John 15:18

Εἰ ὁ κόσμος ὑμᾶς μισεῖ, γινώσκετε ὅτι ἐμὲ πρῶτον ὑμῶν μεμίσηκεν.

RBT Greek Interlinear:

Strongs 1487; Ei; Εἰ; If; Conj

Strongs 3588; ho; ὁ; the; Art-NMS

Strongs 2889; kosmos; κόσμος; order; N-NMS

Strongs 4771; hymas; ὑμᾶς; yourselves; PPro-A2P

Strongs 3404; misei; μισεῖ; hates; V-PIA-3S

Strongs 1097; ginōskete; γινώσκετε; you recognize; V-PIA-2P

Strongs 3754; hoti; ὅτι; because/that; Conj

Strongs 1473; eme; ἐμὲ; myself; PPro-A1S

Strongs 4412; prōton; πρῶτον; first; Adv-S/Adj-N/M

Strongs 4771; hymōn; ὑμῶν; of yourselves; PPro-G2P

Strongs 3404; memisēken; μεμίσηκεν; it has hated; V-RIA-3S

RBT Hebrew Literal:

"Firstborn among multitudinous brothers..." (Rom. 8:29)

If the Order is hating yourselves, you are recognizing that it has hated myself, the first of yourselves!^104d

Julia Smith Literal 1876 Translation:
If the world hate you, know that it has hated me the first of you.

LITV Translation:
If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it has hated you.

ESV Translation:
Error retrieving verse.

Footnotes

104d

The Greek word πρῶτον serves both as the accusative neuter singular form of the adjective πρῶτος (“first”) and as an indeclinable adverb meaning “firstly,” “at first,” or “beforehand.” As an adjective, it modifies neuter nouns in the accusative case (e.g., τὸ πρῶτον σημεῖον, “the first sign”); as an adverb, it functions independently to modify the verb and express temporal or logical sequence (e.g., πρῶτον ἦλθεν, εἶτα ἐλάλησεν, “he came first, then he spoke”). Context determines whether the usage is adjectival or adverbial.

• πρῶτον (adverb or accusative neuter of πρῶτος) generally means:

  • "first in a sequence", "firstly", "initially" — not necessarily "before" another person or event, but simply what comes first temporally or logically.

• πρότερος (comparative adjective of πρό):

  • "former", "earlier", or "beforehand"

  • Expresses prior position in time or comparative precedence — especially before someone/something else.

Julia Smith noticed this over 150 years ago:

"know that it has hated me the first of you." (Julia Smith Translation)