Luke 14:20 And another said, I have married a wife,

Spoken to: 

group

Jesus starts a parable about a man fix a big dinner for many.

KJV: 

Luke 14:20 And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.

NIV : 

Luke 14:20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

LISTENERS HEARD: 

And another said, "I married a woman and, by this, I am not able to show up. 

MY TAKE: 

What you can do changes when you are married.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

GREEK ORDER: 

καὶ   ἕτερος   εἶπεν Γυναῖκα   ἔγημα      καὶ  διὰ τοῦτο οὐ δύναμαι                    ἐλθεῖν.
And another said, "A woman I married and by  this,   not  I do have the power to show up. 

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

The Greek word for "wife" is the same a the word for woman. The term "wife" is applied when the woman is described as attached to a specific man, "that woman of mine" or "that woman of his." This is true for many others languages as well. The marriage ceremony was a celebration of these unions. In the Matthew version of this story, the "big feast" was a wedding ceremony.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

5

And another said, I have(WT) married a wife, and therefore(CW) I can(CW, WV) not come.(WF)

  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "have" indicates the past perfect tense, but the tense is something that happens at a specific point in time (past, present, or future).
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "therefore" is not the common word usually translated as "therefore."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "can" is not a helper verb, but the active verb in the sentence. The verb here is translated as active but it is either the passive or middle voice where the subject acts on/by/for themselves.
  • WV --Wrong Voice - The verb "can" is translated as active but it is passive either the passive or middle voice where the subject acts on/by/for themselves. This is not an active verb, but an infinitive.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "infinitive" is not an active verb but an infinitive, "to come."

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

10

“Still(WW) another said, ‘I [just got(IP2)] married, (MWwoman) so(WW) I can(CW, WV) ’t come(WF).’

  • WW --Wrong Word -- The word translated as "still" should be something more like "and."
  • IP - Inserted Phrase-- The "just got" doesn't exist in the source. This is counted as 2 translation issues, not 1.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "woman"  after "married" is not shown in the English translation.
  • MP - Missing Phrase - The phrase "through this"  exists in the source. This is counted as 2 translation issues, not 1.
  • WW --Wrong Word -- The word translated as "so" should be something more like "and."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "can" is not a helper verb, but the active verb in the sentence. The verb here is translated as active but it is either the passive or middle voice where the subject acts on/by/for themselves.
  • WV --Wrong Voice - The verb "can" is translated as active but it is passive either the passive or middle voice where the subject acts on/by/for themselves. This is not an active verb, but an infinitive.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "infinitive" is not an active verb but an infinitive, "to come."

EACH WORD of KJV : 

And  -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis.

another -- The word translated as "another" means "one of two," "other," "another,"  or "different." It is an adjective used as a noun.

said, - The word translated as "speak" means "to say" and "to speak." It is one of the two most common words translated "speak," "say" and "tell," but it has more a sense of addressing and proclaiming.

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

have -- (WT) This helping verb "have" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action completed in the past. This is not the tense of the verb here.

married -- The word translated as "woman" is  the Greek word that means "woman (as opposed to man)," "wife," "spouse," "mortal woman (as opposed to a goddess)," and "female mate (among animals)." It is closer to our "female."

a -- There is no indefinite article in Greek, but when a noun doesn't have a definite article, the indefinite article can be added in English translation.

wife, -- The word translated as "wife" is  the Greek word that means "woman (as opposed to man)," "wife," "spouse," "mortal woman (as opposed to a goddess)," and "female mate (among animals)." It is closer to our "female."

and  -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis.

therefore -- (CW) This is from two Greek words meaning "through this" or "by this." The specific meaning of this phrase is "on this account" or "on account of this."

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

can- -- (CW, WV) The word translated as "can" means having the power or possibly a desire to accomplish something. Often, in English, "can" is a helper verb, indicating a possibility. In Greek, it indicates ability or power. This is the active verb here, not a helper verb. It takes an infinitive as "have the ability" does in English. In English, "can" is a helper verb, indicating a possibility. See this article.

-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. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words. 

come. -- (WF) 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." Technically, it is in the middle voice meaning the subject acts on himself. In English, this is assumed in our words "come" and "go." Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. See this article for more. The "infinitive" is not an active verb but an infinitive, "to come."

