Kuthamini Lugha za Biblia — Sehemu ya 6: Alfabeti ya Kigiriki Kifungu cha 1 (Alpha hadi Mu)Language Appreciation — Unit 6: Greek Alphabet Part 1 (Alpha through Mu)

Mnamo Februari 1859, msomi mmoja wa Biblia wa Kijerumani aitwaye Constantin von Tischendorf alikuwa akifanya ziara yake ya tatu kwenye monasteri ya kale ya Mtakatifu Katarina, iliyoko chini ya Mlima Sinai katika jangwa la Misri. Alikuwa na umri wa miaka arobaini na minne, hodari wa Kigiriki, Kilatini, Kiebrania na lugha nyingine kama sita hivi, na mashuhuri katika duru za wasomi wa Ulaya kwa kutafuta nakala za kale za Agano Jipya katika maktaba za monasteri za mbali. Miaka kumi na mitano kabla, katika ziara yake ya kwanza kwenye monasteri ya Mtakatifu Katarina, alikuwa amegundua kitu cha kushangaza. Ndani ya kikapu cha mianzi chenye ngozi za kale za kuandikia zilizokusudiwa kuchomwa kama kuni, alikuwa amegundua kurasa arobaini na tatu za Biblia ya Kigiriki iliyo ya kale kuliko chochote alichowahi kuona. Watawa walimruhusu kuchukua kurasa hizo arobaini na tatu. Alizichapisha. Lakini alikuwa na hakika kwamba kurasa nyingine zilikuwepo mahali fulani ndani ya monasteri, na mara mbili alirudi bila kupata chochote.In February of 1859, a German biblical scholar named Constantin von Tischendorf was making his third visit to the ancient monastery of Saint Catherine, perched at the foot of Mount Sinai in the Egyptian desert. He was forty-four years old, fluent in Greek, Latin, Hebrew, and a half-dozen other languages, and famous in European scholarly circles for hunting down ancient New Testament manuscripts in the libraries of remote monasteries. Fifteen years earlier, on his first visit to Saint Catherine's, he had found something startling. In a wicker basket of old parchments destined to be burned for fuel, he had discovered forty-three leaves of a Greek Bible older than anything he had ever seen. The monks had let him take those forty-three pages. He had published them. But he was convinced more existed somewhere in the monastery, and twice he had returned and found nothing.

Jioni ya mwisho ya ziara yake ya tatu — tarehe 4 Februari 1859, mizigo yake ikiwa imefungwa na msafara wake tayari kuondoka asubuhi iliyofuata — msimamizi wa monasteri, wakinywa kahawa jioni, alimtajia kwa kawaida tu kwamba yeye pia alikuwa na nakala ya Kigiriki chumbani mwake. Akaileta. Ilikuwa imefungwa ndani ya kitambaa chekundu. Tischendorf alikifungua kitambaa na kuona kurasa mia tatu arobaini na sita za ngozi, zilizoandikwa kwa mwandiko mzuri wa Kigiriki wa herufi kubwa (uncial). Mikononi mwake alishika sehemu kubwa ya Agano la Kale la Kigiriki, Agano Jipya lote la Kigiriki, na pia maandiko mawili ya Kikristo ya kale — nakala moja ya takriban mwaka 350 B.K., mojawapo ya nakala mbili kongwe kabisa za Biblia nzima duniani.On the last evening of his third visit — February 4, 1859, his bags packed, his caravan ready to leave the next morning — the steward of the monastery casually mentioned to him over an evening cup of coffee that he too had a Greek manuscript in his cell. He fetched it. It was wrapped in a red cloth. Tischendorf unfolded the cloth and saw three hundred and forty-six parchment leaves, written in beautiful Greek uncial script. He held in his hands most of the Greek Old Testament, the entire Greek New Testament, and two early Christian writings besides — a single manuscript from about AD 350, one of the two oldest complete copies of the Bible on earth.

Baadaye Tischendorf aliandika kwamba hakulala usiku ule. "Ilionekana kama kufuru hata kulala." Alikesha akisoma kwa mwanga wa mshumaa, akinakili vifungu, akitafuta tofauti kati yake na nakala za baadaye, na hakupata karibu tofauti yoyote. Alishika mikononi mwake Agano Jipya kama kanisa la mwanzo lilivyolisoma — maneno yale yale ya Kigiriki yaliyoandikwa miaka mia tatu tu baada ya mitume. Hatimaye aliwashawishi watawa wamwazime Tsar wa Urusi nakala hiyo ili isafirishwe salama na kuchapishwa. Nakala hiyo ikajulikana kama Codex Sinaiticus — Kitabu cha Sinai. Mwaka 1933 serikali ya Kisovieti iliiuza kwa Jumba la Makumbusho la Uingereza (British Museum) kwa pauni laki moja, kiasi kikubwa mno cha fedha. Leo imehifadhiwa katika Maktaba ya Uingereza (British Library) jijini London, nakala ya Biblia inayochunguzwa kuliko zote duniani.Tischendorf later wrote that he did not sleep that night. "It seemed sacrilege even to sleep." He sat up reading by candlelight, copying out passages, looking for differences from later manuscripts, finding almost none. He had in his hands the New Testament as the early church read it — the very Greek words written down only three hundred years after the apostles. Eventually he persuaded the monks to lend the manuscript to the Tsar of Russia for safe transport and publication. The manuscript became known as Codex Sinaiticus — the Sinai Book. In 1933 the Soviet government sold it to the British Museum for one hundred thousand pounds, an astronomical sum. Today it sits in the British Library in London, the most-studied biblical manuscript in the world.

