Matthew 8:10 ...I have not found so great faith,

Spoken to: 

audience

Jesus reaction to the centurion's trust in his power to heal.  This line is spoken after the centurion says he isn't worthy to have Christ come to his house. The word translated as "worthy" mean "sufficient" or "suitable" and it refers to the Judean prohibition against visiting the unclean houses of foreighers.

KJV: 

Matthew 8:10 Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

NIV : 

Matthew 8:10 Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.

LISTENERS HEARD: 

Ameni, I'm telling you. From no one, so great a trust within Israel, have I discovered

MY TAKE: 

Trust must not require proof.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

The KJV captures the idea but strays pretty far from the original text, which is pithier. Notice that the "in Israel" phrase describes the faith nit the no one, if we read this as one sentence. However, this statement was more likely a response to a question.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

4
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "from" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The word translated as "so great" is more like "so much." It is not a form of "great."
  • IP - Inserted Phrase-- The phrase "no not" doesn't exist in the source.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before the "Isreal" is not shown in the English translation.

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

6
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The word translated as "not anyone" is more like "no one." It is the object of a preposition, not the verb.
  • WP -- Wrongly Placed -- The word "in" doesn't appear here but after the word "faith."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before the "Isreal" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "with" should be "from."
  • WP -- Wrongly Placed -- The word "from" doesn't appear here but before the word "no one."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The word translated as "so great" is more like "so much." It is not a form of "great."

EACH WORD of KJV : 

Verily -- The word translated as "verily" is the Hebrew word that means "truly" or "certainly," but it sounds like the Greek word with the same meaning. In Greek, the word also means "to reap." The "verily" phrase is used frequently by Jesus. Its meaning is discussed in detail in this article.

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." When used with an object is has the sense of "call by name." . 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." Christ usually uses this word to refer to his own speaking or teaching.

unto -- This word "unto" comes from the dative case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English. The most common is a "to" for the English indirect object.

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

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

have -- This helping verb "have" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action competed in the past.

missing "from"-- (MW) The Greek preposition translated as "from" has many meanings, many of which depend on the case of its object.With the dative, the sense is static, "by the side of," "near," and "before."

not -- (WW) -- The Greek word translated as "not" also means "no one" and other negatives nouns.  Here, it is masculines so "no one."

found -- The term used for "found" is the source of our word, "heuristic," meaning enabling a person to find out something for themselves. It means "find out" and "discover."

so great --  (CW) "So much" is a compound adjective that means literally "that which (or who) has to such an degree." It means "so much" or come other comparison, This word is not a form of the word "great" but a comparative.

faith, -- The term translated as "faith" is closer to our idea of having confidence or trust in people, especially their word, rather than having religious belief.

no, not -- (IP) There are no words like this in Greek. Only the "no one" above."

in -- The word translated as "in" also means "within" or "among." It indicates being within a given area or group. However, the phrase having "faith in" something has a special meaning in English which this word doesn't have in Greek.

missing "the/this"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." Before an adjective or a particle, it changes the following word to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more. 

Israel. -- The word translated as "Israel" comes from the Hebrew, not the Greek. It refers both to the nation and the people.

EACH WORD of NIV : 

“Truly -- The word translated as "trully" is the Hebrew word that means "truly" or "certainly," but it sounds like the Greek word with the same meaning. In Greek, the word also means "to reap." The "verily" phrase is used frequently by Jesus. Its meaning is discussed in detail in this article.

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." When used with an object is has the sense of "call by name." . 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." Christ 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.

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

have -- This helping verb "have" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action competed in the past.

not --  (CW) The Greek word translated as "not..anyone" means "no one" and other negatives nouns.  Here, it is masculine so "no one."

found -- The term used for "found" is the source of our word, "heuristic," meaning enabling a person to find out something for themselves. It means "find out" and "discover."

anyone -- This is from the "no one" above."

in -- (WP) The word translated as "in" also means "within" or "among." It indicates being within a given area or group. However, the phrase having "faith in" something has a special meaning in English which this word doesn't have in Greek.

missing "the/this"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." Before an adjective or a particle, it changes the following word to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more. 

