Chapter XII. Particles
§260.
Prepositions
Prepositions are
simple (e.g. e-
‘to’) or compound (e.g.
e.`n-
‘upon’). They can be prefixed to
nouns or pronouns. When used before a noun the preposition shows the
Construct form (e.g. e.p.rwme
‘To the man’); but if used before a pronoun then the
Pronominal form is
employed (e.g.
ero.3
‘To him’). The pronoun is
represented by the suffix form
(§35).
The pronominal forms are etymologically interesting in that they preserve weak
consonants which have been lost in the Construct forms.
Simple
Prepositions:
§261. e-,
ero= (2 pl
erw.tn)
[old r] is
used for many purposes. The fundamental meanings are
‘to, for, from, than’.
(1) Dative:
‘to, for, according to, as
regards’; e.g. bwk
ng.touo.k
e.p.ouhhb
‘Go, show thyself to the priest’,
a.3.r.ou.no2
n.4ops
ero.3
‘He made a great feast for him’,
pet mmau
na.t.sabe.thutn
e.6wb
nim
‘That one will teach you as
regards everything’ (Jn
14:26).
(2) Purpose: ‘in order to’
(§251).
(3)
Direction: ‘towards’: e.g.
a.3.kot.3
e.m.maqhths
‘He turned himself towards the
disciples’, e.k.e.`oou.3
e.p.hi
‘Thou shalt send him to the
house’.
(4) In a
hostile sense: ‘against’; e.g.
a6ro.ou
nai r.mntre
ero.k
‘Why do these witness against
thee?’. Especially in the sense of debt or responsibility (cf
§236.2).
(5) ‘from’;
e.g. ma
tou`o.i e.na.`a`e
‘(Give) to save me from my
enemies!’
(6) Comparison
(§114).
(7) Indicating the object after certain verbs
(§331-2).
§262.
n-,
mmo=
(2 pl
mmw.tn)
[old m]. The
fundamental meanings are ‘in,
from, with’.
(1) Location ‘within,
from’;
e.g. m.pei.ma
‘In this place’,
e.lo
m.pei.ma
‘To withdraw from this place’.
(2) Temporal;
e.g.
m.pe.6oou
‘On the day’,
a.3.ei
n.t.eu4h
‘He came by night’.
(3) Instrument;
e.g.
a.3.re6t.is
n.ou.aas
‘He smote Jesus with a blow’,
nau n.nou.bal
‘To see with their eyes’.
(4) As a Genitive after the adverbs
ebol, sabol, n.sabol;
e.g.
mp.r.sa6w.k
ebol mmo.i
‘Do not remove thyself from me’,
mp.r.kwte
m.pek.6o
n.sabol
mmo.i
‘Do not turn thy
face away from me’.
(5) To introduce the Object, when the Construct or Pronominal form of the
verb is not used (§328);
e.g. 5.`w
mmo.s
‘I say it’,
3.moste
m.p.ouoein
‘He hates the light’.
(6) After the verbs
4wpe ‘To become’ and
o
‘To be’ (Qual of
eire
‘To make, do’),
to introduce the qualification of the subject; e.g.
pai enta.3.4wpe
m.p.rodoths
‘This one who became the traitor’,
5.o
n.6m6al
na.3
‘I am his servant
(lit. I am made
servant to him)’.
(7) With those verbs which take a Second Object, to introduce the
Second Object; e.g.
a.u.aa.3
n.rro
‘They made him king’.
§262a.
The Pronominal forms
mmo=
are used: (a) After the particle
mmin
or
mmine to lend emphasis to the notion of possession;
e.g.
te3.5me
mmin mmo.3
‘His own village’,
pe3.eoou
mmine mmo.3
‘His own glory’; (b)
Occasionally in a Genitival sense; e.g.
nim mmo.n
‘Who of us?’
§263.
n-, na=
(2 pl nh.tn)
[old n]
‘to,
for’ in dative sense;
e.g.
