After Jesus says to someone that he should cut off his hand if it trips him up.
Mark 9:45 And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
Mark 9:45 And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.
And when that foot of yours trips up you, chop it off. It is good your entering into this life limping rather than having two feet to be tossed into the Gehenna.
The first unusual aspect of this verse is that all the second-person pronouns are in the singular, addressed to one person, rather than a group. This is like the previous verse. This indicates a comment or question from someone that Jesus is answering. The Matthew version of this verse appears in the Sermon on the Mount rather than being addressed to the apostles towards the end of Jesus's ministry.
This verse should be seen primarily as humorous. The keyword here is a "Greek" word translated as "offend/cause to stumble," a verb found only in the Bible. It ties this verse to the previous verses, Mark 9:42, and Mark 9:43 both also used this word. It refers to putting a stumbling block before someone so that they trip and thereby offending them. In English, we would simply say, "trips you up." See the article on this word here.
Though slightly different in vocabulary is used here than in Matthew 18:8, it preserves the same play on words, where "cutting it off" also means "stop it" in the sense of "bring to an abrupt close;" the two words have different prefixes on the same root. While this sounds extreme, there is a lot more humor in the original Greek.
The word here is "good" not "better." Jesus never uses the comparative form of the adjective. However, positive attributes can be used in comparisons simply by translating the Greek "than" as "rather than."
A foot doesn't enable you to run away from what trips you up.
καὶ ἐὰν ὁ πούς σου σκανδαλίζῃ σε, ἀπόκοψον αὐτόν:
And when that foot of yours trips up you, chop off. it
καλόν ἐστίν σε εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν ζωὴν χωλὸν ἢ τοὺς δύο πόδας ἔχοντα βληθῆναι εἰς τὴν γέενναν.
good It is your entering into this life limping rather than two feet having to be tossed into the Gehenna.
- CW - Confusing Word -- The "if" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "foot" is not shown in the English translation.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "offend" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "better" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- IW - Inserted Word -- The word "for" doesn't exist in the source.
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "life" is not shown in the English translation.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "than" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "feet" is not shown in the English translation.
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "hell" is not shown in the English translation.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "hell" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- IP - Inserted Phrase-- The phrase ""into the fire that never shall be quenched:" " doesn't exist in the source.
- CW - Confusing Word -- The "if" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "foot" is not shown in the English translation.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "offend" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "better" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- IW - Inserted Word -- The word "for" doesn't exist in the source.
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "life" is not shown in the English translation.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "than" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- WF -- Wrong Form - The "to have" is not an infinitive but a participle, "having."
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "feet" is not shown in the English translation.
- IW - Inserted Word -- The word "and" doesn't exist in the source.
- WF -- Wrong Form - The "be thrown" is not an active verb but an infinitive, "to be thrown."
- MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "hell" is not shown in the English translation.
- CW --Confusing Word -- The "hell" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
- IP - Inserted Phrase-- The phrase ""into the fire that never shall be quenched:" " doesn't exist in the source.
And -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also").
if - (CW) "If" indicates more of an expectation of something happening than "if" alone. This is how we use the word "when." It can be used after a demonstrative pronoun to mean "that possibly," "whosoever," or "whatsoever." This is not the simple "if."
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
thy -- The word translated as "thy" is the possessive form of the second person pronoun.
foot -- The word translated as "foot" refers to human feet, birds's talons, and trampling things.
offend -- (CW) "Offend" is a verb that means "to cause to stumble" or "to trip up." From there it is assumed by its translators to mean "to give offense" and "to scandalize." Our word "scandalize" come directly from the Greek. However, this interpretation of the word only comes from the translators of the Gospels. This is a Koine word that is found originally only in the New Testament, but based on a noun found only in the Greek Old Testament meaning "snare," or "stumbling block." The noun is changed to a verb by adding an ending very much like we add "ize" to a noun in order to make it a verb. So, literally it would mean to "make or performing a stumble." In English, we would simply say, "trips up" capturing the same idea exactly. See the article on this word here.
thee, -- The "thee" here is singular, meaning that the line was likely addressed to an individual instead of all his listeners.
cut -- "Cut off" is an uncommon verb for Jesus, used only here and in the next verse, that means "cut off", "hew off", "exclude from reckoning", "cut short", "bring to an abrupt close," and "smite in the breast from mourning." It is in the form of a command or request.