Israel. -- The word translated as "Israel" comes from the Hebrew, not the Greek. It refers both to the nation and the people.

with - (WW, WP) The Greek preposition translated as "with" has many meanings, many of which depend on the case of its object.With the dative, the sense is static, "by the side of," "near," and "before."  It does not appear before "such great faith" but before "no one."

such great --  (CW) "So much" is a compound adjective that means literally "that which (or who) has to such an degree." It means "so much" or come other comparison, This word is not a form of the word "great" but a comparative.

faith, -- The term translated as "faith" is closer to our idea of having confidence or trust in people, especially their word, rather than having religious belief.

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

Ἀμὴν (adv) "Verily" is from amen, which is from the Hebrew, meaning "truly", "of a truth," and "so be it." It has no history in Greek before the NT.

λέγω [264 verses](1st sg pres ind act/subj) "I say" is lego, which means "to recount," "to tell over," "to say," "to speak," "to teach," "to mean," "boast of," "tell of," "recite," nominate," and "command." It has a secondary meaning "pick out," "choose for oneself," "pick up," "gather," "count," and "recount." A less common word that is spelled the same means "to lay," "to lay asleep" and "to lull asleep."

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

παρὰ  (prep) "With" is para, has many meanings, which depend on the case of its object and the sense of the verb.With the genitive, the sense is always motion, "from the side of," "from beside," "issuing from", and generally "from." With the dative, the sense is always static, "by the side of," "near," "in the presence of," and "before." With the accusative, its has a number of specialized meanings depending on the character of the verb, with coming/going "near," "beside," with placing "side-by-side," as a metaphor, "like" or "as a parody of," of comparison, "compared with" and many more including "along", "past", "beyond", "parallel (geometry)", "precisely at the moment of (time)," and "throughout (time)." -

οὐδενὶ (adj sg dat) "Not" is from oudeis which means "no one", "not one", "nothing", "naught", "good for naught," and "no matter." -

τοσαύτην [4 verses](adj sg fem acc) "So great" is tosoutos, which means "so much", "thus much", "so far", "so large", and "so tall".

πίστιν [26 verses](noun g fem acc) "Faith" is pistis, which means "confidence," "assurance," "trustworthiness," "credit," "a trust," "that which give confidence," and, as a character trait, "faithfulness."\

ἐν [413 verses](prep) "In" is en, which means, with its usual indirect (dative) object, "in," "on," "at," "by," "among," "within," "surrounded by," "in one's hands," "in one's power," "during,"  and "with." With a direct (accusative) object, it means "into," "on," and "for." Referring to time, it means. "in the course of" or "during."

τῷ [821 verses](article sg masc dat)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). When not preceding a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones."  Proper nouns do normally not take articles but they are needed when the noun ending cannot be changed to show the noun's role in the sentence as an object, indirect object, or genitive (possessive) form. However, the Greek article is very close to "this" so the purpose of an article like this can also be demonstrative. See this article.   -

Ἰσραὴλ [11 verses] (noun sg masc dat) ."Israel" is Israel, which means "Israel." -

εὗρον. [43 verses](1st sg aor ind act) "Found"is heurisko, which means "to find," "to find out," "to discover," "to devise," "to invent," "to get," and "to gain."

Related Verses: 

Unimportant Opinions and Imaginings: 

“Lord. No. I am not suitable,” the man answer emotionally. “Because, for my part...below that roof you might enter.”
As you probably know, he was referring to the Judean prohibition against entering the houses of foreigners. To the Judeans, such houses were  considered ritually unclean. In response, the Master shook his head, “no.” However, the centurion continued, controlling himself better.
“But only speak the idea,” he insisted. “And he will be healed, that child of mine.”
The Master smiled broadly at this reply, and addressed the crowd of his followers surrounding him.
“Honestly, I’m telling you,” he responded lightly, using one of his common phrases.
Those around, including the centurion, him laughed at the familiar saying.
“From no one have I discovered so much trust,” the Master continued. “
“Among the foreigners?” asked his follower, Thomas.
“Within Israel,” clarified the Master.

Front Page Date: 

Jul 26 2020