John 16:28 I came forth from the Father,

Spoken to: 

Apostles

After the Last Supper, after Jesus tells the apostles that the Father enjoys them.

KJV: 

John 16:28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.

NIV : 

John 16:28 I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”

LISTENERS HEARD: 

I came out from the Father, and I have shown up into this society. In turn, I leave this society and proceed before the Father.

MY TAKE: 

To return to the Father, we must let go of the world.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

GREEK ORDER: 

ἐξῆλθον ἐκ          τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ  ἐλήλυθα              εἰς  τὸν κόσμον:
I came   out from the Father, and I have shown up into this scoeity.

πάλιν    ἀφίημι τὸν κόσμον καὶ  πορεύομαι πρὸς   τὸν πατέρα.
In turn, I leave this society and  proceed      before the Father.

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

The first two verbs, translated into "came forth/came and "am come/entered" are based on the Greek verb that indicates a movement that is "directionless" with regard to the speaker. The primary meaning of this word is "start." The "am come/entered" verb is the past perfect tense, an action completed in the past, "have come."

The next two verbs, "leave" and "go" are in the present tense. The verb translated as "leave" is the same word more commonly (and misleadingly) as "forgive." The word means "to let go" or "drop" so Jesus says that he is letting go of the world of men, releasing it. The following verb translated as "go" also has a double meaning of "depart from life" which is obviously the context here.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

2
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "am" indicates the present tense, but the tense is something the past perfect so this should be "have."
  • MM -- Many Meanings -- This word "go" has several different meanings that work here and is a form of wordplay specifically as "depart from life."

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

3
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "came" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "enter" does not capture the two words' specific meaning.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "entered" indicates the simple past tense, but the tense is something the past perfect so this should be "have come" or "have started."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "now" doesn't exist in the source.
  • MM -- Many Meanings -- This word "go" has several different meanings that work here and is a form of wordplay specifically as "depart from life."

EACH WORD of KJV : 

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

came -- The word translated as "ye go thence" means literally "to go or come out," but it has a secondary meaning of "making something come true." In some verses, its sense is "started out" from the primary meaning of its root.

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

from --  The Greek preposition translated as "from" means "out of" or "from." The word also means "beyond," "on," "in," "since," or "by"based upon its context.

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. 

Father, -- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father.

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

am -- (WT) This helping verb indicates the present tense or passive voice of the verb. However, neither is the case here.

come " -- The word translated as "come" primarily means "to start out" but Jesus usually uses it to mean "come" but not always. It indicates movement, especially its beginning, without indicating a direction toward or away from anything, so it works either as "start," "come," or "go," but it is more like our phrase "being underway." Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. See this article for more.

into  -- The word translated as "into" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, "as much as (of measure or limit)," "in regards to" a subject,"up to" limits in time and measure, and "for" a purpose or object.

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. 

world: -- Jesus uses the word translated as "the world" to mean "the world order," and "civilization," specifically its "rulers," or its organization. Today, we use the word "society" or "regime" in this sense. More about this word in this article about related words.

again, -- The Greek word translated as "again" means "back," "again," and "contradiction." Referring to time, it means "once more" and "again."

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

leave -- The word translated as "forgive" primarily means "to let go" or "to send away." It has the sense of leaving something alone and letting it drop. This same word is usually translated as "leave," "forgive," "suffer," and "let" in the New Testament. See this article for more.

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. 

world: -- Jesus uses the word translated as "the world" to mean "the world order," and "civilization," specifically its "rulers," or its organization. Today, we use the word "society" or "regime" in this sense. More about this word in this article about related words.

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

go -- (MM) The Greek verb translated as "go" is the most common verb translated as "go" in the NT. This word means "to lead over," "depart," and "to carry over." However, this word uniquely means "to pursue a course" and "to depart from life." In the active voice, it means "made to go" or "carried over" but in the passive or middle voice,  the subject is either being taken or taking himself. The word is better translated in this context because it also means "departing from life."

to  -- The word translated as "to" means "towards," "by reason of (for)," "before" both in time and place, "in the presence of," "against," and several other types of "before." With verbs of seeing it specifically means "towards."

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. 

Father. -- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father

EACH WORD of NIV : 

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

came --  (CW) The word translated as "ye go thence" means literally "to go or come out," but it has a secondary meaning of "making something come true." In some verses, its sense is "started out" from the primary meaning of its root. This is not the root word, "came," but the root with a prefix that means "out."

from --  The Greek preposition translated as "from" means "out of" or "from." The word also means "beyond," "on," "in," "since," or "by"based upon its context.

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. 

Father, -- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father.

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

entered" -- (CW, WT) The "entered" is from two Greek words meaning "come into." The verb meaning "come" or "start" and the preposition meaning "into." The root primarily means "to start out" but Jesus usually uses it to mean "come" but not always. This is not the word that means "entered." It indicates movement, especially its beginning, without indicating a direction toward or away from anything, so it works either as "start," "come," or "go," but it is more like our phrase "being underway." Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. See this article for more. The word translated as "into" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, "as much as (of measure or limit)," "in regards to" a subject,"up to" limits in time and measure, and "for" a purpose or object. There is a verb that means "enter" that uses the same root with a prefix, but Jesus doesn't use 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. 

world: -- Jesus uses the word translated as "the world" to mean "the world order," and "civilization," specifically its "rulers," or its organization. Today, we use the word "society" or "regime" in this sense. More about this word in this article about related words.

now -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "now" in the Greek source

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

am -- This helping verb indicates the present tense of the verb. It is used here to form the present, progressive tense, which doesn't exist in Greek but which can smooth the flow of English sentences.

leaving -- The word translated as "forgive" primarily means "to let go" or "to send away." It has the sense of leaving something alone and letting it drop. This same word is usually translated as "leave," "forgive," "suffer," and "let" in the New Testament. See this article for more.

