Mark 9:1 There be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death...

Spoken to
Apostles

This is shortly before the transfiguration.

KJV

Mark 9:1 Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.

NIV

Mark 9:1 Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see that the kingdom of God has come with power.

LISTENERS HEARD

Amen, I tell you, since some are here, the ones having been appointed, who might never taste death until when they see that realm of the divine having started with power. 

LOST IN TRANSLATION

This verse is mistakenly seen as a prediction of the end of the world in the lifetime of some of the apostles, but in the time of Jesus. it would have been explained as a prediction of the transfiguration, which follows almost immediately in Mark. The English translations a purposefully misleading in most of the tenses here. There are no future tenses in Greek. The verbs "taste" and "see" are in the form of things that "might" happen at some time, not things that "will" happen. The "see" is in a "when" clause where the "when" is untranslated.

The word translated as "stand" also means "appointed" or "established." In this case, it could easily refer to the three apostles Jesus picks who go with him to see the transfiguration.

The phrase "come with power" more likely means "having started in power."  It is a verb adjective modifying "the kingdom." The primary meaning of the word translated as "come" is "to start." The sense here is "having started with authority." This could refer to the transfiguration or even the resurrection, which almost all of the apostles included.

 

MY TAKE

Well begun is half done.

GREEK ORDER

Ἀμὴν   λέγω ὑμῖν  ὅτι    εἰσίν τινες ὧδε   τῶν        ἑστηκότων 
Amen, I tell  you, since are    some here, the ones having been appointed,

οἵτινες οὐ μὴ  γεύσωνται  θανάτου ἕως  ἂν    ἴδωσιν  τ ὴν βασιλείαν     τοῦ θεοῦ   ἐληλυθυῖαν        ἐν    δυνάμει.
who     never  might taste  death   until when they see that realm       of the divine having started    with power. 

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES
11
  • WN  --Wrong Number- The word "be" is translated as singular but the Greek word is plural.
  • WT -- Wrong Tense -- This verb is the past perfect tense, which requires a "have" before the verb.
  • WF -- Wrong Form -  The "stand" is not an active verb but a participle, "having stood."
  • CW --Confusing Word -- This is not the common word usually translated as "them."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "who" doesn't exist in the source.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "standing" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW - Confusing Word - This "shall" does not indicate the future tense, but describes a possibility, the subjunctive voice.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "not" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "when" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "have" indicates the past perfect tense, but that is not the tense here.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "has" indicates the past perfect tense, but that is not the tense here.
  • WF -- Wrong Form -  The "come" is not an active verb but a participle, "having come."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "God" is not shown in the English translation.
# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES
14
  • CW --Confusing Word -- This is not the common word usually translated as "them."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "that" is not shown in the English translation.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "who" doesn't exist in the source.
  • CW --Confusing Word -- The "are" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • WT -- Wrong Tense -- This verb is the past perfect tense, which requires a "have" before the verb.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "which" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "will" should be something more like "should."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "not" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • WW --Wrong Word -- The word translated as "before" should be something more like "until."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "when" is not shown in the English translation.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "that" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "have" indicates the past perfect tense, but that is not the tense here.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "God" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WF -- Wrong Form -  The "come" is not an active verb but a participle, "having come."
EACH WORD of KJV

Verily -- The word translated as "verily" is from the Hebrew word that means "truly" or "certainly," but it sounds like the Greek word with the same meaning. In Greek, the word also means "to reap." See this article discussing this "amen phrase."

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

say -- The word translated as "say" is the most common word that means "to say," and "to speak," but it also means "to teach," which seems to be the way Christ uses it more frequently. It also has many ancillary meanings such as "to count" ("to number" or like we might say, "to recount" a story) or "to choose for yourself." Christ usually uses this word to refer to his own speaking or teaching. The form of the verb could also be a possible action, "might say" or "should say."

unto -- This word "unto" comes from the dative case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English, but the translator must decide which preposition to use: a "to" as an indirect object.

you,  -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you," "for you," etc.

That-- The word translated as "that" introduces a statement of fact or cause.

there  - 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."

be--  (WN) The verb "be" 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.  This word is not singular but plural.

some  -- The Greek word translated as "some" is the plural version "anyone", "someone," and "anything." In the plural, it means "some", "they," and "those."

of -- This word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession.

them -- (CW) 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. Here it precedes a verb in the from of an adjective.

missing "have"  -- (WT) The helping vcrb, "have," is needed to show the past perfect tense of the verb.

stand  - (WF)  "Stand" is the noun form of the verb which means "to make a stand", "to set up", "to place," or "to stand." It is plural and the tense indicates an action completed in the past. The form is that of an adjective, "having stood here."

here, -- "Here" is from a pronoun that means "what is present" or "here it is". The Greek word appears earlier in sentence, after "some."

which -- "Which" is a pronoun that means "that", "anyone who", "anything which", "whosoever," "whichsoever" and "anybody whatsoever."  It is the same root as the word

shall -- (CW) This helping verb "shall" does not indicate the future tense, but that the verb describes a possibility, the subjunctive voice. A "might" or "should" in English is more appropriate, but is assumed in an "if/when/whoever/except" clause. Helping verbs are not needed in Greek since the main verb carries this information in its form.

