Matthew 26:24 The Son of man goeth as it is written of him

Spoken to: 

Apostles

The Last Supper

KJV: 

Matthew 26:24 The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.

NIV : 

Matthew 26:24 The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”

LISTENERS HEARD: 

This, indeed, son of the man departs as it has been written about him. Too bad, however, for the ma, that one, by whom this son of the man is turned in. It was worthy for him if he not been conceived, that son, that one.

MY TAKE: 

Jesus destiny was fated, but someone chose to act toward that destiny

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

This verse has a number of humorous elements in it which are lost in translation. It is a serious subject, but Jesus is not taking it that seriously. The second word is an untranslated word that means "indeed", "certainly", "surely," and "truly." Jesus often uses this word for humor since it means the same as the Aramaic word amen, but it looks like its opposite.

The word translated as "woe" is an exclamation of sorrow with a bit of light-heartedness to it, the original of the Yiddish, oy vey. Most verses in which it appears have the hallmarks of Christ's humor, usually exaggeration, which we see here. Today we would say "so sad " or "too bad."

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

6
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "man" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The English verb  "is" is the present tense, but the tense is the past perfect.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "of" does not capture the specific meaning of the word.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "man" is not shown in the English translation.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "man" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "betrayed" does not capture the specific meaning of the word.

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

7
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "man" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "will" indicates the future tense, but that is not the tense here.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The English verb  "is" is the present tense, but the tense is the past perfect.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "man" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "betrays" does not capture the specific meaning of the word.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "betrays" is not an active verb but passive verb, "is betrayed."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "man" is not shown in the English translation.

EACH WORD of KJV : 

The -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

Son -- The word translated as "son" more generally means "child" or "descendant." The phrase "the son of man" is the common way Christ refers to himself. It is discussed in detail in this article. Its sense may be "the child of the man."

of -- This word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that required the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession, but it can also mean "belonging to," "part of," "which is," "than" (in comparisons), or  "for," "concerning" or "about" with transitive verbs. 

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

man - The Greek word for "man" means "man," "person" and "humanity" in the singular. In the plural, it means "men," "people," and "peoples." 

goeth -  "Goeth" is from a Greek verb that means literally "go under" or "bring under," but Christ usually uses it to mean "go away" and "depart."

as -- As is from a Greek word that means which means "even as," "how," and, in relating to time, "as" and "when."

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

is -- (WT) This helping verb "is" indicates that the verb is passive. Helping or auxiliary verbs are needed to translate the Greek verb forms into English. However, the tense is the past perfect, so it should be "has been," something completed in the past.

written  - "Written" is a verb that means "to mark", "to express by written characters", and "to write down [a law]". However, the form of the word is not passive but a form where the subject acts on itself in a way completed in the past, "it has written itself."

of  - (CW) The Greek word translated as "of" means It means "around" when referring to a place, but, in this context, it means "about", "concerning", "on account of," and "in regard to." This is the way Christ usually uses it.

him: -- The word translated as "him" is the Greek word commonly translated as third-person pronouns in English.

but  - The Greek word translated as "but" joins phrases in an adversarial way. Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better. When used in writing, it creates complex sentences, but when spoken, it makes a good pausing point so that an important or humorous word can follow.

woe  - "Woe" is from an exclamation of grief, meaning "woe" or "alas." However, Jeus seems to use it somewhat humorously. Most verses in which it appears have the hallmarks of Christ's humor. Today we would say "so sad " or "too bad." The word is very like the Jewish, "oy vey" which can be used to express sorrow but is more commonly used cynically. More about this phrase in this article on Christ's humor, under the subtitle, "exaggeration."

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.

that -- The word translated as "that" is an adjective that highlights its noun as being in a specific place or time from a word that means "there."

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

man  - The word translated as "man" is the same as the "man" in the "son of man." It is in the form of an indirect object, which we would usually use "for" in English here.

by  - The word translated as "by" means "through," in the midst of," or "by (a cause)." Here the sense is a cause.

whom  - The word translated as "whom" is a demonstrative pronoun ("this" "that"), but it often acts as a pronoun ("the one that), especially a connective pronoun ("the one that") introducing a dependent clause.

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

Son -- The word translated as "son" more generally means "child" or "descendant." The phrase "the son of man" is the common way Christ refers to himself. It is discussed in detail in this article. Its sense may be "the child of the man."

of -- This word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that required the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession, but it can also mean "belonging to," "part of," "which is," "than" (in comparisons), or  "for," "concerning" or "about" with transitive verbs. 

