ἀκολουθοῦσί (akolouthousin) in John 10:27: Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Indicative

Verb: the form names an action, state, or verbal idea. The verse determines how strongly the verbal form should be pressed.

Present: tense and aspect describe how the action is presented in this form, but context decides the exact force.

Active: voice describes how the subject relates to the verbal action in this form.

Indicative: the form's mood helps explain how the verbal idea functions in the clause.

Third Person: the form marks who is involved in the verbal assertion, command, or clause.

Not applicable: this finite verb form is not using noun case to mark its sentence role.

Plural: the form is marked for grammatical number and should be tied to the subject or clause it serves.

Not applicable: this finite verb form does not use grammatical gender to make its point.

κἀγὼ γινώσκω αὐτά, καὶ ἀκολουθοῦσί μοι·

Jesus' statement that he knows his sheep

ἀκολουθοῦσί is a Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Indicative within "κἀγὼ γινώσκω αὐτά, καὶ ἀκολουθοῦσί μοι·". The plural verb states that they follow him, joining hearing and following in one description.

The verb should not be detached from Jesus' knowing and keeping of his sheep in the surrounding verses.

High: The form matters because it functions as predicate in John 10:27.

Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Indicative. states the following response of the sheep. Attached to the second clause describing Jesus' sheep. Governed by Jesus' statement that he knows his sheep. The syntax should be explained from the clause, not isolated from the passage.

How do Jesus' sheep respond to him? The plural verb states that they follow him, joining hearing and following in one description.

Direct: The form directly supports the statement that the sheep follow Jesus.

The same morphology label can function differently in another verse. The immediate wording should decide the contextual force. Grammar identifies the form's role; the passage supplies the interpretive weight. Grammatical gender is not a separate theological claim.

Grammar alone proves doctrine: The form supports interpretation only as it serves the verse and its context. present tense proves uninterrupted action: Present tense contributes to the verse's description, but the whole shepherd discourse must define the theological claim. grammatical gender proves theology: Grammatical gender is a language feature and should not be pressed beyond the verse.

The Textus Receptus witness for John 10:27 reads ἀκολουθοῦσί with the morphology label Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Indicative.

The lemma is ἀκολουθέω. The guide uses the gloss "I accompany, attend, follow" only to orient this occurrence.

ἀκολουθοῦσί appears in the phrase "κἀγὼ γινώσκω αὐτά, καὶ ἀκολουθοῦσί μοι·". The plural verb states that they follow him, joining hearing and following in one description.

John 10:27 presents Jesus' sheep as those who hear his voice, are known by him, and follow him.

The form fits John's discipleship pattern where true reception of Jesus' voice leads to following him.

When teaching John 10:27, use this form to show that hearing Jesus is not passive in the verse. It is joined to following.

Do not make present tense alone define the full nature of perseverance. The verse gives a real discipleship description, but the discourse controls the scope.