independentparticipialrelativepurposecauseconditionalphrase modifierdashed = verbless / suspended
Flush-left = a main (independent) clause. Each dependent line begins directly beneath the word it attaches to in the line above — the anchor word is dotted-underlined, and lights up when you hover its dependent clause; each tag also names the attachment. A dashed border marks verbless, elliptical, or suspended lines. Where a long sentence's staircase runs wider than the page, the diagram scrolls sideways. (In print, or without JavaScript, lines fall back to stepped indent columns.)
The tongue — a small member, a great fire 3:1–12
vv. 1–2 — not many teachers: we all stumble, and the man who never stumbles in word
1
Μὴ πολλοὶ διδάσκαλοι γίνεσθε, ἀδελφοί μου,independent — the prohibition — teaching weighed before it is taken up
εἰδότες ὅτι μεῖζον κρίμα λημψόμεθα.participial — causal — the ground the teacher already knows (ὅτι-content kept within the line)
2
πολλὰ γὰρ πταίομεν ἅπαντες.cause — the wider ground of the prohibition — ἅπαντες, James included
εἴ τις ἐν λόγῳ οὐ πταίει,conditional — protasis — leans on the verdict below
οὗτος τέλειος ἀνήρ,independent — apodosis — verbless verdict: τέλειος ἀνήρ
δυνατὸς χαλιναγωγῆσαι καὶ ὅλον τὸ σῶμα.phrase modifier — apposition expanding the verdict — χαλιναγωγῆσαι plants the bridle image for v. 3
vv. 3–5 — the similes: the horses' bits, the ships' rudder, the spark in the forest
3
εἰ δὲ τῶν ἵππων τοὺς χαλινοὺς εἰς τὰ στόματα βάλλομενconditional — protasis — leans on the apodosis below; the bridle of v. 2 made literal
εἰς τὸ πείθεσθαι αὐτοὺς ἡμῖν,purpose — εἰς τό + infinitive — why the bit goes in
καὶ ὅλον τὸ σῶμα αὐτῶν μετάγομεν.independent — apodosis — the whole animal turned by the smallest tackle
4
ἰδοὺ καὶ τὰ πλοῖα,independent — ἰδού — the subject suspended over its participles
τηλικαῦτα ὄντα καὶ ὑπὸ ἀνέμων σκληρῶν ἐλαυνόμενα,participial — concessive pair — size and storm both conceded
μετάγεται ὑπὸ ἐλαχίστου πηδαλίουindependent — the suspended subject finds its verb — μετάγεται echoes v. 3
ὅπου ἡ ὁρμὴ τοῦ εὐθύνοντος βούλεται.relative — ὅπου — the rudder answers to one man's ὁρμή
5
οὕτως καὶ ἡ γλῶσσα μικρὸν μέλος ἐστὶνindependent — οὕτως καί — the similes land on the tongue
καὶ μεγάλα αὐχεῖ.independent — coordinate finite — μικρόν against μεγάλα
ἰδοὺ ἡλίκον πῦρ ἡλίκην ὕλην ἀνάπτει·independent — the third simile — ἡλίκον…ἡλίκην, the spark and the forest
vv. 6–8 — the tongue as fire: set among our members, and untamable
6
καὶ ἡ γλῶσσα πῦρ,independent — verbless metaphor — the simile hardens into identification
ὁ κόσμος τῆς ἀδικίας·phrase modifier — apposition on πῦρ — ὁ κόσμος τῆς ἀδικίας, a whole unrighteous world in one member
ἡ γλῶσσα καθίσταται ἐν τοῖς μέλεσιν ἡμῶν,independent — the placement — καθίσταται, stationed among the members
ἡ σπιλοῦσα ὅλον τὸ σῶμαparticipial — attributive — the stain spreads from the one member
καὶ φλογίζουσα τὸν τροχὸν τῆς γενέσεωςparticipial — attributive — τὸν τροχὸν τῆς γενέσεως read as the whole course of life
καὶ φλογιζομένη ὑπὸ τῆς γεέννης.participial — the passive twin — φλογίζουσα answered by φλογιζομένη: the arsonist is itself arson
7
πᾶσα γὰρ φύσις θηρίων τε καὶ πετεινῶν, ἑρπετῶν τε καὶ ἐναλίων δαμάζεται καὶ δεδάμασται τῇ φύσει τῇ ἀνθρωπίνῃ·independent — γάρ — the taming premise: all four classes of creature, present and perfect
8
τὴν δὲ γλῶσσαν οὐδεὶς δαμάσαι δύναται ἀνθρώπων·independent — the antithesis — δέ against v. 7: the one untamable nature
ἀκατάστατον κακόν,phrase modifier — verbless apposition on τὴν γλῶσσαν — ἀκατάστατον, never at rest
μεστὴ ἰοῦ θανατηφόρου.phrase modifier — verbless apposition — the asp's venom (cf. Ps 140:3)
vv. 9–12 — blessing and cursing from the same mouth: the spring and the fig tree
9
ἐν αὐτῇ εὐλογοῦμεν τὸν κύριον καὶ πατέρα,independent — the scandal, first limb — ἐν αὐτῇ: the tongue at worship
καὶ ἐν αὐτῇ καταρώμεθα τοὺς ἀνθρώπουςindependent — the scandal, second limb — the same instrument turned
