For those who want to know what Jesus really said, how he said it, why crowds came to hear him, and shades of meaning lost or hidden in translation.

Home

Today's Verse Analysis

Matthew 21:24 I also will ask you one thing, which if you tell me,

Jesus is asked for his authority by the chief priests and elders.

Spoken to
The Pharisees

Matthew 21:24 Ἐρωτήσω ὑμᾶς κἀγὼ λόγον ἕνα, ὃν ἐὰν εἴπητέ μοι κἀγὼ ὑμῖν ἐρῶ ἐν ποίᾳ ἐξουσίᾳ ταῦτα ποιῶ:

KJV Verse

Matthew 21:24 I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.

NIV Verse:

Matthew 21:24 I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,”

What His Listeners Heard:

I myself will also ask you one question.  When you tell me that, I myself also will tell you with what authority I perform these things.

Lost In Translation:

A lot is hidden here, including the fact that Jesus uses the important Greek word usually translated as "word" in this verse. It is translated as "thing" and "question." The humor here in his use of that word, which actually means "idea," "teaching," though "explanation" may work better here.

The NIV translates this verse by leaving out over forty percent of the ideas that Jesus expresses. I am not sure at what point a translation becomes an abbreviation, but this is close here. I find the oddities that the NIV ignores to be the most interesting part of Jesus's words. Here, the repeated use of "I myself also" is noteworthy,  entertaining though ignored in translation. The unusual word translated as "ask" in the KJV is also ignored in the NIV.

 

KJV w/Translation Issues :

I (MW) also will ask you one thing(WW), which if(CW) ye tell me, I (MW) in like wise will tell you by(CW) what authority I do these things.

KJV List (See full page for word-by-word analysis):
For analysis of each word of original Greek and biblical verses, click here.

Constantly Updated

My analysis standards and methods are constantly improving. New information on each verse is provided as articles are updated. It requires approximately two years for me to work through updating each of Jesus's verses.

What Jesus's Listeners Heard

The everyday meanings of the Greek words Jesus used were different than the definitions they have been given over time in biblical translation. The word translations here are based upon documents of his time such as the Greek Septuagint, not ideas unknown in his time.

About this Site

See what Jesus said in Greek and see how his words are changed in English translation. My goal is to translate Jesus's words as they were heard when he taught, not the way they are interpreted today. The work here resurrects the humor and cleverness of Jesus's words lost in translation.

Free Subscriptions

Regular emails from Substack, subscribe to Rediscovering Jesus's Words.

 

Do Your Own Research

Each article provides detailed information on all the Greek words in each verse with links simplifying your own research. It compares the Greek to popular translations to show where words are confused, changed, left out, and added. This site offers research available nowhere else, such as how often Jesus uses a specific Greek word and links to a list of every verse in which he uses a given word.