Matthew 18:9 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out,

Spoken to: 

group

Jesus moves from making yourself like a child to avoiding stumbling blocks.

KJV: 

Matthew 18:9 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.

NIV : 

Matthew 18:9 And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

LISTENERS HEARD: 

And if that eye of yours trips you up,  take it out and toss it away from you! It is beautiful for you to enter into this life one-eyed than having with two eyes the means to be tossed into the trash dump of the fire.

MY TAKE: 

The secret to seeing is its focus.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

The previous verse demonstrates how Jesus developed the humor in his lines. This line continues with that method. First, in the verse order, since he made the comment about an eye first at the Sermon on the Mount, and it comes here, basically, because the "foot/trip" joke is simpler than the "eye/blind/trip" joke.  The primary humorous word from the earlier verse is used here. The word is only used twice by Jesus, in these two verses, to conflate the ideas of "take out" and "choose." This may be a humorous reference to Lev 19:14 "Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD."

Jesus maintains the more complex phrase order (when compared to the Sermon) of the previous verse here because repetition is a key part of his humor. Where in the previous verse, he was able to play with Greek sound-alike words, here he plays with one funny word--one-eye-- and one funny image, being more "beautiful" with one-eye than two. 

The word "having" has as its object an infinitive, "to be to cast/to be thrown." With an infinitive object, is means "having the means to be tossed." When its object is an infinitive verb, it means "to have the means or power," or "to be able" not "it must" as in English. 

Jesus also makes it clear that "the fire, the perpetual one" that he describes in the previous verse is the always burning trash heap outside of Jerusalem.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

8
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "eye" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "better" is not a comparative form.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "life" is not shown in the English translation.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "with" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "one-eye" is an adjective, "eyed" and matches "good."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "hell" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WP -- Wrongly Placed -- The word "hell" doesn't modify "fire," but "fire" modifies "hell."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "of" before "fire" is not shown in the English translation.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "fire" is not shown in the English translation.

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

15
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "eye" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "gouge" is has the sense of both "pick out" both in the sense of "pluck" and "select."
  • W - Confusing Word -- The "away" is the common word usually translated as "from."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "you" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "better" is not a comparative form.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "into" is not shown in the English translation.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "life" is not shown in the English translation.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "with" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "one-eye" is an adjective, "eyed" and matches "good."
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "have" is not an infinitive but a participle, "having."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "and" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WP -- Wrongly Placed -- The word "of" should be before "fire;"  "fire" modifies "hell."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "hell" is not shown in the English translation.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "of" before "fire" is not shown in the English translation.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "fire" is not shown in the English translation.

EACH WORD of KJV : 

And  - The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also").

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

thy -- The word translated as "thy" is the genitive form of the singular, second-person pronoun, which is most commonly the possessive form. This pronoun follows the noun so "of yours."

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

eye  - The word translated as "eye" means "eye," and has many of the same uses as a metaphor as English, but different ones also. For example, the head of a household was called the "eye" of the household. The king's "eye" was considered his confidant.

offend -- "Offend" is a verb that means "to cause to stumble" or "to trip up." From there it is assumed by its translators to mean "to give offense" and "to scandalize." Our word "scandalize" comes directly from Greek. However, this interpretation of the word only comes from the translators of the Gospels. This is a Koine word that is found originally only in the New Testament, but based on a noun found only in the Greek Old Testament meaning "snare," or "stumbling block."  In English, we would simply say, "trips up" capturing the same idea exactly. See the article on this word here.

thee, -- The word translated as "you" is the objective form of the second-person, singular pronoun.

pluck  - The Greek verb translated as "pluck..out" means literally to "choose out of," but its primary meaning is "to take out" with a strong secondary means of "to choose." Jesus only uses this word twice, in this verse, and the similar one at Matthew 5:29.  In referring to the "eye," it means both taking out the eye for yourself and choosing the best for yourself. The word is humorous in the way it is applied to a large range of situations. It is much like our phrase 'picking out," which can be applied to making a selecting and pulling out a splinter.

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

out, -- This is from the prefix of the previous verb that means "out of."

and - The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also").

cast -- The word translated as "cast" has a number of meanings revolving around "throw" as we do in English with both "throw" and "toss." Jesus often uses this word in the same way we use "dump" in English. In dice, it means "to throw" the dice, but with the sense of being lucky.

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

from  - The word translated as "from" means "from" in both locations and when referring to a source or a cause. It also means the instrument "by" which a thing is done and "away from."

thee: -- The word translated as "you" is the form of the second-person, singular pronoun that goes with the preposition.

