ἔστι (estin) in Romans 3:18: Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
ἔστι (estin) in Romans 3:18
Textual Witness
The witness reads ἔστι in Romans 3:18 within the phrase οὐκ ἔστι φόβος Θεοῦ ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form sharpens the verse into a present negative assertion, so the reader hears an absence of fear of God rather than a mere description of attitude.
How To Communicate It
In translation and teaching, this verb can be rendered with simple existential force, such as 'there is not,' to keep the clause direct and clear.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- The verb form marks assertion, but the surrounding words determine what is being denied.
- Do not press tense or number beyond the sentence's actual communicative purpose.
What Does The Label Mean?
Verb: the form expresses being or existence, and here it functions as a simple present assertion in the sentence.
Present: often views the action as in progress, customary, or presently in view. Context decides the exact force.
Active: presents the subject as doing or carrying the action.
Indicative: presents the verbal idea as an assertion or statement in the clause.
Third person: the form speaks about someone or something rather than directly as I/we or you.
Not applicable: this verb form is not using noun case to mark its sentence role.
Singular: the form is grammatically singular and agrees with its singular subject-like sense in this clause.
Not applicable: this verb form does not use grammatical gender to make its point.
What The Form Does In This Verse
οὐκ ἔστι φόβος Θεοῦ
The negative particle οὐκ frames ἔστι as a negated assertion, so the clause states absence rather than presence.
It supplies the clause's main assertion of existence or nonexistence, supporting the statement that fear of God is not present.
It does not by itself identify who lacks the fear or add a new subject beyond what the sentence already presents.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The negated verb states the absence of the fear of God in the concluding citation.
Negated present active indicative existential verb. states absence of the named reality before their eyes. Attached to the phrase fear of God. Governed by the closing negative assertion in Paul's Scripture chain. The verb supplies the existential assertion; the noun phrase and context identify what is absent.
What is the clause saying is absent? It says the fear of God is not present before their eyes.
Direct: The negated verb directly supports English wording such as "there is no."
The grammar states absence, but Paul's quotation and argument define the moral and theological force.
The present verb alone supplies the full moral diagnosis: The verb states the clause; the quoted Scripture and Pauline argument carry the diagnosis.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The witness reads ἔστι in Romans 3:18 within the phrase οὐκ ἔστι φόβος Θεοῦ ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν.
The lemma εἰμί normally means to be or exist, and here it serves as the ordinary existential verb in a negated clause.
The singular present indicative with οὐκ presents a direct, current denial of presence, making the sentence a straightforward claim about what is not there.
The grammar supports the sense that reverent fear of God is absent from the viewpoint or conduct described in the verse.
Within the larger biblical usage of εἰμί, this is a common existential or copular use, so the form fits a plain statement rather than a special idiom.
For readers, the form communicates absence clearly and tersely, helping the verse sound like a concise diagnosis of spiritual condition.
Do not infer more from singular present form than the sentence states, and do not turn grammatical features into claims about gender, emphasis, or theology beyond context.