Courses

This course is the first half of a yearlong introduction to the Greek language of the New Testament (NT). This course sets students on a journey of learning Greek, which will greatly enhance their ability to study the NT. It follows a usage-based pedagogical approach to teaching elementary Greek, in which grammar and vocabulary are introduced according to frequency of usage, with the most frequent items introduced first. As a result, students are reinforced in learning the grammatical elements that appear most frequently in the NT. Students will learn the Greek alphabet, pronunciation, vocabulary, morphology (words and their forms), syntax (how words fit together to make coherent sentences) of the language of the NT. Emphasis will be on acquiring a broad Greek vocabulary in this term. At the end of the introduction courses (1B03 and 1C03), students should be able to read a substantial portion of the New Testament in its original language with the help of a lexicon. This course covers the first fourteen chapters of the textbook.

Knowing…

• To become familiar with the basic morphology and vocabulary of the Greek New Testament (GNT).
• To know how to translate simple Greek sentences into contemporary English.
• To know the basic concepts needed for study of the GNT and exegetical methods that aid in the interpretation of individual passages.

Being…

• To appreciate the value of being able to exegete the text in its original language for use in ministry.
• To find pleasure in working with Greek in biblical studies.
• To allow the GNT to motivate, form, and transform faith and a Christian way of life.

Doing…

• To demonstrate proficiency in incrementally building one’s knowledge of biblical Greek so that it becomes an effective and lasting tool for Christian ministry.
• To be able to:

1. Recognize Greek letters, punctuation and accents.
2. Pronounce words written in Greek letters.
3. Parse and translate nouns, adjectives and pronouns.
4. Parse and translate various forms of the finite verb and some infinitives, participles and subjunctives.
5. Translate selected Greek passages into English.
6. Use a standard NT Greek lexicon.
7. Correctly identify the most common vocabulary items in the NT.