"Ilionekana kama kufuru hata kulala." — Constantin Tischendorf katika monasteri ya Mtakatifu Katarina, 4 Februari 1859"It seemed sacrilege even to sleep." — Constantin Tischendorf at Saint Catherine's, February 4, 1859

Kwa nini habari hii inafungua Sehemu ya 6? Kwa sababu ile ile Sehemu ya 3 ilifunguliwa kwa habari ya kijana Mbedui aliyegundua magombo ya Kiebrania pangoni. Magombo ya Bahari ya Chumvi yalithibitisha kwamba Agano la Kale la Kiebrania lilihifadhiwa kwa miaka elfu moja karibu bila kubadilika. Codex Sinaiticus inathibitisha jambo hilo hilo kwa Agano Jipya la Kigiriki. Wasomi walipolinganisha maandishi ya karne ya nne ya Codex Sinaiticus na nakala za Kigiriki za Zama za Kati ambazo Biblia zetu zilizochapishwa zimetegemea, zilikuwa karibu sawa kabisa. Miaka elfu moja na mia mbili kati yao, na maneno ya Kigiriki bado yanalingana. Herufi za Kigiriki unazokaribia kujifunza — herufi zile zile Tischendorf aliziona zikiangaza chini ya mshumaa wake usiku ule kule Sinai — zimehifadhiwa kwa uaminifu kwa karibu miaka elfu mbili.Why does this open Unit 6? For the same reason Unit 3 opened with a Bedouin boy discovering Hebrew scrolls in a cave. The Dead Sea Scrolls proved that the Hebrew Old Testament had been preserved across one thousand years almost unchanged. The Codex Sinaiticus proves the same thing for the Greek New Testament. When scholars compared the fourth-century text of Codex Sinaiticus to the medieval Greek manuscripts our printed Bibles are based on, they were almost identical. Twelve hundred years between them, and the Greek words still match. The Greek letters you are about to learn — the same letters Tischendorf saw glowing under his candle that night at Sinai — have been faithfully preserved for nearly two thousand years.

Tulipo sasaWhere we are

Ulimaliza Sehemu ya 5 ukiwa na maneno kumi na matatu ya Kiebrania na ufahamu wa kufanyia kazi wa Agano la Kale. Sasa unavuka daraja. Sehemu ya 6 inafundisha herufi kumi na mbili za kwanza za alfabeti ya Kigiriki: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Eta, Theta, Iota, Kappa, Lambda, Mu. Sehemu ya 7 inafundisha kumi na mbili za mwisho na kusoma Yohana 1:1. Sehemu ya 8 na ya 9 zinakupa hazina kuu za maneno ya Kigiriki ya Agano Jipya. Sehemu ya 10 inakufundisha jinsi ya kutumia namba za Strong kwa njia zote tatu — karatasi, simu, na intaneti kamili — na Sehemu ya 11 ni uchunguzi wako wa kwanza halisi wa neno. Kuanzia hapa ni mteremko kwa maana nzuri kabisa: kupanda kumekwisha, na unaanza kuona kupanda kule kulikuwa kwa ajili ya nini.You finished Unit 5 with thirteen Hebrew words and a working acquaintance with the Old Testament. You cross the bridge now. Unit 6 teaches the first twelve letters of the Greek alphabet: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Eta, Theta, Iota, Kappa, Lambda, Mu. Unit 7 teaches the last twelve and reads John 1:1. Units 8 and 9 give you the great Greek word treasures of the New Testament. Unit 10 teaches you how to use Strong's numbers in all three ways — paper, phone, full internet — and Unit 11 is your first real word study. From here it is downhill in the best possible sense: the climbing is done, and you start to see what the climbing was for.

Kabla ya kuangalia herufi, tuiangalie lugha yenyewe. Ulijifunza katika Sehemu ya 1 kwamba Mungu aliandaa Kigiriki kwa ajili ya Injili. Karibu mwaka 330 K.K., Aleksanda Mkuu aliteka sehemu kubwa ya dunia iliyojulikana wakati huo, kutoka Ugiriki hadi India, na kila mahali majeshi yake yalipokwenda, Kigiriki chake cha kawaida — Koiné — kikawa lugha ya biashara, ya serikali, na ya mazungumzo. Kufikia wakati Yesu alipozaliwa miaka mia tatu baadaye, kila mtu aliyejua kusoma kutoka Rumi hadi Babeli aliweza kusoma au kuzungumza Kigiriki kwa kiasi fulani. Dola la Kirumi lililowashinda Wagiriki halikuweza kuiondoa lugha ya Kigiriki; badala yake lenyewe likawa linazungumza Kigiriki. Mvuvi wa Galilaya, askari wa Kapernaumu, Farisayo wa Yerusalemu, na mwanafalsafa wa Kistoiki wa Athene wote wangeweza kushika barua moja na kuisoma. Mungu alijenga barabara kuu yake kabla ya kupitisha Injili yake juu yake.Before we look at letters, let us look at the language. You learned in Unit 1 that God prepared Greek for the gospel. Around 330 BC, Alexander the Great conquered most of the known world from Greece to India, and wherever his armies went, his common Greek — Koiné — became the language of trade, government, and conversation. By the time Jesus was born three hundred years later, every literate person from Rome to Babylon could read or speak some Greek. The Roman Empire that conquered the Greeks could not displace the Greek language; instead it became Greek-speaking itself. A fisherman in Galilee, a soldier in Capernaum, a Pharisee in Jerusalem, and a Stoic philosopher in Athens could all hold the same letter and read it. God built His superhighway before He drove His gospel down it.

