Intermediate Greek Grammar: Syntax for Students of the New Testament by David L. Mathewson

by David L. Mathewson

An Accessible, Up-to-Date Intermediate Greek Grammar This intermediate grammar for students of New Testament Greek incorporates the advances of recent linguistic research in an accessible and understandable way. Drawing on years of teaching experience at a leading seminary, the authors help students extend their grasp of Greek for reading and interpreting the New Testament and related writings. They make extensive use of New Testament texts to illustrate each grammatical category. Long enough to provide substantial help yet concise enough for frequent practical use, this book is ideal for intermediate Greek and Greek exegesis classes. It is also a valuable resource for preachers and others.

Genres: Nonfiction

330 pages, Hardcover

Reviews

[Blake Randolph]

Their perspective on verbal aspect (tense) in the Greek verbal system was a really helpful moment of progression for my study of Greek. The consensus opinion on what is precisely communicated by tense/aspect is updating, and this book helpfully reflects those changes

[Darren Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's difficult for me to assess the technical accuracy of this grammar, as I'm still developing my expertise in Greek. However, I appreciate how the authors present different perspectives, particularly in relation to Going Deeper with New Testament Greek on verbal aspect. One strength of this book is its acknowledgment that Koine Greek grammar is not governed by rigid rules. Some categories overlap, and certain NT contexts remain ambiguous.

While this book is lighter and more accessible than Wallace, that’s precisely why it’s the right choice for students transitioning from first-year Greek. Wallace would simply be too much at this stage, and this book provides a manageable bridge to intermediate concepts without being overwhelming. Even so, some sections feel challenging and go beyond our depth, but that’s expected at this level.

I enjoyed most of the book, except for chapters 11 to 13 on clauses and discourse. These sections felt overly detailed, attempting to categorize the obvious into unnecessarily esoteric classifications.

Overall, I’d definitely recommend this as the next step after first-year Greek—it helps lay a solid foundation before tackling more advanced works like Wallace.

Edit:
As I am reading through Going Deeper by Kostenberger, Merkle, and Plummer, I find that the approach taken by Mathewson and Emig to understanding Koine Greek is more organic and reflective of how language functions in everyday life. While both approaches share significant agreements, their differences can be broadly summarized as follows:

Mathewson & Emig: Grammar provides broad categories, but meaning is ultimately determined by context.

Kostenberger, Merkle, & Plummer: Small grammatical details can significantly impact the meaning of a passage.

Consider their handling of John 1:1:

Mathewson & Emig acknowledge that "The Word was a god" is a grammatically possible rendering, but they reject it as a theologically incorrect translation. They argue that Colwell’s rule is a descriptive pattern rather than a determinative rule for definiteness.

Kostenberger, Merkle, & Plummer argue that "The Word was God" is the correct reading because it follows a common pattern where a definite predicate nominative lacks the article when it precedes the verb.

This illustrates how Mathewson and Emig place more weight on broader discourse and contextual factors—including theology (as derived from the wider context)—when interpreting grammar, while Kostenberger, Merkle, and Plummer lean more on grammatical conventions to establish meaning before turning to context.

While both approaches recognize the interplay between grammar and context, I find Mathewson and Emig’s approach to be more reflective of how language functions in real life. In everyday communication, grammar provides structure, but meaning is ultimately shaped by usage, discourse, and speaker intent. Koine Greek, as a naturally spoken language, would have operated similarly. While Kostenberger, Merkle, and Plummer rightly emphasize the importance of grammatical patterns, Mathewson and Emig better account for language’s inherent flexibility—ensuring that grammar serves as a guide rather than a rigid determinant of meaning.

In my opinion, if this is the only intermediate Greek grammar textbook you can read, I believe it would be sufficient. This book presents debates between different positions, giving you a broader perspective on key issues. In contrast, Going Deeper in NT Greek primarily represents a single viewpoint.

[Peyton Mansfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

This grammar presents syntax more as a result of context, rather than explicit from the minutia of word forms. This approach is distinctly minimalist, as opposed to the maximalism of grammars like Wallace.

The maximalist approach of having a dozen categories for every construction is almost more helpful to understand English translation, rather than actually give insight to understanding Greek. Reading this book helped me not worry as much about categories, and read with a better flow — thinking Greek, to a degree. Though, I wonder if I would feel the same if I had not read Wallace first, since Wallace is more exhaustive.

The book is clearly well researched, but while I might agree with the minimalist approach, the book doesn't lend itself well to being used as a reference because of it. It was an informative read, but Wallace will remain my go-to for research purposes.

[Simon Wartanian · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first intermediate Greek grammar that I've read while I still have Going Deeper (Plummer, Kostenberger, Merkle) and Wallace's to go.

I absolutely hated the fact how badly this paperback edition could not stay open. But as to the content, I liked the discussions. The annoying thing is, having just finished Mounce (3rd edition), there are many things that need to be revised in my thinking especially in categories like tenses and aspects, which is sometimes difficult to take. But overall, the authors are clear and provide clear examples.

