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Here is a beginning process for reading and translating by word group.
It's a basic process, a starting point; it is a process, not the process.
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by word group
1. divide the verse into word groups
2. translate word groups
3. consider what word groups describe
4. translate the verse
5. compare with close-to-the-text versions
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1. divide the verse into word groups
1 Thes 1:9 αὐ.τοὶ γὰρ πε.ρὶ ἡ.μῶν ἀ.παγ.γέλ.λου.σιν ὁ.ποί.αν εἴ.σο.δον ἔσ.χο.μεν πρὸς ὑ.μᾶς, καὶ πῶς ἐ.πε.στρέψ.α.τε πρὸς τὸν θε.ὸν ἀ.πὸ τῶν εἰ.δώ.λων δου.λεύ.ειν θε.ῷ ζῶν.τι καὶ ἀ.λη.θι.νῷ,
Here is a manual process for dividing a verse into word groups:
1a. Put each verb and participle at the start of a new line.
αὐ.τοὶ γὰρ πε.ρὶ ἡ.μῶν
ἀ.παγ.γέλ.λου.σιν ὁ.ποί.αν εἴ.σο.δον
ἔσ.χο.μεν
πρὸς ὑ.μᾶς, καὶ πῶς
ἐ.πε.στρέψ.α.τε
πρὸς τὸν θε.ὸν ἀ.πὸ τῶν εἰ.δώ.λων
δου.λεύ.ειν
θε.ῷ
ζῶν.τι
καὶ ἀ.λη.θι.νῷ,
1b. Put each conjunction at the start of a new line.
- Special case: if a conjunction is the second or third word in a clause, start a new line after the conjunction, instead.
αὐ.τοὶ γὰρ
πε.ρὶ ἡ.μῶν
ἀ.παγ.γέλ.λου.σιν ὁ.ποί.αν εἴ.σο.δον
ἔσ.χο.μεν
πρὸς ὑ.μᾶς,
καὶ πῶς
ἐ.πε.στρέψ.α.τε
πρὸς τὸν θε.ὸν ἀ.πὸ τῶν εἰ.δώ.λων
δου.λεύ.ειν
θε.ῷ
ζῶν.τι
καὶ ἀ.λη.θι.νῷ,
1c. Put each prepositional phrase on a separate line.
- The preposition + its case-based word group + descriptive words in genitive (if any).
αὐ.τοὶ γὰρ
πε.ρὶ ἡ.μῶν
ἀ.παγ.γέλ.λου.σιν ὁ.ποί.αν εἴ.σο.δον
ἔσ.χο.μεν
πρὸς ὑ.μᾶς,
καὶ πῶς
ἐ.πε.στρέψ.α.τε
πρὸς τὸν θε.ὸν
ἀ.πὸ τῶν εἰ.δώ.λων
δου.λεύ.ειν
θε.ῷ
ζῶν.τι
καὶ ἀ.λη.θι.νῷ,
1d. For every remaining genitive, dative, or accusative word group, not immediately following a verb or participle: put it on a new line.
no change, in this example
2. translate word groups
αὐ.τοὶ γὰρ -- for they
πε.ρὶ ἡ.μῶν -- about us
ἀ.παγ.γέλ.λου.σιν ὁ.ποί.αν εἴ.σο.δον -- report what kind of entry
ἔσ.χο.μεν -- we had
πρὸς ὑ.μᾶς, -- with you
καὶ πῶς ἐ.πε.στρέψ.α.τε -- and how you turned
πρὸς τὸν θε.ὸν -- to God
ἀ.πὸ τῶν εἰ.δώ.λων -- from idols
δου.λεύ.ειν - to serve
θε.ῷ ζῶν.τι -- God, the living one
καὶ ἀ.λη.θι.νῷ, -- and true one
3. consider what word groups describe
Consider each dependent clause and how it acts within the overall sentence.
A dependent clause is a word group that cannot stand on its own; it cannot form a complete sentence.
