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Grammar Analysis: Matthew 28:18–20 (Great Commission)

Text

Greek (NA/UBS): - v.18 καὶ προσελθὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς λέγων· Ἐδόθη μοι πᾶσα ἐξουσία ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. - v.19 πορευθέντες οὖν μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος, - v.20 διδάσκοντες αὐτοὺς τηρεῖν πάντα ὅσα ἐνετειλάμην ὑμῖν· καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος.

KJV: - v.18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. - v.19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: - v.20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.

Word-by-Word Parsing

v.18

# Word Lemma Strong Parsing Gloss
1 καὶ καί G2532 CONJ and
2 προσελθὼν προσέρχομαι G4334 V-2AAP-NSM (Aor Act Ptcp N-S-M) having come
3 ὁ ὁ G3588 T-NSM the
4 Ἰησοῦς Ἰησοῦς G2424 N-NSM Jesus
5 ἐλάλησεν λαλέω G2980 V-AAI-3S spoke
6 αὐτοῖς αὐτός G846 P-DPM to them
7 λέγων λέγω G3004 V-PAP-NSM saying
8 Ἐδόθη δίδωμι G1325 V-API-3S (Aor Pass Ind 3S) was given
9 μοι ἐγώ G1473 P-1DS to me
10 πᾶσα πᾶς G3956 A-NSF all
11 ἐξουσία ἐξουσία G1849 N-NSF authority
12 ἐν ἐν G1722 PREP in
13 οὐρανῷ οὐρανός G3772 N-DSM heaven
14 καὶ καί G2532 CONJ and
15 ἐπὶ ἐπί G1909 PREP upon
16 τῆς ὁ G3588 T-GSF the
17 γῆς γῆ G1093 N-GSF earth

v.19

# Word Lemma Strong Parsing Gloss
1 πορευθέντες πορεύομαι G4198 V-AOP-NPM (Aor Pass Ptcp N-P-M) having gone
2 οὖν οὖν G3767 CONJ therefore
3 μαθητεύσατε μαθητεύω G3100 V-AAM-2P (Aor Act Impv 2P) disciple!
4 πάντα πᾶς G3956 A-APN all
5 τὰ ὁ G3588 T-APN the
6 ἔθνη ἔθνος G1484 N-APN nations
7 βαπτίζοντες βαπτίζω G907 V-PAP-NPM (Pres Act Ptcp N-P-M) baptizing
8 αὐτοὺς αὐτός G846 P-APM them
9 εἰς εἰς G1519 PREP into
10 τὸ ὁ G3588 T-ASN the
11 ὄνομα ὄνομα G3686 N-ASN (singular) name
12 τοῦ ὁ G3588 T-GSM of the
13 Πατρὸς πατήρ G3962 N-GSM Father
14 καὶ καί G2532 CONJ and
15 τοῦ ὁ G3588 T-GSM of the
16 Υἱοῦ υἱός G5207 N-GSM Son
17 καὶ καί G2532 CONJ and
18 τοῦ ὁ G3588 T-GSN of the
19 Ἁγίου ἅγιος G40 A-GSN Holy
20 Πνεύματος πνεῦμα G4151 N-GSN Spirit

v.20

# Word Lemma Strong Parsing Gloss
1 διδάσκοντες διδάσκω G1321 V-PAP-NPM (Pres Act Ptcp N-P-M) teaching
2 αὐτοὺς αὐτός G846 P-APM them
3 τηρεῖν τηρέω G5083 V-PAN (Pres Act Inf) to keep
4 πάντα πᾶς G3956 A-APN all
5 ὅσα ὅσος G3745 K-APN whatever
6 ἐνετειλάμην ἐντέλλομαι G1781 V-ADI-1S (Aor Mid Ind 1S) I commanded
7 ὑμῖν σύ G4771 P-2DP you
8 καὶ καί G2532 CONJ and
9 ἰδοὺ ὁράω G3708 V-2AMM-2S (deictic "behold!") look!
10 ἐγὼ ἐγώ G1473 P-1NS (emphatic) I
11 μεθ᾿ μετά G3326 PREP+gen with
12 ὑμῶν σύ G4771 P-2GP you
13 εἰμι εἰμί G1510 V-PAI-1S (Pres Act Ind 1S) I am
14 πάσας πᾶς G3956 A-APF all
15 τὰς ὁ G3588 T-APF the
16 ἡμέρας ἡμέρα G2250 N-APF (acc. of duration) days
17 ἕως ἕως G2193 ADV/PREP until
18 τῆς ὁ G3588 T-GSF the
19 συντελείας συντέλεια G4930 N-GSF consummation
20 τοῦ ὁ G3588 T-GSM of the
21 αἰῶνος αἰών G165 N-GSM age