it -- The word translated as "it" is the Greek word commonly translated as third-person pronouns in English.
off -- This is from the prefix of the previous verb.
it -- This pronoun comes from the singular/plural, third person form of the verb.
is -- The verb "is" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. When the verb "to be" appears early in the clause before the subject, the sense is more like "it is" or, in the plural, "there are."
better -- (WF) The word translated as "good means "good", "beautiful", "noble," or "of good quality." See this article on the real Greek meaning of the terms translated as "good" and "evil." The word translated as "well" means, as an adverb, "well", "rightly", "happily", "thoroughly", "altogether", and "deservedly". It is not the comparative form "better," which Jesus never uses.
for-- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "for" in the Greek source.
thee - The "you" here is singular. This usually indicates that Jesus was likely addressing to an individual instead of all his listeners. This objective form is the subject of the infinitive, "to enter," which acts like a gerund in English, "your entering." The "maimed" below is as an adjective in a form modifying this pronoun.
to -- This is from the infinitive form of the verb.
enter -- "Enter" is a word that means "go or come into" and has the double meaning of "coming into one's mind."
into -- The word translated as "into" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, "in regards to" a subject, and "up to" limits in time and measure.
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
life -- The word translated as "life" means "living" but it also means "substance", "existence," and "property." Christ uses it to mean "existence" beyond physical life.
halt -- "Halt" is an uncommon word for Jesus that means "lame", "limping," and "defective." A very similar word, cholos, which means "gall", "bitter", "angry," and "wrathful."
than -- (CW) "Than" is translated from a Greek word that serves as "than" in a comparison. However, when used with a positive adjective, rather than a comparative adjective, it should be translated as "rather than."
having -- The word translated as "have" means to "have", "possess", "bear", "keep close", "have means to do", "to have due to one", or "keep" and many specific uses. The form is that of an adjective, "having."
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
two -- The Greek word for "two" means "two" or a "couple."
feet -- The word translated as "feet" refers to human feet, birds's talons, and trampling things.
to -- This is from the infinitive form of the verb.
be -- This is from the passive form of the verb.
cast - The word translated as "cast" has a number of meanings revolving around "throw" as we do in English with both "throw" and "toss." Jesus often uses this word in the same way we use "dump" in English. In dice, it means "to throw" the dice, but with the sense of being lucky.
into -- The word translated as "into" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, "in regards to" a subject, and "up to" limits in time and measure.
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
hell, -- (CW) The word "hell" is the name of an area, Gehenna, where a constant fire was kept for disposing of trash from Jerusalem. See this article for more.
into the fire that never shall be quenched: -- (IP) There is nothing that can be translated as "into the fire that never shall be quenched:" in the Greek source.
And -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and", but it also is used to add emphasis ("also").
if - (CW) "If" indicates more of an expectation of something happening than "if" alone. This is how we use the word "when." It can be used after a demonstrative pronoun to mean "that possibly," "whosoever," or "whatsoever." This is not the simple "if."
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
your -- The word translated as "your " is the possessive form of the second person pronoun.
foot -- The word translated as "foot" refers to human feet, birds's talons, and trampling things.
causes -- "Offend" is a verb that means "to cause to stumble" or "to trip up." From there it is assumed by its translators to mean "to give offense" and "to scandalize." Our word "scandalize" come directly from the Greek. However, this interpretation of the word only comes from the translators of the Gospels. This is a Koine word that is found originally only in the New Testament, but based on a noun found only in the Greek Old Testament meaning "snare," or "stumbling block." The noun is changed to a verb by adding an ending very much like we add "ize" to a noun in order to make it a verb. So, literally it would mean to "make or performing a stumble." In English, we would simply say, "trips up" capturing the same idea exactly. See the article on this word here.
you , -- The "you" here is the singular, accusative (objective,) second-person pronoun. The "you" here is singular. This usually indicates that Jesus was likely addressing to an individual instead of all his listeners. It is the object of the action of the verb.
to stumble - This completes the idea of the verb.
cut -- "Cut off" is an uncommon verb for Jesus, used only here and in the next verse, that means "cut off", "hew off", "exclude from reckoning", "cut short", "bring to an abrupt close," and "smite in the breast from mourning." It is in the form of a command or request.
it -- The word translated as "it" is the Greek word commonly translated as third-person pronouns in English.
off -- This is from the prefix of the previous verb. This prefix is different than the one used in Matthew's version.