Jambo hili lilikuwa na matokeo manne ya furaha. Kwanza, mitume waliandika Agano Jipya kwa Kigiriki cha Koiné, si kwa Kiaramu, lugha yao ya asili. Walitaka ulimwengu uisome, na Kigiriki ndiyo iliyokuwa lugha ya ulimwengu. Pili, Agano la Kale lilikuwa tayari limetafsiriwa kwa Kigiriki karibu miaka mia mbili na hamsini kabla ya Yesu — ile Septuagint maarufu (mara nyingi hufupishwa LXX, namba ya Kirumi ya 70, kwa sababu mapokeo yanasema wasomi sabini au sabini na wawili waliitafsiri huko Iskanderia). Mitume walipolinukuu Agano la Kale, kwa kawaida walinukuu Septuagint, maana yake Agano la Kale la Kiebrania liliufikia ulimwengu wa Mataifa kupitia Kigiriki. Tatu, Kigiriki kikawa lugha ya Kikristo ya ulimwengu mzima kwa miaka mia tano ya kwanza ya kanisa. Nne, wasomi wanapotaka kurejesha maandishi sahihi kabisa iwezekanavyo ya Agano Jipya, wanakwenda kwenye nakala za Kigiriki kama Codex Sinaiticus. Hakuna tafsiri inayoruhusiwa kuchukua nafasi yake.This had four happy consequences. First, the apostles wrote the New Testament in Koiné Greek, not in their native Aramaic. They wanted the world to read it, and Greek was the world's language. Second, the Old Testament had already been translated into Greek about two hundred and fifty years before Jesus — the famous Septuagint (often abbreviated LXX, the Roman numeral for 70, because tradition says seventy or seventy-two scholars translated it in Alexandria). When the apostles quoted the Old Testament, they usually quoted the Septuagint, which means the Hebrew Old Testament reached the Gentile world through Greek. Third, Greek became the universal Christian language for the first five hundred years of the church. Fourth, when scholars want to recover the most accurate possible text of the New Testament, they go to Greek manuscripts like Codex Sinaiticus. No translation is allowed to substitute.

Kigiriki na Kiebrania: ulinganisho bega kwa begaGreek versus Hebrew: a side-by-side

KipengeleFeature	KiebraniaHebrew	KigirikiGreek
HerufiLetters	Konsonanti 22 (irabu huongezwa kama alama)22 consonants (vowels added as marks)	Herufi 24 (irabu zimo ndani)24 letters (vowels built in)
MwelekeoDirection	Kulia kwenda kushotoRight to left	Kushoto kwenda kulia, kama Kiingereza na KihispaniaLeft to right, like English and Spanish
Muundo wa manenoWord structure	Mizizi ya konsonanti tatuThree-letter consonant roots	Mashina yenye viambishi awali na tamatiStems with prefixes and endings
KuzoelekaFamiliarity	Huonekana ngeni kabisa mwanzoniLooks alien at first sight	Herufi nyingi tayari zinafanana na za Kiingereza (A, B, E, Z, I, K, M, N, O, T, X, Y)Many letters already look like English (A, B, E, Z, I, K, M, N, O, T, X, Y)
Matumizi ya kihisabatiMathematical use	Kila herufi ina thamani ya nambaEach letter has a number value	Herufi za Kigiriki hutumika katika hisabati/sayansi (alpha, beta, gamma, pi, sigma, omega)Greek letters used in math/science (alpha, beta, gamma, pi, sigma, omega)
Ugumu wa kusomaReading difficulty	Sehemu ngumu zaidi: maumbo yasiyozoelekaHardest part: unfamiliar shapes	Sehemu ngumu zaidi: inafanana na Kiingereza lakini si Kiingereza (ρ ni r, si p; ν ni n, si v)Hardest part: looks like English but isn't (ρ is r, not p; ν is n, not v)

Ukweli mmoja muhimu kuliko yote kuhusu Kigiriki kwa msomaji anayetumia herufi za Kirumi: alfabeti ya Kigiriki ni mzazi wa alfabeti ya Kilatini, na alfabeti ya Kilatini ni mzazi wa ile ya Kiingereza na Kihispania (na pia ya Kiswahili tunavyokiandika leo). Herufi nyingi za Kigiriki ni mababu wa moja kwa moja wa herufi unazoandika kila siku. Alpha ikawa A. Beta ikawa B. Gamma ikawa C na G. Iota ikawa I na J. Kappa ikawa K. Lambda ikawa L. Mu ikawa M. Hujifunzi alfabeti ngeni kuanzia mwanzo kabisa; unakutana na mababu wa alfabeti yako mwenyewe.The single most important fact about Greek for a Western reader: the Greek alphabet is the parent of the Latin alphabet, and the Latin alphabet is the parent of English and Spanish. Many Greek letters are direct ancestors of letters you already write every day. Alpha became A. Beta became B. Gamma became C and G. Iota became I and J. Kappa became K. Lambda became L. Mu became M. You are not learning a foreign alphabet from scratch; you are meeting the grandparents of your own.