The only negative is: Don't buy the paperback edition.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who found intermediate grammatical concepts like syntax particularly confusing due to the complexity of potential labels that could be attached to varying constructions, I found this grammar incredibly helpful in its approach. It really helped to clear the air and make a simple straightforward introduction to the topic without bombarding the reader with 17 different uses for the genitive and things of that nature. I highly recommend.

[Zac Iqbal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clear and extremely concise grammar New Testament Greek.

This textbook will be immediately accessible to students who have completed a beginning Greek grammar, though having a larger vocabulary under their belt will make the selected examples more useful.

Instead of taking the "pin the grammatical construction to the wheel" approach, this grammar has you understanding the core meaning of different aspects of grammar and how they contribute to the overall discourse of the biblical author.

[James B · Rating 5 out of 5]

An important book on Greek grammar that incorporates more recent studies. The organization of the book could be better though, but that's just me too dumb to comprehend the text.

[Ginger Schiffmayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simplifies grammatical categories, only including helpful classifications. It greatly refined my understanding of Greek.

[John Kight · Rating 5 out of 5]

David L. Mathewson (Ph.D., University of Aberdeen) is Associate Professor of New Testament at Denver Seminary. Mathewson has written two important volumes on the Book of Revelation, including Verbal Aspect in the Book of Revelation (Brill, 2010) and Revelation: A Handbook on the Greek Text (Baylor University Press, 2016) in the highly acclaimed Baylor Handbook on the Greek New Testament series. Elodie Ballantine Emig (MA, Denver Seminary) is an instructor of New Testament Greek at Denver Seminary and has been teaching New Testament Greek for over three decades. Together Mathewson and Emig have delivered an intermediate Greek textbook that students will enjoy as a first-stop resource for building a transitional foundation from basic to advanced Greek.

A number of helpful intermediate Greek grammars have been released this year. The most recent of which is the multi-authored Going Deeper with New Testament Greek: An Intermediate Study of the Grammar and Syntax of the New Testament (B&H, 2016). This upsurge in linguistic attention is a welcomed reality for Greek enthusiasts everywhere, and Mathewson and Emig have added a unique contribution to this excitement. The differentiator is observed in the minimalist approach Mathewson and Emig have sought to establish, which is further accompanied by an informed understanding of the recent advances in the study of NT Greek. The combination of these two characteristics offers a clear, up-to-date, and student-friendly Greek grammar that provides the reader with an enough information to build a foundation without taking a journey too far into the grammatical forest of concepts and labels.

As mentioned above, one of the distinctive features of this volume is its minimalistic approach to Greek grammar. That is, Mathewson and Emig have sought to eliminate the perceived duty of a grammar to “uncover the most meaning possible in each grammatical form and construct,” which is frequently supplemented by “the multiplication of categories, labels, and rules for their usage” (xvii). Consequently, Mathewson and Emig have “kept categories and labels to a minimum” for the purpose of relieving “the student from the burden of learning an unwieldy list of case or tense labels,” which “greatly streamlines the choices and categories for which the students are responsible, thereby freeing them up to focus on entire text instead of isolated details” (xix). In short, while recognizing the importance of extended categories and labels, Mathewson and Emig have taken a different approach to better assist the reader in grasping the larger grammatical picture.

The benefits of Intermediate Greek Grammar are numerous. First, and probably foremost, as one who has read and reviewed a number of intermediate Greek grammars (including Going Deeper with New Testament Greek), the minimalist approach that Mathewson and Emig have presented really does free the reader from the burden of rigorous case and label memorization. Not that such should be completely ruled out of one’s linguistic journey (in fact, it is imperative), but for many readers, such will be more applicable after the minimalist foundation is laid. Second, Mathewson and Emig have provided ample “fresh examples” throughout the book. That is, whenever possible, Mathewson and Emig have sought to use unconventional examples to illustrate the concepts. This choice will be helpful for readers familiar with the landscape of Greek grammars and the traditional passages used therein. Third, the “For Practice” section that concludes each chapter intentionally seeks to position the reader to move beyond isolated passages to longer portions of Scripture, often highlighting the concept discussed in the chapter. That said, I think the minimalist mindset may have overflowed too far into this section, as the scope of the exercises is just that, minimal.

Intermediate Greek Grammar: Syntax for Students of the New Testament by David L. Mathewson and Elodie Ballantine Emig is a breath of fresh “grammatical” air. Mathewson and Emig have provided readers with an intermediate Greek grammar that seeks to bring the student into the grammatical world with minimal distractions. The result is a clear, student-friendly grammar uniquely submerged in the recent advances in New Testament Greek. While the minimalist approach should not be the final stop in one’s linguistic journey, it is well-situated as the first. It would be difficult to recommend any other resource as a proper stepping stone into the world of intermediate Greek grammar. This book promises to establish a foundation of fertile soil with which other traditional New Testament Greek grammars will plant seeds and continue to grow. It could not be recommended more highly!