Luke 23:30 Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us.
At that time, they are going to start to say to the hiles, "Fall down upon us;" and to the rock piles, "Hide us."
This verse contains one unique word that means "hills" but also means "rock piles" and "altar."
The Greek word for "then" means "at this time" or "then."
"Shall they begin" is from a verb in the form of an adjective that means "to be first," "to begin," and "to make a beginning," "to rule," "to govern," and "to command." The two meanings, "to start" and "to command" create different meanings when paired with the following verbs. The form is someone acting on themselves, so "make a start for yourself" or "command yourself." It is in the future tense.
The word translated as "to say" is the most common word that means "to say," and "to speak," but it also means "to teach," which seems to be the way Christ uses it more frequently. It also has many ancillary meanings such as "to count" ("to number" or like we might say, "to recount" a story) or "to choose for yourself." The form is a command.
The word translated as "to the mountains" means "mountain" or "hill" but it could also be the word which means "mule." The word is in a form that of an indirect objects, which is where the "to" comes from. It is preceded by an article, "the."
"Fall" is translated from a Greek word that means "to fall" and "to fall down." It is the root word for dozens of Greek terms involving moving from a higher state to a lower one. Like our word "to fall" it has a number of special meanings including "to fall into a given class," "to prostrate," "to fall from power," "to perish," and so on. Here, it is in a non-standard form of a command or request.
The word translated as "unto" means "on," "over," "upon," "against," "before," "after," "during," "by" or "on."
"Us" is the 1st person, plural, accusative pronoun. Jesus only uses this pronoun in seven verses, most often in the Lord's Prayer.
The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."
to the hills, "To the hills" is a Greek noun used only by Jesus here that means "hill," "mound," "heap of stone," "clot of blood," and "altar."
"Cover" is a word that means to "cover," "hide," and has the sense of to "cover with dishonor." It is a participle ("covering") in the past that is in the form that indicates something acting on itself, (has covered itself).
"Us" is the 1st person, plural, accusative pronoun. Jesus only uses this pronoun in seven verses, most often in the Lord's Prayer.
τότε (adv) "Then" is tote, which means "at that time" and "then." --
ἄρξονται (verb 3rd pl fut ind mid) "Shall they begin" is from archomai, which is a form of archô, which means "to be first," "to begin," "to make a beginning," "to rule," "to govern," and "to command." -- "
“λέγειν ( verb pres inf act ) "To say" is lego, which means "to recount," "to tell over," "to say," "to speak," "to teach," "to mean," "boast of," "tell of," "recite," nominate," and "command." It has a secondary meaning "pick out," "choose for oneself," "pick up," "gather," "count," and "recount." A less common word that is spelled the same means "to lay," "to lay asleep" and "to lull asleep." --
τοῖς ὄρεσιν (noun pl neut dat) "Mountains" is oros, which means "mountain," "hill," "canton," and "parish." In Egypt, it was also used to mean the "desert" and a place of burial. It's homonymoros means a "boundary," "landmark," "time limits," "decisions of judges," "memorial stones and pillars," "standard," "measure," "term (in logic)," "definition," "terms," and "conditions." Another, similar word, oreus, which matches oros in some forms means "mule." but not this form.
Πέσατε (verb pl aor imp 2nd act ) "Shall...fall" is the verb pipto, which means "to fall," "to fall down," "to be cast down," "fall upon," "intersect (geometry)," "meet," "pass through," "fall violently upon," "attack," "fall in battle," "sink{in water)," "fall short i.e. fail," " fall out of," "lose a thing," "escape from," "fall asleep," "to be accessible to perception," "to fall (between her feet, i.e. to be born)," "to let fall[dice)," "turn out," and "fall under (belong to a class)." --
ἐφ᾽ (prep) "Against" is epi, which means "on," "over," "upon," "at," "by," "before," "across," "after" in position, "during," and "against." --
ἡμᾶς, [7 verse](pron 1st pl masc/fem acc) "Us" is hemas, which is "us," the 1st person, plural, accusative pronoun.
καὶ (conj/adv) "And" is kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "also." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even," "also," and "just." --
τοῖς βουνοῖς [unique]( noun pl masc dat ) "To the hills" is bounos, which means "hill," "mound," "heap of stone," "clot of blood," and "altar."
Καλύψατε ( verb 2nd pl aor imperat act ) "Cover" is kalypto, which means tp "cover," "protect (of armor)," "hide," "conceal," "cover with dishonor," "throw a cloud over," and "put over as a covering." --
ἡμᾶς:” [7 verse](pron 1st pl masc/fem acc) "Us" is hemas, which is "us," the 1st person, plural, accusative pronoun.