Soma kila jina kwa sauti. Angalia maumbo ya herufi kubwa na herufi ndogo. Tazama mrithi wake katika Kiingereza. Kisha andika kila herufi ndogo mara tatu katika daftari lako. Mkono humfundisha jicho.Read each name aloud. Notice the capital and lowercase forms. Look at the English heir. Then write each lowercase letter three times in your notebook. The hand teaches the eye.

Herufi kubwaCapital	Herufi ndogoLowercase	JinaName	SautiSound	Mrithi wa KiingerezaEnglish heir
ΑΑ	αα	AlphaAlpha	"a" kama katika "baba" (Kiing. "father")"a" as in "father"	AA
ΒΒ	ββ	BetaBeta	"b" (katika Kigiriki cha kisasa, "v")"b" (in modern Greek, "v")	BB
ΓΓ	γγ	GammaGamma	"g" kama katika "gari" (Kiing. "go")"g" as in "go"	C, GC, G
ΔΔ	δδ	DeltaDelta	"d""d"	DD
ΕΕ	εε	EpsilonEpsilon	"e" fupi kama katika Kiing. "bet"short "e" as in "bet"	EE

Maelezo kuhusu herufi hizi tanoNotes on these five letters

Alpha ni herufi ya kwanza ya alfabeti ya Kigiriki. Kama Aleph ya Kiebrania ambayo imetokana nayo, inawakilisha irabu "a". Neno la Kiingereza "alphabet" (alfabeti) lenyewe linatokana na alpha + beta, herufi mbili za kwanza za mwandiko huu. Hisabati hutumia alpha kumaanisha "pembe." Herufi kubwa Alpha ya Kigiriki inafanana kabisa na A ya Kiingereza; herufi ndogo inaonekana kama tumbo lililojikunja.Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. Like the Hebrew Aleph from which it descends, it represents an "ah" vowel. The English word "alphabet" itself comes from alpha + beta, the first two letters of this script. Mathematics uses alpha for "angle." The Greek capital Alpha looks identical to English A; the lowercase looks like a curled stomach.

Beta ni herufi ya pili na chanzo cha B yetu. Jambo la kuvutia: katika Kigiriki cha kale (Kigiriki cha Agano Jipya) beta hutamkwa "b" kama katika Kiingereza; katika Kigiriki cha kisasa (Kigiriki kinachozungumzwa Athene leo) herufi hiyo hiyo hutamkwa "v." Katika kozi hii tutafuata matamshi ya kale. Herufi kubwa Beta inafanana na B ya Kiingereza; herufi ndogo inaonekana kama B iliyochorwa haraka, ikiinama.Beta is the second letter and the source of our B. Curious fact: in ancient Greek (the Greek of the New Testament) beta is pronounced "b" as in English; in modern Greek (the Greek spoken in Athens today) the same letter is pronounced "v." We will follow the ancient pronunciation in this course. Capital Beta looks like English B; lowercase looks like a B drawn quickly, leaning over.

Gamma ni herufi ya tatu na chanzo cha C na G za Kiingereza. Neno la Kigiriki la "dunia" ni gê (γῆ) — ambalo Kiingereza kimepata "geography" (jiografia: maandishi kuhusu dunia) na "geology" (jiolojia: elimu ya dunia) na mengineyo. Herufi kubwa Gamma inaonekana kama L iliyopinduliwa juu chini. Herufi ndogo gamma inaonekana kama "y" yenye ndoano.Gamma is the third letter and the source of both English C and English G. The Greek word for "earth" is gê (γῆ) — from which English gets "geography" (writing about the earth) and "geology" (study of the earth) and so on. Capital Gamma looks like an upside-down L. Lowercase gamma looks like a "y" with a hook.

Delta ni herufi ya nne na chanzo cha D yetu. Herufi kubwa Delta inaonekana kama pembetatu — ndipo wanahisabati walipopata alama ya "badiliko" au "tofauti." Wanajiografia walipata neno "delta ya mto" kutoka umbo hilo hilo la pembetatu (mdomo wa mto Nile ulifanana na herufi hii). Herufi ndogo delta inaonekana kama "d" iliyopambwa.Delta is the fourth letter and the source of our D. The capital Delta looks like a triangle — from which mathematicians get the symbol for "change" or "difference." Geographers got the word "river delta" from the same triangular shape (the mouth of the Nile resembled this letter). Lowercase delta looks like a stylized "d."

Epsilon ni herufi ya tano, sauti ya "e" fupi. Jina lake kwa kweli linamaanisha "e sahili" (e psilon) — ili kuitofautisha na "e" ndefu ya Eta ambayo tutakutana nayo baada ya muda mfupi. Herufi kubwa Epsilon inafanana na E ya Kiingereza; herufi ndogo inaonekana kama 3 iliyogeuzwa, au kama "e" yetu iliyotazamwa kwenye kioo.Epsilon is the fifth letter, a short "e" sound. The name literally means "simple e" (e psilon) — to distinguish it from the long "e" of Eta which we will meet in a moment. Capital Epsilon looks like an English E; lowercase looks like a backwards 3 or like our own "e" mirrored.