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

is  - When the verb "to be" appears early in the sentence without a subject, the sense is more like "it is" or, in the plural, "there are." The verb here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition.

better - (WF) The word translated as "better" means "beautiful," "noble," or "of good quality." It is not in the comparative form. See this article on "good" and this one on "evil." It is the subject of the sentence and its form matches the "one-eyed" below, creating the hunorous idea of "one-eyed beautiful."

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.

thee -- The word for "you" is the indirect object form of the singular, second-person pronoun. 

to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English.

enter  - "Enter" is from a word that means "go or come into" and has the double meaning of "coming into one's mind."

into  - The word translated as "into" means into a place, but generally takes its "to" and "into" meaning from the context. In English, we would say "through" life but the "into" here is intentional.

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, "the." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more.  Jesus is talking about a specific type of life.

life -- The word translated as "life" means "living" but it also means "substance," "existence," and "property." Jesus uses it to mean "existence" beyond physical life. For more on how Christ uses this word with other words about human existence (soul, heart, spirits, etc.), read this article.

with -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "with" in the Greek source. The following word is an adjective modifying "good."

one eye, . -- (WF) "One eye" is a long, complicated adjective meaning "one-eyed." It does not modify "you" but the word "good,"

rather than - "Rather than" is translated from a Greek word that means primarily "or" but serves as "than" in a comparison.

having -- The word translated as "have" means to "have," "possess," "bear," "keep close," "have means to do,"  "to have due to one," or "keep" and many specific uses. When its object is an infinitive verb, it means "to have the means or power," or "to be able" not "it must" as in English. 

two -- The "two" is the numeral, "two," which, like numbers in English, plays a lot of roles.

eyes - The word translated as "eyes" means "eye," and has many of the same uses as a metaphor as English, but different ones also. For example, the head of a household was called the "eye" of the household. The king's "eye" was considered his confidant.

to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English.

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

cast -- The word translated as "cast" has a number of meanings revolving around "throw" as we do in English with both "throw" and "toss." Jesus often uses this word in the same way we use "dump" in English. The term used for "cast" also means "drop it" like we would drop a bad habit.

into - The word translated as "into" means into a place, but generally takes its "to" and "into" meaning from the context. In English, we would say "through" life but the "into" here is intentional.

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, "the" or, with an adjective as we see here, "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more.  Jesus is talking about a specific type of life.

hell -- (WP) The word "hell" is the name of an area, Gehenna, where a constant fire was kept for disposing of the trash from Jerusalem. This area was originally where children were sacrificed to Baal, and Baal (Beelzebub, "lord of the flies"), Christ's personification of evil. See this article for more.  This word is wrongly placed because "hell" does not modify "fire," "fire modifies "hell."

missing "of"  -- (MW) The untranslated word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English.  "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English. 

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, "the" or, with an adjective as we see here, "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more.  Jesus is talking about a specific type of life.

fire.  "Fire" is a noun that means "fire," "sacrificial fire," "funeral fire," and so on, but Christ only uses this word to describe the fire of a trash dump. This word is also introduced by an article. 

EACH WORD of NIV : 

And - The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also").

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

your -- The word translated as "thy" is the genitive form of the singular, second-person pronoun, which is most commonly the possessive form. This pronoun follows the noun so "of yours."

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

eye  - The word translated as "eye" means "eye," and has many of the same uses as a metaphor as English, but different ones also. For example, the head of a household was called the "eye" of the household. The king's "eye" was considered his confidant.

causes  - "Causes...to stumble" is a verb that means "to cause to stumble" or "to trip up." From there it is assumed by its translators to mean "to give offense" and "to scandalize." Our word "scandalize" comes directly from Greek. However, this interpretation of the word only comes from the translators of the Gospels. This is a Koine word that is found originally only in the New Testament, but based on a noun found only in the Greek Old Testament meaning "snare," or "stumbling block."  In English, we would simply say, "trips up" capturing the same idea exactly. See the article on this word here.

you , -- The word translated as "you" is the objective form of the second-person, singular pronoun.

to stumble-- This infinitive finishes the meaning of the verb "causes" above.

gouge  - (CW) The Greek verb translated as "gouge  ..out" means literally to "choose out of," but its primary meaning is "to take out" with a strong secondary means of "to choose." Jesus only uses this word twice, in this verse, and the similar one at Matthew 5:29.  In referring to the "eye," it means both taking out the eye for yourself and choosing the best for yourself. The word is humorous in the way it is applied to a large range of situations. It is much like our phrase 'picking out," which can be applied to making a selecting and pulling out a splinter.

