Matthew 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven,

Spoken to: 

audience

Sermon on Mount, law and fulfillment, visible and hidden, temporary and permanent

KJV: 

Matthew 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

NIV : 

Matthew 6:20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

LISTENERS HEARD: 

Stockpile, however, for yourselves stockpiles in a sky, where neither moths nor eating erase and where robbers do not tunnel through nor rob.

MY TAKE: 

What is easy to see doesn't last. Only what is hard to see lasts.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

GREEK ORDER: 

θησαυρίζετε δὲ                  ὑμῖν          θησαυροὺς ἐν οὐρανῷ,
Stockpile,    however, for yourselves stockpiles  in the sky,

ὅπου   οὔτε    σὴς     οὔτε βρῶσις ἀφανίζει,
where neither moths nor  eating erase

καὶ  ὅπου  κλέπται οὐ διορύσσουσιν        οὐδὲ κλέπτουσιν:
and where robbers not do tunnel through nor  rob.

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

This verse has the same issues as the previous verse, Matthew 6:19, which was the negative version of this verse. The previous verse on "earth" starts with the Greek negative of opinion. This verse on the sky, ends with the Greek negative of fact. Rather than repeat all the discussion of these issues and all the hidden connections to other verses, I will simply list them here and you can refer to the previous verse for details:

  • The word translated as "rust/vermin" doesn't mean "rust/vermin" but "meal."
  • The word translated as "corrupt/destroy" means as "hide" or "conceal," which connects to Jesus's repeated instruction to give charity, pay, and fast "in secret."
  •  A play words using both the noun and verb forms of the same word, not once, but twice: "stockpiling piles of stock" and "robbers robbing." 

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

6
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "lay up" is a form of the word "to place," but it specifically means "to store" and "to hoard."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "lay up" should be "store" or "stockpile."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "treasures" should be "stores" or "piles of stock."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "rust" should be "meal" or "food."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "corrupt" should be "hide" or "conceal."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "break through" should be "dig in" or "tunnel."

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

8
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "treasures" should be "stores" or "piles of stock."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "earth" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WN  - Wrong Number- The word "moths" is translated as plural but it is singular.
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "and" should be "nor."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "vermin" should be "meal" or "eating."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "destroy" should be "hide" or "conceal."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "break in" should be "dig in" or "tunnel."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "and" should be "nor."

EACH WORD of KJV : 

But The Greek word translated as "But" is commonly translated as "but," but "however" often works better since it always appears, not at the beginning of a phase, but in the second position. It joins phrases in an adversarial way.

lay up -- (CW)  The word translated as "lay up" primarily means "to store", "accumulate" and "hoard". It is a fancy form of the word that means "to place" or "to pile". It has the more specific meaning of storing valuables, which is captured best perhaps by "hoard" but it is a polysyllabic word like "accumulate". While Christ uses this word elsewhere, it is not the most common word he uses for either "store". This is the verb form of the noun used below translated as "treasures." It is a plural command, addressing the audience generally.

for -- This word "for" comes from the dative case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English, but the translator must decide which preposition to use: a "to" as an indirect object, a "with" for instruments, an "in" for locations, an "as" for purposes, an "of" for possession, a "by" for agents, an "as" for comparisons, "at" or "on" a time, and an "in" for area of effect.

yourselves -- The Greek "yourselves" is the second-person, plural pronoun in a form that is that is usually an indirect object.

treasures -- (WW) The word translated as "treasures" is the noun form of the word translated above as "lay up." It the word  As with the verb form, its primary meaning is a "stores" of something and its secondary meaning is "valuables". While "treasure" works as both a verb and noun, the sense of the verb is not simple to store but to value. The Greek verb doesn't mean that. Jesus clearly uses both words forms to play off of each other. In order to capture the play on words, we go with the "to store the stores" primary meaning.

in -- The word translated as "in" means "in," "within", "with," or "among"  with a dative object as the one here. 