Herufi kubwaCapital	Herufi ndogoLowercase	JinaName	SautiSound	Mrithi wa KiingerezaEnglish heir
ΖΖ	ζζ	ZetaZeta	"z" (au "dz")"z" (or "dz")	ZZ
ΗΗ	ηη	EtaEta	"e" ndefu kama katika Kiing. "they"long "e" as in "they"	H (kwa sura tu)H (visually only)
ΘΘ	θθ	ThetaTheta	"th" kama katika "thelathini" (isiyo ya mghuno)"th" as in "thin" (voiceless)	(hakuna mrithi wa moja kwa moja)(no direct heir)
ΙΙ	ιι	IotaIota	"i" kama katika "kitabu" (Kiing. "machine")"i" as in "machine"	I, JI, J

Maelezo kuhusu herufi hizi nneNotes on these four letters

Zeta ni herufi ya sita na chanzo cha Z yetu. Herufi kubwa Zeta inafanana na Z ya Kiingereza; herufi ndogo inaonekana kama Z iliyopindapinda yenye pambo.Zeta is the sixth letter and the source of our Z. Capital Zeta looks like English Z; lowercase looks like a wiggly Z with a flourish.

Eta ni herufi ya saba. Muhimu: herufi kubwa Eta inafanana na H ya Kiingereza, lakini inatoa sauti ya "e" ndefu, si sauti ya "h". Huu ni mtego mmojawapo wa kawaida zaidi kwa wasomaji wapya wa Kigiriki. Ukiona Η au η katika Kigiriki, usiseme "h"; sema sauti ndefu ya "ei" au "ii". Neno la Kigiriki la "the" (kibainishi cha kike, umoja) ni hê (ἡ), na neno la Kigiriki la "au" ni ê (ἤ). Yote mawili yameandikwa kwa Eta lakini hutamkwa kama "e" ndefu. Herufi ndogo eta inaonekana kama n ndogo ya Kiingereza ambayo mguu wake wa kulia umerefushwa chini ya mstari.Eta is the seventh letter. Important: the capital Eta looks like English H, but it makes a long "e" sound, not an "h" sound. This is one of the most common pitfalls for new readers of Greek. When you see Η or η in Greek, do not say "h"; say a long "ay" or "ee" sound. The Greek word for "the" (feminine, singular) is hê (ἡ), and the Greek word for "or" is ê (ἤ). Both are spelled with Eta but pronounced like a long "e." Lowercase eta looks like a lowercase English n with the right leg extended below the line.

Theta ni herufi ya nane, na mojawapo ya herufi muhimu zaidi katika teolojia ya Kikristo. Ni herufi ya kwanza ya theos (θεός), neno la Kigiriki la "Mungu." Wakati mwingine utaona maandishi ya kale ya Kikristo yaliyochongwa ambamo herufi moja Θ inasimama badala ya neno zima "Mungu" — kama tunavyoweza kuandika "M" badala yake. Herufi kubwa Theta inaonekana kama O yenye kistari cha mlalo ndani yake; herufi ndogo inaonekana kama duaradufu ndefu nyembamba iliyogawanywa na mstari. Sauti yake ni ile "th" laini ya Kiingereza "thin" au "think" (kama "th" ya Kiswahili "thelathini"), si ile "th" nzito ya "this" (kama "dh" ya "dhambi").Theta is the eighth letter, and one of the most important in Christian theology. It is the first letter of theos (θεός), the Greek word for "God." Sometimes you will see early Christian inscriptions in which a single letter Θ stands for the entire word "God" — the way we might write "G" as a stand-in. Capital Theta looks like an O with a horizontal bar inside; lowercase looks like a tall thin oval bisected by a line. The sound is the soft English "th" of "thin" or "think," not the harder "th" of "this."

Iota ni herufi ya tisa na ndogo kuliko zote. Ulikwisha kukutana nayo katika Sehemu ya 2 — huyu ndiye mzao wa Kigiriki wa Yod ya Kiebrania, na ndiyo herufi hasa ambayo Yesu aliitaja katika Mathayo 5:18 aliposema "yodi moja wala nukta moja ya torati haitaondoka kamwe." Iota ya Kigiriki = Yod ya Kiebrania = herufi ndogo kuliko zote. Kutoka iota zimetokea I na J za Kiingereza. Pia ndiyo chanzo cha msemo wa Kiingereza "not one iota" wenye maana ya "hata chembe ndogo kabisa."Iota is the ninth letter and the smallest. You met it already in Unit 2 — this is the Greek descendant of the Hebrew Yod, and it is the very letter Jesus referred to in Matthew 5:18 when He said "not one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law." Greek iota = Hebrew Yod = the smallest letter. From iota descend both English I and English J. It is also the root of the English idiom "not one iota" meaning "not the smallest bit."