not -- (CW) The "not" here is both of the Greek negatives used together. Greek has two negatives, one objective, one subjective. The use of both together is more extreme, like saying, "never" or literally, "you cannot really think." When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

taste  - "Taste" is a verb which means "to taste", "to feel," and "to experience." It is not in the future tense, but a form that is usually translated as the past tense but which means something happening at some specific point in time.

of -- This word "of"  comes from the genitive case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession. However, it can also mean "belonging to," "part of," "which is," "than" (in comparisons), or  "for," "concerning" or "about" with transitive verbs. In reference to time, it could instead be translated as "during," "at," or "within."

death,  - "Death" is from the Greek word meaning "death" generally and the death penalty specifically.

till  - The word translated as "till" means "until" but it also means "in order that."

missing "when"  -- (MW) The untranslated word 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." CW - Confusing Word -- The "if" does not capture the word's specific meaning.

they -- This is from the second-person plural 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.

seen  - The verb translated as "see" means "to see" but it is used like we use the word "see" to mean "to know" or "to perceive."

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article.The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those"). 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. Jesus 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. More about this term in this article.

of -- This is from the form of the following article and noun.

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. 

God 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 one God as opposed to the pagan gods.

missing "has"  -- (WT) The helping vcrb, "has," is needed to show the past perfect tense of the verb.

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 "come" or "go," but it is more like our phrase "being underway." Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. 

with - -- The word translated as "in" means "in," "within," "with" (an instrument), "by" (near), "by" (means of), "during" (time),  or "among"  with a dative object as the one here.  With the accusative, it means "into," "on," and "for." When referring to time, it means "during." It can mean "on," "at," or "by" in the sense of "near."

power. -- "Power" is a word that describes abilities and capacities, what actions a person can do or has done so "power", "might", "influence", "authority," and "force." It does not carry the sense of authority over others, either people or laws. The verb form of this word is translated as "can" in the NT.

EACH WORD of NIV

Truly -- The word translated as "truly " is from the Hebrew word that means "truly" or "certainly," but it sounds like the Greek word with the same meaning. In Greek, the word also means "to reap." See this article discussing this "amen phrase."

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

tell -- The word translated as "say" is the most common word that means "to say," and "to speak," but it also means "to teach," which seems to be the way Christ uses it more frequently. It also has many ancillary meanings such as "to count" ("to number" or like we might say, "to recount" a story) or "to choose for yourself." Christ usually uses this word to refer to his own speaking or teaching. The form of the verb could also be a possible action, "might tell" or "should tell."

you,  -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you," "for you," etc.

missing "that"  -- (MW) The untranslated word  "that" introduces a statement of fact or cause.

some  -- The Greek word translated as "some" is the plural version "anyone", "someone," and "anything." In the plural, it means "some", "they," and "those."

who -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "that" in the Greek source. It was added because the next verb was translated as active rather than as a participle.

are -- (CW) The verb "are" 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. The word also means "to exist" and where it doesn't connect to characteristics or conditions. This is not a helping verb as it is used here to create a present progressive form in English, a form that doesn't exist in Greek. The verb "stand" is not even in the present tense.

missing "the ones/those"  -- (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. 

missing "have"  -- (WT) The helping vcrb, "have," is needed to show the past perfect tense of the verb.

standing -- "Standing" is the noun form of the verb which means "to make a stand", "to set up", "to place," or "to stand." It is plural and the tense indicates an action completed in the past. The form is that of an adjective, "having stood here."

here, -- "Here" is from a pronoun that means "what is present" or "here it is". The Greek word appears earlier in sentence, after "some."

missing "which"  -- (MW) The untranslated word  pronoun that means "that," "anyone who," "anything which," "whosoever," "whichsoever" and "anybody whatsoever." 

will -- (WW) This helping verb indicates that the verb is the future tense, but it isn't. It is in the form of possibility so it needs a "should" or "might."

not -- (CW) The "not" here is both of the Greek negatives used together. Greek has two negatives, one objective, one subjective. The use of both together is more extreme, like saying, "never" or literally, "you cannot really think." When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

taste  - "Taste" is a verb which means "to taste", "to feel," and "to experience." It is not in the future tense, but a form that is usually translated as the past tense but which means something happening at some specific point in time.

death,  - "Death" is from the Greek word meaning "death" generally and the death penalty specifically.

before - (WW) The word translated as "before" means "until" but it also means "in order that."

missing "when"  -- (MW) The untranslated word 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." CW - Confusing Word -- The "if" does not capture the word's specific meaning.

they -- This is from the second-person plural form of the verb.

see - The verb translated as "see" means "to see" but it is used like we use the word "see" to mean "to know" or "to perceive."

that -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "that" in the Greek source

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article.The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those"). 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. Jesus 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. More about this term in this article.

of -- This is from the form of the following article and noun.

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. 

