Mark 4:29 But when the fruit is brought forth...

Spoken to: 

Apostles

After explaining the parable of the seeds regarding what the kingdom is the Divine is like.

KJV: 

Mark 4:29 But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.

NIV : 

Mark 4:29 As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”

LISTENERS HEARD: 

When that fruit wants binding, then immediately he sends out the scythe because the harvest time has neared.

MY TAKE: 

Death is not the end, just the harvesting.

GREEK (Each Word Explained Bottom of Page): 

GREEK ORDER: 

ὅταν     δε     παραδοῖ                  καρπός,      εὐθὺς            “ἀποστέλλει τὸ   δρέπανον,
When, then wants binding       that fruit,     immediately  he sends out    the scythe

ὅτι          παρέστηκεν θερισμός.”
because has neared  the harvest time

LOST IN TRANSLATION: 

The verse starts with two words that have the sense of "when...then" citing a cause for a later effect. This is not reflected in the translation.

The verb translated as "brought forth" and "is ripe" is a verb that Jesus only uses here. This verb means something like "bind" from its root that means "tied." This refers to the practice of tying stocks of wheat into sheaves. This verbs is in a rare form, one means it is desired to happen in the future, the sense is "wants binding." The sense is that the fruit itself wants to be collected together.

The word translated as "puttieth in" and "puts" means "sent out." It is the word from which we get our word "apostle."  The word meaning "sickle" is only used here as well.  It is the same word Jesus uses to describe "sending out angels" in five verses.  That connection is lost when it is mistranslated.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

4
  • WW --Wrong Word -- The word translated as "but" should be something more like "then."
  • WW --Wrong Word -- The word translated as "brought forth" should be something more like "wants to bind."
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "puttieth  in" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • WF --Wrong Form -  The "is" does not indicate a passive or the present.

# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES: 

5
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "as soon as" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • WW --Wrong Word -- The word translated as "grain" should be something more like "fruit."
  • WW --Wrong Word -- The word translated as "brought forth" should be something more like "wants to bind."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "when" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "puttieth  in" does not capture the word's specific meaning.

EACH WORD of KJV : 

But -- (WW) The Greek word translated as "but" means "but," "however," and "on the other hand." It joins phrases in an adversarial way. Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better.   When used with a conditional (the "when" below) starting a clause, the sense is "when...then."  In this case, it is a "then" later in the verse.

when  - The Greek word translated as "when" introduces a phrase that explains a certain condition so "whenever" or "since."

the  - The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, 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", "those"). See this article for more. 

fruit  - The word translated as "fruit" primary meaning is "fruit", "seed," or "offspring," but its secondary meaning is "returns," specifically, "profit," as we would say "fruit of our labors."

is  - This seems to indicate that the following verb is passive, but it isn't.  So this word should not appear.

brought forth,  -  (WW) "Is brought forth" is a verb that means "to fasten to." Jesus only uses this word once, but he commonly uses its root which means "bind" or "tie." It is not the past tense as translated. It is the present tense. It is in the form of a verb that indicates a hypothetical future situation (optative mood) with the desire for it to happen. The sense here is "wants to bind."

immediately  - "Immediately" is  an adverb, it means "straight", "simple", "straightway," forthwith", "immediately", "directly," and "at once."

he  - This comes from the singular form of the following verb.

putteth in --- (CW) The "putteth in" here is a word that means "to send off" and "dispatch." It is the source of our word "apostle." This word is not the simple "send" but a more complex one that means "send out" or "send from." CW --Confusing Word -- The "putteth in" does not capture the word's specific meaning.

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, "the," which usually precedes a noun. 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. 

sickle,  - "Sickle" is a Greek noun that means "pruning knife," "scythe," and "simitar." This is the only time Jesus uses this word.

because  - The word translated as "because" introduces a statement of fact or cause. So "because," "in order that," or "so that" all work.

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, "the," which usually precedes a noun. 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. 

harvest  - "Harvest" is from a noun which means "mowing", "reaping", "harvest time", "harvest," and "crop." In John 4:35, Christ uses this term to refer to the gathering of the fruits for eternal life. The sense here is "harvest time."

is  - (WF) This mistakenly indicates that the following verb is passive, and present which it isn't. It is active and past perfect so "has."

come. "Is come" is a verb that means "to cause to stand beside", "to place besides," "to furnish", "to supply",  and "to deliver". Frequently,  in past tenses this word means  "to have come," "to be at hand."The form is active (not passive) and is in a tense that indicates something that has been completed in the past, "the harvest has delivered."

EACH WORD of NIV : 

As soon as - (CW) This "as soon as" conflates two Greek words. One it here and means "when" introduces a phrase that explains a certain condition leading to a "then." The other word is an adverb, it means "straight", "simple", "straightway," forthwith", "immediately", "directly," and "at once."

the  - The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, 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", "those"). See this article for more. 

grain   - (WW) The word translated as "grain" primary meaning is "fruit", "seed," or "offspring," but its secondary meaning is "returns," specifically, "profit," as we would say "fruit of our labors."

is  - This seems to indicate that the following verb is passive, but it isn't.  So this word should not appear.

ripe,  -  (WW) "Ripe" is a verb that means "to fasten to." Jesus only uses this word once, but he commonly uses its root which means "bind" or "tie." It is not the past tense as translated. It is the present tense. It is in the form of a verb that indicates a hypothetical future situation (optative mood) with the desire for it to happen. The sense here is "wants to bind."

missing "when"  -- (MW) The untranslated word "when " means "but," "however," and "on the other hand." When used with a conditional (the "when" above) starting a clause, the sense is "when...then."

he  - This comes from the singular form of the following verb.

puts --- (CW) The "puts" here is a word that means "to send off" and "dispatch." It is the source of our word "apostle." This word is not the simple "send" but a more complex one that means "send out" or "send from."

