DESCRIPTION: This course is the first part of a three-quarter series 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 beginning grammar. Students registering for this course should plan to continue with parts B and C of the same series, held in the Winter and Spring quarters respectively.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon completion of the three-quarter sequence the student should be able to (1) read the Greek NT aloud; (2) identify the meaning of frequently occurring words in the Greek NT; (3) identify and grammatically analyze various nouns, pronouns, adjectives, etc.; (4) identify and grammatically analyze various "regular" verb forms as well as "irregular" verb forms; (5) use a lexicon effectively to locate unfamiliar words and enhance the student's understanding of such words; (6) use a reference grammar effectively to locate unfamiliar grammatical and syntactical concepts and enhance the student's understanding of such concepts; (7) translate basic texts in the Greek NT; (8) understand the challenges, purposes, and value of learning NT Greek.

RELEVANCE FOR MINISTRY: One of the elements in interpreting the text of the New Testament is understanding the language of Koine Greek in which it was written. The student who successfully completes this course should, with the use of various resources, be able to consult the Greek text as part of the exegetical task, which in turn will enhance her personal devotion as well as her teaching and sermon preparation. The student will also be equipped to evaluate theological and exegetical positions that purport to be based on some feature of the Greek text.

COURSE FORMAT: The course meets twice each week for two-hour sessions.

REQUIRED READING:

Aland, K.; M. Black; C. Martini; B. Metzger; and A. Wikgren, eds. The Greek New Testament. 4th rev. ed. United Bible Societies, 1993.

Danker, F. W. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 3d ed. Based on Walter Bauer. . . . University of Chicago Press, 2000 [BDAG].

Mounce, William D. Basics of Biblical Greek: Grammar. Zondervan, 1993.

_________. Basics of Biblical Greek: Workbook. Zondervan, 1993.

See also the Biblical Division bibliography "Linguistic and Exegetical Books Required in the Master of Divinity Programs" available at http://www.fuller.edu/sot/ecds/084/Ling-Exeg-Biblio.html.

Black, D. A. It's Still Greek to Me: An Easy-to-Understand Guide to Intermediate Greek. Baker, 1998.

Metzger, Bruce M. Lexical Aids for Students of New Testament Greek. 3d ed. 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, R. E. Building Your New Testament Greek Vocabulary. 2d ed. Scholars Press, 1999.

Wallace, Daniel B. Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament. Zondervan, 1996.