John 5:41 I receive not honour from men.

Spoken to
challengers

Jesus is accused of breaking the Sabbath and making himself a god by calling God his Father. The current topic is who accepts him.

KJV

John 5:41 I receive not honour from men.

NIV

John 5:41 I do not accept glory from human beings,

 

LISTENERS HEARD

Acclaim from people? I don't/shouldn't get it.

LOST IN TRANSLATION

The word translated as "receive" and "accept" has a very different sense than these English words. Here, it is the punchline, the last word in the verse. It means both to "take" and to "receive," much like our English word "get."And like "get," it also means "understand" in the sense of "getting" what someone is saying. So the play on words here is both that Jesus doesn't receive that praise, but also that he doesn't understand why people would seek it. It could be a simple statement, but the form could also be one of possibility so it could be "should not get." This fits with the theme of Jesus attributing everything to the Father.

The word translated as "honor" and "glory" means "expectation," "acclaim," and "opinion." It is usually translated as "glory" in the NT, but the word refers to negative opinions as well as positive ones. In this context, it is perhaps better translated as "reputation," or "acclaim."

MY TAKE

Jesus isn't working for our approval.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page)
# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES
1
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "honour" does not capture the specific meaning of the word.
# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES
2
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "accept" does not capture the specific meaning of the word.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "glory" does not capture the specific meaning of the word.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "human beings" does not capture the specific meaning of the word.
EACH WORD of KJV

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

receive -- The word translated as "receive" primarily means "take." However, it means "receive" in the same sense that we use "get" to mean "receive" and has many different uses as we use "get" in English. Among these are the ideas of "understanding" and "possessing." This verb is translated as an indicative verb, but the form could also be a subjunctive, a form indicating possibility, where the sense would be "I should not."

not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

honour -- (CW) The Greek noun translated as "honour" means "expectation," "notion," "opinion," "repute," and "popular repute." Translations as "glory" or "splendor" are found primarily in translating the Bible. The English word "acclaim" comes closest to capturing the way Jesus uses the word.

from -- The Greek preposition translated as "from" has many meanings, many of which depend on the case of its object. With the genitive, the sense is motion, "from the side of," "from beside," and generally "from." With the dative, the sense is static, "by the side of," "near," and "before." With the accusative, its has a number of specialized meanings depending on the character of the verb, with coming/going "near," "beside," with placing "side-by-side," as a metaphor, "like" or "as a parody of, of comparison, "compared with" and many more.

men.  - -- The Greek word for "man" means "man," "person" and "humanity" in the singular. In the plural, it means "men," "people," and "peoples." 

EACH WORD of NIV

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

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.

not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

accept -- (CW) The word translated as "accept" primarily means "take." However, it means "receive" in the same sense that we use "get" to mean "receive" and has many different uses as we use "get" in English. Among these are the ideas of "understanding" and "possessing." However, it is not a verb that clearly means "accept." This verb is translated as an indicative verb, but the form could also be a subjunctive, a form indicating possibility, where the sense would be "I should not."

glory -- (CW) The Greek noun translated as "glory" means "expectation," "notion," "opinion," "repute," and "popular repute." Translations as "glory" or "splendor" are found primarily in translating the Bible. The English word "acclaim" comes closest to capturing the way Jesus uses the word.

from -- The Greek preposition translated as "from" has many meanings, many of which depend on the case of its object. With the genitive, the sense is motion, "from the side of," "from beside," and generally "from." With the dative, the sense is static, "by the side of," "near," and "before." With the accusative, its has a number of specialized meanings depending on the character of the verb, with coming/going "near," "beside," with placing "side-by-side," as a metaphor, "like" or "as a parody of, of comparison, "compared with" and many more.

human beings, - -- (CW) The Greek word translated as "human beings" means "man," "person" and "humanity" in the singular. In the plural, it means "men," "people," and "peoples." It is usually translated as "men" or "people." The

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV

Δόξαν [26 verses](noun sg fem gen) "Glory" is doxa, which means "expectation," "notion," "opinion," "repute," and "popular repute." Translations as "glory" or "splendor" are applied to external appearances but are found primarily in translating the Bible. The words "recognition," "honor." and "reputation" come closest to capturing the way Jesus uses the word, especially if we consider how he uses the verb form.

παρὰ  [45 verses](prep) "With" is para, has many meanings, which depend on the case of its object and the sense of the verb.With the genitive, the sense is always motion, "from the side of," "from beside," "issuing from", and generally "from." With the dative, the sense is always static, "by the side of," "near," "in the presence of," and "before." With the accusative, its has a number of specialized meanings depending on the character of the verb, with coming/going "near," "beside," with placing "side-by-side," as a metaphor, "like" or "as a parody of, of comparison, "compared with" and many more including "along", "past", "beyond", "parallel (geometry)", "precisely at the moment of (time)," and "throughout (time)."

ἀνθρώπων [209 verses](noun pl masc gen])"Of man" is anthropos, which is "man," and, in plural, "mankind." It also means "humanity" and that which is human and opposed to that which is animal or inanimate.

οὐ [269 verses](partic) "No" is ou , the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences.  The other negative adverb, μή applies to will and thought; οὐ denies, μή rejects; οὐ is absolute, μή relative; οὐ objective, μή subjective.

λαμβάνω[54 verse](1st sg pres ind/subj act) "Receive" is lambano means to "take," "take hold of," "grasp," "seize," "catch," "overtake," "find out," "detect," "take as,"  in Logic, "assume," "take for granted," "understand," "undertake," "take in," "hold," "get," "receive [things]," "receive hospitably," "receive in marriage," "receive as produce," "profit," "admit," "initiate," "take hold of," "lay hold on," "seize and keep hold of," "obtain possession of," "lay hands upon," "find fault with," "censure," "to apprehend with the senses," and "to take hold of." It is also specifically used to mean "seized with emotion."

Wordplay

The term translated as "receive" is the punchline, meaning both the people don't give him acclaim and that he doesn't understand that acclaim.

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