5.`w
mmo.s
na.k
‘I
say it to thee’,
pe`a.3
m.filippos
‘He says to
Philip’, a.3.5
na.u
m.mhte
n.mna
‘He gave to them
ten minae’.
§264.
mn-,
nmma=
‘with’:
(1) With the meaning ‘together
with’; e.g. a.u.ra4e
nmma.s
‘They
rejoiced with her’,
ou.kim
pe mn ou.anapausis
‘It is movement with
repose’ (Thomas
50; see §086).
(2) In lieu of the conjunction ‘and’;
e.g. petros
mn.iw6annhs mn.iakwbos
‘Peter and John and James’,
pek.eiwt
mn.anok
‘Thy father and I’,
p.5ou
n.oeik
mn.p.tbt
snau
‘The five loaves and the two
fishes’. Nouns thus linked together are usually, but not invariably,
defined (§268.5).
(3) After 4a`e
‘To speak’;
e.g.,
anok pe pet.4a`e
nmm.e
‘I Am he who speaks with
thee’.
§265.
oube-,
oubh=
‘opposite,
toward, against’; e.g. pet`ia6ap
oubhk ‘He who
receives judgment against thee’. Note the idioms:
5 oube- ‘To fight
against’, ouw6m oube- ‘To
contradict’, moute oube-
‘To call someone something’.
§266.
oute-,
outw=
‘between,
among’; e.g.
oute.pe.rpe
mn.pe.qusiasthrion
‘Between the temple and the
altar’, oute.net.moout
‘Among the dead’.
§267.
4a-,
4aro=
‘towards’:
(1) Of
persons; e.g. a.3.ei
4aro.3
‘He came to him’.
(2) Of location;
e.g. 4a.ne.krwou
n.t.oikoumenh
‘Unto the limits of the inhabited
(world)’.
(3) Temporal:
4a.ene6
‘Forever (lit. Until ever)’,
4a.pe.ouoei4
m.p.w6s
‘Until the time of
harvest’.
§268.
6i-, 6iw(w)=
‘upon, from upon, out of’; the
pronominal form is a compound of 6i+ww=
(from the old
’i3t
‘back’):
(1) ‘upon’;
e.g.
6i.te.6ih
‘Upon the road’,
a.u.5
6iww.3
n.ou.xlamus
‘They put a robe upon him’.
(2) ‘from upon, out of’;
e.g.
6i.p.`oi
‘Out of the ship’,
6i.te.6ih
et.mmau
‘From that road’.
(3) Temporal ‘in the time
of’; e.g.
6i.p.pwwne
ebol n.t.babulwn
‘In the time of the carrying away
to Babylon’.
(4) ‘with’;
e.g.
ou.hrp
... e.3.th6
6i.si4e
‘Wine
...
mingled with gall’.
(5) In lieu of the conjunction ‘and’,
especially when nouns are undefined;
e.g.
6a6 m.profhths
6i.rrwou
‘Many prophets and kings’,
ponhros 6i.agaqos
‘Evil and good’.
§269. 6a-,
6aro=
‘under’:
(1) Location: ‘under,
in, at’; e.g. 6a.ou.4i
‘Beneath a measured (load)’, so
frequently used after verbs of carrying or bearing when the bearer is thought of
as being beneath the burden;
e.g.
tet.na.3i
6a ouhr
‘How
much will you support?’
(Th 84).
(2) ‘from under,
from’; e.g.
e.k.na.twoun
de 6a.p.6inhb
tnau
‘When wilt thou rise up from
sleep?’
(3) ‘in respect of, on
behalf of’; e.g.
et.ou.na.taa.3
6arw.tn
‘Which will they
give on your behalf’,
raste gar na.3.roou4
6aro.3
‘For tomorrow will take care of itself’.
(4) ‘for’, of
price; e.g. 6a.4mt.4e
n.sateere
‘For 300 staters’,
ou.bal
6a.ou.bal
‘An eye for an eye’.
§270. 6ht=
Pronominal form only
(rarely
n.6ht=)
‘before,
against’ (lit.
