Mark 11:24 ...What things soever you desire...

Spoken to: 

Apostles

Jesus says that whatever they command will happen if they believe.

KJV: 

Mark 11:24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

NIV : 

Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

3RD (NLT, if not otherwise identified): 

NLT Mark 11:24 I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.

LISTENERS HEARD: 

On account of this, I tell you, everything, as much as you pray and ask for yourselves, trust that you get it, and it will be yours.

MY TAKE: 

We should be asking for divine help for ourselves.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

GREEK ORDER: 

διὰ τοῦτο                 λέγω ὑμῖν, πάντα          ὅσα           προσεύχεσθε καὶ  αἰτεῖσθε,
On account of this, I tell  you,  everything, as much as you pray        and  ask for yourselves ,

πιστεύετε ὅτι ἐλάβετε,    καὶ ἔσται        ὑμῖν.
trust         that you get it, and it will be yours.

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

This verse actually ends with the same statement as the previous verse, Mark 11:24, but in the second-person instead of the third. While the literal meaning here is , "It will exist to you," the accepted meaning is either "It will be yours" or "you will have it." However, I suspect there may be another meaning as well because of the middle voice of "ask." See below.

Strangely enough, none of the popular translations translates the word "all," which is used to describe what is asked for in prayer.  The NLT comes closest with "anything." They ignore it, possibly because they didn't like Jesus making such a sweeping promise. However, this makes more sense if Jesus is limiting the meaning of "ask" ("desire" in

The sense is that they are asking these things specifically "for themselves" since the "ask" is in the middle voice. The "prayer" is also in the middle voice, but that is its common form. I suspect that the middle voice of "ask" here has the sense of asking something "of yourself." The sense is praying for the ability to do something. This limits the idea of "all" to the things you ask from yourself.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

8
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "therefore" is not the common word usually translated as "therefore."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "what" means "as great as."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "things" means "all."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "desire" means "asks."
  • WV -- Wrong Voice -- This verb is a middle voice, which requires a "for yourselves".
  • OS -- Outdated Source -- The Greek word translated as "when" existed in the KJV Greek source but not the source we use today.
  • WN  --Wrong Number- The word "them" is translated as plural but the Greek word is singular.

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

7
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "therefore" is not the common word usually translated as "therefore."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "whatever" means "as great as."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The adjective "all" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WV -- Wrong Voice -- This verb is a middle voice, which requires a "for yourselves".
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "in" means "and."
  • WF -  Wrong Form -- The "prayer" is not a noun but a verb, "you pray."
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "have" seems to indicate an action completed in the past, but the tense is something happening at a point in time past, present, or future.

# 3RD TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

9
  • MW - Missing Words -- The words "by this" are not shown in the English translation.
  • MW - Missing Words -- The words "as much as" are not shown in the English translation.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "can" doesn't exist in the source and isn't otherwise justified.
  • MW - Missing Words -- The words "ask" are not shown in the English translation.
  • WV -- Wrong Voice -- This verb is a middle voice, which requires a "for yourselves".
  • CW --Confusing Word --  The word translated as "anything" means "all" or "everything."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "if" doesn't exist in the source and isn't otherwise justified.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "have" seems to indicate an action completed in the past, but the tense is something happening at a point in time past, present, or future.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "and" is not shown in the English translation.

EACH WORD of KJV : 

Therefore -- (CW) This is from two Greek words meaning "through this" or "by this." The specific meaning of this phrase is "on this account" or "on account of this."

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

say -- The word translated as "say" is the most common word that means "to say," and "to speak," but it also means "to teach," which seems to be the way Jesus uses it more frequently. It also has many ancillary meanings such as "to count" ("to number" or like we might say, "to recount" a story) or "to choose for yourself." Jesus usually uses this word to refer to his own speaking or teaching.

unto -- This is from the form of the following pronoun.

you, -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc. 

