A Grammatical Analysis of the Greek New Testament: Unabridged

This book provides a verse by verse analysis of the Greek NT. Greek words are printed in Greek letters throughout, flowed by a short (one word) definition and partial parsings. There is also coding to Biblical Greek's . So if you get one book, it would be best to get the other as well.

The information is helpful but hard to follow. There is just too much information packed in, with lots of abbreviations and notations that have to be remembered. And as with Zerwick's "Biblical Greek," this is an advanced exposition. Beginners will get lost in it. A similar but easier to follow resource is Fritz Rienecker' s New Linguistic and Exegetical Key to the Greek New Testament, The.

I only rarely referred to either of these volumes as I was working on my Analytical-Literal Translation of the New Testament: Third Edition (ALT). So I cannot really recommend either. I just think there are easier to use resources available. I present a full list of all of the resources I consulted in working on the ALT in my Companion Volume to the Analytical-Literal Translation: Third Edition, with asterisks indicating the ones I found most helpful.

It should also be noted that Zerwick's theological orientation is Catholic. This can be seen in his attempt to get around the clear meaning of Matt 1:25, where it says of Joseph and Mary, "and he was not knowing her [fig., was not having sexual relations with her] until she gave birth to her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus" (ALT3). The natural reading of this is that after Jesus was born, Joseph and Mary began having sex like any normal married couple. This is then confirmed by Jesus having four brothers and at least two sisters (Matt 13:55,56).

But Zerwick comments, "... until (the time when) but not excluding the continuation of action beyond the time indicated; author only concerned here to indicate virginal conception."

Notice that Zerwick does not give any examples of when "until" (Gr., eos ou) does not exclude the continuation of the action. But compare the other places where this Greek phrase occurs in Matthew: 13:33; 14:22; 17:9; 18:30,34; 26:36. In all six of these verses this phrase does exclude the continuation of the action after the time period indicated.

To be clear, this means the phrase indicates a change in behavior after the time period indicated. So in Matt 13:33, the woman mixes yeast into flour; but once it is thoroughly mixed, she stops mixing. Here, Joseph was not having sex with Mary; but once Jesus was born, he began having sex with her.

The meaning of the Greek phraseology is clear, but Zerwick is allowing his pre-conceived theology, not Greek word studies, to color his comments. This is yet another reason I cannot recommend this book.

This is simply a must for the student of intermediate Greek (i.e., one who has just completed his introductory grammar). Here's why I say this:

This is the ideal tool for learning NT Greek through induction. I love studying grammar deductively, that is, studying the principles and rules (a priori), but the average person will find that deductive study isn't quite enough. Even with examples, the rules tend to get lost in the heap. One needs also to gather up particular instances of the manifestations of those Greek rules of grammar as he goes in a real text (a posteriori) in order for the principles and rules to really take root (IMHO). Here's where 'the Jesuit' comes in.

As you read the NT you will encounter--invariably--forms you can't parse and words whose definitions you have not yet memorized. While having a lexicon handy, and consulting it liberally, also consult Zerwick's Grammatical Analysis and you will identify the word and its parsing. He will then possibly refer you to a section from his companion book (which you must get) called Biblical Greek (ISBN 8876535543), and it will tell you what the deductive intermediate grammars have also told you, but quickly and succinctly. By studying an intermediate grammar plus this book you wind up with a double whammy of inductive/deductive study!!

I have, in fact, only one criticism of this publication: it is not physically user-friendly. One cannot open it up and lay it out next to one's Greek NT. It's kind of laborious, putting down, picking up, putting down, picking up, when you're basically just doing the same one or two pages of text in a sitting. And it is just a little guy. When you get it you'll be like, "Oh, it's dinky!" It's real thick, though--like a little red brick of goodness. It's covered in thin red plastic for a cover, which may reduce its longevity if you're not careful. But, whatever. Get it!

Yes, in case you're asking yourself, this and the "Biblical Greek" mentioned above are indeed two of those things that are 'must-buys' for the student of Greek, imo. These, plus the BDAG lexicon (3d ed.) and Wallace's "Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics" are the bare minimum for the Greek student. Everything else is just gravy. But what do I know.

Note- Don't fret (if you are so inclined) about the fact that this is issued by Rome and that the scholar is a Jesuit. As a Roman Catholic turned Calvinist, I can tell you that it is my impression that Zerwick goes where he believes the Greek points, period. He's a true scholar, rip.

A very helpful and handy companion to the Greek New Testament. Not only it locates the conjugations of every verb in the Greek NT, it also serves as a grammatical commentary where applicable. You must own one if you are serious in studying the New Testament.

This book is a great tool for intermediate Greek students. It parses and defines unfamiliar forms and words and provides helpful syntactical comments.

Every so often I would go through several NT books in Greek as a discipline and this volume will be my constant guide. If you don't have it get it. It is worth the buy.