Notes On Koine Greek: Part 65

© 2010, T. Michael W. Halcomb | www.MichaelHalcomb.com

1. More on the Subjunctive: Having reviewed the general function of the Subjunctive
as well as its various tenses, here we shall look at the 7 Uses of the Subjunctive and say a few words
about Thematic and Athematic morphemes.
2. Prepping for Uses: Following the work of Dave Black, I note here that the 7 Uses of
the Subjunctive come in two sets: Set 1) 4 uses involve Main Clauses, and Set 2) 3 uses involve
Subordinate Clauses. Before delving into these uses, perhaps a debreifing on Main & Subordinate
Clauses is in order. We will remember from primary school what a Main Clause is: A sentence,
consisting of a Subject and a Predicate that offers a complete thought. We will also recall that a
“Subject” is basically what the sentence is about, what it is focusing on. Often times, the Subject will
can be identified by placing a Pronomial Tag Question (e.g. ”, didn’t pronoun?) at the end of the
sentence.
Here’s an example of a sentence which is then followed by the same sentence and has an added
Pronomial Tag Question which is underlined: “The man ran quickly to his car.” “The man ran quickly
to his car, didn’t he?” This helps us identify the subject of the sentence, which is “the man”. So, if the
Subject tells us what the sentence is about, then the Predicate tells us what the Subject is doing or
being. The Predicate often only consists of a verb but can also contain more information. Here is the
above example once more: “The man ran quickly to his car.” Now, to locate the Predicate, first, find
the verb. Here, the verb is “ran”. The Predicate, expressing the rest of the thought, is “ran quickly to
his car” (note that “his car would be the “Object” in this sentence). Altogether, then, this setence we
have been looking at is considered a “Main Clause”.
To identify a Subordinate Clause, basically, the “left over stuff” of a sentence, is easy to do
once we have first identified the Main Clause. However, here are some other tips for identifying a
Subordinate Clause, of which there are mainly 3 types (Adjective Clauses, Adverbial Clauses, Noun
Clauses): Locate a conjunction, a relative pronoun or connecting thought and see if the clause can
stand on its own, if not, it may well be a Subordinate Clause. Building on the sentence above, here’s
an example of a Main Clause and a Subordinate Clause: “The man ran quickly to his car, so as not to
get wet.” We already know the Main Clause, so, let’s see if the sentence addition can be identified as a
Subordinate Clause. 1) Is there a conjunction or a connecting thought? Yes! It’s the word “so”,
which also acts as the connecting thought “so as”. Thus, the entire Subordinate Clause would be “so as
not to get wet”. Reading that, we know that it isn’t a complete thought or sentence and that therefore,
we have found our Subordainte Clause.
3. 7 Uses of the Subjunctive: Here is a table to help you familiarize yourself with the
7 uses. The ones in red denote uses with the Main Clause and yellow denotes uses with Subordinate
Clauses:

7 Uses of the Subjunctive

Horatory Used in 1st Person Plural exhorting others to action. English rendering is “let us”.
Prohibition Used w/Aorist Subjunctive. Hopes of forbidding an action; Greek word mh. often used.
Deliberative Used in questions Deliberating an action. Future tense often used for translation.
Emphatic Negation Used w/Aorist Subjunctive. strongly denies neg. future action; Greek ouv mh. often used.
Purpose Refers to purpose of Main Clause. Often uses i]na or o]pwj meaning “in order that”.
Indefinite Introduced by Relative Pron. Follows particle a;n and adds Indefiniteness.
Conditional Uses Particle evan, (if) in Protasis of Conditional sentence.