Matthew 22:42 What do you think of the Christ?

Spoken to:

The Pharisees

Pharisee asks what the greatest commandment is. After answering, Jesus asks this.

KJV:

Matthew 22:42 What think ye of Christ? whose son is he?

NIV :

Matthew 22:42 What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?

LISTENERS HEARD:

What do you imagine for yourselves about the anointed? Whose son is he?

MY TAKE:

We are all descended from a common father.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page):

Matthew 22:42 Τί ὑμῖν δοκεῖ περὶ τοῦ χριστοῦ; τίνος υἱός ἐστιν;

LOST IN TRANSLATION:

This verse is a straightforward question. Jesus usually asks questions as directly as possible. This question was asked of the Pharisees as a group. They had no doubt about its answers, responding that the "anointed" was David's son.

This is the first time the term "christos" is used in the Bible. The word "Christ" is not translated into English, but it is used as a title, perhaps understood in English as a title the same as it would have been in Greek. The concept of anointing someone goes back to Exo 29:7 where it describes the installation of Aaron, Moses's brother, as a high priest in terms used to describe the crowning of a king.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES:

WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "think" should be something more like "imagine."
WV - Wrong Voice - The verb is in the middle voice (or the passive, which doesn't work) requiring the concept of "yourselves" as its object.
CW - Confusing Word -- The "of" is not the common word form usually translated as "of."
MW - Missing Word -- The word "the" before "Cjrist" is not shown in the English translation.
UW - Untranslated Word -- The word "Christ" means "Messiah." It is the untranslated Greek word adopted into English.

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES:

WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "think" should be something more like "imagine."
WV - Wrong Voice - The verb is in the middle voice (or the passive, which doesn't work) requiring the concept of "yourselves" as its object.

EACH WORD of KJV :

What - The word translated as "what" means primarily "anything" or "anyone."

think - (WW) The word translated as "think" doesn't mean think as much as it means "expect" or "imagine." It is in a form indicating that the subject is acting on himself, so, "imagine for yourselves."

missing "by/for yourself"-- (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 "yourself," "for yourself" or "by yourself."

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

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.

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.

Christ? - (UW) The word translated as "Christ" means "anointed." It is introduced with an article, so "the anointed." In the NT, it is understood to mean the Messiah, following the anointing of the kings of Israel. The Jews of Jesus's era thought they understood who the Messiah was and the source of his authority. He was a descendant of David, and his authority came from David as "the anointed" king of the Jews. It is an untranslated Greek word.

whose - The word translated as "whose" is the same word translated as "what" that introduces this verse.

son - The word translated as "son" more generally means "child." It refers to all offspring in later generations, just like "father" refers to all previous generations. Christ also used it metaphorically to describe those that follow a way of thought or set of beliefs that descend from an individual.

is - - The verb "is" 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.

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

EACH WORD of NIV :

What - The word translated as "what" means primarily "anything" or "anyone."

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

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

about - The Greek word translated as "about" 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.

-the - The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.

Messiah? - The word translated as "Messiah" is the Greek word that means "anointed." It is introduced with an article, so "the anointed." In the NT, it is understood to mean the Messiah, following the anointing of the kings of Israel. The Jews of Jesus's era thought they understood who the Messiah was and the source of his authority. He was a descendant of David, and his authority came from David as "the anointed" king of the Jews.

Whose - The word translated as "whose" is the same word translated as "what" that introduces this verse.

is - - The verb "is" 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.

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

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV :

Τί [252 verses](irreg sg neut nom) "What" is tis which can mean "someone," "any one," "everyone," "they [indefinite]," "many a one," "whoever," "anyone," "anything," "some sort," "some sort of," "each," "any," "the individual," "such," and so on. In a question, it can mean "who," "why," or "what."

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

δοκεῖ [17 verses](verb 2nd sg pres ind mp) "Ye think" is dokeo, which means "expect," "suppose," "imagine," "have an opinion," "seem," "seem good," and "to be reputed."

περὶ ὶ [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."

τοῦ (article sg masc gen) "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). -

χριστοῦ; [15 verses](noun sg masc gen) "Christ" is from christos, which means "to be rubbed with salve," "used as an ointment," and, of persons, "anointed."

τίνος [252 verses](pron sg gen) "Whose" is from tis which can mean "someone," "any one," "everyone," "they [indefinite]," "many a one," "whoever," "anyone," "anything," "some sort," "some sort of," "each," "any," "the individual," "such," and so on. In a question, it can mean "who," "why," or "what."

υἱός 158 verses](noun sg masc nom) "Son" is from huios, which means a "son," and more generally, a "child."

ἐστιν; [614 verses](verb 3rd sg pres ind act) "Is" is from eimi, which means "to be," "to exist," "to be the case," and "is possible." (The future form is esomai. The 3rd person present indicative is "esti.")

Luke 20:41 How say they that Christ is David's son?

Front Page Date:

Jul 20 2021