Clause Structure

v.18 — Declaration of authority (post-resurrection coronation pronouncement):

[καὶ προσελθὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς λέγων]  ← narrative frame
    └─ Ἐδόθη μοι πᾶσα ἐξουσία ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς.  ← direct speech
          │
          Main verb: Ἐδόθη (V-API-3S, aorist passive indicative)
          Indirect object: μοι (dative: "to me")
          Subject: πᾶσα ἐξουσία (nom. — the thing given)
          Locative pair: ἐν οὐρανῷ (dat.) / ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς (gen.) — a merism

v.19–20a — Single periodic sentence, one main verb governs three participles:

πορευθέντες οὖν  ← circumstantial/attendant-circumstance Aor.Pass.Ptcp
  μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη,  ← MAIN VERB (Aor.Act.Impv.2P)
    ├── βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα ...  ← Pres.Act.Ptcp (modal/means)
    │         └─ τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος
    │            (three coordinated GSM/GSM/GSN genitives
    │             governed by the ONE singular ὄνομα)
    └── διδάσκοντες αὐτοὺς τηρεῖν πάντα ὅσα ἐνετειλάμην ὑμῖν  ← Pres.Act.Ptcp (modal/means)
                                   └─ τηρεῖν as complement inf.
                                   └─ ὅσα-clause as acc. object of τηρεῖν

The single finite imperative (μαθητεύσατε) is surrounded by four participles — one aorist-antecedent (πορευθέντες) and two present-contemporaneous (βαπτίζοντες, διδάσκοντες), plus a speech-introducer (λέγων) in v.18. The present-tense participles specify the manner/means of disciple-making, while the aorist participle sets the prerequisite motion.

v.20b — Promise of presence (independent clause):

καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος.
       │   │          │   │
       │   │          │   └─ Pres Act Ind 1S εἰμί — durative "am" (keep being)
       │   │          └─ PP of accompaniment (μετά + gen.)
       │   └─ Emphatic fronted nom. pronoun — NOT required by εἰμι
       └─ Deictic particle ("behold!")
                                    └─ acc. of duration (πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας)
                                       + ἕως + gen. terminus

Key Grammatical Features

1. Ἐδόθη — Aorist Passive Indicative of δίδωμι (v.18)

  • Form: V-API-3S, aorist passive indicative 3rd-singular of δίδωμι (G1325 "give"). Passive θεθη-stem with augment ἐ-.
  • Aspect/time: Perfective aorist, pointing to a specific completed act of granting (most naturally located at the resurrection/exaltation, cf. Phil 2:9 ἐχαρίσατο, Eph 1:20–22 ὑπέταξεν, Acts 2:36 ἐποίησεν).
  • Voice: Canonical divine passive (passivum divinum) — the unnamed giver is the Father. The syntax deliberately declines to name YHWH as subject while unmistakably presupposing Him as agent; this is the standard Septuagintal/Second-Temple substitution-device. See divine-passive.
  • Subject: πᾶσα ἐξουσία (N-NSF, all authority) — in Greek the passive's grammatical subject is the thing given, not the giver; μοι is indirect object.
  • Grammar reference: aorist-passive-indicative; divine-passive; word study G1325-didomi.

2. πᾶσα ἐξουσία ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς — "All authority in heaven and on earth" (v.18; Dan 7:14 echo)

  • Form: πᾶσα (A-NSF) + ἐξουσία (N-NSF) = quantifier + abstract noun; the merism ἐν οὐρανῷ / ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς pairs a dative of sphere (locative use of ἐν + dat.) with ἐπί + genitive (dominion-over + extent-upon).
  • Lexical significance: ἐξουσία (G1849) = authority, right to act, not mere δύναμις "power." Matthew's diction targets the Aramaic שָׁלְטָן šolṭān of Dan 7:14 (parser-verified: Dan 7:14 has שָׁלְטָן three times — the noun itself, and the cognate שָׁלְטָנֵהּ שָׁלְטָן עָלַם "his dominion is an everlasting dominion"). LXX-Theodotion translates שָׁלְטָן at Dan 7:14 as ἐξουσία. The Matthean πᾶσα ἐξουσία is the LXX-linked lexical signature of the Son-of-Man dominion-grant.
  • Preposition-pair: ἐν + dat. of place (οὐρανῷ, with the article dropped — generic/categorical "in heaven") vs. ἐπὶ + gen. (τῆς γῆς with the article — "upon the earth"). The asymmetry of articulation (Ø + οὐρανῷ vs. τῆς γῆς) mirrors Dan 7:13–14 LXX style and the Hebrew/Aramaic definiteness pattern.
  • Dan 7:14 echo (parser-confirmed): Aram. וְלֵהּ יְהִיב שָׁלְטָן (Peil passive perfect 3ms of יהב "was given to him dominion") ≈ Matt 28:18 Ἐδόθη μοι … ἐξουσία. Both use (a) the same agentless divine passive (יְהִיב peil / Ἐδόθη V-API-3S), (b) the same indirect object "to him / to me" (לֵהּ / μοι), and (c) the same abstract-noun subject (שָׁלְטָן / ἐξουσία). Jesus's words place him in the Son-of-Man slot of Dan 7:13–14.
  • Word study: G1849-exousia.