It -- This pronoun comes from the singular/plural, third-person form of the verb.
is -- The verb "is" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. When the verb "to be" appears early in the clause before the subject, the sense is more like "it is" or, in the plural, "there are."
better -- (WF) The word translated as "good means "good", "beautiful", "noble," or "of good quality." See this article on the real Greek meaning of the terms translated as "good" and "evil." The word translated as "well" means, as an adverb, "well", "rightly", "happily", "thoroughly", "altogether", and "deservedly". It is not the comparative form "better," which Jesus never uses.
for -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "for" in the Greek source.
you - The "you" here is singular. This usually indicates that Jesus was likely addressing to an individual instead of all his listeners. This objective form is the subject of the infinitive, "to enter," which acts like a gerund in English, "your entering." The "maimed" below is as an adjective in a form modifying this pronoun.
to -- This is from the infinitive form of the verb.
enter -- "Enter" is a word that means "go or come into" and has the double meaning of "coming into one's mind."
into -- The word translated as "into" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, "in regards to" a subject, and "up to" limits in time and measure.
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
life -- The word translated as "life" means "living" but it also means "substance", "existence," and "property." Jesus also uses it to mean "existence" beyond physical life.
crippled -- "Crippled" is an uncommon word for Jesus that means "lame", "limping," and "defective." A very similar word, cholos, which means "gall", "bitter", "angry," and "wrathful."
than -- (CW) "Than" is translated from a Greek word that serves as "than" in a comparison. However, when used with a positive adjective, rather than a comparative adjective, it should be translated as "rather than."
to -- (WF) This in indicates an infinitive verb but that is not the verb form here.
have -- The word translated as "have" means to "have", "possess", "bear", "keep close", "have means to do", "to have due to one", or "keep" and many specific uses. The form is that of an adjective, "having."
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
two -- The Greek word for "two" means "two" or a "couple."
feet -- The word translated as "feet" refers to human feet, birds's talons, and trampling things.
and -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "and" in the Greek source.
be -- (WF) This is from the passive form of the verb. This should be an infinitive, "to be thrown."
thrown - The word translated as "thrown " has a number of meanings revolving around "throw" as we do in English with both "throw" and "toss." Jesus often uses this word in the same way we use "dump" in English. In dice, it means "to throw" the dice, but with the sense of being lucky.
into -- The word translated as "into" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, "in regards to" a subject, and "up to" limits in time and measure.
missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.
hell, -- (CW) The word "hell" is the name of an area, Gehenna, where a constant fire was kept for disposing of trash from Jerusalem. See this article for more.
Καὶ [1089 verses] (conj/adv) "And" is kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "but." 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."
ἐὰν [163 verses] (conj) "If" is ean, which is a conditional particle (derived from ei (if) and an (might), which makes reference to a time and experience in the future that introduces but does not determine an event.
ὁ [821 verses] (article sg masc nom ) Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones." Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones."
πούς [19 verses] ( noun sg masc nom ) "Foot" is pous, which means a "foot", "a talon [of a bird]," and the concept of "to trample" or "to tred upon." -- The word translated as "feet" refers to human feet, birds's talons, and trampling things. It was the Jewish
σου [144 verses](adj sg masc gen) "Thy" is sou which means "of yours" and "your."
σκανδαλίζῃ[20 verses] ( verb 2nd sg aor subj mid ) "Offend" is skandalizo, which means "to cause to stumble", "to give offense," and "to scandalize." This is the verb form of skandolon, meaning "trap," "snare," or "stumbling block," that appears twenty-five times in the Septuagint, the Greek Old Testament. and fifteen in the NT.
σε [48 verses] (pron 2nd sg acc) "Thee" is from se, the second person singular accusative pronoun.
ἀπόκοψον [2 verses]( verb 2nd sg aor imperat act ) "Cut off" is apokopto, which means "cut off", "hew off", "exclude from reckoning", "cut short", "bring to an abrupt close," and "smite in the breast from mourning."
αὐτὸν [124 verses](pron/(adj sg masc acc)) "Him" is auton, is the masculine, accusative case of the third-person, singular adjective that is used as a pronoun. The word also means "the same," and "of one's own accord."
καλόν [48 verses]( noun sg neut nom ) "Good" is kalos, which means "beautiful", "good", "of fine quality", "noble," and "honorable." It is most often translated as "good" juxtaposed with "evil" in the New Testament, but the two ideas are closer to "wonderful" and "worthless", "noble" and "base."