τοὺς καθ' ὁμοίωσιν θεοῦ γεγονότας·participial — attributive — καθ' ὁμοίωσιν (Gen 1:26): cursing men reaches their Maker
10
ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ στόματος ἐξέρχεται εὐλογία καὶ κατάρα.independent — the scandal stated — one στόμα, two streams
οὐ χρή, ἀδελφοί μου, ταῦτα οὕτως γίνεσθαι.independent — the verdict — οὐ χρή, the letter's only use of χρή
11
μήτι ἡ πηγὴ ἐκ τῆς αὐτῆς ὀπῆς βρύει τὸ γλυκὺ καὶ τὸ πικρόν;independent — μήτι — nature's first witness, expecting 'no'
12
μὴ δύναται, ἀδελφοί μου, συκῆ ἐλαίας ποιῆσαι ἢ ἄμπελος σῦκα;independent — μή — nature's second witness: each nature bears its own
οὔτε ἁλυκὸν γλυκὺ ποιῆσαι ὕδωρ.independent — elliptical close — οὔτε, δύναται carried forward: the mouth must choose its spring
The wisdom from above 3:13–18
vv. 13–16 — the wisdom from below: jealousy, ambition, disorder
13
Τίς σοφὸς καὶ ἐπιστήμων ἐν ὑμῖν;independent — the diatribe question — verbless: σοφὸς καὶ ἐπιστήμων, the teacher's own claim
δειξάτω ἐκ τῆς καλῆς ἀναστροφῆς τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ ἐν πραΰτητι σοφίας.independent — the answer — δειξάτω: wisdom proved by conduct, in meekness
14
εἰ δὲ ζῆλον πικρὸν ἔχετε καὶ ἐριθείαν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ὑμῶν,conditional — protasis — leans on the prohibition below
μὴ κατακαυχᾶσθε καὶ ψεύδεσθε κατὰ τῆς ἀληθείας.independent — apodosis — such 'wisdom' may not advertise itself
15
οὐκ ἔστιν αὕτη ἡ σοφία ἄνωθεν κατερχομένη,independent — the disqualification — αὕτη, the jealous kind, denied the name ἄνωθεν
ἀλλὰ ἐπίγειος, ψυχική, δαιμονιώδης.independent — the verbless triad — ἐπίγειος, ψυχική, δαιμονιώδης: each step lower
16
ὅπου γὰρ ζῆλος καὶ ἐριθεία, ἐκεῖ ἀκαταστασία καὶ πᾶν φαῦλον πρᾶγμα.cause — ὅπου…ἐκεῖ — why it is disqualified: envy's soil grows ἀκαταστασία (cf. ἀκατάστατον, v. 8)
vv. 17–18 — the wisdom from above: the virtue catalogue and the harvest of peace
17
ἡ δὲ ἄνωθεν σοφία πρῶτον μὲν ἁγνή ἐστιν,independent — the counter-portrait — πρῶτον μὲν ἁγνή: purity before all else
ἔπειτα εἰρηνική, ἐπιεικής, εὐπειθής, μεστὴ ἐλέους καὶ καρπῶν ἀγαθῶν, ἀδιάκριτος, ἀνυπόκριτος.phrase modifier — ἔπειτα — the catalogue continues the predicate, ἐστιν carried forward
18
καρπὸς δὲ δικαιοσύνης ἐν εἰρήνῃ σπείρεται τοῖς ποιοῦσιν εἰρήνην.independent — the close — the harvest metaphor: peace-makers sow the seed whose fruit is righteousness
Analysis. James 3 reads nothing like the Pauline chains: almost every line sits flush left, purple aphorism after purple aphorism, and the eye sees at once that this chapter argues by parataxis — simile set beside simile, verdict beside verdict — not by subordination (the deepest line in the whole chapter is a single purpose phrase at level 2). Three olive protases lean forward on their verdicts (vv. 2, 3, 14), and the two ἰδού similes share one shape: a suspended subject (the ships) caught by its verb two lines later, μετάγεται echoing the μετάγομεν of the horses. The dashed verbless lines carry the chapter's most savage lines — ἡ γλῶσσα πῦρ with its apposition ὁ κόσμος τῆς ἀδικίας, and the double indictment ἀκατάστατον κακόν, μεστὴ ἰοῦ θανατηφόρου hanging under τὴν γλῶσσαν; in v. 6 a teal participle triad descends from the stationed tongue — defiling, setting on fire, itself set on fire — the active φλογίζουσα answered by the passive φλογιζομένη from Gehenna. Interpretive choices the layout takes a side on: εἰ δέ at v. 3 is read as a true conditional (not the variant ἴδε); ὁ κόσμος τῆς ἀδικίας is apposition to πῦρ rather than a new predication; τὸν τροχὸν τῆς γενέσεως is rendered 'the course of life'; the ὅπου…ἐκεῖ line of v. 16 is kept whole as one verbless correlative grounding the triad of v. 15; and v. 17's ἔπειτα catalogue is hung as an elliptical continuation of πρῶτον μὲν ἁγνή ἐστιν rather than a fresh clause, so the whole portrait of the wisdom from above stands under its one verb.