After the parable of the mustard seed, Jesus starts a parable of the leaven.
Luke 13:20 Whereunto shall I liken the kingdom of God?
Luke 13:20 What shall I compare the kingdom of God to?
To what should I compare the realm of the skies?
Jesus approaches the concept of "the skies" as something that starty very small and then grows very large: a description of the big bang as an analogy for what grows within us? This question abbreviates the earlier verse in Luke 13:18 using some of the same words and forms. This is an example where the English words changed to make it look to English readers as though Jesus is not repeating himself when he clearly is. It seems like people were confused by the last explanation so Jesus supplied more information. The repetition is part of his humor and here he is almost pretending that the first explanation never happened until he hits upon another angle to the proble,.
It takes a lot of comparisons to describe the aspects of the skies.
Whereunto shall I liken the kingdom of God?
the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, "the," which usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.
kingdom -- The word translated as "kingdom" can be the region, the reign, the castle or the authority of a ruler. Christ does not seem to use it to mean a physical region, so its translation as "reign" or "realm" seems more appropriate. This is especially true because the "reign" of a king means the execution of his will.
of -- This word "of" comes from the possessive form (genitive case) of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English. The most common is the "of" of possession.
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
God -- The word translated as "God" means "God" and "deity." It is introduced with an article, so "the God," "the Divine" or "the divine one." Jesus often uses it this way perhaps to indicate the one God as opposed to the pagan gods. When a definite article does not introduce it, it refers more generally to "divinity," the nature of God.
What shall I compare the kingdom of God to?
whereunto -- The Greek word translated as "whereunto" in the singular means "anyone," "someone," "something," and "anything." The same forms are used both for the masculine and feminine, so "anyone" works best for a person. In the plural, it means "everyone," "some," "they," and "those." Jesus often uses it to start a question so it means "who," "what," "which," or even "why."
shall -- This helping verb "shall" indicates that the verb is the future tense or a form that indicates possibility at some time. A "might" or "should" could work here or nothing at all in an "if/when/whoever" clause which implies a possibility. Helping or auxiliary verbs are needed to translate the Greek verb forms into English.
I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.
liken-- The verb translated as "liken" is a verb that means "to make like" and, "to compare" in the passive, "to become like." This word doesn't mean "resemble" in this situation.
the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, "the," which usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.
kingdom -- The word translated as "kingdom" can be the region, the reign, the castle or the authority of a ruler. Christ does not seem to use it to mean a physical region, so its translation as "reign" or "realm" seems more appropriate. This is especially true because the "reign" of a king means the execution of his will.
of -- This word "of" comes from the possessive form (genitive case) of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English. The most common is the "of" of possession.
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
God -- The word translated as "God" means "God" and "deity." It is introduced with an article, so "the God," "the Divine" or "the divine one." Jesus often uses it this way perhaps to indicate the one God as opposed to the pagan gods. When a definite article does not introduce it, it refers more generally to "divinity," the nature of God.
The word translated as "Whereunto" means primarily "anything" or "anyone," but Jesus often uses it to start a question so it means "who", "what", or even "why". The form is that of a comparison. In Luke 13:18, the same word in the same form is translated as "unto what", which is closer to its meaning. However, in Mark 4:30, a completely different Greek word is translated as "whereunto".
The verb translated as "shall I liken " is a verb that means "to make like" and, in the passive, as used here, "to become like." The form could be the first person as translated or it could be the second person, "compare it for yourself?" In the earlier Luke version, the same word in the same form is translated as "shall I resemble". In the Mark version, the same word is offered in a different form but translated in a more similar way, "shall we liken".
The phrase, "kingdom of God" is used more commonly in Luke than the "the kingdom of heaven" generally used in the other Gospels. It discussed in more detail in this article.
The word translated as "kingdom" can be the region, the reign, the castle or the authority of a ruler. Christ does not seem to use it to mean a physical region, so its translation as "reign" or "realm" seems more appropriate. This is especially true because the "reign" of a king means the execution of his will.
The word translated as "God" means "God" and "deity." It is introduced with an article, so "the God" or "the Divine". Jesus often uses it this way perhaps to indicate the uniqueness of God as opposed to the pagan gods.
What -- The Greek word translated as "whereunto" in the singular means "anyone," "someone," "something," and "anything." The same forms are used both for the masculine and feminine, so "anyone" works best for a person. In the plural, it means "everyone," "some," "they," and "those." Jesus often uses it to start a question so it means "who," "what," "which," or even "why."
shall -- This helping verb "shall" indicates that the verb is the future tense or a form that indicates possibility at some time. A "might" or "should" could work here or nothing at all in an "if/when/whoever" clause which implies a possibility. Helping or auxiliary verbs are needed to translate the Greek verb forms into English.
I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.
compare-- The verb translated as "compare" is a verb that means "to make like" and, in the passive, "to become like."
the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, "the," which usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.
kingdom -- The word translated as "kingdom" can be the region, the reign, the castle or the authority of a ruler. Christ does not seem to use it to mean a physical region, so its translation as "reign" or "realm" seems more appropriate. This is especially true because the "reign" of a king means the execution of his will.
of -- This word "of" comes from the possessive form (genitive case) of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English. The most common is the "of" of possession.
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
God -- The word translated as "God" means "God" and "deity." It is introduced with an article, so "the God," "the Divine" or "the divine one." Jesus often uses it this way perhaps to indicate the one God as opposed to the pagan gods. When a definite article does not introduce it, it refers more generally to "divinity," the nature of God.
to -- This word "to" comes from the indirect object form of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English. The most common is a "to" for the English indirect object. However, the translator can choose other prepositions: "with," "in," "of," "as," "by," "for," "at," or "on" depending on the context.
Τίνι [252 verses](irreg sg dat) "Whereunto" is tis, which can mean "someone," "something," "any one," "everyone," "they [indefinite]," "many a one," "whoever," "anyone," "anything," "some sort," "some sort of," "each," "any," "the individual," "such," and so on. In a question, it can mean "who," "why," or "what." Plural, "who are" is τίνες ἐόντες. It has specific meanings with certain prepositions, διὰ τί; for what reason? ἐκ τίνος; from what cause? ἐς τί; "to what point?" to "what end? τί ὅτι "why it is that,"
ὁμοιώσω (verb 1st sg aor subj act or verb 1st sg fut ind act) [12 verses](2nd pl aor subj pass) "Be...like" is homoioo, which means "to make like," "to become like," "to liken," and "to compare. -- The verb translated as "be...like" is a verb that means "to make like" and, in the passive, "to become like."
τὴν [821 verses](article sg fem acc) "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). It usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. When not preceding a a word that can become a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones."
βασιλείαν [98 verses](adj sg fem acc) "Kingdom" is basileia, which means "kingdom," "dominion," "hereditary monarchy," "kingly office," (passive) "being ruled by a king," and "reign."
τοῦ [821 verses](article sg masc gen) Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). It usually precedes a noun or changes the word it precedes (adjective, infinitive, participle, etc.) to act like a noun. When not preceding a a word that can become a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones."
θεοῦ [144 verses](noun sg masc gen) "God" is theos, which means "God," "divine," and "Deity."