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Today's Verse Analysis

Matthew 21:36 Again, he sent other servants more than the first:

This continues the lesson about authority and trust to a story about how not trusting those in power leads to a predictable result.

Spoken to
audience

Matthew 21:36 πάλιν ἀπέστειλεν ἄλλους δούλους πλείονας τῶν πρώτων, καὶ ἐποίησαν αὐτοῖς ὡσαύτως.

KJV Verse

Matthew 21:36 Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.

NIV Verse:

Matthew 21:36 Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way.

What His Listeners Heard:

Again, he sent off different servants, greater than the first ones, and towards them they acted the same.

Lost In Translation:

This verse is very statement more typical of Jesus's parables than the previous two verses, which used uncommon words full of double meanings. While in English, it would be hard to tell who the "they" and "them" are in this verse, these words are in forms that make it easier to tell.

The end does have a kind of play on words at the end, typically Jesus's punchlines. The verse ends here with two words from the same root, meaning "the same the same way."

 

KJV w/Translation Issues :

 Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.

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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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.