5779 Tense-Pluperfect
The pluperfect tense in Greek occurs rarely. It corresponds
in a single Greek word to the sense of the English pluperfect,
which indicates an event viewed as having been once and for
all accomplished in past time. In contrast, the perfect tense
reflects the final completion of an action at the present
moment described.
In translation the Greek pluperfect may not always follow the
rendering of the English pluperfect, due to excessive wordiness.
The English pluperfect is normally formed with the past tense
of the "helping" verbs "to have" or "to be, " plus the past
participle, e.g., "He had finished." The English perfect
is formed by the present tense of the helping verb plus the
past participle, e.g., "He has finished."
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