Herufi kubwaCapital	Herufi ndogoLowercase	JinaName	SautiSound	Mrithi wa KiingerezaEnglish heir
ΚΚ	κκ	KappaKappa	"k""k"	K, C (ngumu)K, C (hard)
ΛΛ	λλ	LambdaLambda	"l""l"	LL
ΜΜ	μμ	MuMu	"m""m"	MM

Maelezo kuhusu herufi hizi tatuNotes on these three letters

Kappa ni herufi ya kumi, chanzo cha Kigiriki cha K yetu. Ni sauti safi, ngumu ya "k". Herufi kubwa Kappa inafanana kabisa na K ya Kiingereza; herufi ndogo inaonekana kama toleo dogo la herufi kubwa. Maneno mengi ya Kigiriki yaliyoingia katika Kiingereza yakiwa na sauti ngumu ya "c" (cardiac, cosmic, character) mwanzoni yalianza na Kappa.Kappa is the tenth letter, the Greek source of our K. It is a clean, hard "k" sound. Capital Kappa looks identical to English K; lowercase looks like a smaller version of the capital. Many Greek words that came into English with a hard "c" sound (cardiac, cosmic, character) originally began with Kappa.

Lambda ni herufi ya kumi na moja, chanzo cha L yetu. Herufi kubwa Lambda inaonekana kama V iliyopinduliwa juu chini au kama paa lenye kilele; herufi ndogo lambda inaonekana kama "l" yenye panda juu. Neno la Kigiriki logos (λόγος), "neno," linaanza na Lambda — neno lile lile linalofungua Injili ya Yohana ("Hapo mwanzo kulikuwako Neno"). Tutajifunza logos kwa kina katika Sehemu ya 8.Lambda is the eleventh letter, the source of our L. Capital Lambda looks like an upside-down V or a peaked roof; lowercase lambda looks like an "l" with a forked top. The Greek word logos (λόγος), "word," begins with Lambda — the same word that opens the Gospel of John ("In the beginning was the Word"). We will study logos in detail in Unit 8.

Mu ni herufi ya kumi na mbili, chanzo cha M yetu. Herufi kubwa Mu inafanana kabisa na M ya Kiingereza; herufi ndogo inaonekana karibu kama "u" ya Kiingereza yenye mkia unaoning'inia chini ya mstari. Mu inafungua maneno mengi muhimu ya Kigiriki: mathetes (μαθητής, mwanafunzi), megas (μέγας, -kuu), Messias (Μεσσίας, Masihi, lililotoholewa kutoka Kiebrania). Wanasayansi wanaijua mu ndogo kama alama ya "mikro-" (sehemu moja ya milioni).Mu is the twelfth letter, the source of our M. Capital Mu looks identical to English M; lowercase looks almost like an English "u" with a tail that hangs below the line. Mu opens many important Greek words: mathetes (μαθητής, disciple), megas (μέγας, great), Messias (Μεσσίας, Messiah, transliterated from Hebrew). Scientists know lowercase mu as the symbol for "micro-" (one millionth).

Kumi na mbili tayari, kumi na mbili zimebakiTwelve down, twelve to go

Umejifunza sasa hivi nusu ya alfabeti ya Kigiriki. Herufi kubwa unazozijua tayari zinaonekana hivi: A, B, Γ (mpya), Δ (mpya), E, Z, H, Θ (mpya), I, K, Λ (mpya), M. Kati ya hizo kumi na mbili, nane tayari zinafanana kabisa na herufi za Kiingereza/Kihispania na nne tu (Gamma, Delta, Theta, Lambda) zina maumbo yaliyo tofauti kwa macho. Kigiriki ni laini zaidi kwa macho ya wasomaji wa herufi za Kirumi kuliko Kiebrania. Ugumu wa Kigiriki si ugeni wa maumbo; ugumu ni kukumbuka kwamba baadhi ya maumbo yanayofanana na herufi za Kiingereza kwa kweli yana maana tofauti (Eta si H, Rho haitakuwa P, Nu haitakuwa V). Tayari umeuvuka mtego wa kwanza kati ya hiyo usiku wa leo.You have just learned half the Greek alphabet. The capital letters you already know look like A, B, Γ (new), Δ (new), E, Z, H, Θ (new), I, K, Λ (new), M. Of those twelve, eight already look identical to English/Spanish letters and only four (Gamma, Delta, Theta, Lambda) have visibly different shapes. Greek is gentler on Western eyes than Hebrew. The hard part with Greek is not the strangeness of the shapes; the hard part is remembering that some shapes that look like English letters actually mean something different (Eta is not H, Rho will not be P, Nu will not be V). You have already cleared the first of those traps tonight.

Sasa unajua Kigiriki cha kutosha kusoma maneno kadhaa halisi ya Agano Jipya. Kigiriki husomwa kutoka kushoto kwenda kulia, kama Kiingereza na Kihispania. Soma kila neno kwa sauti. Namba ya Strong imetolewa kwa kila neno ili uweze kulitafuta usiku wa leo.You now know enough Greek to read several real New Testament words. Greek reads left to right, like English and Spanish. Read each word out loud. Strong's number is given for each so you can look it up tonight.