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

out, -- This is from the prefix of the previous verb that means "out of."

and - The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also").

throw -- The word translated as "cast" has a number of meanings revolving around "throw" as we do in English with both "throw" and "toss." Jesus often uses this word in the same way we use "dump" in English. The term used for "cast" also means "drop it" like we would drop a bad habit.

it -- There is no Greek pronoun here, but Greek does not need pronouns when the object can be assumed from the context. In English, they are added for the subject-verb-object form of our sentences.

away - (CW) The word translated as "away " means "from" in both locations and when referring to a source or a cause. It also means the instrument "by" which a thing is done and "away from." This doesn't have the same connotations as "throw away" in English.

missing "you"  -- (MW) The untranslated word "you" is the form of the second-person, singular pronoun that goes with the preposition.

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

is  - When the verb "to be" appears early in the sentence without a subject, the sense is more like "it is" or, in the plural, "there are." The verb here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition.

better - (WF) The word translated as "better" means "beautiful," "noble," or "of good quality." It is not in the comparative form. See this article on "good" and this one on "evil."

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.

you -- The word for "you" is the indirect object form of the singular, second-person pronoun. 

to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English.

enter  - "Enter" is from a word that means "go or come into" and has the double meaning of "coming into one's mind."

missing "into"  -- (MW) The untranslated word  "into" means into a place, but generally takes its "to" and "into" meaning from the context. In English, we would say "through" life but the "into" here is intentional.

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, "the." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more.  Jesus is talking about a specific type of life.

life -- The word translated as "life" means "living" but it also means "substance," "existence," and "property." Jesus uses it to mean "existence" beyond physical life. For more on how Christ uses this word with other words about human existence (soul, heart, spirits, etc.), read this article.

with -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "with" in the Greek source. The following word is an adjective modifying "good."

one eye, . -- (WF) "One eye" is a long, complicated adjective meaning "one-eyed." It does not modify "you" but the word "good,"

than - "Than" is translated from a Greek word that means primarily "or" but serves as "than" in a comparison.

to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English. However, this is not the verb form following though  it is the one later.

have -- (WF) The word translated as "have" means to "have," "possess," "bear," "keep close," "have means to do,"  "to have due to one," or "keep" and many specific uses. It is a participle, not an infinitive. When its object is an infinitive verb, it means "to have the means or power," or "to be able" not "it must" as in English. 

two -- The "two" is the numeral, "two," which, like numbers in English, plays a lot of roles.

eyes - The word translated as "eyes" means "eye," and has many of the same uses as a metaphor as English, but different ones also. For example, the head of a household was called the "eye" of the household. The king's "eye" was considered his confidant.

and -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "and" in the Greek source. It was added because the previous verb was translated as an infinitive rather than a participle.

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

thrown -- The word translated as "thrown " has a number of meanings revolving around "throw" as we do in English with both "throw" and "toss." Jesus often uses this word in the same way we use "dump" in English. The term used for "cast" also means "drop it" like we would drop a bad habit.

into - The word translated as "into" means into a place, but generally takes its "to" and "into" meaning from the context. In English, we would say "through" life but the "into" here is intentional.

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") than the English "the." See this article for more. 

fire "Fire" is a noun that means "fire," "sacrificial fire," "funeral fire," and so on, but Christ only uses this word to describe the fire of a trash dump. This word is also introduced by an article. 

of -- (WP) This word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English. This is not the form of the word translated as "hell" but of "fire."

missing "the"  -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article, "the" or, with an adjective as we see here, "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those"). See this article for more.  Jesus is talking about a specific type of life.

hell.  -- The word "hell" is the name of an area, Gehenna, where a constant fire was kept for disposing of the trash from Jerusalem. This area was originally where children were sacrificed to Baal, and Baal (Beelzebub, "lord of the flies"), Christ's personification of evil. See this article for more.

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

καὶ  (conj)  "And" is from kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "also." 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." 

εἰ (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.

(article sg masc nom)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

ὀφθαλμός [26 verses](noun sg masc nom) "Eye" is ophthalmos, which means "eye," "sight," "the dearest and best," "light," "cheer," "comfort," and "the bud [of a plant]."

σου (pron 2nd sg gen) "Thy" is from sou which means "you" and "your."

σκανδαλίζει [20 verses](3rd sg pres ind act) "Offend" is skandalizo, which means "to cause to stumble," "to give offense," and "to scandalize." This is the verb form of skandolon, meaning "trap," "snare," or "stumbling block," that appears twenty-five times in the Septuagint, the Greek Old Testament. and fifteen in the N

σε (pron 2nd sg acc) "Thee" is from su which means "you" and "your."