EACH WORD of NIV : 

Still -- (WW)The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis.This word doesn't mean "still." 

another -- The word translated as "another" means "one of two," "other," "another,"  or "different." It is an adjective used as a noun.

said, - The word translated as "speak" means "to say" and "to speak." It is one of the two most common words translated "speak," "say" and "tell," but it has more a sense of addressing and proclaiming.

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

just got -- -- (IP) There is nothing that can be translated as this phrase in the Greek source.

married -- The word translated as "woman" is  the Greek word that means "woman (as opposed to man)," "wife," "spouse," "mortal woman (as opposed to a goddess)," and "female mate (among animals)." It is closer to our "female."

missing "woman"  -- (MW) The untranslated word   , so I can’t come.’

so -- (WW) The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis.

missing "through this"  -- -- (MP) The words here aren't translated with their correct meanings and forms. MP - Missing Phrase - The phrase "through this"  exists in the source. This is counted as 2 translation issues, not 1.

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

can- -- (CW, WV) The word translated as "can" means having the power or possibly a desire to accomplish something. Often, in English, "can" is a helper verb, indicating a possibility. In Greek, it indicates ability or power. This is the active verb here, not a helper verb. It takes an infinitive as "have the ability" does in English. In English, "can" is a helper verb, indicating a possibility. See this article.

-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. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words. 

come. -- (WF) 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." Technically, it is in the middle voice meaning the subject acts on himself. In English, this is assumed in our words "come" and "go." Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. See this article for more. The "infinitive" is not an active verb but an infinitive, "to come."

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

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."

ἕτερος [21 verses](adj sg masc nom) "Another" is heteros, which means "one or the other of two," "the second," "the secondary," "the minor," "other things [of like kind]," "another," "different," "other than," "different from," "other than should be," and "in another or a different way." As an adverb, it means "in one or the other way," "differently," "otherwise than should be," "badly," and "wrongly."

εἶπεν[162 verses] (verb 3rd sg aor ind act) "Said"is eipon, which means "to speak," "to say," "to recite," "to address," "to mention," "to name," "to proclaim," "to plead," "to promise," and "to offer."  This is the second most common word Jesus uses for this idea. The other word is used more for discussion. Perhaps translating it consistently as "tell" would work.

Γυναῖκα [28 verses] (noun sg fem acc) "Woman" is gyne, which means "woman (as opposed to man)," "wife," "spouse," "mortal woman (as opposed to a goddess)," and "female mate (among animals)."

ἔγημα  [12 verses](verb 1st sg aor ind act) "I have married" is from gameo, which mean "to marry" and "to take a wife." For a woman, it means "to give yourself in marriage." It can also mean to "take a lover. -- The word translated as "I have married" means, for a man, "to take a wife" and for a woman, to "give yourself in marriage."  It is not the past tense, but in a tense meaning something happening at some time. 

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."

διὰ τοῦτο [22 verses](prep, adj sg neut acc) "Therefore" is from two Greek words meaning "through this" or "by this." "Through" is dia, which means with the accusative, it can also be "thanks to," "because of,"  "by reasons of," and "for the sake of. "This" is touto, which means  "this [thing] there/here." With the neuter adjective, the sense is "on this account."

οὐ  [269 verses](adv) "Not" is ou , the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences.  The negative, οὐ, denies, is absolute, and objective.

δύναμαι  [61 verses](verb 1st sg pres ind mp) "I can" is the verb, dynamai, which means "to have power by virtue of your own capabilities," "to be able," and "to be strong enough." -- (CW, WV) The word translated as "can" means having the power or possibly a desire to accomplish something. Often, in English, "can" is a helper verb, indicating a possibility. In Greek, it indicates ability or power. This is the active verb here, not a helper verb. It takes an infinitive as "have the ability" does in English. In English, "can" is a helper verb, indicating a possibility. See this article. CW - Confusing Word -- The "can" is not a helper verb, but the active verb in the sentence. The verb here is translated as active but it is either the passive or middle voice where the subject acts on/by/for themselves. WV --Wrong Voice - The verb "can" is translated as active but it is passive either the passive or middle voice where the subject acts on/by/for themselves. This is not an active verb, but an infinitive

ἐλθεῖν.  [198 verses](verb aor inf act) "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.

Related Verses: 

parallel comparison: 

This is a simple verse but it is interesting because the parallel in Matthew is about a wedding feast that others do not attend (Matthew 22:2). 

Front Page Date: 

Sep 13 2024