Each dependent clause is a group of words acting together as if it were:
- An adjective within the overall sentence: which one, what kind, how much
- An adverb within the overall sentence: when, where, how, why
- Act as a noun within the overall sentence
Each dependent clause will be marked out by:
(a) A relative pronoun
1 Thes 1:10 ...ὃν ἤ.γει.ρεν ἐκ τῶν νεκ.ρῶν...
ὃν
whom
A relative pronoun and an article look somewhat similar. Yet a relative pronoun is easy to spot:
- No initial τ
- A rough breathing mark
- An accent mark
In addition, at GreekBibleStudy.org: pronouns are blue; articles are black.
(b) A participle
1 Thes 1:2 ...μνεί.αν ποι.ού.με.νοι ἐ.πὶ τῶν προ.σευ.χῶν ἡ.μῶν,
ποι.ού.με.νοι
making
(c) A subordinating (that is to say, dependent-making) word--conjunction, particle, adverb
Here are the three most frequent subordinating words:
ὅ.τι -- that, since, because (occurs 1296 times)
- Begins a reason clause
ἳνα -- in order that, that (occurs 663 times)
- Nearly always occurs with the subjunctive mood
- Begins a purpose clause
ὡς -- as, like, when, that, how, about (occurs 504 times)
Here is an alphabetical list of other subordinating words,
occuring 50 or more times each:
ἐάν -- if, when (with the subjunctive mood: conditional clause)
εἰ -- if
ἕως -- until, as far as
καθώς -- as, even as
ὃπως -- how, that, in order that
ὅπου -- where
ὅτε -- when
ὥστε -- therefore, so that
Here are the subordinating words
that occur less than 50 times each:
ἄχρι(ς) -- until, as far as
ἐπεί -- because, since
ἐπειδή -- since, because
4. translate the verse
1 Thes 1:3 For they themselves report about us what kind of entry we had with you and how you turned to God from idols--to serve [as a bond servant] God--the living one and true one.
5. compare with close-to-the-text versions
After translating a verse, it's often a good idea to compare your result with a close-to-the-text version.
For example, you might consider both the NASB (included at GreekBibleStudy.org) and the ESV (coming soon to GreekBibleStudy.org).
You've prepared a translation as an act of reverence and love, an act of worship, asking God to teach you His Word.
Now you can check what others have done.
Many times, the translation will be similar.
Yet sometimes, you may discover something different, comparing your work with the others. This is often another great place for learning. Here's how. In places where your translation is different, review your work; consider word meanings; consider word groups; consider dependent clauses; consider context (chapter; book; other passages related to the same subject). Very often, this review will lead to even more learning, about what the Scriptures are saying, as well as how to more effectively translate the Scriptures.
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additional considerations
- Love God first. Pray. Be still. Ask God to teach you.
- Fabric. Consider the fabric of the Scriptures: consider the immediate context; consider the book you are reading; and consider related passages in other books.
- A book at a time. Honor the reality that God gave His written Word a book at a time. When considering less than a whole book, keep in mind the context of the book. When considering a word (or word group), consider the other passages in which that word (or word group) occur--including within that same book.
- Exactly what the Scriptures say. Seek to express exactly what the Scriptures say--not more (by adding force to make a teaching point; or by adding a more specific term when something more general is being said) and not less (for example, by weakening what is being said, to appeal to a broader audience).
- Effective word studies. Adopt a balanced approach to word studies (and word-group studies).
1st: Use one or more lexicons, to gain a basic understanding. At the GreekBibleStudy site: read the short definition (based solely upon NT Greek usage), then read the long definition (based upon NT Greek as well as secular literature). Each lexicon presents the definitions of a word in a numbered list: the most significant definition goes first; the least important definition goes last. Read the definitions in order. Sometimes the verse you are considering is actually referenced in one of the definitions, making it easier for you to confirm that you have the definition you are looking for.
2nd: View a list of verses in which the word occurs. Read the verses, looking for common phrases or themes.
3rd: Consider the contexts in which the word occurs--and learn by observing "what's the same, what's different" across those contexts.
- One author, many writers. Be mindful that the Scriptures have one author, God, and many writers. Writers wrote down what God instructed them to write, using their own vocabulary. So word studies on words within books written by the same writer, such as the Pauline epistles, might be especially fruitful.
- Don't guess. Don't rush. Think. Consider. Let it sit. Be willing to put a difficult subject away for 6 months or more. Pray.
- Be an effectual doer. "But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does." James 1:25 [NASB]
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