ἔξελε ἔξελε [2 verses](2nd sg aor imperat act) "Pluck...out" is exaireo, which means "to take out," "to remove from stock,""to chose," "to carry off booty," "to have accepted," "to be set apart [for funds]," "to remove [people]," "to destroy," "to annul," and "to set free." It literally means "to choose from."

αὐτὸν (adj sg masc acc) "It" 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."

καὶ (conj) "And" is from kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "also." 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."

βάλε [54 verses](2nd sg aor imperat act) "Cast" is ballo, which means "to throw," "to let fall," "to cast," "to put," "to pour," "to place money on deposit," "push forward or in front [of animals]," "to shed," "to place," "to pay,"to throw [of dice,]" "to be lucky," "to fall," "to lay as foundation," "to begin to form," "to dash oneself with water," and "to bathe." -- The word translated as "cast" has a number of meanings

ἀπὸ (prep) "From" is from apo, a preposition of separation which means "from" or "away from" from when referring to a place or a motion, "from" or "after" when referring to time, "from" as an origin or cause.

σοῦ, (pron 2nd sg gen) "Thee" is from sou which means "you" and "your.""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."

καλόν [48 verses](adj sg neut nom) "Better" 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."

σοί (pron sg masc dat) "You" is from soi which is the singular, second person pronoun, "you."

ἐστιν (verb 3rd sg pres ind act) "Is" is from eimi, which means "to be," "to exist," "to be the case," and "is possible."  

μονόφθαλμον [2 verses](adj sg neut nom) "With one eye" is monophthalmoswhich means "one-eyed." 

εἰς (prep) "Into" is from eis, which means "into (of place)," "up to (of time)," "until (of time)," "as much as (of measure or limit)," "as far as (of measure or limit)," "towards (to express relation)," "in regard to (to express relation)," "of an end or limit," and "for (of purpose or object)." 

τὴν (article sg fem acc)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

ζωὴν (noun sg fem acc)  "Life" is from zoe, which means "living," "substance," "property," "existence," and, incidentally, "the scum on milk." It has the sense of how we say "make a living" to mean property. Homer used it more to mean the opposite of death. -

εἰσελθεῖν, [68 verses](verb aor inf act) "Enter" is from eiserchomai which means both "to go into," "to come in," "to enter," "to enter an office," "to enter a charge," (as in court) and "to come into one's mind." 

  (conj) "Than" is which is a particle meaning "either," "or," or "than."

 δύο [36 verses](numeral) "Two" is from duo, which means the number "two," "a couple," and "a pair." --

ὀφθαλμοὺς [26 verses](noun pl masc acc)"Eyes" is from ophthalmos, which means "eye," "sight," "the dearest and best," "light," "cheer," "comfort," and "the bud [of a plant]." 

ἔχοντα (part sg pres act masc acc) "Having" is from echo, which means "to have," "to hold," "to possess," "to keep," "to have charge of," "to maintain," "to hold fast," "to bear," "to carry," "to keep close," "to keep safe," and "to have means to do."  When its object is an infinitive verb, it means "to have the means or power," or "to be able" not "it must" as in English. 

βληθῆναι [54 verses](verb aor inf pass) "Cast" is from ballo, which means "to throw," "to let fall," "to cast," "to put," "to pour," "to place money on deposit," "push forward or in front [of animals]," "to shed," "to place," "to pay,"to throw [of dice,]" "to be lucky," "to fall," "to lay as foundation," "to begin to form," "to dash oneself with water," and "to bathe." 

εἰς (prep) "Into" is from eis, which means "into (of place)," "up to (of time)," "until (of time)," "as much as (of measure or limit)," "as far as (of measure or limit)," "towards (to express relation)," "in regard to (to express relation)," "of an end or limit," and "for (of purpose or object)." -- The word translated as "unto" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, and "up to" limits in time and measure.

τὴν (article sg fem acc)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

γέενναν [11 verses](noun sg fem acc) "Hell" is geenna which is Greek for Gehenna, the valley of Hinnom (the Hebrew word), south of Jerusalem where trash, including diseased animals and human corpses was burned. A constant fire was kept burning there. --

τοῦ (article sg neut gen)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

πυρός.[16 verses](noun sg neut gen) "Fire" is from pyr (pur), which means "fire," "sacrificial fire," "funeral fire," "hearth-fire," "lightning," "the light of torches," and "heat of fever." --

Wordplay: 

The "right eye" also means a "lucky sight," in this case, referring to looking at an attractive woman.

"Plucking out" an eye also means "choosing" the best "for yourself." 

Related Verses: 

Front Page Date: 

Mar 22 2021