heaven, -- The word translated as "heaven" means "sky", the "climate", and the "universe". It also meant the home of the gods in a physical sense: the sun, moon, and planets were named for the gods. More about the word in this article. When Jesus describes it as the location of the Father, this word appears in plural. When Christ uses it more narrowly, it is in the singular. It is not introduced by the article "the sky" so the sense is "a sky".

where  -- The word translated as "where"  means "somewhere", "anywhere", "wherever," and "where."

neither -- The same Greek word is used for both "neither...nor". It appears here. It is a combination of the conjunction that is usually translated as "but" with the negative of objective fact, not opinion.

moth -- The word translated as "moth" means the type of moth that eats cloth and whose larva eats books. It is a metaphor for academics as "book worms". It is singular, that is, a single moth.

nor -- The same Greek word is used for both "neither...nor". It appears here. It is a combination of the conjunction that is usually translated as "but" with the negative of objective fact, not opinion.

rust -- (WW) The next problem word here is translated as "rust". It is the Greek noun that means "meat", "food", "pasture", "eating, "taste," and "flavor." It is also singular. It is only translated as "rust" or "decay" in the NT.

doth  -- This helping verb is used to create commands, negative statements, and smooth word flow in English, but here just represents the present tense.

corrupt, -- (WW) Another problem is the Greek verb translated as "corrupt". The primary meaning of the Greek word used encompasses many different forms of hiding and concealing something. It has a secondary meaning of "to destroy." We saw this verb most recently in Matthew 6:16, where it was translated as "disfigure". It is the negative of the verb used in the previous verse, Matthew 6:18, translated in KJV as "appear". There is also a problem with the number of the verb. This verb is singular, which does not agree with two subjects. While a group of neuter nouns (and neuter plural words) can have a singular verb, neither of the supposed compound subjects here ("moth" and "rust") are neuter. Some claim that a singular verb can be used to accent one of the subjects, but how does that work here? The sense here is that the verb matches "a moth just eating". 

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".

where -- The word translated as "where"  means "somewhere", "anywhere", "wherever," and "where."

thieves -- The Greek word translated as "thief" primarily means "thief" but it also encompasses other forms of theft by fraud. It is the noun form of the following word translated as "steal".

do -- This helping verb is used to create commands, negative statements, and smooth word flow in English, but the Greek could be either a question or a statement.

not --  The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact. This is a different negative than was used in the previous verse, which is the subjective form. Adding "really" to the used of this verb captures the feeling of this word. More about the Greek negative in this article.

break through -- (WW) The choice of the Greek word translated as "break through" means "digging through" or "trenching." It seems to have been chosen because it focuses on the idea of digging or tunneling through dirt, that is, "the earth," which is where the stores are kept.

nor -- The same Greek word is used for both "neither...nor". It appears here. It is a combination of the conjunction that is usually translated as "but" with the negative of objective fact, not opinion.

steal: -- The Greek word translated as "steal" is the verb form of the noun translated as "thieves." To capture the play on words, we would say "where robbers rob."

EACH WORD of NIV : 

But The Greek word translated as "But" is commonly translated as "but," but "however" often works better since it always appears, not at the beginning of a phase, but in the second position. It joins phrases in an adversarial way.

store up--  The word translated as "store up" primarily means "to store", "accumulate" and "hoard". It is a fancy form of the word that means "to place" or "to pile". It has the more specific meaning of storing valuables, which is captured best perhaps by "hoard" but it is a polysyllabic word like "accumulate". While Christ uses this word elsewhere, it is not the most common word he uses for either "store". This is the verb form of the noun used below translated as "treasures." It is a plural command, addressing the audience generally.

for -- This word "for" comes from the dative case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English, but the translator must decide which preposition to use: a "to" as an indirect object, a "with" for instruments, an "in" for locations, an "as" for purposes, an "of" for possession, a "by" for agents, an "as" for comparisons, "at" or "on" a time, and an "in" for area of effect.

yourselves -- The Greek "yourselves" is the second-person, plural pronoun in a form that is that is usually an indirect object.

