ἴδιοι (idioi) in John 1:11: Adjective Nominative Plural Masculine
ἴδιοι (idioi) in John 1:11
Textual Witness
The witness reads, 'καὶ οἱ ἴδιοι αὐτὸν οὐ παρέλαβον,' so the form stands in a nominative plural phrase within a statement of refusal.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The grammar sharpens the contrast: the one who came was not received by those described as his own.
How To Communicate It
In translation and teaching, render the phrase so the sense of belonging and the force of rejection remain clear and natural.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- Masculine agreement here does not create a theological gender claim.
- Substantive use is context-shaped, and the form should not be overread beyond the verse.
What Does The Label Mean?
Adjective: the word describes or characterizes a noun, here functioning substantively rather than as a separate lexical item.
Nominative: the form is marked to work in a nominative slot, usually subject or subject-like, in this clause.
Plural: the form is grammatically plural in this occurrence and points to a collective group in view.
Masculine: the form is masculine in agreement, but that grammatical class itself does not make a theological statement.
What The Form Does In This Verse
οἱ
The article with ἴδιοι marks the phrase as a substantive group in the clause, referring to those identified as his own people or his own circle in the context.
It functions as the subject of the negative action, the ones who did not receive him.
It does not by itself specify identity beyond the context, and it does not change the lemma into a different word.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The substantive adjective names the people described as his own who did not receive him.
Nominative plural masculine substantive adjective. identifies the group who did not receive him. Attached to the article forming the phrase his own. Governed by the negative receiving clause. The adjective functions as a substantive subject; the context defines the referent.
Who did not receive him? Those described as his own did not receive him.
Direct: The form supports subject wording such as "his own" or "his own people."
The masculine plural form does not create a gendered theological claim. The identity of the group should be drawn from context, not from agreement alone.
Substantive adjective overdefines group: Do not make the form alone settle the full social or theological identity of his own.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The witness reads, 'καὶ οἱ ἴδιοι αὐτὸν οὐ παρέλαβον,' so the form stands in a nominative plural phrase within a statement of refusal.
ἴδιος commonly means one's own, private, or personal, and here the plural masculine form identifies a group characterized by belonging.
The nominative plural works with the article to form a substantive subject, while the surrounding wording shows that this group is the one who did not receive him.
In context, the form supports the sense that those who belonged to him, or were in a close relation to him, did not welcome or accept him.
This usage fits the wider Johannine pattern of contrast between rejection and reception, but the grammar alone does not settle every detail of the referent.
For readers and teachers, the form highlights belonging and then the tragedy of refusal, without requiring a more specific claim than the verse provides.
Do not derive a full social identity, a theological category, or a gendered meaning from masculine agreement alone.