ἐστίν .[614 verses](verb 3rd sg pres ind act) "Is" is eimi, which means "to be", "to exist", "to be the case," of circumstance and events "to happen", and "is possible." (The future form is esomai. The 3rd person present indicative is "esti.")
σε [48 verses] (pron 2nd sg acc) "Thee" is from se, the second person singular accusative pronoun. -
εἰσελθεῖν [68 verses]( verb aor inf act ) "To enter" is eiserchomai which means both "to go into", "to come in", "to enter", "to enter an office", "to enter a charge," (as in court) and "to come into one's mind."
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)."
τὴν [821 verses](article sg fem acc) Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones."
ζωὴν [42 verses] ( noun sg fem acc ) "Life" is zoe, which means "living", "substance", "property", "existence," and, incidentally, "the scum on milk." It has the sense of how we say "make a living" to mean property. Homer used it more to mean the opposite of death.
χωλὸν [6 verses]( adj sg masc acc ) "Halt" is from chôlos, which means "lame", "limping," and "defective." A very similar word, cholos, which means "gall", "bitter", "angry," and "wrathful."
ἢ [92 verses](conj/adv/exclam) "Or" is e, which is a particle used as a disjunctive, "either," "or," , or as a comparative, "than" or "rather than." It is also an exclamation, "hi!" and an adverb meaning "in truth" and "of a surety." It is used with comparative forms of adjective or with positive adjective implying a comparison. -
τὰς [821 verses](article pl fem acc) Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones."
δύο [36 verses](number) "Two" is duo, which means the number "two", "a couple," and "a pair."
πόδας [19 verses] ( noun pl masc acc) "Foot" is pous, which means a "foot", "a talon [of a bird]," and the concept of "to trample" or "to tred upon." -- The word translated as "feet" refers to human feet, birds's talons, and trampling things.
ἔχοντα [181 verses] ( part sg pres act masc acc ) "Having" is echo, which means "to have", "to hold", "to possess", "to keep", "to have charge of", "to have due to one", "to maintain", "to hold fast", "to bear", "to carry", "to keep close", "to keep safe," and "to have means to do."
βληθῆναι [54 verses] (verb aor inf pass) "Cast" is ballo, which means "to throw", "to let fall," "to cast," "to put", "to pour", "to place money on deposit", "push forward or in front [of animals]", "to shed", "to place", "to pay,"to throw [of dice,]" "to be lucky", "to fall", "to lay as foundation", "to begin to form", "to dash oneself with water," and "to bathe."
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)." -- The word translated as "unto" means "into" a place, "towards" as a direction, "in regards to" a subject, and "up to" limits in time and measure.
τὴν [821 verses](article sg fem acc) Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones."
γέενναν, [11 verses] ( noun sg fem acc ) "Hell" is geenna which is Greek for Gehenna, the valley of Hinnom (the Hebrew word), south of Jerusalem where trash, including diseased animals and human corpses was burned. A constant fire was kept burning there.
The word translated as "cast" usually is used in the sense of "tossed" but it also has the double meaning of "fall," which works well with the foot analogy.
This is a variation of verse in Mark 9:43. The first time, Jesus warns us of our hands, which is the symbol for our relationships with others. Here, the foot is the symbol for our physical bodies. Next is the eye, which is the symbol for our mental world.
In the underlying Greek, besides the change from "hand" to "foot," there is another slight change in vocabulary that represents the fun plays on words Christ likes to make. With one leg we "enter into life," but with two legs, we "fall" into the trash heap. In the previous Mark 9:43, the word used is aperchomai, which is the idea of "departing" as in leaving from a relationship, which is what the hand symbolized. But here, that word is changed to ballo, which means "to let fall," making a bigger joke on the "stumbling" (skandalizô) part of the verse, adding the idea of falling at the end. The foot symbolizes the physical part of life, so "falling" is a stronger analogy than simply "departing."
The point here is that physical handicaps are meaningless in terms of the bigger picture. The purpose of life is making spiritual progress. Our physical abilities or lack of them dictate what we can do in terms of functioning in this world, but they are immaterial in term of our physical progress. What we need to avoid is wasting our lives. Each age is unique and special. The end of the age is the accounting for our progress or lack of it.
Our failure to make progress in this life sticks with us forever but that doesn't mean that we cannot make progress when we fail.