Fall 2007/Pasadena
LG512
Winn
LG512: BEGINNING GREEK. Adam Winn.
DESCRIPTION: This course is designed to give the student a basic knowledge of
the essential grammar of New Testament Greek as well as an introduction to
morphology, syntax and other matters of intermediate grammar. It is an
intensive course, the equivalent of three courses meeting in one quarter.
LEARNING OUTCOMES: At the end of this course, a student should be able to do
the following: (1) to read aloud in the language; (2) to identify the varied
nouns and pronouns of the language; (3) to parse the "regular" verb forms in
the language; (4) to recognize the "irregular" verb forms in the language; (5)
to understand enough grammar to read a basic narrative text in the language;
(6) to identify subjects, adjectives, direct and indirect objects,
prepositional phrases, and adverbs, when reading a text; (7) to use a lexicon
to amplify his/her understanding of words and to find words he/she does not
know; (8) to use a reference grammar to investigate grammatical and syntactical
issues that he/she does not understand; (9) to understand the challenges,
purposes, and value of learning this language.
RELEVANCE FOR MINISTRY: One of the elements in interpreting the text of the New
Testament is understanding the language in which it was written. Students who
successfully complete this course should, with the use of various resources, be
able to consult the Greek text as part of the exegetical (and ministerial!)
task, and should be able to critically evaluate the theological and exegetical
positions which purport to be based on some feature of the Greek text.
COURSE FORMAT: The course meets three times each week for four-hour
sessions.
REQUIRED READING:
- Aland, K., et al. The Greek New Testament. 4th rev. ed.
United Bible Societies, 1993.
Or Nestle, E., and K. Aland. Novum
Testamentum Graece. 27th ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelstiftung, 1993.
- Danker, F. W. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other
Early Christian Literature. 3d ed. Based on Walter
Bauer. . . . Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000
[BDAG].
- Mounce, William D. Basics of Biblical Greek: Grammar. Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1993.
_________. Basics of Biblical Greek: Workbook.
Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1993.
- See the Biblical Division bibliography "Linguistic and Exegetical Books Required in the Master of Divinity Program" available in the SOT Academic
Advising office.
RECOMMENDED READING:
- Black, D. A. It's Still Greek to Me: An Easy-to-Understand Guide
to Intermediate Greek. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998.
- Newman, Barclay M. A Concise Greek-English Dictionary of the New
Testament. United Bible Societies, 1993. (Get this if the GNT above does
not include dictionary.)
- Van Voorst, Robert E. Building Your New Testament Greek Vocabulary.
2nd ed. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1999.
- Wallace, Daniel B. Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax
of the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996.
ASSIGNMENTS: Each student is expected to be present at all class sessions with
assigned lessons fully prepared. The course grade is based on class
participation, daily quizzes and homework, as well as periodic tests and one
final exam.
PREREQUISITES: Good standing. No audits.
RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Meets the MDiv core requirement in Greek (GRK).
FINAL EXAMINATION: Yes.
This ECD is a reliable guide to the course design but is subject to modification. (7/07)