William Watson Goodwin, Syntax of the Moods and Tenses of the Greek Verb

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[*] 283. Positive independent sentences with ὅπως all have the future indicative, the regular form in dependent object clauses of this nature (339). Among the 33 independent clauses with ὅπως μή which are cited (excluding AR. Ach. 343) ten have the subjunctive, and four others have more or less MS. support for the subjunctive. Of the ten, the two quoted in 280, and the three from Xenophon quoted in 278, are either in cautious assertions or in sentences implying fear or the averting of danger, where the subjunctive is the regular form. The other five express warning, and are quoted here:—

“Οπως δὲ τοῦτο μὴ διδάξῃς μηδένα,” “but be sure that you teach this to nobody.” AR. Nub. 824. Καὶ ὅπως γε μὴ ὁ σοφιστὴς ἐξαπατήσῃ ἡμᾶς, “and do not let the sophist cheat us.” PLAT. Prot. 313 C. Ἀλλ᾽ ὅπως μή τι ἡμᾶς σφήλῃ τὸ ἀεὶ τοῦτο. Id. Euthyd. 296A. Ὅπως μηδείς σε πείσῃ, do not let anybody persuade you, etc. Charm. 157B. Καὶ ὅπως μὴ ποιήσητε ὃ πολλάκις ὑμᾶς ἔβλαψεν, “and see that you do not do what has often harmed you.” DEM. iv. 20.

Four of these subjunctives are of the σ- class, easily confounded with the future indicative, and the judgment of scholars on these has depended to a great extent upon their opinion about the admissibility of the subjunctive with ὅπως and ὅπως μή in dependent object clauses (339). This question will be discussed in 364. But it may fairly be claimed, independently of the main question, that these cases of ὅπως μή with the subjunctive in prohibitions are supported by the analogy of μή with the subjunctive in the same sense. Thus μὴ διδάξῃς, do not teach, makes ὅπως μὴ διδάξῃς in the same sense much more natural than the positive ὅπως διδάξῃς would be, for which there is no such analogy and little or no MS. authority. On this ground the examples are given above as they stand in the MSS.