What -- (WW) The adjective translated as "what" means "as great as", "as much as," and similar ideas of comparison. It is often translated as "whatsoever" in the KJV even though that is not its actual meaning.

things -- (WW) The word translated as "things" is the Greek adjective meaning "all", "the whole", "every," and similar ideas. When it is used as a noun, we would say "everything." As an adverb, it means "in every way", "on every side," and "altogether."

soever -- This is from the adjective for "what" above.

ye -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

desire, -- (WW) The verb translated as "desire" means to "ask" and has shades of meaning from "demand," to "beg," to "claim." This verb is in the middle voice, indicating that the subject is acting on or for themselves. This verb is in the present tense.

missing "for yourselves"-- (WV) A phrase is necessary because the form of the previous verb is a middle voice, which means that the subject is to  act on "yourselves," "for yourselves" or "by yourselves."

when -- -- (OS) There is nothing in the Greek that can be translated as "when" in the source we use today but it does exist in the source that the KJV translators used. There source did not have the "and" that the current one does.

ye -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

pray, -- The Greek word translated as "pray" means "to offer prayers of vows" either "to worship" or "to ask for a thing".  This verb is in the middle voice, indicating that the subject is acting on or for themselves.This verb is in the present tense. In the KJV source, this was actually a participle "when praying."

believe -- The Greek word translated as "believe" does not apply to religious belief as much as it does trusting in other people, especially their word. Christ usually uses it in contexts, as the one here, that apply to trusting words.  The form could be a command but it could also be a simple statement, "you trust." This verb is in the present tense.

that The word translated as "that" introduces a statement of fact or cause.

ye -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

receive -- The word translated as "receive" primarily means "take." However, it means "receive" in the same sense that we use "get" to mean "receive" and has many different uses as we use "get" in English. Among these are the ideas of "understanding" and "possessing."  The tense is indicates something happening at some point in time, past, present, or future.

them, -- There is no "them" in the Greek, but an earlier object can be applied to all subsequent verbs.

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is best translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as".

ye -- The second person pronoun ends the verse and it is not the subject of the verb but an indirect object or a possessive. See "have" below.

shall -- This is from the future tense of the following verb.

have -- The verb "have" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. With an indirect object, the object acts like a possessive, and "it is to him" becomes "it is his," or the verb can act like "have" with the object and the subject reverses, "he has it."   This verb was also the form at the end of the previous verse,  Mark 11:23.  

them. - -- (WN) This word is not plural but it comes from the singular form of the verb "to be."

EACH WORD of NIV : 

Therefore -- (CW) This is from two Greek words meaning "through this" or "by this." The specific meaning of this phrase is "on this account" or "on account of this."

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

tell -- The word translated as "say" is the most common word that means "to say," and "to speak," but it also means "to teach," which seems to be the way Jesus uses it more frequently. It also has many ancillary meanings such as "to count" ("to number" or like we might say, "to recount" a story) or "to choose for yourself." Jesus usually uses this word to refer to his own speaking or teaching.

you, -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.

whatever -- (WW) The adjective translated as "what" means "as great as", "as much as," and similar ideas of comparison. It is often translated as "whatsoever" in even though that is not its actual meaning.

missing -- (MW) The untranslated  word means  "all", "the whole", "every," and similar ideas. When it is used as a noun, we would say "everything."

you -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

ask for, -- The verb translated as "desire" means to "ask" and has shades of meaning from "demand," to "beg," to "claim." This verb is in the middle voice, indicating that the subject is acting on or for themselves. Since people do not "pray to themselves," the sense is "pray for yourselves." This verb is in the present tense.

missing "for yourselves"-- (WV) A phrase is necessary because the form of the previous verb is a middle voice, which means that the subject is to  act on "yourselves," "for yourselves" or "by yourselves."

in-- (WW) The Greek word translated as "in" is usually used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). It is not the conjunction that means "when" and "if."

prayer, -- (WF) The Greek word translated as "prayer"  is a verb, not a noun, that means "to offer prayers of vows" either "to worship" or "to ask for a thing".  This verb is in the middle voice, indicating that the subject is acting on or for themselves. Since people do not "ask themselves," the sense is "ask for yourselves." This verb is in the present tense.

believe -- The Greek word translated as "believe" does not apply to religious belief as much as it does trusting in other people, especially their word. Christ usually uses it in contexts, as the one here, that apply to trusting words.  The form could be a command but it could also be a simple statement, "you trust." This verb is in the present tense.

that -- The word translated as "that" introduces a statement of fact or cause.

you -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

have -- (WT) This helping verb "have" indicates that the following verb is the past tense, but the verb is not the past but a form that indicates a specific point in time, past, present, or future.

received -- The word translated as "received" primarily means "take." However, it means "receive" in the same sense that we use "get" to mean "receive" and has many different uses as we use "get" in English. Among these are the ideas of "understanding" and "possessing."  The tense is indicates something happening at some point in time, past, present, or future.

it, -- There is no "it" in the Greek, but an earlier object can be applied to all subsequent verbs.

