Aspect and Prominence in the Synoptic Accounts of Jesus' Entry into Jerusalem 163 14b But they shouted (ἔκραξαν) all the louder, “Crucify him!” aorist 15a Pilate, wanting to satisfy the crowd, released (ἀπέλυσεν) Barabbas to them. aorist 15b and handed Jesus over (παρέδωκεν), having flogged him, to be crucified. aorist Two tense-forms are used to introduce the reported speeches: the aorist (vv. 11, 13, 14b) and the imperfect (vv. 12, 14a). The speeches of the crowd are introduced with the aorist, whereas those of Pilate are introduced with the imperfect. For Porter, this will mean that Pilate’s speeches are foreground. For Longacre, this will mean that Pilate’s speeches are backgrounded. Who is right: Porter, Longacre, or neither of them? Before answering this question, I review and evaluate Porter’s analysis of the tense-forms in Mark 11,1-11, after which I consider the tense-forms used in the parallel passage in Luke 19. B) Porter’s analysis of the tense-forms in Mark 11,1-11 The following table indicates the main verbs used in the narrative superstructure of Mark 11,1-11 (starting with the final clauses of the previous chapter), together with Porter’s classification of the prominence associated with each tense-form (but replacing “background” with “unmarked”)11. 10,52b Immediately he [Bartimaeus] saw again (ἀνέβλεψεν) unmarked 52c and was following (ἠκολούθει) him [Jesus] along the road. foreground: new stage As they draw near (ἐγγίζουσιν) to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and 11,1a foreground Bethany at the Mount of Olives, 1b he sends (ἀποστέλλει) two of his disciples, foreground and he says (λέγει) to them, “Go to the village ahead of you and, just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has 2-3 ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are foreground you doing this?’ tell him, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly’.” 4a They left (ἀπῆλθον), unmarked 4b found (εὗρον) a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway, unmarked Porter’s exposition of this passage (Prominence 60) does not make a clear distinc- 11 tion between the verbs used in the narrative superstructure and those used in the reported speeches, even though they are on a different level, as the characters interpret the happen- ings in their own words (see D. Dormeyer and F. Galindo, Comentario a los Hechos de los Apostoles [Estella 2007] 8). Dormeyer and Galindo distinguish at least three levels within a narrative: 1) the direct communication between author and reader; 2) the narrative itself where the events unfold and the characters interact with each other; 3) the communication between the characters reported in the speeches. See also Campbell Basics 61.