Kai ndilo neno linalotumika mara nyingi kuliko yote katika Agano Jipya zima la Kigiriki. Linatokea karibu mara elfu tisa. Ni kiunganishi kinachofanya kazi kubwa — "na" — kinachounganisha masimulizi ya Injili kama shanga kwenye uzi. Fungua sura yoyote ya Marko au sura yoyote ya Yohana na utaona kai ikianza karibu kila sentensi ya pili. Herufi zake tatu ni Kappa-Alpha-Iota: k-a-i. Alama ndogo juu ya iota ni alama ya mkazo ya Kigiriki — usiiruhusu ikuvuruge. Neno ni kai tu, na linamaanisha "na."Kai is the most common word in the entire Greek New Testament. It appears about nine thousand times. It is the workhorse conjunction — "and" — that strings the Gospel narratives together like beads on a string. Open any chapter of Mark or any chapter of John and you will see kai begin almost every other sentence. The three letters are Kappa-Alpha-Iota: k-a-i. The little mark over the iota is a Greek accent — do not let it distract you. The word is just kai, and it means "and."

Thelêma ni neno la Kigiriki la "mapenzi" au "tamaa" — kile mtu anachokitaka. Herufi zake sita ni Theta-Epsilon-Lambda-Eta-Mu-Alpha: th-e-l-ê-m-a. Angalia Theta mwanzoni ("th" laini ya "thin" au ya "thelathini"), na Eta kama herufi ya nne ("e" ndefu). Hili ndilo neno Yesu alilotumia katika Sala ya Bwana: "Genêthêtô to thelêma sou" — "Mapenzi yako yatimizwe" (Mathayo 6:10). Ndilo neno lililoko katika Warumi 12:2 Paulo anapowaita waamini wajue "mapenzi ya Mungu yaliyo mema, ya kumpendeza, na ukamilifu." Wakati ujao utakaposali "Mapenzi yako yatimizwe," utakuwa ukisali huku thelêma ikisikika masikioni mwako.Thelêma is the Greek word for "will" or "desire" — what a person wants. The six letters are Theta-Epsilon-Lambda-Eta-Mu-Alpha: th-e-l-ê-m-a. Notice the Theta at the start (the soft "th" of "thin"), and the Eta as the fourth letter (long "e"). This is the word Jesus used in the Lord's Prayer: "Genêthêtô to thelêma sou" — "Thy will be done" (Matthew 6:10). It is the word in Romans 12:2 when Paul calls believers to discern "the good and acceptable and perfect will of God." The next time you pray "Thy will be done," you will be praying with thelêma in your ear.

Utoholeaji wa Kigiriki wa jina la mahali la Kiebrania Bet-lechem ("nyumba ya mkate"). Herufi zake saba zimeenea katika sehemu kubwa ya alfabeti yetu mpya: Beta-Eta-Theta-Lambda-Epsilon-Epsilon-Mu. Zisome kwa mpangilio, kushoto kwenda kulia: B-ê-th-l-e-e-m. Neno hili linaonekana katika Mathayo 2:1 (Mamajusi wakimtafuta mtoto aliyezaliwa "katika Bêthleem ya Uyahudi") na tena katika Luka 2:4 (Yusufu akipanda "mpaka mji wa Daudi, uitwao Bêthleem"). Namba ya Strong G965 katika konkodansi yoyote ya Kigiriki.The Greek transliteration of the Hebrew place-name Bet-lechem ("house of bread"). The seven letters spread across most of our new alphabet: Beta-Eta-Theta-Lambda-Epsilon-Epsilon-Mu. Read them in order, left to right: B-ê-th-l-e-e-m. The word appears in Matthew 2:1 (the Magi seeking the child born "in Bêthleem of Judea") and again in Luke 2:4 (Joseph going up to "the city of David which is called Bêthleem"). Strong's number G965 in any Greek concordance.

Kwa herufi kumi na mbili tu za Kigiriki, umesoma neno ambalo Yesu aliliomba huko Gethsemane, kiunganishi kinachounganisha Injili pamoja, na mji alimozaliwa.In just twelve Greek letters, you have read the word Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, the conjunction that strings the Gospels together, and the town where He was born.

Moja zaidi, kwa furaha tuOne more, just because

Jina la Kigiriki la eneo ambamo Yesu alikulia na kuhudumu. Herufi nane: Gamma-Alpha-Lambda-Iota-Lambda-Alpha-Iota-Alpha. Zisome kwa sauti: G-a-l-i-l-a-i-a. Alama iliyo juu ya iota ya pili ni alama ya mkazo — neno hutamkwa "Ga-li-LAI-a." Mathayo 4:23: "Kai periêgen ho Iêsous holen tên Galilaian" — "Naye Yesu alikuwa akizunguka katika Galilaya yote." Sehemu mbili zilizopita usingeweza kusoma hili. Sasa unaweza.The Greek name for the region where Jesus grew up and ministered. Eight letters: Gamma-Alpha-Lambda-Iota-Lambda-Alpha-Iota-Alpha. Read them out: G-a-l-i-l-a-i-a. The accent mark above the second iota is a stress mark — the word is pronounced "Ga-li-LAI-a." Matthew 4:23: "Kai periêgen ho Iêsous holen tên Galilaian" — "And Jesus went throughout all Galilee." Two units ago you could not have read this. Now you can.

