέχομαι | ἐδεχόμην (impf.) / ἐδεξάμην (1st aor. mid.) | — |
Note: When a deponent verb uses a θη form, it should be translated with active (or intransitive) force, not passive. Context and lexicon notation are essential.
8. The Divine Passive (Passivum Divinum)¶
One of the most theologically significant features of GNT Greek is the divine passive — using a passive verb to refer to God's action without naming God explicitly (avoiding the divine name in accordance with Jewish practice):
| Reference | Greek | Translation | Implied Agent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matt 5:4 | παρακληθήσονται | "they will be comforted" | by God |
| Matt 5:6 | χορτασθήσονται | "they will be filled/satisfied" | by God |
| Matt 5:7 | ἐλεηθήσονται | "they will receive mercy" | from God |
| Luke 6:21 | χορτασθήσεσθε | "you will be satisfied" | by God |
| Rom 8:30 | ἐκλήθησαν … ἐδικαιώθησαν … ἐδοξάσθησαν | "called … justified … glorified" | by God |
Note: Recognizing the divine passive is one of the most exegetically valuable skills in NT Greek study. Whenever you see an aorist or future passive in a theologically charged context with no agent specified, ask: Is God the implied agent?
9. Common Aorist Passive Forms in the GNT¶
| Verb | Aorist Passive | Frequency | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| βαπτίζω | ἐβαπτίσθην | ~75 | was baptized |
| σῴζω | ἐσώθην | ~75 | was saved |
| γράφω | ἐγράφη(ν) | ~270 (γέγραπται perf.) | was written |
| λέγω | ἐρρέθη / ἐλέχθη | ~40 | was said |
| ἀκούω | ἠκούσθην | ~10 | was heard |
| ἐγείρω | ἠγέρθην | ~70 | was raised |
| πέμπω | ἐπέμφθην | ~15 | was sent |
| ἀποκτείνω | ἀπεκτάνθην | ~15 | was killed |