οὗτος, αὕτη, τοῦτο ('this')
The **near demonstrative** **οὗτος** ('this, these') points to something near in space, time, or discourse. It inflects for GNC. Note the rough breathing on the nominative forms (οὗτος, αὕτη, οὗτοι, αὗται) but the τ-initial oblique forms (τούτου, ταύτης), paralleling the article. It is placed in the **predicate position** (outside the article-noun unit): **οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος** = 'this man'.
**John 1:29** — Ἴδε **ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ὁ αἴρων τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου**.
**1 John 5:20** — οὗτός ἐστιν **ὁ ἀληθινὸς** θεὸς … ('**This one** is the true God …') — οὗτος = nom. sg. m.
ἐκεῖνος, ἐκείνη, ἐκεῖνο ('that')
The **far demonstrative** **ἐκεῖνος** ('that, those') points to something more distant. It inflects like a regular 1st/2nd-declension adjective. **οὗτος** and **ἐκεῖνος** often contrast: 'this' vs 'that'. ἐκεῖνος is especially common in John to refer to the Holy Spirit ('**that one**, the Paraclete', John 14:26).
**John 14:26** — **ἐκεῖνος ὑμᾶς διδάξει** πάντα ('**That one** [the Spirit] will teach you all things') — ἐκεῖνος = nom. sg. m., referring to the παράκλητος (Spirit).
ὅδε and Rare Demonstratives
**ὅδε, ἥδε, τόδε** is a genuine demonstrative meaning roughly 'this here', but it is very rare in NT Greek and is chiefly important for historical/comparative recognition. For practical NT reading, **οὗτος** and **ἐκεῖνος** carry most of the demonstrative load, though they do not exhaust every demonstrative form in Greek.
Demonstrative Agreement
Demonstratives agree with their noun in **gender, number, and case** (like all modifiers): **οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος** (m. sg. nom. throughout). They are placed in the **predicate position** — i.e., NOT between article and noun. So 'this man' = **οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος** or **ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος**, but **NOT** ✗ *ὁ οὗτος ἄνθρωπος*.
Deictic Reference
Demonstratives are **deictic** — they 'point'. Their reference is resolved by context (physical setting, narrative, or discourse). **οὗτος** often points back to the **most recent** noun (anaphora) or forward to what follows (cataphora). Careful tracking of antecedents is essential for interpretation.
αὐτός as Intensive ('-self')
In the **predicate position** (outside the article-noun unit), **αὐτός** is the **intensive** pronoun '-self': **αὐτὸς ὁ βασιλεύς** or **ὁ βασιλεὺς αὐτός** = '**the king himself**' (not a deputy). This use emphasizes the **identity** of the subject — 'the very one, in person'.
**1 Thessalonians 4:16** — ὅτι **αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος** ἐν κελεύσματι, ἐν φωνῇ ἀρχαγγέλου καὶ ἐν σάλπιγγι Θεοῦ καταβήσεται ἀπ’ οὐρανοῦ ('because **the Lord himself** ... will descend from heaven'). **αὐτός** is intensive in **αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος** = 'the Lord himself'.
αὐτός as Identity Marker ('the same')
In the **attributive position** (between article and noun, or with repeated article), **αὐτός** means '**the same**': **ὁ αὐτὸς βασιλεύς** = '**the same king**', **ὁ βασιλεὺς ὁ αὐτός** = 'the same king'. This identity use is much less common than the intensive use but important to recognize.
**Heb 13:8** — Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς **ἐχθὲς** καὶ **σήμερον ὁ αὐτός**, καὶ **εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας** ('Jesus Christ **the same** yesterday and today and forever') — ὁ αὐτός = 'the same'.
Reflexive Pronouns
**Reflexive pronouns** refer back to a participant in the clause and occur in the **oblique cases** (genitive, dative, accusative), not nominative. Singular forms include **ἐμαυτόν** (1st sg.), **σεαυτόν/σαυτόν** (2nd sg.), and **ἑαυτόν / ἑαυτήν / ἑαυτό** (3rd sg.). Plural reflexives have distinct plural forms; **ἑαυτόν** is therefore not a form for 'all plurals'.
**Matt 23:12** — …ὅστις **ὑψώσει ἑαυτὸν** **ταπεινωθήσεται** … ('…whoever **exalts himself** will be humbled …') — ἑαυτόν = acc. sg.
**John 5:18** — …ἴσα **ἑαυτὸν** ποιῶν τῷ θεῷ ('…making **himself** equal with God').
First-Person Reflexives (ἐμαυτόν)
**ἐμαυτόν, ἐμαυτήν, ἐμαυτό** = 'myself' (acc.), with corresponding gen. **ἐμαυτοῦ** and dat. **ἐμαυτῷ**. Plural 1st person uses **ἑαυτῶν/ἑαυτοῖς/ἑαυτούς** ('ourselves').
Second-Person Reflexives (σεαυτόν)
**σεαυτόν, σεαυτήν, σεαυτό** = 'yourself' (sg.), with gen. **σεαυτοῦ**, dat. **σεαυτῷ**. Plural 2nd person uses **ἑαυτῶν** etc. ('yourselves').
**Matt 19:19** — …**ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν** ('…you shall love your neighbor as **yourself**') — σεαυτόν = acc. sg.