Fungua Biblia yako katika Ufunuo 22:13. Kristo anazungumza: "Mimi ni Alpha na Omega, wa kwanza na wa mwisho, mwanzo na mwisho." Umeyasoma maneno haya maisha yako yote ya Kikristo. Hadi usiku wa leo uliyajua kama lugha ya picha: Kristo kama wa kwanza na wa mwisho. Sasa unaweza kuyasoma kama somo la alfabeti ya Kigiriki linalotoka moja kwa moja kinywani mwa Bwana aliyefufuka. Alpha ni herufi ya kwanza ya alfabeti ya Kigiriki — herufi uliyojifunza dakika kumi zilizopita. Omega ni herufi ya mwisho ya alfabeti ya Kigiriki — herufi utakayojifunza katika Sehemu ya 7. Kristo anaidai alfabeti ya Kigiriki yenyewe kuwa cheo chake. Yeye ni kila kitu kuanzia A hadi Z. Yeye ndiye ambaye alfabeti huanza naye na ambaye alfabeti huishia naye. Lugha nzima — na kwa upana zaidi Agano Jipya lote lililoandikwa — ni mali yake.Open your Bible to Revelation 22:13. Christ is speaking: "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last." You have read these words your whole Christian life. Until tonight you knew them as a metaphor: Christ as first and last. Now you can read them as a Greek alphabet lesson coming directly from the lips of the risen Lord. Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet — the letter you learned ten minutes ago. Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet — the letter you will learn in Unit 7. Christ is claiming the Greek alphabet itself as His title. He is everything from A to Z. He is what the alphabet begins with and what the alphabet ends with. The whole language — and by extension the whole written New Testament — is His.

Simama uone jambo zaidi. Katika Sehemu ya 3 tuliona kwamba neno dogo la Kiebrania et katika Mwanzo 1:1 linaandikwa Aleph-Tav — herufi ya kwanza na ya mwisho za alfabeti ya Kiebrania, yaani Alpha na Omega ya Kiebrania iliyojengwa ndani ya sentensi ya kwanza kabisa ya Biblia. Aleph-Tav ya Kiebrania, Alpha-Omega ya Kigiriki. Wazo lile lile, katika lugha zote mbili, likiyazungushia Maagano yote mawili. Kristo katika Kiebrania. Kristo katika Kigiriki. Sentensi ya kwanza ya Mwanzo kwa utulivu ina ndani yake cheo ambacho kitabu cha mwisho cha Biblia kitakitamka waziwazi.Stop and notice something further. In Unit 3 we saw that the little Hebrew word et in Genesis 1:1 is spelled Aleph-Tav — the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet, the Hebrew Alpha and Omega built into the very first sentence of the Bible. Hebrew Aleph-Tav, Greek Alpha-Omega. The same idea, in both languages, framing both Testaments. Christ in the Hebrew. Christ in the Greek. The first sentence of Genesis quietly contains the title that the last book of the Bible will speak openly.

"Mimi ni Alpha na Omega — herufi ya kwanza na ya mwisho za alfabeti ya Kigiriki, cheo ambacho Kristo alijichagulia mwenyewe.""I am the Alpha and the Omega — the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, the title Christ chose for Himself."

Sasa umejifunza herufi ya kwanza ya cheo chake. Kufikia mwisho wa Sehemu ya 7 utaijua ya mwisho. Kufikia mwisho wa Sehemu ya 8 utalijua Neno aliloitwa alipouvaa mwili: Logos. Njia iliyo mbele inang'aa.You have now learned the first letter of His title. By the end of Unit 7 you will know the last. By the end of Unit 8 you will know the Word He was called when He took on flesh: Logos. The road ahead is bright.

Zoezi la Daftari (karatasi na kalamu)Notebook Activity (paper and pen)

Fungua daftari lako kwenye ukurasa mpya. Upe kichwa "Sehemu ya 6 — Nusu ya Kwanza ya Alfabeti ya Kigiriki." Tengeneza jedwali lenye safu tano: Herufi kubwa, Herufi ndogo, Jina, Sauti, Mrithi wa Kiingereza/Kihispania. Jaza herufi zote kumi na mbili kwa mpangilio: Alpha hadi Mu. Chini ya jedwali, andika mistari mitatu: (1) "Mimi ni Alpha na Omega" — Ufunuo 22:13. (2) Thelêma = mapenzi ya Mungu. (3) Kai = "na." Chini ya mistari hiyo, andika kila moja ya herufi ndogo kumi na mbili za Kigiriki mara tano zaidi, polepole. Kigiriki ni rafiki zaidi kwa mkono wako kuliko Kiebrania: kinakaa sawa juu ya mstari, kinakwenda kushoto kwenda kulia, na herufi nyingi ni mababu wa moja kwa moja wa herufi ambazo umekuwa ukiziandika tangu utotoni. Karibu kwenye alfabeti ya pili ya Biblia.Open your notebook to a fresh page. Title it "Unit 6 — The First Half of the Greek Alphabet." Make a table with five columns: Capital, Lowercase, Name, Sound, English/Spanish heir. Fill in all twelve letters in order: Alpha through Mu. Below the table, write three lines: (1) "I am the Alpha and the Omega" — Revelation 22:13. (2) Thelêma = the will of God. (3) Kai = "and." Below the lines, write each of the twelve Greek lowercase letters five more times slowly. Greek is friendlier to your hand than Hebrew was: it sits flat on the line, it goes left to right, and many letters are direct ancestors of letters you have been writing since childhood. Welcome to the second alphabet of the Bible.