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, "the," which usually precedes a noun. 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. 

sickle,  - "Sickle" is a Greek noun that means "pruning knife," "scythe," and "simitar." This is the only time Jesus uses this word.

to it --- This English pronoun is added and not in the Greek source.  In Greek, pronoun objects are not repeated after each verb because they are implied by their first occurrence.

because  - The word translated as "because" introduces a statement of fact or cause. So "because," "in order that," or "so that" all work.

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, "the," which usually precedes a noun. 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. 

harvest  - "Harvest" is from a noun which means "mowing", "reaping", "harvest time", "harvest," and "crop." In John 4:35, Christ uses this term to refer to the gathering of the fruits for eternal life. The sense here is "harvest time."

has -- This mistakenly indicates that the following verb is passive, and present which it isn't. It is active and past perfect so "has."

come. "Is come" is a verb that means "to cause to stand beside", "to place besides," "to furnish", "to supply",  and "to deliver". Frequently,  in past tenses this word means  "to have come," "to be at hand."The form is active (not passive) and is in a tense that indicates something that has been completed in the past, "the harvest has delivered."

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV : 

ὅταν [70 verses](adv/conj) "When" is from hotan, which means "whenever (as a condition)," and "since (as a cause)." --

δὲ [446 verses](conj) "But" is de which means "but" and "on the other hand." It is the particle that joins sentences in an adversarial way but can also be an explanation of indirect cause ("so"). In an  "if" (εἰ ) clause or temporal "when" (ὅταν) clause the sense is "if/when... then." In a series begun by men, its means "on the other hand." In a series begun by men, its means "on the other hand."

παραδοῖ [1 verse] ( verb 3rd sg pres opt act ) "Is brought forth" is paradeo. which means "to fasten to." From the word meaning "tie" or "bind," with the prefix that means "beside" or "from." In some sources, it is thought to be paradidomi, which means "to give over to another", "to transmit", "to hand down", "to grant", "to teach," and "to bestow," but the form is wrong.

 [821 verses] (article sg masc nom) "The" 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." 

καρπός [32 verses](noun sg masc nom) "Fruit" is karpos, which means "fruit", "the fruits of the earth", "seed", "offspring", "returns for profit," and "reward." --

εὐθὺς [16 verses](adverb) "Immediately" is from eutheoswhich as an adverb, it means "straight", "simple", "straightway," forthwith", "immediately", "directly," and "at once." -- 

ἀποστέλλει [60 verses] ( verb 3rd sg pres ind act ) "He putteth" is apostello, which means "to send off", "to send away," or "to dispatch." --

τὸ  [821 verses] (article sg neut acc) "The" 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."

δρέπανον, [1 verse] ( noun sg neut acc ) "Sickle" is  drepanon, which means "pruning knife," "scythe," and "simitar."

ὅτι [332 verses](adv/conj) "That" is hoti, which introduces a statement of fact "with regard to the fact that", "seeing that," and acts as a causal adverb meaning "for what", "because", "since," and "wherefore." --

παρέστηκεν ι [3 verses] ( verb 3rd sg perf ind act )"Is come" is from paristemi, which means "to cause to stand beside", "to place besides", "to set before the mind", "to present", "to furnish", "to supply", "to deliver", "to make good", "to show", "to present", "to offer," and "to render." Frequently  in past tenses,  "to have come," "to be at hand."

 [821 verses] (article sg masc nom) "The" 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." -

θερισμός.” [7 verses](noun sg masc nom) "Harvest" is from therismos, which means "mowing", "reaping", "harvest time", "harvest," and "crop."​

Unimportant Opinions and Imaginings: 

So the earth brings forth fruit from the seed automatically, but to get the benefit of the harvest, the sickle must be used to cut down the wheat. The purpose of the crop is to be productive, so once it has produced fruit, it is time for it to be cut down.

The central character in this parable is the man who sows the seed. Christ says that this man doesn't know how the information in the seed and the nature of the earth combine to bring forth is fruit. So the man in this analogy is every one of us. To survive, we sow the seeds, let the earth do its work, and then harvest the resulting crop. The process in between the sowing and the harvest are God answering our prayer, giving us our bread.

However, this story is a parallel with Christ and his apostles sowing the word. The word "apostle" is even referenced here. The verb describing "sending in" the sickle is the root word for apostle. Those sowing the word may not know how or where it will grow but know that it happens automatically. However, the parallel with the apostles sowing the word seems to seem to breaks down at the very same point the term for "apostle" is mentioned. The apostle does not send in the sickle and harvest the crop at least not in any way that is easy for us to understand.

This last part of the verse is ominous, suggesting as is does the inevitability of death. Symbolically, Christ uses the harvest in Matthew 13:39 to describe "the end of the world," or, more accurately, "the end of an age." In my view, for Christ this means our personal physical deaths. Somehow, it is this death that allows the fruit to be harvested.

On the physical level, the death of one generation allows new generations to arise and what is built by one generation is inherited by the next. On the intellectual level, the ideas of one generation bear fruit in the next generation as they build on the best ideas of the previous generation. On the emotional level, the child/parent/grandparent relationship lays the foundation for all personal relationships of caring and the passing of our grandparents and parents teaches us what lives on in those relationships. On the spiritual level, we cannot know what is happening exactly except in the sense of following these parallels.

Front Page Date: 

Apr 1 2023