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Today's Verse Analysis

Matthew 21:30  And he came to the second, and said likewise

In a lesson about authority, after opponents question his authority, Jesus tells a story of a father with two sons to set up a question about authority.

Spoken to
audience

Matthew 21:30 καὶ προσελθὼν τῷ δευτέρῳ εἶπεν ὡσαύτως: ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν Οὐ θέλω: ὕστερον μεταμεληθεὶς ἀπῆλθεν.

KJV Verse

Matthew 21:30 And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.

NIV Verse:

Matthew 21:30 Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.

What His Listeners Heard:

However, approaching the second, he said the same. That one, however, answering, said, "I don't want to!" Afterward, being made to feel regret, he departed.

Lost In Translation:

Again, the humor here is edited out. The word translated as "came/went" is a special word for people approaching someone in a superior position, which is how Jesus always uses it except in this story. The idea is that the sons, even the second son, saw themselves as better than their father.

In the Greek, the son does not say "I go" or "I will." He simply says "I" in the form of a subject, followed by the word for "master" or "lord." When a Greek subject appears without a verb, the verb "to be" is assumed, so the sense of what he said is "I am, master," which certainly gives the sense of agreement. Why does he speak this way? Because he is not lying as he would be if he said "I go" or "I will." This allows Jesus's opponents to see his answer as the best. He did not lie and he did not deny his father's will.

NOTE: Found a number of different sources for this and the previous verse that did not agree.

KJV w/Translation Issues :

And he came(CW,WF) to the second, and(IW) said likewise. And he(WW) answered(WF) and said, I go,(WW) sir(CW): and went(CW) not.

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.

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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.