treasures -- The word translated as "treasures" is the noun form of the word translated above as "lay up." It the word  As with the verb form, its primary meaning is a "stores" of something and its secondary meaning is "valuables". While "treasure" works as both a verb and noun, the sense of the verb is not simple to store but to value. The Greek verb doesn't mean that. Jesus clearly uses both words forms to play off of each other. In order to capture the play on words, we go with the "to store the stores" primary meaning.

in -- The word translated as "in" means "in," "within", "with," or "among"  with a dative object as the one here. 

heaven, -- The word translated as "heaven" means "sky", the "climate", and the "universe". It also meant the home of the gods in a physical sense: the sun, moon, and planets were named for the gods. More about the word in this article. When Christ describes it as the location of the Father, this word appears in plural. When Christ uses it more narrowly, it is in the singular. It is not introduced by an article "the sky" so the sense is "a sky".

where  -- The word translated as "where"  means "somewhere", "anywhere", "wherever," and "where."

missing "neither"-- (MW) The untranslated word "neither" is the Greek word used for both "neither...nor". It appears here. It is a combination of the conjunction that is usually translated as "but" with the negative of objective fact, not opinion.

moths -- (WN) The word translated as "moth" means the type of moth that eat cloth and whose larva eats books. It is a metaphor for academics as "bookworms". It is singular, that is, a single moth.

and -- (WW) The same Greek word is used for both "neither...nor". It appears here. It is a combination of the conjunction that is usually translated as "but" with the negative of objective fact, not opinion.

vermin-- (WW) The next problem word here is translated as "vermin". It is the Greek noun that means "meat", "food", "pasture", "eating, "taste," and "flavor." It is also singular. It is only translated as "rust" or "decay" in the NT.

do -- This helping verb is used to create commands, negative statements, and smooth word flow in English, but the Greek could be either a question or a statement.

not --  The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact. This is a different negative than was used in the previous verse, which is the subjective form. Adding "really" to the used of this verb captures the feeling of this word. More about the Greek negative in this article.

destroy, -- (WW) Another problem is the Greek verb translated as "destroy". The primary meaning of the Greek word used encompasses many different forms of hiding and concealing something. It has a secondary meaning of "to destroy," but Jesus commonly uses another Greek word to mean destroy. We saw this verb most recently in Matthew 6:16, where it was translated as "disfigure". It is the negative of the verb used in the previous verse, Matthew 6:18, translated in KJV as "appear". There is also a problem with the number of the verb. This verb is singular, which does not agree with two subjects. While a group of neuter nouns (and neuter plural words) can have a singular verb, neither of the supposed compound subjects here ("moth" and "rust") are neuter. Some claim that a singular verb can be used to accent one of the subjects, but how does that work here? The sense here is that the verb matches "a moth just eating".

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".

where -- The word translated as "where"  means "somewhere", "anywhere", "wherever," and "where."

thieves -- The Greek word translated as "thief" primarily means "thief" but it also encompasses other forms of theft by fraud. It is the noun form of the following word translated as "steal".

do -- This helping verb is used to create commands, negative statements, and smooth word flow in English, but the Greek could be either a question or a statement.

not --  The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact. This is a different negative than was used in the previous verse, which is the subjective form. Adding "really" to the used of this verb captures the feeling of this word. More about the Greek negative in this article.

break in -- (WW) The choice of the Greek word translated as "break in" means "digging through" or "trenching." It seems to have been chosen because it focuses on the idea of digging or tunneling through dirt, that is, "the earth," which is where the stores are kept.

and -- (WW) The "and" is same Greek word used for both "neither...nor". It appears here. It is a combination of the conjunction that is usually translated as "but" with the negative of objective fact, not opinion.

steal: -- The Greek word translated as "steal" is the verb form of the noun translated as "thieves." To capture the play on words, we would say "where robbers rob."

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

θησαυρίζετε (2nd pl pres imperat act)"Lay up" is from thesaurizo, which means to "store", " treasure up", "hoard", "lay up treasure", "lay up a store of", "store up for oneself," and "to be reserved[passive]."