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

man - The Greek word for "man" means "man," "person" and "humanity" in the singular. In the plural, it means "men," "people," and "peoples." 

is -- This helping verb "is" indicates that the verb is passive. Helping or auxiliary verbs are needed to translate the Greek verb forms into English.

betrayed!  - (CW) "Betrayed" is a compound word which literally means "to give over." It is in the form where the subject acts on himself, not a passive form. It has a lot of the same sense as we used "turned in" in English. It is the same word used in the previous two verses. The various biblical translations translate being it as "betray" or "delivered over" depending on the context. It has less of a sense of "betray," though giving someone over is similar to turning someone it. In looking through all the other uses of the word, he uses it consistently to mean being given over to authorities, most often state authorities. that is not the translation used for being given over to Christ by God or falling into the hands of authorities through court action. The word, betrayal, adds a lot of baggage to the discussion. It raises an issue of that Christ's original words did not raise: whether turning over someone to authorities is itself a dishonest act.

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

had -- (WT) This helping verb "had" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action completed in the past. This tense is the simple past.

been  -  - The "been" verb here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It is in a form that is usually translated as the past, "it was."

good  - The word translated as "good" referring to the "fruit" means "beautiful", "noble," or "of good quality." It is different than the verb above. See this article on "good" and this one on "evil." Generally, "valuable" and "worthy" work in most of the places it is used, but perhaps not here.

for -- This word "for" 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. However, the translator can choose other prepositions: "with,"  "in,"   "of,"  "as," "by," "for," "at," or "on" depending on the context.

that man  - (WW) That man" is from a word that normally acts as a pronoun (either "he" or "it", here). It could refer back to either "man" or "good." It is in a form that is usually an indirect object (to him) but which can also be the instrumental dative ("by it/him"), a benefit ( "...for it/him"); or possession ("...of his/its own"). There is not word meaning "that" or "man," but the word is masculine.

if -- The "if" here expresses a condition but it means nothing regarding whether that condition is met or not. It also means "if ever" and "whenever."

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

had -- (WT) This helping verb "had" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action completed in the past. This tense is the simple past.

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. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea.

been -- This helping verb "been" indicates that the verb is passive. Helping or auxiliary verbs are needed to translate the Greek verb forms into English.

born. - The word translated as "born" means "to beget", "to bring forth", "to produce from oneself", and "to engender." The sense is "had not been conceived."

EACH WORD of NIV : 

The -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

Son -- The word translated as "son" more generally means "child" or "descendant." The phrase "the son of man" is the common way Christ refers to himself. It is discussed in detail in this article. Its sense may be "the child of the man."

of -- This word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that required the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession, but it can also mean "belonging to," "part of," "which is," "than" (in comparisons), or  "for," "concerning" or "about" with transitive verbs. 

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

Man - The Greek word for "man" means "man," "person" and "humanity" in the singular. In the plural, it means "men," "people," and "peoples." 

will  -- (WT) This helping verb "will" indicates the future tense, but the verb is the present tense.

go -  "Go" is from a Greek verb that means literally "go under" or "bring under," but Christ usually uses it to mean "go away" and "depart."

just as -- As is from a Greek word that means which means "even as," "how," and, in relating to time, "as" and "when."

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

is -- (WT) This helping verb "is" indicates that the verb is passive. Helping or auxiliary verbs are needed to translate the Greek verb forms into English. However, the tense is the past perfect, so it should be "has been," something completed in the past.

written  - "Written" is a verb that means "to mark", "to express by written characters", and "to write down [a law]". However, the form of the word is not passive but a form where the subject acts on itself in a way completed in the past, "it has written itself."

about - The Greek word translated as "of" means It means "around" when referring to a place, but, in this context, it means "about", "concerning", "on account of," and "in regard to." This is the way Christ usually uses it.

him. -- The word translated as "him" is the Greek word commonly translated as third-person pronouns in English.

But  - The Greek word translated as "but" joins phrases in an adversarial way. Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better. When used in writing, it creates complex sentences, but when spoken, it makes a good pausing point so that an important or humorous word can follow.

woe  - "Woe" is from an exclamation of grief, meaning "woe" or "alas." However, Jeus seems to use it somewhat humorously. Most verses in which it appears have the hallmarks of Christ's humor. Today we would say "so sad " or "too bad." The word is very like the Jewish, "oy vey" which can be used to express sorrow but is more commonly used cynically. More about this phrase in this article on Christ's humor, under the subtitle, "exaggeration."

to -- This word "to" 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.

that -- The word translated as "that" is an adjective that highlights its noun as being in a specific place or time from a word that means "there."