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is best translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as".

it  -- This is from the third -person, singular form of the following verb.

will -- This is from the future tense of the following verb.

be --  The verb be " here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. With an indirect object, the object acts like a possessive, and "it is to him" becomes "it is his."  It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. This verb was also the penultimate word in the previous verse,  Mark 11:23.  

yours--  The Greek untranslated pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc. With the "to be," it acts as a possessive, "yours." This echoes the "his" that ended the previous verse. It is not a genitive form that would normally indicate a possessive but a special case of the dative.

EACH WORD 3RD (NLT or as noted): 

NLT

missing "by this" -- (MW) This "therefore" is not from a Greek word common translated as "therefore" but from a phrase that means "by this." The word for "by" means "through," in the midst of," or "by (a cause)."  "This" is a demonstrative pronoun that means "this", "here", "the nearer," and "the familiar."

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

tell -- The word translated as "say" is the most common word that means "to say," and "to speak," but it also means "to teach," which seems to be the way Jesus uses it more frequently. It also has many ancillary meanings such as "to count" ("to number" or like we might say, "to recount" a story) or "to choose for yourself." Jesus usually uses this word to refer to his own speaking or teaching.

you, -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.

missing "as much as" -- (MW) The untranslated adjective means "as great as", "as much as," and similar ideas of comparison. It is often translated as "whatsoever" in even though that is not its actual meaning.

you -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

can -- (IW) This word doesn't exist in the source.

missing "ask", -- The untranslated verb  means to "ask" and has shades of meaning from "demand," to "beg," to "claim." This verb is in the middle voice, indicating that the subject is acting on or for themselves. Since people do not "pray to themselves," the sense is "pray for yourselves." This verb is in the present tense.

pray for -- The Greek word translated as "pray for "  means "to offer prayers of vows" either "to worship" or "to ask for a thing".  This verb is in the middle voice, indicating that the subject is acting on or for themselves. Since people do not "ask themselves," the sense is "ask for yourselves." This verb is in the present tense.

missing "for yourselves"-- (WV) A phrase is necessary because the form of the previous verb is a middle voice, which means that the subject is to  act on "yourselves," "for yourselves" or "by yourselves."

anything -- (CW) The untranslated word means  "all", "the whole", "every," and similar ideas. When it is used as a noun, we would say "everything."

and  -- The Greek word translated as "and" is usually used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). It is not the conjunction that means "when" and "if."

if -- (IW) There are no Greek words that can be translated as "if" in the Greek source.

you -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

believe -- The Greek word translated as "believe" does not apply to religious belief as much as it does trusting in other people, especially their word. Christ usually uses it in contexts, as the one here, that apply to trusting words.  The form could be a command but it could also be a simple statement, "you trust." This verb is in the present tense.

that -- The word translated as "that" introduces a statement of fact or cause.

you -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the following verb.

've -- (WT) This helping verb "have" indicates that the following verb is the past tense, but the verb is not the past but a form that indicates a specific point in time, past, present, or future.

received -- The word translated as "received" primarily means "take." However, it means "receive" in the same sense that we use "get" to mean "receive" and has many different uses as we use "get" in English. Among these are the ideas of "understanding" and "possessing."  The tense is indicates something happening at some point in time, past, present, or future.

it, -- There is no "it" in the Greek, but an earlier object can be applied to all subsequent verbs.you’ve it will be yours.

missing "and" -- The untranslated Greek word is "and" used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is best translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as".

it  -- This is from the third -person, singular form of the following verb.

will -- This is from the future tense of the following verb.

be --  The verb be " here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. With an indirect object, the object acts like a possessive, and "it is to him" becomes "it is his."  This verb was also the penultimate word in the previous verse,  Mark 11:23.  

yours--  The Greek untranslated pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.   This echoes the "for him" that ended the previous verse. It is not a genitive form that would normally indicate a possessive.

