ἔρχου, (erchou) in Revelation 22:20: Verb Second Person Singular Present Middle or Passive Deponent Imperative
ἔρχου, (erchou) in Revelation 22:20
Textual Witness
The witness reads ἔρχου in Revelation 22:20 within the phrase, 'Ναί, ἔρχου, Κύριε Ἰησοῦ.'
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form clarifies the line as prayerful response, not a narrative report or detached command.
How To Communicate It
When teaching Revelation 22:20, use this form to preserve the devotional and expectant force of 'Come, Lord Jesus.'
What Not To Say
- Grammar should serve context, not override it.
- Do not treat this imperative as a demand detached from worshipful response.
- Do not overread present tense or deponent voice beyond the prayerful appeal.
- Do not make the form settle every question about the Lord's coming.
- Do not use the grammar profile as a shortcut around the wording and logic of the verse.
What Does The Label Mean?
Verb: the form names an action or state, and here it is the lemma ἔρχομαι in an imperative form.
Present: often views the action as in progress, customary, or presently in view. Context decides the exact force.
Middle or Passive Deponent: uses a middle or passive form traditionally read with active sense. The lexeme and sentence still govern the meaning.
Imperative: presents the verbal idea as a command, appeal, or summons to action.
Second person: the hearer or hearers are grammatically addressed by the verbal form.
Not applicable: this verb form is not using noun case to mark its sentence role.
Singular: the form addresses one person directly, so the command is grammatically singular in this occurrence.
Not applicable: this verb form does not use grammatical gender to make its point.
What The Form Does In This Verse
The closing prayer in Revelation 22:20, 'Come, Lord Jesus'
The response to Christ's promise, 'Yes, I am coming quickly'
It voices a direct petition to the Lord Jesus in response to his promise of coming.
The imperative does not by itself set the timing, location, or complete doctrine of the Lord's coming.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The form carries Scripture's closing prayerful appeal to the Lord Jesus.
Present deponent second-person singular imperative in direct address. voices a petition in response to Christ's promise. Attached to the phrase Come, Lord Jesus in Revelation 22:20. Governed by the response to Christ's promise that he is coming quickly. The imperative has command form but functions as worshipful petition in direct address.
What is the speaker asking? The speaker asks the Lord Jesus to come.
Direct: The imperative directly supports the rendering Come as a prayerful appeal.
The imperative gives petition force in direct address. Present tense should not be overread as a timing claim. The eschatological meaning comes from the promise-response context.
Imperative alone settles timing: The imperative voices the petition; the passage and canon govern eschatological timing. present means continuous in every context: The present imperative should be read within the closing prayer.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The witness reads ἔρχου in Revelation 22:20 within the phrase, 'Ναί, ἔρχου, Κύριε Ἰησοῦ.'
The lemma is ἔρχομαι, a common verb meaning to come or go, and this form keeps that lexical identity while taking an imperative force.
The imperative stands in direct address to the Lord Jesus and answers his promise with a plea.
Revelation 22:20 moves from Christ's promise of coming quickly to the responsive plea that he would come.
The form fits Revelation's closing hope and expectation of the Lord's coming.
When teaching Revelation 22:20, use this form to preserve the devotional and expectant force of 'Come, Lord Jesus.'
Do not derive the full doctrine of eschatology or timing from V-PNM-2S alone. The form voices the petition in context.