| Deponency has been treated with inconsistency in studies of Greek grammar with adverse implications to exegesis of the NT. In recent years, some grammarians have denied that deponency is a valid expression of voice. This work serves to contribute to a better understanding of this phenomenon in the Koine period so that the NT can be interpreted with accuracy. The body proceeds with four emphases: historical inquiry, deponency's validation and refined definition, critique of the dissenting view, and application of the method for determining deponency to exegetically significant passages.;The historical treatment makes four contributions to the whole. First, it documents the ways deponency has been treated diachronically. Second, the inconsistency of usage of the term is observed. Third, the investigation of the ancient period demonstrates that deponency is a phenomenon whose origins are archaic. Finally, this treatment presents the views of those who hold to the dissenting perspective.;Deponency is validated by analyzing it in Greek against its Latin counterpart. The salient features of deponency in Latin were tested in Koine Greek. Ample Greek texts were evaluated in order to substantiate the falsifiable hypothesis: the Greek middle and passive voices in the Koine period include deponency as a legitimate expression of voice. A refined definition of deponency is offered. Based on this definition, application is made to verbs in the NT with the result that a list of NT deponent verbs is provided in Appendix E: New Testament Deponent and Semi-Deponent Verbs.;A critique of the dissenting view is an evaluation of the perspective that denies the validity of deponency in Greek. In particular, the work of four scholars is considered: Neva F. Miller, Bernard A. Taylor, Rutger J. Allan, and Jonathan T. Pennington. The historical inquiry along with the validation and redefinition of deponency form the basis for the critique.;Five potentially deponent verbs in four passages are investigated to demonstrate the significance of recognizing the phenomenon, the method of determining deponency, and the accurate resulting interpretations: por3uq3&d12; nt3v and 3 ,n3t3 ila&d12;m hn in Matt 28:19--20, h ,g3&d12; rqh in Mark 2:12, 3 ,x3l 3&d12;xato in Eph 1:4, and pau&d12;s ontai in 1 Cor 13:8. |