3. εἰς τὸ ὄνομα — Singular "name" governing three coordinated genitives (v.19)

  • Form: εἰς (G1519) + accusative τὸ ὄνομα (N-ASN, singular, G3686) — not τὰ ὀνόματα. The singular ὄνομα is then qualified by three articular genitive phrases in strict parallel (καὶ … καὶ …):
  • τοῦ Πατρὸς (N-GSM)
  • τοῦ Υἱοῦ (N-GSM)
  • τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος (A-GSN + N-GSN)
  • The articular pattern: each genitive carries its own article (τοῦ / τοῦ / τοῦ). Every substantive in the list is individually articulated, which in Greek signals three distinct referents — but they are united under a single, undistributed governing noun (ὄνομα, A-SN not A-PN). The grammar does not say "names" (plural) nor "name of the Father, [a] name of the Son, [a] name of the Spirit" (which would require repeating ὄνομα or redistributing). It says: one name, held jointly by three distinctly-articulated persons.
  • εἰς + acc. with verbs of initiation/transfer: baptismal εἰς τὸ ὄνομα is standard NT idiom for identification-transfer ("baptize into the ownership/authority of …"; cf. Acts 8:16; 19:5; 1 Cor 1:13, 15; Rom 6:3 εἰς Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν). The preposition directs the baptized person into the sphere named.
  • Number (singular) is the crux: Matthew does not write εἰς τὰ ὀνόματα (plural names, which would suggest three gods with three names), nor does he write εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος without articles (which could collapse the three into predications of one subject in Granville-Sharp fashion). The actual construction — one ὄνομα, three τοῦ + gen. with articles — is the precise middle form that grammatically distinguishes the three persons while unifying their name.
  • Hebraic "name" semantics: ὄνομα renders שֵׁם, which in OT/Jewish usage denotes the self-revealed identity/character/authority of the bearer (Exo 3:15 שְׁמִי לְעֹלָם, Isa 42:8). To baptize into "the name" is to place the candidate under the revealed identity and authority of the bearer(s). The singular ὄνομα here collocates three distinct persons under one shared, self-revealed identity — the grammatical exhibit of triune identity.
  • Triune implications (grammar-constrained, not theology-imposed): the construction permits but does not by itself prove Nicene formulation; what the grammar does is rule out (a) three separate names/gods (would require plural ὀνόματα), (b) a title-shuffle for one person (would require no repeated article), and (c) modalistic collapse (would require Granville-Sharp "the Father-and-Son-and-Spirit"). The syntax requires: one identity, three distinct holders.
  • Word studies: G3686-onoma, TR-shem-onoma, [G3962-pater], G5207-huios, G40-hagios, G4151-pneuma.
  • Grammar reference gap flagged: canonical entry on article-article-article coordination under one governing noun (the "TSKS-with-distinct-referents" configuration, contrasting Granville-Sharp TSKS) would be worth authoring.

4. μαθητεύσατε — Aorist Active Imperative 2P, the single finite verb (v.19)

  • Form: V-AAM-2P (2nd-plural aorist active imperative of μαθητεύω G3100 "make a disciple"; denominative of μαθητής). Only four NT occurrences (Matt 13:52; 27:57; 28:19; Acts 14:21); transitive only here and Acts 14:21.
  • Significance: grammatically this is the only finite command-verb in the entire commission. πορευθέντες, βαπτίζοντες, διδάσκοντες are all participles subordinated to it. The grammar subordinates go/baptize/teach to the single controlling task: make disciples. The imperative is aorist (perfective — global command, not ongoing progressive).
  • Participle subordination: πορευθέντες (AOP-NPM) is attendant-circumstance ("having gone" / "go and…"), while βαπτίζοντες and διδάσκοντες (PAP-NPM) are modal/means ("by baptizing … by teaching …"), specifying how disciple-making is carried out.
  • Grammar reference: mood-aorist-imperative.

