BBG Chapter 12 — αὐτός¶

Learn the three uses of αὐτός: (1) as a third-person personal pronoun in the oblique cases; (2) as an intensive pronoun in the predicate position ("himself/herself/itself"); and (3) as an adjective of identity in attributive position ("the same"). Memorize the αὐτός paradigm and recognize which use is in view by its syntactic position relative to the article.

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Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar, Mounce, 4th Edition

1. Introduction — Three Uses of αὐτός¶

αὐτός, αὐτή, αὐτό is one of the most versatile and frequently occurring words in the GNT (~5,600 occurrences). It has three distinct uses, each determined by its position relative to the definite article and a noun:

Use	Position	Meaning	Example
Personal Pronoun	Oblique cases (Gen/Dat/Acc) only; no noun required	"him / her / it / them"	λέγει αὐτῷ — "he says to him"
Intensive Adjective	Predicate position (no article before αὐτός, but noun has article)	"himself / herself / themselves / the ___ himself"	αὐτὸς ὁ βασιλεύς — "the king himself"
Identical Adjective	Attributive position (article directly before αὐτός)	"the same ___"	ὁ αὐτὸς βασιλεύς — "the same king"

Key diagnostic: Position determines use. The article is the key.

No noun needed, any case → personal pronoun (3rd person)

Predicate position → intensive ("himself/herself")

Attributive position → identical ("the same")

2. Full αὐτός Paradigm¶

Singular¶

Case	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	αὐτός	αὐτή	αὐτό
Genitive	αὐτοῦ	αὐτῆς	αὐτοῦ
Dative	αὐτῷ	αὐτῇ	αὐτῷ
Accusative	αὐτόν	αὐτήν	αὐτό

Plural¶

Case	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	αὐτοί	αὐταί	αὐτά
Genitive	αὐτῶν	αὐτῶν	αὐτῶν
Dative	αὐτοῖς	αὐταῖς	αὐτοῖς
Accusative	αὐτούς	αὐτάς	αὐτά

Note: αὐτός follows the standard 2-1-2 declension pattern (masculine and neuter 2nd declension, feminine 1st declension), exactly like the adjective ἀγαθός. The neuter nominative/accusative singular αὐτό lacks the final -ν (contrast αὐτόν masc.).

3. Use 1 — Personal Pronoun (3rd Person)¶

In its oblique cases (genitive, dative, accusative), αὐτός functions as the 3rd person personal pronoun: "him," "her," "it," "them." The nominative is not used as a simple personal pronoun; the nominative is reserved for intensive or identical use.

Form	Translation	GNT Example
αὐτόν	"him"	βλέπω αὐτόν — "I see him"
αὐτήν	"her"	λέγει αὐτῇ — "he says to her"
αὐτοῦ	"his" / "of him"	ὁ λόγος αὐτοῦ — "his word"
αὐτῶν	"their" / "of them"	ἡ βασιλεία αὐτῶν — "their kingdom"
αὐτοῖς	"to/for them"	εἶπεν αὐτοῖς — "he said to them"
αὐτούς	"them"	ἀπέστειλεν αὐτούς — "he sent them"

Note: This is by far the most common use of αὐτός in the GNT. When you encounter αὐτόν, αὐτήν, αὐτῷ, αὐτοῖς, αὐτῶν, etc. — simply translate as the appropriate personal pronoun.

4. Use 2 — Intensive Adjective (Predicate Position)¶

When αὐτός appears in the predicate position — that is, without the article directly before it, but next to an article-noun phrase — it serves as an intensive adjective: "himself," "herself," "themselves," or "the ___ himself."

Intensive = predicate position (no article directly before αὐτός)

αὐτὸς ὁ βασιλεύς — "the king himself" ὁ βασιλεύς αὐτός — "the king himself" (same meaning; αὐτός after noun) αὐτὴ ἡ γυνή — "the woman herself" αὐτοὶ οἱ μαθηταί — "the disciples themselves"

GNT example:

αὐτὸς γὰρ Δαυὶδ εἶπεν — "For David himself said…" (Mark 12:36) αὐτὸς Ἰησοῦς οὐκ ἐβάπτιζεν — "Jesus himself was not baptizing" (John 4:2)

Note: The intensive αὐτός in the nominative often adds emphasis to the subject: "he/she himself/herself." In English, this overlaps with the reflexive pronoun, but in Greek it is not reflexive (a reflexive pronoun would use ἑαυτόν).

5. Use 3 — Identical Adjective (Attributive Position)¶

When αὐτός appears in the attributive position — with the article directly before αὐτός — it serves as an identical adjective: "the same."

Identical = attributive position (article directly before αὐτός)

ὁ αὐτὸς βασιλεύς — "the same king" ἡ αὐτὴ ἡμέρα — "the same day" τὸ αὐτὸ πνεῦμα — "the same spirit"

GNT example:

ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ καιρῷ — "at the same time" τὸ αὐτὸ φρονεῖτε — "think the same thing" (Phil 2:2; 4:2)

6. Distinguishing the Three Uses — Decision Tree¶

Is αὐτός in an oblique case (Gen/Dat/Acc) with no article before it and no noun it modifies?
  → YES → Personal Pronoun: "him/her/it/them"

Is αὐτός next to an article-noun phrase, but WITHOUT the article directly before αὐτός?
  → YES → Intensive Adjective: "himself/herself/themselves"

Does αὐτός have the article DIRECTLY before it (article–αὐτός–noun or article–αὐτός alone)?
  → YES → Identical Adjective: "the same"

Phrase pattern	Use	Translation
… αὐτόν / αὐτήν / αὐτῷ … (no modifying noun)	Personal Pronoun	"him / her / to him"
αὐτὸς ὁ [noun] or ὁ [noun] αὐτός	Intensive	"the [noun] himself"
ὁ αὐτὸς [noun]	Identical	"the same [noun]"

7. GNT Examples of All Three Uses¶

Use 1 — Personal Pronoun¶

John 1:12 — ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν "He gave them authority…" → αὐτοῖς = Dative Plural; oblique case; no modifying noun → personal pronoun "them."

John 3:16 — δέδωκεν τὸν υἱὸν τὸν μονογενῆ, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν "…that everyone who believes in him…" → αὐτόν = Accusative Singular Masculine; personal pronoun "him."

Use 2 — Intensive Adjective¶

Mark 12:36 — αὐτὸς Δαυὶδ εἶπεν "David himself said…" → αὐτός in predicate position (no article before αὐτός, David is the noun) → intensive.

John 4:2 — αὐτὸς Ἰησοῦς οὐκ ἐβάπτιζεν "Jesus himself was not baptizing…" → αὐτός in predicate position, clarifies/emphasizes the subject → intensive.

Use 3 — Identical Adjective¶

Phil 2:2 — τὸ αὐτὸ φρονῆτε "Think the same thing." → Article directly before αὐτό (τὸ αὐτό) → identical adjective "the same."

Phil 4:2 — τὸ αὐτὸ φρονεῖν ἐν κυρίῳ "To think the same thing in the Lord." → Same construction; identical adjective.