https://youtu.be/3uI8GHI5AZE
In our verse-by-verse study of Romans I am going to back up to the beginning of Rom 8:26; because of our long break. In this verse Paul describes God the Holy Spirit as groaning but God does not actually groan and the Holy Spirit is God so the Holy Spirit does not actually groan because groaning is incompatible with being perfect God so Paul's description is described as an anthropopathism.
An anthropopathism is a way of expressing or communicating the function of the third person of the Trinity in human terms so that human beings can understand or relate to the situation.
When a person groans it means they are in pain or distress. God the Holy Spirit is never in pain or distress. This dramatizes the adversity of our fallen status just as nature's groan dramatizes the principle of its fallen status. The only real groan comes from the spiritually maturing believer under undeserved suffering for blessing.
"In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness;" begins with the adverb "hosautos" (in the same way or in a similar manner). Paul describes the Holy Spirit as groaning under the conditions that are specified in this context.
Next: the conjunctive particle "de" (but) with the adjunctive use of the conjunctive particle "kai" that is normally translated (and) but here it is used as an adverb so it is translated (also) so we have "But in the same way also."
Plus the subject, the nominative neuter singular from "pneuma" (spirit), with the definite article "ho" (the) making it monadic so it refers specifically to God the Holy Spirit. "And also in the same way the Spirit."
Next is the present middle indicative from the compound verb "sunantilambanoma"i (sun = with; anti - against or instead of; lambanomai = to receive), that means to aid or to assist, so it means to come to the aid of, or to come help.
Here it means to give a helping hand. In the Attic Greek the word "antilambanomai" meant to grasp, to take up a matter, or to take something up helpfully. When the preposition "sun" was added, it meant to give a helping hand.
The present tense is a customary present that describes what may be reasonably expected to happen in the life of a spiritually maturing believer.
This is an indirect middle voice that emphasizes the agent, God the Holy Spirit, is producing the action of the verb rather than participating in the results of the action of the verb.
The indicative mood is declarative for the special ministry of the Holy Spirit to the advancing believer. Plus the dative singular indirect object of the noun "astheneia" (weakness) with the definite article "ho" (the) making it monadic it is translated "our" in this case to specifically refer to the undeserved suffering for blessing of the maturing believer who is advancing in God's plan for their life.
"Also in the same way the Spirit gives a helping hand to our weakness." This is referring to the weakness of the spiritually maturing believer that is a weakness of a positive believer who is filled with the spirit and persistently advancing in God's Word of Truth under God's GASP system.
All people are intrinsically weak no matter how great they become. People have a tendency to depend on other people rather than exclusively on God Himself who is the true source of their greatness. Client nations like the USA have this same problem.
This is a reference to the mature believer in undeserved suffering the mature believer that is under the great pressure of undeserved suffering that God has designed for blessing.
The adversity of undeserved suffering is great and the pressure is maximum but the reason for the suffering is not obvious because there is no obvious predicate for the suffering.
Therefore even the mature believer may go into shock, and panic, fall into a state of hysteria or agitation that makes effective prayer impossible. Therefore God the Holy Spirit gives a helping hand. This describes the Holy Spirit's ministry of intercession in terms of an anthropopathism.
The weakness is not related to the suffering or the adversity or the catastrophe encountered by the mature believer. The weakness is inability to properly pray to God about the suffering. No believer knows exactly how to pray for undeserved suffering because they do not understand why God permitted the suffering to occur.
The next phrase describes the weakness as the inability to offer proper prayer on the occasion of undeserved suffering. The word "weakness," astheneia," is in the singular that emphasizes a weakness in prayer not an inability to dealing with the suffering.
When the mature believer in the midst of great blessing and prosperity from God's justice encounters a great catastrophe, a disaster, an adversity, his weakness is related to his prayer function.
When undeserved suffering is given to the mature believer as a part of his blessing and prosperity, such a believer cannot pray for the removal of the suffering or even for the strength to bear the suffering.
In other words, the mature believer does not know how to pray about it, so the Holy Spirit takes a hand in offering intercession. In this verse that intercession is dramatized by the anthropopathism, "groaning."
"for we do not know" - the explanatory conjunctive particle "gar," (for) the negative "ou" (not), the perfect active indicative of "oida" (know) that is, a perfect form that is used in the present tense:"
Ordinarily there is no excuse for the maturing believer who is advancing in God's plan to be ignorant regarding anything in God's plan. But here the stated justification for ignorance on the part of the maturing believer in undeserved suffering the ignorance is in relation to the why of the undeserved suffering regardless of whether it is in the form of personal, national or historical disaster.
The present tense of "oida" (know) is in the perfective present tense, that describes the continuation of the existing results of ignorance that is a weakness in the function of prayer in a time of maximum disaster and distress.
The active voice: the mature believer produces the action of the verb-ignorance of how to pray properly in times of undeserved suffering. The indicative mood is a potential indicative for a state or condition that implies that not all maturing believers actually have this problem during underserved suffering.
But this is not about the ones who do or the ones who do not; it is about the great ministry of God the Holy Spirit in providing a helping hand to all maturing believers in undeserved suffering.
"what we should pray for as we should" - the nominative neuter singular from the interrogative pronoun "tis" (what). It is the aorist middle subjunctive from the verb proseuchomai (pray) that means to pray, with emphasis on intercession or petition.
The constantive aorist tense gathers the entire situation into one entirety the undeserved suffering for blessing to the maturing believer regardless of how long it lasts. The middle voice: the maturing believer who generally understands how to pray properly, produces the action of being ignorant as to how to pray when facing maximum undeserved suffering for blessing.
The undeserved suffering is strictly a blessing from God, but you have to understand how this blessing works. The whole purpose is to stimulate hope. Hope is confident expectation. The subjunctive mood describes a potential subjunctive.
The next phrase, "as we should," includes an adverb of manner, "katho" (as or according to).
We can pray, but in time of disaster we should praying precisely and correctly is the problem. There is also an impersonal verb "dei" (properly, as necessary or should) that describes duty or a responsibility to pray the right prayers in times of great adversity as a maturing believer-
Even for the maturing believer who understands undeserved suffering for blessing is often shocked when it actually happens. The shock can impede rational doctrinal thought so the proper prayer to offer on such an occasion is not always instantly apparent.
Since God has designed the undeserved suffering for our blessing the Holy Spirit offers the proper prayer. The obvious blessing from such prayer is the intensification of confident expectation of eternity.
"but the Spirit Himself" - the adversative conjunction "alla" (but), plus "pneuma" (spirit) as the subject, "but the Spirit."
Then the nominative neuter singular from the intensive pronoun "autos" (Himself).
With the present active indicative from the compound verb "huperentugchano" (huper = on behalf of; entugchano = to make intercession)-"but the Spirit himself intercedes for (us)." us is added by the translators because it is implied.
The iterative present describes what occurs at successive intervals during undeserved suffering. The active voice: the Holy Spirit produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative, so this is actual reality.
"with groanings unspeakable" - the instrumental of means in the plural from the adjective "alaletos" (wordless, unexpressed, or inexpressible).
Plus the instrumental of means plural from the noun "stenagmois" (groan or a sigh). This can be translated "with wordless groans" or "with groanings too great for words."
Expanded Translation Rom 8:26; "And also in the same way the Spirit himself gives a helping hand to our weaknesses: for we do not know how to pray as we should: but the Spirit himself intercedes with groanings too great for words."