5. ἐγὼ μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν εἰμι — "I am with you" (v.20b; Exo 3:12 echo)

  • Form: fronted emphatic P-1NS ἐγὼ + PP μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν (μετά + G-Pl "with you") + present active indicative εἰμι (V-PAI-1S of εἰμί G1510). The pronoun ἐγώ is grammatically unnecessary (εἰμι alone is a complete 1S predication); its presence is emphatic.
  • Word order: Subject-PP-Verb (S-PP-V). εἰμι is deferred to final position, throwing rhetorical weight onto ἐγὼ and onto the PP. The fronted ἐγώ is the signature of declarative self-identification (cf. the Johannine ἐγὼ εἰμί sayings — same building-blocks, same self-predicating emphasis).
  • Tense: present active indicative — durative/progressive present, reinforced by the temporal extension πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος ("all the days until the consummation of the age"). The present continues across the entire temporal span. Jesus is not saying "I will be with you" (ἔσομαι, future) but "I am with you" — presently and continuously.
  • Exo 3:12 echo (parser-confirmed Hebrew source): Hebrew כִּי־אֶהְיֶה עִמָּךְ (kî ʾehyeh ʿimmāḵ = "[I am saying/promising] that I will-be with you"; Qal.Impf.1s of היה + Prep עם+2ms). LXX-A reads ὅτι ἔσομαι μετὰ σοῦ. Key structural mapping:
Element Exo 3:12 (MT → LXX) Matt 28:20
Divine 1st-person subject אֶהְיֶה (1s, embedded in verb) ἐγώ (explicit P-1NS) + εἰμι (1S)
Accompaniment PP עִמָּךְ (Prep עם + 2ms) μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν (μετά + G-2P)
Binding particle / frame כִּי "[saying] that …" ἰδού "behold!"
Tense/aspect Qal impf. (future/modal) pres. ind. (durative)
  • Exo 3:12 is the first-utterance of the divine presence-formula and stands directly alongside Exo 3:14–15 אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה / יְהוָה (the self-revelation of the Name). The formula "I will be with you" recurs as covenant-signature for Isaac (Gen 26:3, 24), Jacob (Gen 28:15; 31:3), Moses/Joshua (Deut 31:23; Josh 1:5, 9 "as I was with Moses, I will be with you"), Gideon (Judg 6:16), Jeremiah (Jer 1:8, 19), the exiles (Isa 41:10; 43:2, 5), the temple-rebuilders (Hag 1:13; 2:4), and climactically Immanuel (Isa 7:14; 8:8, 10 עִמָּנוּ אֵל → Matt 1:23 μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν ὁ θεός).
  • Grammatical weight of the echo: Jesus takes up the first-person side of the YHWH-presence formula. The shift from Exo 3:12's future/modal אֶהְיֶה ("I will-be") to Matt 28:20's present εἰμι ("I am") is not weakening but intensification — the promise has become durative assertion. The P-1NS ἐγώ fronted before the PP + εἰμί creates the same word-order configuration as Isa 43:10 LXX ἐγώ εἰμι (for אֲנִי הוּא), and as John 8:58 πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι ἐγὼ εἰμί. The Matthean form is not a verbatim ἐγώ-εἰμι absolute self-identification (an adjunct μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν intervenes), but it deploys the same constituents in the same emphatic sequence.
  • Matthew's inclusio: Matt 1:23 opens with Ἐμμανουὴλ ὃ ἐστιν μεθερμηνευόμενον μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν ὁ θεός ("God with us"). Matt 28:20 closes with ἐγὼ μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν εἰμι ("I am with you"). The gospel's frame is signed with the identical PP (μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν / μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν) and the copula; Jesus fills the slot that 1:23 labeled "God."
  • Word study: G1510-eimi; cross-link Hebrew source H1961-hayah; cross-link passage exodus-3-13-15.

6. πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας … ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος — Duration-and-terminus (v.20b)

  • Form: πάσας (A-APF) + τὰς (T-APF) + ἡμέρας (N-APF) — accusative of duration ("through / for all the days"; Wallace 201–203, BDF §161). Then ἕως (G2193, adv./prep. "until") + articular genitive τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος ("the consummation of the age") sets the terminus.
  • Aspect-interaction: the accusative-of-duration πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας extends the present εἰμι across every day of the span; ἕως + gen. caps it at the eschatological terminus. Matthew's σuντέλεια τοῦ αἰῶνος is a stereotyped phrase (Matt 13:39, 40, 49; 24:3; 28:20 — unique to Matthew among the gospels) translating Danielic קֵץ הַיָּמִים / קֵץ הַיָּמִין.
  • Grammar reference: aorist-infinitive-accusative-of-duration (parallel accusative-of-duration syntax, applied there to the infinitival construction of Acts 1:3; here the same case-function operates on a finite present indicative).