In front of); e.g.
r.6ote
6ht.3
m.p.noute
‘To fear before
God’, stwt 6ht.3
‘To tremble before
him’.
§271.
6n-,
n.6ht=
‘within’:
(1) Location;
e.g.
6n.t.pe
‘In the heaven’,
6m.p.hi
‘In the house’,
n.6ht.3
‘In him’.
(2) Temporal;
e.g.
6n.t.arxh
‘In the beginning’,
6n.ne.6oou
et.mmau
‘In those days’
(§54).
(3) Instrument; ‘by, with’;
e.g. 6n.t.sh3e
‘By the sword’.
(4) ‘From out of, from
among’ following
the adverbs
ebol,
(e)6rai;
e.g. oua ebol
n.6ht.thutn
‘One of you’
(lit. One out of you),
a.3.ei
e6rai 6m.p.iordanhs
‘He came up from the Jordan’.
§272.
Compound Prepositions
By means of the Simple Prepositions prefixed to the nouns describing parts of
the body which could take the possessive suffix
(§38), Coptic was able to form a wide range of Compound
Prepositions. The most important of these are:
§273.
Compounds with
e-
(1) ern- (eron-),
erw=
‘to, upon’
(lit. To the mouth of),
mostly with verbs of motion;
e.g.
a.3.6wn
e6oun ern.n.ro
‘He has approached to the doors’.
(2) erat= ‘to’
(lit. To the foot of)
mostly of persons;
e.g.
e.n.na.kton
nmm.e
erat.3
m.pou.laos
‘With thee we shall return to thy
people’.
(3) etn-, etoot=
(2
pl
etn.thutn, etoot.thutn,
ete[t].thutn)
‘to’
(lit. To the hand of);
e.g. ou penta.mwushs
6on.3 etoot.thutn
‘What is it which Moses commanded
to you?’
(4) etoun-, etouw=
‘beside, with’
(lit. To the bosom);
e.g.
a.n.s2hr
etoun.kupros
‘We sailed beside Cyprus’.
(5) e6rn-, e6ra=
‘to, among’
(lit. To the face of);
e.g.
a.u.pe4
ne3.6oite
e6ra.u
‘They divided his garments among
them’.
(6) e`n-, e`w=
(lit. To the head of):
(a)
‘upon, over’, e.g.
e`m.p.ma
‘over the place’,
e`n.tei.genea
‘upon this generation’;
(b)
‘for, on account of’, e.g.
a.3.4n.6th.3 e`w.ou
‘He had compassion for them’,
a.u.r.6ote
e`n.neu.erhu
‘They feared on account of their
fellows’; (c)
‘against, to’,
e.g. a.u.samariths
...
ei e`w.3
‘A Samaritan
... came to
him’; (d) ‘in addition to, after’,
e.g. nai e.3.e.oua
e`w.i
‘These things may he add in
addition to me’.
§274.
etbe-, etbhht=
(old r db3
‘for the payment of’)
‘because of, concerning’;
e.g.
etbe.pai
‘Because of this’,
etbhh.t
‘Concerning me’,
r.mntre
etbe.p.rwme
‘To bear witness concerning the
man’.
§275. Compounds
with
n-
(1) nsa-,
nsw=
‘behind, after’
(lit. In the back);
e.g.
a.3.nau
ero.ou
e.u.ouh6
nsw.3
‘He saw them following after him’,
a.u.ka
n.ka
nim nsw.ou
‘They left all things behind
them’.
(2) ntn-,
ntoot= (2
pl
nte.thutn)
‘in, by, beside, from’
(lit. In the hand
of); e.g.
mp.ei.6e
e.pistis
n.tei.2ot
ntn.laau
‘I have not found faith of this
degree in anyone’,
mmn.laau
na.3i
petn.ra4e
nte.thutn
‘No
one will take your joy from you’.
(3)
(n)na6rn-, na6ra= ‘in
the presence of, before’;
e.g.
p.4a`e
ne.3.4oop
nna6rm.p.noute
‘The Logos was in the presence of
God’, kathgorei
mmw.tn
nna6rm.p.eiwt
‘To accuse you before the Father’.
