The Verbal Aspect Integral to the Perfect and Pluperfect Tense-Forms in the Pauline Corpus

“James Sedlacek’s analysis of verbal aspect with respect to perfects in the Pauline writings brings to the table a multidisciplinary approach that invokes corpus linguistics in the pursuit of both semantic and pragmatic angles. He interacts with major published works on aspect, arguing that (plu-)perfect forms point to an imperfective state, a perfect action, or both, while noting that context-relevance cannot be discerned merely from the use of the form itself. Readers will appreciate the author’s care in documenting his interactions via substantive citations of current scholarship as well as charting of the Pauline, classical and patristic Greek data that go to the argument. The discussion is engaging and quite informative in its pursuit of advancing our understanding of perfect ‘tense’ forms.” —Jonathan M. Watt, Professor of Biblical Studies, Chair of Department of Bible Christian Ministries and Philosophy, Geneva College, Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania “James Sedlacek’s research offers a fresh way forward in understanding the Greek synthetic perfect tense-form based on his thorough investigation of both recent and older scholarship on the topic, on his own comprehensive analysis of the Pauline Corpus, and comparison between Paul and a diachronic Greek epistolary and moral literature corpus from 400 BCE to 400 CE. His work is both systematic and clear, complex and balanced, interdisciplinary and most innovative in arguing for the presence of both perfective and imperfective aspects in the Greek synthetic perfect.” —Revd. Svetlana Khobnya, Senior Lecturer in Biblical Studies and Languages, Nazarene Theological College, Manchester “Sedlacek provides a coherent, well theorised, and carefully argued case for a complex aspect for the synthetic Greek perfect tense-form in the Pauline corpus and comparative sources from ca 400 BCE to 400 CE. His critique of previous scholarship on the topic identifies areas of misunderstanding in ways that will unsettle serious students of Hellenistic Greek and arouse their interest in Sedlacek’s own constructive proposals.” —Todd Klutz, Senior Lecturer in Biblical Studies and Early Christian Literature, University of Manchester