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

man  - The word translated as "man" is the same as the "man" in the "son of man." It is in the form of an indirect object, which we would usually use "for" in English here.

missing "by"  -- (MW) The untranslated word "by" means "through," in the midst of," or "by (a cause)." Here the sense is a cause.

who  - The word translated as "who" is a demonstrative pronoun ("this" "that"), but it often acts as a pronoun ("the one that), especially a connective pronoun ("the one that") introducing a dependent clause.

betrays  - (CW, WF) "Betrayed" is a compound word that literally means "to give over." It is in the form where the subject acts on himself, not a passive form. It has a lot of the same sense as we used "turned in" in English. It is the same word used in the previous two verses. The various biblical translations translate being it as "betray" or "delivered over" depending on the context. It has less of a sense of "betray," though giving someone over is similar to turning someone it. In looking through all the other uses of the word, he uses it consistently to mean being given over to authorities, most often state authorities. The form of the verb is passive, not active.

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

Son -- The word translated as "son" more generally means "child" or "descendant." The phrase "the son of man" is the common way Christ refers to himself. It is discussed in detail in this article. Its sense may be "the child of the man."

of -- This word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that required the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession, but it can also mean "belonging to," "part of," "which is," "than" (in comparisons), or  "for," "concerning" or "about" with transitive verbs. 

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more. 

man. - The Greek word for "man" means "man," "person" and "humanity" in the singular. In the plural, it means "men," "people," and "peoples."

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

would -- (WF) This helping verb "should" indicates that the verb is in the subjunctive form.

be  -  - The "been" verb here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It is in a form that is usually translated as the past, "it was."

better - (WF) The word translated as "good" referring to the "fruit" means "beautiful", "noble," or "of good quality." It is different than the verb above. See this article on "good" and this one on "evil." Generally, "valuable" and "worthy" work in most of the places it is used, but perhaps not here. It is not a comparative form, "better," but the simple "good."

for -- This word "for" 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. However, the translator can choose other prepositions: "with,"  "in,"   "of,"  "as," "by," "for," "at," or "on" depending on the context.

him   - "Him man" is from a word that normally acts as a pronoun (either "he" or "it", here). It could refer back to either "man" or "good." It is in a form that is usually an indirect object (to him) but which can also be the instrumental dative ("by it/him"), a benefit ( "...for it/him"); or possession ("...of his/its own"). There is not word meaning "that" or "man," but the word is masculine.

if -- The "if" here expresses a condition but it means nothing regarding whether that condition is met or not. It also means "if ever" and "whenever."

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

had -- (WT) This helping verb "had" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action completed in the past. This tense is the simple past.

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. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea.

been -- This helping verb "been" indicates that the verb is passive. Helping or auxiliary verbs are needed to translate the Greek verb forms into English.

born. - The word translated as "born" means "to beget", "to bring forth", "to produce from oneself", and "to engender." The sense is "had not been conceived."

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

[821 verses](article sg masc nom ) "The" is the Greek definite article, which usually precedes a noun. Here it is separated from its noun by a particle.

μὲν [31 verses](part) Untranslated is men, which is generally used to express certainty and means "indeed", "certainly", "surely," and "truly."

υἱὸς [158 verses](noun sg masc nom) "The Son" is from huios, which means a "son," and more generally, a "child." It is used generally to refer to any male descendant.

τοῦ [821 verses](article sg masc gen)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

ἀνθρώπου [209 verses](noun sg masc gen) "Of man" is from anthropos, which is "man," and, in plural, "mankind." It also means "humanity" and that which is human and opposed to that which is animal or inanimate. -- The Greek word for "of man" in the singular means "person" and "humanity" and "people" and "peoples" in the plural.

ὑπάγει [47 verses](verb 3rd sg pres ind act) "Goeth" is hypago, which means "to lead under", "to bring under", "to bring a person before judgment", "to lead on by degrees", "to take away from beneath", "to withdraw", "to go away", "to retire", "to draw off," and "off with you."

καθὼς [36 verses] (adv) "As" is from kathos, which means "even as", "how", and, in relating to time, "as" and "when."

γέγραπται [34 verses](verb 3rd sg perf ind mp) "It is written" is from grapho which means "to mark", "to express by written characters", "to write a letter", "to write down [a law]", "to proscribe", "to ordain", "to write for oneself", "to enroll oneself", "to draw signs", "to describe a figure" "to brand," and "to indict."

