This collection brings together into one volume papers first delivered in the Section on Biblical Greek Language and Linguistics at the Society of Biblical Literature annual meetings in 1992 and 1993. Part I, on discourse analysis, includes an introductory survey of the field, followed by three major papers and two responses. Each author uses his particular model of discourse analysis to analyse the book of Philippians, paying particular attention to the question of unity. Part 2, on other topics in biblical Greek, includes a probing introduction on the nature of language and five papers on a range of other areas of study.

In "Discourse Grammar of the Greek New Testament," Steve Runge introduces a function-based approach to language, exploring New Testament Greek grammatical conventions based upon the discourse functions they accomplish. Runge's approach has less to do with the specifics of language and more to do with how humans are wired to process it. The approach is cross-linguistic. Runge looks at how all languages operate before he focuses on Greek. He examines linguistics in general to simplify the analytical process and explain how and why we communicate as we do, leading to a more accurate description of the Greek text. The approach is also function-based--meaning that Runge gives primary attention to describing the tasks accomplished by each discourse feature. This volume does not reinvent previous grammars or supplant previous work on the New Testament. Instead, Runge reviews, clarifies, and provides a unified description of each of the discourse features. That makes it useful for beginning Greek students, pastors, and teachers, as well as for advanced New Testament scholars looking for a volume which synthesizes the varied sub-disciplines of New Testament discourse analysis. With examples taken straight from the "Lexham Discourse Greek New Testament," this volume helps readers discover a great deal about what the text of the New Testament communicates, filling a large gap in New Testament scholarship. Each of the 18 chapters contains: - An introduction and overview for each discourse function - A conventional explanation of that function in easy-to-understand language - A complete discourse explanation - Numerous examples of how that particular discourse function is used in the Greek New Testament - A section of application - Dozens of examples, taken straight from the Lexham Discourse Greek New Testament - Careful research, with citation to both Greek grammars and linguistic literature - Suggested reading list for continued learning and additional research

For the first time, one volume includes a discourse analysis of every writing in the New Testament. Discourse analysis of written texts involves examining units of language higher than the sentence and considering how the author used those units of language to accomplish communicative purposes. But discourse analysis is not a clearly defined method. Rather, it is a linguistic perspective that provides numerous ways to approach and better comprehend a discourse. For this reason, most analysts bring their own unique research questions about a discourse and, therefore, their own methodology. Each author in this volume explains their methodology, presents a macrostructure of the discourse, and then analyzes microstructures and other aspects of the discourse that support the proposed macrostructure. The reader is able to see each methodology on display, each with their emphases, strengths, and potential weaknesses. Each chapter also provides the reader with a useful analysis of the discourse as a holistic unit, which will aid students, pastors, and scholars in studying entire New Testament writings to see how each part contributes to the whole.

This work offers students the most current discussion of the major issues in Greek and linguistics by leading authorities in the field. Featuring an all-star lineup of New Testament Greek scholars--including Stanley Porter, Constantine Campbell, Stephen Levinsohn, Jonathan Pennington, and Robert Plummer--it examines the latest advancements in New Testament Greek linguistics, making it an ideal intermediate supplemental Greek textbook. Chapters cover key topics such as verbal aspect, the perfect tense, deponency and the middle voice, discourse analysis, word order, and pronunciation.

This volume examines and outlines a Systemic Functional Linguistic (SFL) model of discourse analysis and its relationship to New Testament Greek. The book reflects upon how SFL has grown as a field since it was first introduced to New Testament Greek studies by Stanley E. Porter in the 1980s. Porter and Matthew Brook O'Donnell first introduce basic concepts regarding discourse analysis and the major approaches towards it within New Testament studies. They then provide a detailed exploration of discourse analysis in terms of the textual metafunction, beginning with an introduction to the architecture of language within SFL, before exploring several individual elements within it. By focusing upon these individual components – in particular, theme and information structure, markedness and prominence, and coherence and cohesive harmony – Porter and O'Donnell introduce and exemplify the major resources of the textual metafunction.

This collection of essays brings together into one volume papers from the Society of Biblical Literature meetings in 1990 and 1991. This volume divides itself neatly into two sections. Part I, Verbal Aspect, includes two major presentations and responses on the topic of Greek verbal aspect. The subject is an important one, and one that promises not to go away in the next several years. If the proponents of the theory are correct, the semantic category of verbal aspect will prove vital to future analysis and exegesis of Greek, including that of the New Testament. Part II includes four substantial papers on various topics in Greek grammar and linguistics, including work on discourse analysis, construction grammar, the phrase as a constituent in Greek grammatical description and the possible Semitic origins of the finite verb with cognate participle. These interesting and varied essays are designed both to illustrate the current state of discussion of New Testament Greek grammar and to provide impetus for future research and publication.

The volume contains contributions by many of the major discourse analysts of the New Testament, including E.A. Nida, W. Schenk, J.P. Louw and J. Callow. Some of these essays deal with methodology, raising necessary questions about what it means to analyse discourse. Others demonstrate an already committed approach by reading specific texts. A 'state-of-the-art' volume for all scholars interested in this increasingly important area of New Testament research.