The Greek adverb πρῶτον (prōton, 'first') marks temporal or logical priority in discourse. Jesus repeatedly uses it to establish what must precede something else: 'first be reconciled to your brother' (Matt 5:24), 'seek first the kingdom of God' (Matt 6:33), 'first take the log out of your own eye' (Matt 7:5). Paul employs it for salvation-historical sequence — 'to the Jew first and also to the Greek' (Rom 1:16). The word carries rhetorical force: what comes πρῶτον is presented as non-negotiable, the necessary prior step before anything else can follow.