New Testament Greek 3: module 1

What is the course about?

Over the full year of this course, we will be completing the last third of Rodney Decker’s magisterial and fully academically up-to-date textbook (see below). By the end of it you will have been introduced to every key concept in Koine Greek, and will be able to read any Judeo-Christian Koine Greek text with confidence that any grammar you encounter is something you will have heard about before, as your reading shifts from learning things afresh to rehearsing and cementing your knowledge.

This is a live online course. You will need:
- Internet connection. The classes work best with Chrome.
- A computer with microphone and camera is best (e.g. a PC/laptop/iMac/MacBook), or a tablet/iPad/smart phone/iPhone if you don't have a computer.
- Earphones/headphones/speakers.
We will contact you with joining instructions before your course starts.

What will we cover?

Over the year we shall be using Rodney Decker’s textbook Reading Koine Greek (2014), and shall aim to cover chapters 24-33, learning about conditional statements, indirect speech, the subjunctive and optative, and all of the uses of the infinitive. We shall do a lot of reading of unadapted texts, both as prescribed in the textbook and in lessons between where we just read.

What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...

- deeply understand everything that Koine Greek indicative and infinitive verbs communicate, and how discourse and some rarer Greek forms like -mi verbs and the optative work.
- mostly find yourself focussing on the meaning of words rather than the structure of grammar as you read Greek, at least with easier Greek texts.
- really have fun and use your Greek knowledge to access layers of meaning and nuance that previously could only be learned through commentaries and other secondary texts.

What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?

This is a course for students who have already spent a considerable amount of time learning New Testament Greek, or any dialect of Ancient Greek. If you have completed a full university-level Greek course but perhaps it was some time ago, or recent but you don’t feel you thoroughly understood it, then this course will be perfect for you. If you learned Classical Greek but want to read the New Testament with a deeper understanding of its idiosyncratic language, then this course would also be right. Finally, it would also be the right level if you have self-taught a Koine Greek textbook or taken the first two years of this course at City Lit. As this course is taught in English, you should be able to follow verbal and written instructions in English and take part in group discussions on readings / exercises / grammar points.

How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?

The tutor will use the textbook, handouts and other teaching aids, and patiently work through the material taking questions and discussion, encouraging students along the way, in an open and productive manner that follows a pace set by the students. Questions and discussion are genuinely encouraged. You will need to do 30 minutes to an hour of homework minimum each week, but the more you put into it the more you will get out of it!

Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?

- Reading Koine Greek by Rodney Decker (Baker Academic: Grand Rapids, 2014).
- The New Testament text can be found at gntreader.com, but advice will be given on which editions are best to buy when the time comes.
- Good online dictionaries can be found at philolog.us and billmounce.com, but advice will be given on which dictionaries are best to buy when the time comes.

When I've finished, what course can I do next?

New Testament Greek 3: module 2.