Cross-References

Grammar library: - divine-passive — Ἐδόθη (v.18), agent-concealing passive with divine agent - aorist-passive-indicative — Ἐδόθη morphology - mood-aorist-imperative — μαθητεύσατε (v.19) global-perfective command - aorist-infinitive-accusative-of-duration — πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας construction parallel - participle-legon-discourse — λέγων (v.18) speech-introducing participle - Gap flagged: canonical entry on article-article-article coordination under one singular governing noun (the Matt 28:19 εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Π. καὶ τοῦ Υ. καὶ τοῦ Ἁ. Π. configuration) - Gap flagged: canonical entry on subordinate-participle + finite-imperative periodic sentence (the πορευθέντες + μαθητεύσατε + βαπτίζοντες + διδάσκοντες architecture)

Word studies: - G1325-didomi — δίδωμι (v.18 ἐδόθη) - G1849-exousia — ἐξουσία (v.18) - G3686-onoma — ὄνομα (v.19) - TR-shem-onoma — Hebrew שֵׁם ↔ Greek ὄνομα translation-pair - G5207-huios — υἱός (v.19) - G40-hagios — ἅγιος (v.19) - G4151-pneuma — πνεῦμα (v.19) - TR-ruach-pneuma — Hebrew רוּחַ ↔ Greek πνεῦμα translation-pair - TR-qodesh-hagios — Hebrew קֹדֶשׁ ↔ Greek ἅγιος translation-pair - G1510-eimi — εἰμί (v.20) - H1961-hayah — Hebrew היה (Exo 3:12, 14) behind εἰμι - Gap flagged: G3962 πατήρ, G3100 μαθητεύω, G907 βαπτίζω, G4334 προσέρχομαι, G1484 ἔθνος, G4930 συντέλεια, G165 αἰών, G4198 πορεύομαι, G1321 διδάσκω, G5083 τηρέω, G1781 ἐντέλλομαι, G3326 μετά

Passage analyses (OT echoes and NT inclusio): - exodus-3-13-15 — divine-name revelation/presence-formula source - Dan 7:13–14 — Son-of-Man dominion-grant (Aram. שָׁלְטָן → ἐξουσία); see dan-7-25-26 for cognate pericope - Matt 1:23 (μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν ὁ θεός / Immanuel) — gospel-opening inclusio with 28:20

Summary Features Map

Verse Feature Code Exegetical weight
18 Divine passive Ἐδόθη V-API-3S Father gives authority to Son — unnamed agent, unmistakable referent
18 Dan 7:14 lexical echo πᾶσα ἐξουσία ≈ שָׁלְטָן (LXX-Theod. ἐξουσία) Jesus claims the Son-of-Man throne-grant
18 Merism ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς Total cosmic scope
19 Attendant-circumstance ptcp πορευθέντες V-AOP-NPM "having gone" / "go and …"
19 Sole finite imperative μαθητεύσατε V-AAM-2P Commission's governing verb
19 Singular ὄνομα + 3 articulated genitives N-ASN + 3× τοῦ + GSM/GSM/GSN One name, three distinct persons — triune-identity grammar
19 Modal/means ptcp βαπτίζοντες V-PAP-NPM How disciples are made (initiation)
20 Modal/means ptcp διδάσκοντες V-PAP-NPM How disciples are made (formation)
20 Complement infinitive τηρεῖν V-PAN What disciples keep
20 Deictic ἰδού V-2AMM-2S Pointer to climactic promise
20 Emphatic fronted nom pronoun ἐγώ P-1NS Unnecessary with εἰμι — rhetorical weight
20 Durative present εἰμι V-PAI-1S Continuous, not future
20 Exo 3:12 presence-echo ἐγὼ μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν εἰμι ≈ כִּי אֶהְיֶה עִמָּךְ Jesus takes YHWH-side of the covenant-presence formula
20 Accusative of duration πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας Span = every day, not one day
20 ἕως + gen. terminus ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος Eschatological end-point; Matthean stereotype
1:23 ↔ 28:20 Gospel inclusio μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν ὁ θεός ↔ ἐγὼ μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν εἰμι Matthew signs opening and closing with the same PP