(4) mma6-
(old m-bzh [h dotted])
‘before’, of sacrifice offered a
deity; e.g.
mma6.p.`oeis
‘Before the Lord’.
(5) mpemto (from
m-to
‘presence’), preceded by the
article or possessive adjective and followed by
ebol
(n-),
has the meaning ‘in the face
of, before’; e.g.
mpemto
ebol m.p.noute
‘Before God’,
pai et.na.sobte
n.tek.6ih
mpekmto ebol
‘This one who will prepare thy way
before thee’.
§276.
Compounds with
6a-
(1) 6arn-, 6arw=
‘beneath, before’
(lit. Beneath the mouth);
e.g.
`e e.u.e.kaa.u
6arw.ou
‘In order that they should place
them before them’.
(2) 6arat= ‘beneath,
under’ (lit. Beneath
the foot);
e.g.
ere.6en.matoi
4oop 6arat
‘There are soldiers under me’
(§39).
(3) 6atn-
(varies with
6a6.tn-,
see 4),
6atoot=
‘beside, with’
(lit. Under the
hand); e.g.
3.na.2w
6atn.thutn
‘He will remain with you’.
(4) 6a6tn-
(often confused with
6atn-, see 3), 6a(6)th=
‘with, beside’
(lit. Beneath the heart);
e.g.
a.u.sepswp.3
e2w 6ath.u
‘They besought him to remain with
them’, et.6moos
6a6th.3
‘Who were sitting beside him’.
(5) 6a+poss.adj.+6h ‘in front of
someone/something’
(lit. Beneath-its-forepart);
e.g.
t.dikaiosunh
na.moo4e
6a.te3.6h
‘Righteousness shall walk before
him’, a.3.mestw.i
6a.tetn.6h
‘It hated me before you’.
§277. Compounds
with
6i-
(1) 6irn-
(6iron-), 6irw= ‘at,
upon’ (lit. At the
mouth); e.g. e.re.ou.wne
6irw.3 ‘There was a
stone upon it’.
(2) 6irat= ‘toward’
(lit. At the foot);
e.g. pwt ebol 6irat.ou
‘Run out toward them’.
(3) 6itn-,
6itoot= ‘thru, by,
from’ (lit. At the
hand; cf
§259, agent);
e.g.
6itn.t.ouatbe
n.ou.6amntwn
‘Thru the eye of a needle’,
n.ka
nim a.u.4wpe
ebol 6itoot.3
‘All things happened through him’.
(4)
6itoun-, 6itouw= ‘beside,
next’ (lit. Upon the
bosom);
e.g.
6itoun.p.hi
‘Beside the house’. Note
the relative substantive formed from this Compound Preposition:
pet.6itouw.k
‘He who is beside thee’, i.e.
‘Thy neighbor’.
(5) 6i6ra= ‘on
the face of’; e.g. 6i6ra.u
m.p.moou ‘On the face
of the water’.
(6) 6i`n, 6i`w=
‘upon, over’
(lit. On the head);
e.g.
6i`n.ou.pinac
‘Upon a dish’,
nh` 6i`n.ou.2lo2
‘Laying upon a bed’,
t.mnt.ero
m.p.eiwt
e.s.por4
ebol 6i`m p.ka6
‘The
Sovereignty of the Father is spread upon the earth’
(Th 113). Note
the Relative Substantive formed by the Compound
pet.6i`n-
‘He who is over, in command’; e.g.
pet.6i`n.net.w6s
‘The one in command of the
reapers’.
§278.
a`n-
(e`n-),
a`nt=
(e`nt=)
‘without’;
e.g.
a`nt.3
mpe.laau
4wpe
‘Without him did not anything come
into being’, a`m.parabolh
mp.3.`e laau
‘Without parable he did not say
anything’.
§279.
`in-
‘from, since’;
e.g.
`in.p.ma
n.6wtp
m.p.rh
