Πίστει πλείονα θυσίαν Ἄβελ παρὰ Κάϊν προσήνεγκε τῷ Θεῷ, δι’ ἧς ἐμαρτυρήθη εἶναι δίκαιος, μαρτυροῦντος ἐπὶ τοῖς δώροις αὐτοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ δι’ αὐτῆς ἀποθανὼν ἔτι λαλεῖται.
Word Breakdown
| Greek Word | Transliteration | Gloss | Grammatical Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Πίστει | pistei | by faith | Noun, Dative Singular Feminine |
| πλείονα | pleiona | more | Adjective, Accusative Singular Feminine (Comparative) |
| θυσίαν | thysian | sacrifice | Noun, Accusative Singular Feminine |
| Ἄβελ | Abel | Abel | Proper Noun, Nominative Singular Masculine |
| παρὰ | para | than | Preposition + Accusative (Comparative) |
| Κάϊν | Kain | Cain | Proper Noun, Accusative Singular Masculine |
| προσήνεγκε | prosēnenke | offered | Verb, Aorist Active Indicative, 3rd Person Singular |
| τῷ Θεῷ | tō Theō | to God | Article + Noun, Dative Singular Masculine |
| δι’ | di’ | through | Preposition (διὰ) + Genitive |
| ἧς | hēs | which | Relative Pronoun, Genitive Singular Feminine |
| ἐμαρτυρήθη | emartyrēthē | was testified | Verb, Aorist Passive Indicative, 3rd Person Singular |
| εἶναι | einai | to be | Verb, Present Infinitive |
| δίκαιος | dikaios | righteous | Adjective, Nominative Singular Masculine |
| μαρτυροῦντος | martyrountos | bearing witness | Participle, Present Active Genitive Singular Masculine |
| ἐπὶ τοῖς δώροις | epi tois dōrois | concerning the gifts | Preposition + Article + Noun, Dative Plural Neuter |
| αὐτοῦ | autou | his | Pronoun, Genitive Singular Masculine |
| τοῦ Θεοῦ | tou Theou | of God | Article + Noun, Genitive Singular Masculine |
| καὶ | kai | and | Conjunction |
| δι’ αὐτῆς | di’ autēs | through it | Preposition + Pronoun, Genitive Singular Feminine |
| ἀποθανὼν | apothanōn | having died | Participle, Aorist Active Nominative Singular Masculine |
| ἔτι | eti | still | Adverb |
| λαλεῖται | laleitai | is spoken (of) | Verb, Present Passive Indicative, 3rd Person Singular |
Syntactical Analysis
- Πίστει is a dative of means: “by faith”.
- Ἄβελ is the subject of the verb προσήνεγκε (“offered”).
- πλείονα θυσίαν is the object of the verb; the adjective πλείονα modifies θυσίαν.
- παρὰ Κάϊν expresses comparison: “more than Cain”.
- τῷ Θεῷ is the indirect object, showing to whom the offering was made.
- δι’ ἧς introduces a relative clause — “through which” — leading to the passive verb ἐμαρτυρήθη.
- εἶναι δίκαιος is the content of the testimony: “to be righteous”.
- μαρτυροῦντος ἐπὶ τοῖς δώροις is a genitive absolute construction, with God bearing witness concerning the gifts.
- δι’ αὐτῆς again refers back to “faith”.
- ἀποθανὼν is an aorist participle: “having died”.
- ἔτι λαλεῖται means “he still speaks” — or more precisely, “he is still being spoken of”.
Random Grammatical Highlight
Aorist Participles (ἀποθανὼν): The aorist participle often refers to an action completed prior to the main verb. Here, it describes Abel as “having died” — a completed action that precedes the passive verb λαλεῖται (“is spoken of”). This construction emphasizes that although Abel is no longer alive, his faithful testimony endures.
Random Etymological Highlight
δίκαιος comes from the root δίκη, meaning “justice” or “judgment.” In classical Greek, it refers to someone who is upright or conforms to custom or law. In biblical contexts, it means being righteous or just in the sight of God.
