αὐτοῦ (autou) in John 3:16: Genitive Singular Masculine
αὐτοῦ (autou) in John 3:16
Textual Witness
The Textus Receptus witness for John 3:16 reads αὐτοῦ with the morphology label Genitive Singular Masculine.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form clarifies a relationship in the local phrase without making the grammar carry the whole interpretation.
How To Communicate It
When teaching John 3:16, use this Genitive Singular Masculine to explain the exact form's local function first, then move carefully to interpretation from the whole clause.
What Not To Say
- Grammar should serve context, not override it.
- Do not treat this occurrence as a complete word study for G846.
- Do not make a morphology label carry a doctrine or application apart from the verse.
- Do not turn grammatical gender into a biological or theological claim by itself.
What Does The Label Mean?
Genitive: the form functions as a genitive in this occurrence, and the phrase decides its contextual force.
Genitive: the case marks how the form relates to the surrounding words, but context decides the exact relation.
Singular: the form is grammatically singular in this occurrence.
Masculine: this is grammatical gender for agreement or classification, not a standalone theological claim.
What The Form Does In This Verse
κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα
The clause of John 3:16, not the morphology label by itself
αὐτοῦ is a Genitive Singular Masculine within "κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα". It marks a dependent relationship that must be explained from the words around it.
The form does not by itself settle the whole interpretation of the verse, the full lexical range of the word, or a doctrine apart from the immediate wording and context.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The form matters because it functions as genitive relation in John 3:16.
Genitive Singular Masculine. marks a dependent relationship. Attached to κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα. Governed by the immediate wording of John 3:16. The syntax should be explained from the clause, not isolated from the passage.
How is this word related to the phrase around it? αὐτοῦ should be read as genitive relation in John 3:16, with the surrounding words deciding the exact interpretive force.
Direct: The form supports how John 3:16 is read, especially its genitive relation function, without replacing the whole clause.
The same morphology label can function differently in another verse. The immediate wording should decide the contextual force. Relational forms name a connection, but context identifies the kind of connection. 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. grammatical gender proves theology: Grammatical gender is a language feature and should not be pressed beyond the verse.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The Textus Receptus witness for John 3:16 reads αὐτοῦ with the morphology label Genitive Singular Masculine.
The lemma is αὐτός. The guide uses the gloss or rendering "he, she, it, they, them, same" only to orient this occurrence.
αὐτοῦ is a Genitive Singular Masculine within "κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα". It marks a dependent relationship that must be explained from the words around it.
In John 3:16, the form belongs to the statement where the surrounding words determine what the reader should learn from it.
The form should be read within the passage's local argument and the wider canonical witness, not as an isolated proof.
When teaching John 3:16, use this Genitive Singular Masculine to explain the exact form's local function first, then move carefully to interpretation from the whole clause.
Do not derive a full word study, doctrine, or interpretive conclusion from this morphology label alone. The form serves the immediate wording and context.