Third-Person Reflexives (ἑαυτόν)
The third-person reflexive uses the stem **ἑαυτ-** and inflects for case, number, and gender where relevant. Singular accusatives include **ἑαυτόν, ἑαυτήν, ἑαυτό**; plural forms include **ἑαυτῶν**, **ἑαυτοῖς / ἑαυταῖς**, and **ἑαυτούς / ἑαυτάς / ἑαυτά**. Koine can extend ἑαυτ- reflexive forms broadly, but singular and plural surface forms remain morphologically distinct.
Reciprocal ἀλλήλων ('one another')
**ἀλλήλων** ('one another', 'each other') is the reciprocal pronoun. It appears only in the plural, only in oblique cases (gen. **ἀλλήλων**, dat. **ἀλλήλοις**, acc. **ἀλλήλους**). It is extremely common in NT ethical instruction: 'love one another'.
**John 13:34** — …ἵνα **ἀγαπᾶτε ἀλλήλους** ('…that **you love one another**') — ἀλλήλους = acc. pl. m.
**Rom 12:10** — τῇ **φιλαδελφίᾳ** εἰς **ἀλλήλους** φιλόστοργοι … ('…devoted to **one another** in brotherly love').
Paradigms
Near Demonstrative: οὗτος, αὕτη, τοῦτο ('this')
Note the rough breathing on nom. forms (οὗτος, αὕτη, οὗτοι, αὗται) but τ-initial oblique forms. Placed in predicate position.
| Case | m. sg. | f. sg. | n. sg. | m. pl. | f. pl. | n. pl. |
| Nom. | οὗτος | αὕτη | τοῦτο | οὗτοι | αὗται | ταῦτα |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gen. | τούτου | ταύτης | τούτου | τούτων | τούτων | τούτων |
| Dat. | τούτῳ | ταύτῃ | τούτῳ | τούτοις | ταύταις | τούτοις |
| Acc. | τοῦτον | ταύτην | τοῦτο | τούτους | ταύτας | ταῦτα |
Far Demonstrative: ἐκεῖνος, ἐκείνη, ἐκεῖνο ('that')
Declines like a regular 1st/2nd-declension adjective. Common in John for the Spirit (ἐκεῖνος, 'that one').
| Case | m. sg. | f. sg. | n. sg. | m. pl. | f. pl. | n. pl. |
| Nom. | ἐκεῖνος | ἐκείνη | ἐκεῖνο | ἐκεῖνοι | ἐκεῖναι | ἐκεῖνα |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gen. | ἐκείνου | ἐκείνης | ἐκείνου | ἐκείνων | ἐκείνων | ἐκείνων |
| Dat. | ἐκείνῳ | ἐκείνῃ | ἐκείνῳ | ἐκείνοις | ἐκείναις | ἐκείνοις |
| Acc. | ἐκεῖνον | ἐκείνην | ἐκεῖνο | ἐκείνους | ἐκείνας | ἐκεῖνα |
Reflexive Pronouns by Person
Reflexives occur in oblique cases (gen./dat./acc.). Singular ἐμαυτ-, σεαυτ-/σαυτ-, and ἑαυτ- forms must be distinguished from their plural reflexive forms; ἑαυτόν itself is accusative singular masculine, not an all-purpose plural form.
| Person | Singular | Plural |
| 1st | ἐμαυτόν, ἐμαυτήν, ἐμαυτό ('myself') | ἑαυτούς, ἑαυτάς, ἑαυτά ('ourselves') |
|---|---|---|
| 2nd | σεαυτόν, σεαυτήν, σεαυτό ('yourself') | ἑαυτούς (ὑμῶν αὐτῶν) ('yourselves') |
| 3rd | ἑαυτόν, ἑαυτήν, ἑαυτό ('himself/herself/itself') | ἑαυτούς, ἑαυτάς, ἑαυτά ('themselves') |
Chapter glossary
- οὗτος — this (near)
houtos
pronoun
Near demonstrative; predicate position; rough breathing on nom. forms.- ἐκεῖνος — that (far)
ekeinos
pronoun
Far demonstrative; regular adjective declension; common for the Spirit in John.- ἑαυτός — himself/herself/itself
heautos
pronoun
Third-person reflexive pronoun built on ἑαυτ-. It has distinct singular and plural case/gender forms (e.g. acc. sg. ἑαυτόν vs acc. pl. ἑαυτούς); it must not be reduced to one invariant form for all persons/numbers.- ἐμαυτός — myself
emautos
pronoun
1st-person singular reflexive.- σεαυτός — yourself
seautos
pronoun
2nd-person singular reflexive; 'love your neighbor as yourself' (Matt 19:19).- ἀλλήλων — one another
allēlōn
pronoun
Reciprocal pronoun; plural and oblique only; 'love one another' (John 13:34).- ὅδε — this here
hode
pronoun
Rare demonstrative (classical flavor); absent from NT ordinary use.- — demonstrative
pronoun
Pronoun/adjective that points: οὗτος (near), ἐκεῖνος (far).- — deictic
pronoun
Pointing; demonstratives are deictic — their reference is resolved by context.- — intensive pronoun
pronoun
αὐτός in predicate position meaning '-self' (αὐτὸς ὁ βασιλεύς 'the king himself').- — reflexive pronoun
pronoun
Pronoun referring back to the clause's subject: ἑαυτός 'himself'.- — reciprocal
pronoun
ἀλλήλων 'one another'; plural and oblique only.