EXAMPLE OF PRESENT TENSE
1Peter 1:5 who are protected (PPPMPA) (5746) by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time
the power of God through than mental assent. Firm conviction, surrender to that truth, conduct consistent w surrender.Saving faith than understanding the facts & mentally acquiescing. Inseparable fr repentance, surrender & supernatural longing to obey" href="http://studylight.org/lex/grk/view.cgi?number=4102"faith for a state of well being/health. Past = justified =declared righteous. Fr penalty of sin Present=sanctified. fr power of sin. Future=glorified Fr presence of sin." href="http://studylight.org/lex/grk/view.cgi?number=4991&l=en"salvation ready to be revealed (APN) in the last time (NASB:
NKJV: who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
Amplified: Who are being guarded (garrisoned) by God’s power through [your] faith [till you fully inherit that final] salvation that is ready to be revealed [for you] in the last time.
NLT: And God, in his mighty power, will protect you until you receive this salvation, because you are trusting him. It will be revealed on the last day for all to see.
Phillips: And in the meantime you are guarded by the power of God operating through your faith, till you enter fully into the salvation which is all ready for the dénouement of the last day.
Wuest: who are constantly being kept guarded by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in a last season which is epochal and strategic in its significance.
Young's Literal: who, in the power of God are being guarded, through faith, unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time,
PPPMPA = Present Tense, Passive Voice, Participle, Masculine, Plural, Accusative
From Peter's use of Present tense one can see that in context (see also discussion of context) he is referring to born again ones, describing them as those who are "continually being protected by the power (dunamis) of God". God's protection of His children isn't fickle, present one day and absent the next. You can see how even the most basic understanding of verb tense can add so much to the meaning.
Knowledge of the tense of a verb can sometimes be critical for accurate interpretation. For example read the following verse...
Look at the verb sin. At first glance the verse seems to imply that one who is "born of God" can never commit a sin and yet all genuine believers know that this is not a reality (cf 1Jn 1:8, 2Chr 6:36, Ec 7:20, Jas 3:2). When you understand that the verb sin is in the present tense, it becomes clear that John is saying that one who is born of God cannot habitually commit sins as their general pattern of life. The verb "practices" is also present tense and conveys the same thought. All believers commit sins but not habitually or as their lifestyle. Application: if one's lifestyle is that of continual sinning in conjunction with no desire for holiness (cf He 12:14), these individuals need to examine whether they are genuinely new creatures in Christ (2Cor 5:17-) born from above (Jn 3:3, 5, 2Co 13:5 And so one can see that in 1Jn 3:9 (as in most of chapter 3 of first John) the accurate interpretation