περὶ [73 verses](prep) "Of" is from peri, which means "round about (Place)", "around", "about", "concerning", "on account of", "in regard to", "before", "above", "beyond," and "all around."

αὐτοῦ, [720 verses](adj sg masc gen ) "Him" is from autos, which means "the same," and the reflexive pronouns, "myself", "yourself", "himself", "herself", "itself," or the oblique case of the pronouns, "him", "her," and "it." It also means "one's true self," that is, "the soul" as opposed to the body and "of one's own accord."

οὐαὶ [27 verses](exclam) "Woe" is from ouai, which is an exclamation of pain or anger meaning "woe" or "alas" but it can be used sarcastically. --

δὲ [446 verses](conj) "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 an explanation of cause ("so").

τῷ [821 verses](article sg masc dat)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

ἀνθρώπῳ[209 verses] (noun sg masc dat) "Unto...the man" is from anthropos, which is "man," and, in plural, "mankind." It also means "humanity" and that which is human and opposed to that which is animal or inanimate.

ἐκείνῳ [107 verses](adj sg masc dat) "That" is ekeinos, which means "the person there", "that person", "that thing", "in that case", "in that way", "at that place," and "in that manner."

δι᾽ [88 verses](prep) "Through" is from dia which means "through", "in the midst of", "in a line (movement)", "throughout (time)", "by (causal)", "among," and "between."

οὗ [294 verses](pron sg masc gen) "Whom" is from hos, which means "this", "that", "he", "she", "which", "what", "who", "whosoever", "where", "for which reason," and many similar meanings.

[821 verses] (article sg masc nom)  "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

υἱὸς [157 verses](noun sg masc nom) "The Son" is from huios, which means a "son," and more generally, a "child." -- The word translated as "son" more generally means "child."

τοῦ [821 verses](article sg masc gen)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

ἀνθρώπου [209 verses](noun sg masc gen) "Of man" is from anthropos, which is "man," and, in plural, "mankind." It also means "humanity" and that which is human and opposed to that which is animal or inanimate.

παραδίδοται: [43 verses](verb 3rd sg pres ind mp) "Is betrayed" is from paradidomi, which means "to give over to another", "to transmit", "to hand down", "to grant", "to teach," and "to bestow." --

καλὸν [48 verses](adj sg neut nom) "Good" is from kalos, which means "beautiful", "good", "of fine quality", "noble," and "honorable." It is most often translated as "good" juxtaposed with "evil" in the New Testament, but the two ideas are closer to "wonderful" and "worthless", "noble" and "base."

ἦν [614 verses](verb 3rd sg imperf ind act) "It had been" is from eimi, which means "to be", "to exist", "to be the case," and "is possible."

αὐτῷ [720 verses](adj sg neut/masc dat ) "That man" is from autos, which means "the same," and the reflexive pronouns, "myself", "yourself", "himself", "herself", "itself," or the oblique case of the pronouns, "him", "her," and "it."

εἰ [90 verses](conj) "If" is from ei, which is the particle used to express conditions "if" (implying nothing about its fulfillment) or indirect questions, "whether." It also means "if ever", "in case," and "whenever." It is combined with various conjunctions to create derivative conditions.

οὐκ [269 verses]((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.

ἐγεννήθη [10 verse](verb 3rd sg aor ind pass) "Born" is gennao, which means "to beget", "to bring forth", "to produce from oneself", "to create," and "to engender." This is the causal form of gignomai, which is translated as "done" in the NT, but which comes closer in meaning to "become."

[821 verses] (article sg masc nom)  "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

υἱὸς [157 verses](noun sg masc nom) "The Son" is from huios, which means a "son," and more generally, a "child." -- The word translated as "son" more generally means "child."

ἐκεῖνος. [107 verses](adj sg masc nom) "That" is ekeinos, which means "the person there", "that person", "that thing", "in that case", "in that way", "at that place," and "in that manner." --

Related Verses: 

Unimportant Opinions and Imaginings: 

"Indeed," he affirmed, "the son of the man departs as it has written itself concerning him.."

Then he paused and shook his head.

"Too bad, however," he said ironically, "for that man by whom the son of the man turns himself in. It was noble for him..."

Here he paused, but the apostles were confused. How could it be noble for him to turn Christ in?

"If that man had not even been conceived," he finished.

Front Page Date: 

Dec 11 2021