God 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 one God as opposed to the pagan gods.

has -- This helping verb "has" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action completed in the past.

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 "come" or "go," but it is more like our phrase "being underway." Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. 

with - -- The word translated as "in" means "in," "within," "with" (an instrument), "by" (near), "by" (means of), "during" (time),  or "among"  with a dative object as the one here.  With the accusative, it means "into," "on," and "for." When referring to time, it means "during." It can mean "on," "at," or "by" in the sense of "near."

power. -- "Power" is a word that describes abilities and capacities, what actions a person can do or has done so "power", "might", "influence", "authority," and "force." It does not carry the sense of authority over others, either people or laws. The verb form of this word is translated as "can" in the NT.

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV

Ἀμὴν [88 verses](exclaim) "Verily" is amen, which is the Hebrew, meaning "truly," "of a truth," and "so be it." It has no history in Greek of this meaning before the NT. However, this is also the infinitive form of the Greek verb amao, which means "to reap" or "to cut."

λέγω [264 verses](1st sg pres ind act/subj) "I say" is lego, which means "to recount," "to tell over," "to say," "to speak," "to teach," "to mean," "boast of," "tell of," "recite," nominate," and "command." It has a secondary meaning "pick out," "choose for oneself," "pick up," "gather," "count," and "recount." A less common word that is spelled the same means "to lay," "to lay asleep" and "to lull asleep."

ὑμῖν, [289 verses](pron 2nd pl dat) "To you" is humin the plural form of su the pronoun of the second person, "you."

ὅτι [332 verses](adv) "That" is from 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."

εἰσίν [614 verses] (verb 3rd pl pres ind act) "There be" is from eimi, which means "to be", "to exist", "to be the case," and "is possible." )

τινες [252 verses](pron pl masc nom) "Some" is from tis which can mean "someone", "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."

ὧδε [29 verses] (adv) "Here" is hode, the demonstrative pronoun which means "this" in the sense of "what is present" and "what can be seen." With verbs of action and with a person (its use here), it means "here" as in "here standing".

τῶν [821 verses](article pl masc gen) "Them that" 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."

ἑστηκότων  [28 verses](part pl perf act masc gen )  "Stand" is from histemi, which means "to make to stand", "to stand", "to set up", "to bring to a standstill", "to check", "to appoint", "to establish", "to fix by agreement", "to be placed", "to be set", "to stand still", "to stand firm", "to set upright", "to erected", "to arise," and "to place." Like the English words "put" and "set," it has a number of specific meanings from "to put down [in writing]", "to bury", "to establish", "to make", "to cause," and "to assign."

οἵτινες  [90 verses](pron pl masc nom) "Which" is from hostis, which means "that", "anyone who", "anything which", "whosoever," "whichsoever" and "anybody whatsoever."

οὐ μὴ [39 verses](partic) "Not" is from ou me, the two forms of Greek negative used together. Ou is the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences. Mê (me) is the negative used in prohibitions and expressions of doubt meaning "not" and "no." As οὐ (ou) negates fact and statement; μή rejects, οὐ denies; μή is relative, οὐ absolute; μή subjective, οὐ objective.

γεύσωνται [4 verses](verb 3rd pl aor subj mid) "Shall taste" is from geuomai, which means "to taste," "to take food," "to make proof of," "to feel," and "to experience."

θανάτου [15 verses](noun sg masc gen) "Death" is from thanatos, which means "death" "kinds of death," specifically, "violent death", "corpse," and "a death sentence."

ἕως [63 verses](prep) "Till" is from heos which means "until", "till," and "in order that" and "up to the point that." -

ἂν [162 verses](conj) Untranslated is ean, which is a conditional particle (derived from ei (if) and an (possibly), which makes reference to a time and experience in the future that introduces but does not determine an event. This is how we use the word "when." It can be used after a demonstrative pronoun hos or hostis meaning "that possibly,"  "whosoever" or "whatsoever."

ἴδωσιν [166 verses](verb 3rd pl aor subj act) "They have seen" is from eido which means "to see", "to examine", "to perceive", "to behold", "to know how to do", "to see with the mind's eye," and "to know."

τῇ [821 verses] (article sg fem dat) "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."

βασιλείᾳ [98 verses](noun sg fem dat) "Kingdom" is from 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"), which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one" or, in the plural, "the ones." -- 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. 

θεοῦ.(noun sg masc gen) "Of God" is theos, which means "God," "divine," and "Deity." 

ἐληλυθυῖαν [198 verses] (part sg perf act fem acc )"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. -- The word translated as "come" primarily means "to start out" but Christ 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." Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. See this article for more.

ἐν [413 verses](prep) "In" is en, which means, with a dative object, "in," "on," "at," "by," "among," "within," "surrounded by," "in one's hands," "in one's power," "during,"  and "with." 

δυνάμει. [21 verses](noun sg fem dat) "Power" is from dynamis, which means "power", "might", "outward power", "influence", "authority", "elementary force", "faculty", "capacity", "craft", "art", "capable of existing", "capable of acting", "worth," and "value."

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