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

διὰ τοῦτο [22 verses](prep, adj sg neut acc) "Therefore" is from two Greek words meaning "through this" or "by this." "Through" is dia, which means with the accusative, it can also be "thanks to," "because of,"  "by reasons of," and "for the sake of. "This" is touto, which means  "this [thing] there/here." With the neuter adjective, the sense is "on this account." -- (CW) This is from two Greek words meaning "through this" or "by this." The specific meaning of this phrase is "on this account" or "on account of this." CW --Confusing Word -- The "therefore" is not the common word usually translated as "therefore."

λέγω [264 verses]( verb 1st sg pres ind act ) "I say" is lego means "pick up", "choose for oneself", "pick out," and "count,"  but it used to mean "recount", "tell over", "say", "speak", "teach", "mean", "boast of", "tell of", "recite," nominate," and "command."

ὑμῖν [289 verses](pron 2nd pl dat) "To you" is humin the plural form of su the pronoun of the second person, "you."

πάντα [212 verses] ( adj pl neut acc/nom) "Things" is pas, which means "all", "the whole", "every", "anyone", "all kinds," and "anything." In the adverbial form, it means "every way", "on every side", "in every way," and "altogether."

ὅσα [28 verses](adj pl neut acc) "What" is hosos, which means "as many," "how many,"  "how much," "as much as," "as great as,"how great," "as far as," "how far," and "only so far as."

προσεύχεσθε [26 verses]( verb 2nd pl pres ind mp ) "You pray" is proseuchomai, which means "to offer prayers or vows", "to worship," and "to pray for a thing. It is the combination of two Greek word, pros, meaning "towards" or "by reason of," and euchomai, meaning "to pray to God."

καὶ [1089 verses](conj/adv) "And" is kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "but." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even", "also," and "just."

αἰτεῖσθε, [28 verses]( verb 2nd pl pres ind mp ) "Ye desire" is from aiteo, which means "to ask for," "to request," "to demand," "to beg of," "to postulate or assume [in logic]," "to claim," and "to ask for one's own use." In passive, "to be asked" and "to have a thing begged from one."

πιστεύετε [69 verses] (verb 2nd pl pres ind mp  or verb 2nd pl pres imperat act ) "Believe" is pisteuo, which means "to trust, put faith in, or rely on a person," "to believe in someone's words," "to comply," "to feel confident in a thing," and "to entrust in a thing."

ὅτι [332 verses](adv/conj) "That" is hoti, which introduces a statement of fact "with regard to the fact that", "seeing that," and acts as a causal adverb meaning "for what", "because", "since," and "wherefore." --

ἐλάβετε, [54 verse] ( verb 2nd pl aor ind act ) "Ye receive" is lambano means to "take", "take hold of", "grasp", "seize", "catch", "overtake", "find out", "detect", "take as", "take [food or drugs]", "understand", "take in hand", "undertake", "take in", "hold", "get", "receive [things]", "receive hospitably", "receive in marriage", "receive as produce", "profit", "admit", "initiate", "take hold of", "lay hold on", "seize and keep hold of", "obtain possession of", "lay hands upon", "find fault with", "censure," "to apprehend with the senses", "to take hold of," and "to seize." It is also specifically used to mean "seized with emotion."

καὶ [1089 verses](conj/adv) "And" is kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "but." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even", "also," and "just."

ἔσται [614 verses] ( verb 3rd sg fut ind mid ) "Shall have" is eimi, which means "to be," "to exist," "to be the case," of circumstance and events "to happen,"  and "is possible." With the genitive object, the sense is "belongs to."With the dative, the object acts like a possessive, and "it is to him" becomes "it is his." 

ὑμῖν [289 verses](pron 2nd pl dat) Untranslated is humin the plural form of su the pronoun of the second person, "you."

Related Verses: 

Possible Symbolic Meaning: 

While this verse again may seem complex, that is again because we see Jesus use the verbal pattern of three plus one.  In this case, the pattern is desire, pray, believe, and receive. These are all primarily spiritual concepts, but they reflect the four realms that Christ always uses to describe how reality is transformed. Desire is physical. Desire is mental. Belief is spiritual. Receiving is physical. Notice, as usually, that the key element in this formula is the spiritual element: belief.

Front Page Date: 

Aug 1 2023