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. 

world: -- Jesus uses the word translated as "the world" to mean "the world order," and "civilization," specifically its "rulers," or its organization. Today, we use the word "society" or "regime" in this sense. More about this word in this article about related words.

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

going -- The Greek verb translated as "go" is the most common verb translated as "go" in the NT. This word means "to lead over," "depart," and "to carry over." However, this word uniquely means "to pursue a course" and "to depart from life." In the active voice, it means "made to go" or "carried over" but in the passive or middle,its normal form, the subject is either being taken or taking himself and means "going," "crossing over," or "departing" more directly. The word is better translated in this context because it also means "departing from life."

back -- The Greek word translated as "back" means "back," "again," and "contradiction." Referring to time, it means "once more" and "again."

to  -- The word translated as "to" means "towards," "by reason of (for)," "before" both in time and place, "in the presence of," "against," and several other types of "before." With verbs of seeing it specifically means "towards."

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. 

Father. -- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

ἐξῆλθον [54 verses](verb 1st sg aor ind act) "Came forth" is exerchomai, which means "to come or go out of " "to march forth," "go out on," "to stand forth," "to exceed all bounds," "to come to an end," "to go out of office," and [of dreams or prophecies] "to come true."

ἐκ  [121 verses] (prep) "From" is ek, which means 1) [of motion] "out of," "from," "by," "away from;" 2) [of place] "beyond," "outside of," "beyond;" 3) [of succession] "after," "from;" 4) [of rest] "on," "in," 5) [of time] "since," "from," "at," "in;" 5) [of materials] "out of," "made from;" 6) cause, instrument, or means "by."

τοῦ [821 verses](article sg masc gen)  "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").  -

πατρὸς [191 verses](noun sg masc gen) "The Father" is pater, which means "father," "grandfather," "author," "parent," and "forefathers."

καὶ [1089 verses](conj/adv) "And" is 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."

ἐλήλυθα [198 verses](verb 1st sg perf ind act) "Am come" is  erchomai, which means "to start," "to set out," "to come," "to go," and any kind of motion. It means both "to go" on a journey and "to arrive" at a place.

εἰς [325 verses](prep) "Into" is 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)."

τὸν  [821 verses](article sg masc acc)  "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

κόσμον: [63 verses](noun sg masc acc) "World" is kosmos, which mean "order," "good order," "ruler," "civilization," "world order," "universe," and "the world of men." It is a form of the is verb kosmeô, which means "to order," "to arrange," "to rule," "to adorn" (especially women), and "to equip." It especially means controlling and arranging an army.

πάλιν [23 verses](adv) "Again" is palin, which means "back," "backward," "contradiction," "again," "once more," and "in turn." Referring to time, it means "once more" and "again."

ἀφίημι  [73 verses](verb 1st sg pres ind act "I leave" is aphiemi, which means "to let fall," "to send away," "give up," "hand over," "to let loose," "to get rid of," "to leave alone," "to pass by," "to permit," and "to send forth from oneself."

τὸν  [821 verses](article sg masc acc)  "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("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. 

κόσμον: [63 verses](noun sg masc acc) "World" is kosmos, which mean "order," "good order," "ruler," "civilization," "world order," "universe," and "the world of men." It is a form of the is verb kosmeô, which means "to order," "to arrange," "to rule," "to adorn" (especially women), and "to equip." It especially means controlling and arranging an army. -- Jesus uses the word translated as "the world" to mean "the world order," and "civilization," specifically its "rulers," or its organization. Today, we use the word "society" or "regime" in this sense. More about this word in this article about related words.

καὶ [1089 verses](conj/adv) "And" is 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."

πορεύομαι [54 verses](verb 1st sg pres ind mp) "Go" is poreuomai (poreuo) which means "make to go," "carry," "convey," "bring," "go," "march," and "proceed." It is almost always translated as "go" in the NT.

 πρὸς [92 verses](prep)  "Unto" is from pros, which means "from (place)," "on the side of," "toward," "before," "in the presence of," "in the eyes of," "before (supplication, a judge, a witness)," "near" a time, "for" the moment, "proceeding from (for effects)," "dependent on," "derivable from," "agreeable," "in comparison with," "becoming," "like," "at the point of," "in addition to," "against," and "before."  It also means "dependent upon."

τὸν  [821 verses](article sg masc acc)  "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

πατέρα. [191 verses](noun sg masc acc) "The Father" is pater, which means "father," "grandfather," "author," "parent," and "forefathers."

Wordplay: 

Jesus says that he is "leaving" the world by saying that he is "letting go of" or "dropping" the world. The following "go" also means "depart from life."

Related Verses: 

Front Page Date: 

Dec 10 2022