δὲ (partic) "But" is from de which means "but" and "on the other hand." It is the particle that joins sentences in an adversarial way but can also be a weak connective ("and") and explanation of cause ("so").

ὑμῖν (pron 2nd pl dat) "For yourselves" is from hymin (humin), which is the 2nd person plural dative pronoun. Dative is the case which indicates to whom something is given.

θησαυροὺς (noun pl masc acc) "Treasures" is from thesauros, which means a "store", "treasure", "strong-room", "magazine, "granary", "receptacle for valuables", "safe", "casket", "offertory-box", "cavern," and "subterranean dungeon."

ἐν (prep) "In" is from en, which means "in", "on", "at", "by", "among", "within", "surrounded by", "in one's hands", "in one's power," and "with".

οὐρανῷ, (noun sg masc dat) "Heaven" is from ouranos, which means "heaven as in the vault of the sky", "heaven as the seat of the gods", "the sky", "the universe," and "the climate." See this article for more perspective on the word and how Christ uses it.

ὅπου (adv) "Where" is from hopou, which means "somewhere", "anywhere", "wherever," and "where."

οὔτε (adv) "Neither" is from oute, which means "and not," and "neither/nor" when used in a series.

σὴς (noun sg masc nom ) "Moth"is from ses, which means "moth" and is a metaphor for "book worms."

οὔτε (adv) "Nor" is from oute, which means "and not," and "neither/nor" when used in a series.

βρῶσις (noun sg fem nom ) "Rust" is from brosis, which means "meat", "pasture", "eating, "taste," and "flavor." Only in this and related passages of the NT is it translated as "corrosion", "rust, or "decay."

ἀφανίζει, (3rd sg pres ind act) "Doth corrupt" is from aphanizo, which means "to make unseen", "to hide", "to vanish" "to hush up", "to do away with", "to reject, "to remove", "to destroy", "to obliterate [writing], "to spirit away [a witness]", "to secrete", "to steal", "to obscure", "to mar", "to disguise [by dyeing]", "to spoil", "to make away with", "to drain [a cup of wine]," or "deprive of luster."

καὶ (conj) "And" is from 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."

ὅπου (adv) "Where" is from hopou, which means "somewhere", "anywhere", "wherever," and "where."

κλέπται (noun pl masc nom ) "Thieves" is from kleptês (kleptes), which means a "thief", "cheat," and "knave."

οὐ (partic) "Not" is from ou which is the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences. The other negative adverb, μή applies to will and thought; οὐ denies, μή rejects; οὐ is absolute, μή relative; οὐ objective, μή subjective.

διορύσσουσιν (3rd pl pres ind act) "Break through" is from diorysso, which means "digging through, "having dug a trench across or along," metaph "undermine", "ruin", "worm out," and Pass., "to be shut up in a funeral vault."

οὐδὲ (adv) "Nor" is from oute, which means "and not," and "neither/nor" when used in a series.

κλέπτουσιν: (3rd pl pres ind act) "To steal" is from klepto (klepto) which means "to steal", "to cheat", "to spirit away", "to conceal", "to keep secret", "to do secretly", "to seize or occupy secretly", "to bring about secreand "to do secretly or treacherously."

Wordplay: 

 This verse is the factual negative of the previous verse making "the sky" the inverse or reverse of the earth or ground. The previous verse on "earth" starts with the negative of opinion. This verse on the sky, uses the negative of fact. 

Related Verses: 

Unimportant Opinions and Imaginings: 

“So if we are fortunate, what are we supposed to do?” asked the wealthy man.
“Then stockpile stock piles for yourselves,” the Teacher responded, “in a sky, where there is neither a moth nor eating,” the Teacher continued.
“But we cannot see it!” Enoch complained.
“It steals away!” agreed the Teacher smiling, gesturing with the flutter of a hand.
We laughed at the play on words, changing “steals away” from being stolen to disappearing.
“Where these hidden fortunes can’t be seen?” Enoch asked.
“And where robbers do not tunnel in nor rob!” the Teacher assured him, indicating his heart.
We laughed, and some applauded.

Front Page Date: 

Jun 12 2020