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Legacy Standard Bible Translation Notes
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The Tyndale Center for Bible Translation

NOTES

BIBLE

Matthew 9

1

And getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the sea and came to His own city.

Καὶ ἐμβὰς εἰς πλοῖον διεπέρασεν καὶ ἦλθεν εἰς τὴν ἰδίαν πόλιν.

 
2

And behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.”

Καὶ ἰδοὺ προσέφερον αὐτῷ παραλυτικὸν ἐπὶ κλίνης βεβλημένον. καὶ ἰδὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τὴν πίστιν αὐτῶν εἶπεν τῷ παραλυτικῷ· Θάρσει, τέκνον· ἀφίενταί σου αἱ ἁμαρτίαι.

behold
The Greek interjection ἰδοὺ (idou) functions to arrest the attention of the reader and alert that Jesus is about to do something of great importance. Thus, it is preserved in the translation throughout the chapter (vv. 3, 20, 32).

 
3

And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man blasphemes.”

καὶ ἰδού τινες τῶν γραμματέων εἶπαν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς· Οὗτος βλασφημεῖ.

behold
Refer to the discussion on verse 2 above.

 
4

And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts?

καὶ εἰδὼς ὁ Ἰησοῦς τὰς ἐνθυμήσεις αὐτῶν εἶπεν· Ἱνατί ἐνθυμεῖσθε πονηρὰ ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν;

 
5

For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?

τί γάρ ἐστιν εὐκοπώτερον, εἰπεῖν· Ἀφίενταί σου αἱ ἁμαρτίαι, ἢ εἰπεῖν· Ἔγειρε καὶ περιπάτει;

 
6

But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”⁠—then He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your bed and go home.”

ἵνα δὲ εἰδῆτε ὅτι ἐξουσίαν ἔχει ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἀφιέναι ἁμαρτίας—τότε λέγει τῷ παραλυτικῷ· Ἐγερθεὶς ἆρόν σου τὴν κλίνην καὶ ὕπαγε εἰς τὸν οἶκόν σου.

 
7

And he got up and went home.

καὶ ἐγερθεὶς ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ.

 
8

But when the crowds saw this, they were afraid, and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

ἰδόντες δὲ οἱ ὄχλοι ἐφοβήθησαν καὶ ἐδόξασαν τὸν θεὸν τὸν δόντα ἐξουσίαν τοιαύτην τοῖς ἀνθρώποις.

afraid
The Greek term φοβέω (phobeō) is translated here with its usual sense: “afraid.” While the alternative translation “awestruck” has merit because the crowds also “glorified God,” the biblical concept of “fear” already carries a range of nuances, including the idea of awe and reverence (cf. Matt 10:28). By translating this term as “afraid” in this passage, readers can recognize how such fear often occurs in situations where people are confronted with the power of God (cf. Matt 14:26; 17:6; 27:54; 28:8).

 
9

And as Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew, sitting in the tax office; and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he stood up and followed Him.

Καὶ παράγων ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐκεῖθεν εἶδεν ἄνθρωπον καθήμενον ἐπὶ τὸ τελώνιον, Μαθθαῖον λεγόμενον, καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ· Ἀκολούθει μοι· καὶ ἀναστὰς ἠκολούθησεν αὐτῷ.

 
10

Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples.

Καὶ ἐγένετο αὐτοῦ ἀνακειμένου ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ, καὶ ἰδοὺ πολλοὶ τελῶναι καὶ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἐλθόντες συνανέκειντο τῷ Ἰησοῦ καὶ τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ.

 
11

And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?”

καὶ ἰδόντες οἱ Φαρισαῖοι ἔλεγον τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ· Διὰ τί μετὰ τῶν τελωνῶν καὶ ἁμαρτωλῶν ἐσθίει ὁ διδάσκαλος ὑμῶν;

 
12

But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.

ὁ δὲ ἀκούσας εἶπεν· Οὐ χρείαν ἔχουσιν οἱ ἰσχύοντες ἰατροῦ ἀλλὰ οἱ κακῶς ἔχοντες.

 
13

But go and learn what this means: ‘I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

πορευθέντες δὲ μάθετε τί ἐστιν· Ἔλεος θέλω καὶ οὐ θυσίαν· οὐ γὰρ ἦλθον καλέσαι δικαίους ἀλλὰ ἁμαρτωλούς.

 
14

Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?”

Τότε προσέρχονται αὐτῷ οἱ μαθηταὶ Ἰωάννου λέγοντες· Διὰ τί ἡμεῖς καὶ οἱ Φαρισαῖοι νηστεύομεν πολλά, οἱ δὲ μαθηταί σου οὐ νηστεύουσιν;

 
15

And Jesus said to them, “Can the attendants of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Μὴ δύνανται οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ νυμφῶνος πενθεῖν ἐφʼ ὅσον μετʼ αὐτῶν ἐστιν ὁ νυμφίος; ἐλεύσονται δὲ ἡμέραι ὅταν ἀπαρθῇ ἀπʼ αὐτῶν ὁ νυμφίος, καὶ τότε νηστεύσουσιν.

Can the attendants…
This question opens with the Greek negative particle μή (), which is usually employed to prime the listener for an assumed negative answer. This is why some translations add the tag question, “can they?” to the end of the verse. However, to avoid adding words which do not appear in the Greek, the rhetorical question is simply translated with structure familiar in English. This translation ensures nothing external is added and the force of the question remains perfectly intact.

 
16

But no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results.

οὐδεὶς δὲ ἐπιβάλλει ἐπίβλημα ῥάκους ἀγνάφου ἐπὶ ἱματίῳ παλαιῷ· αἴρει γὰρ τὸ πλήρωμα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἱματίου, καὶ χεῖρον σχίσμα γίνεται.

garment
The Greek word here is ἱμάτιον (himation), the general word for “garment.” Thus, it is translated as “garment” here and throughout the New Testament (excepting two occurrences [John 19:2, 5] where it specifically describes the purple “robe” put mockingly on Jesus).

 
17

Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”

οὐδὲ βάλλουσιν οἶνον νέον εἰς ἀσκοὺς παλαιούς· εἰ δὲ μή γε, ῥήγνυνται οἱ ἀσκοί, καὶ ὁ οἶνος ἐκχεῖται καὶ οἱ ἀσκοὶ ἀπόλλυνται· ἀλλὰ βάλλουσιν οἶνον νέον εἰς ἀσκοὺς καινούς, καὶ ἀμφότεροι συντηροῦνται.

 
18

While He was saying these things to them, behold, a synagogue official came and was bowing down before Him, and said, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live.”

Ταῦτα αὐτοῦ λαλοῦντος αὐτοῖς ἰδοὺ ἄρχων εἷς ἐλθὼν προσεκύνει αὐτῷ λέγων ὅτι Ἡ θυγάτηρ μου ἄρτι ἐτελεύτησεν· ἀλλὰ ἐλθὼν ἐπίθες τὴν χεῖρά σου ἐπʼ αὐτήν, καὶ ζήσεται.

was bowing down
The imperfect tense of προσκυνέω (proskuneō) is best rendered by the phrase “was bowing down” in contrast to “bowed down.” The imperfect tense presents an action that is in progress or that occurs over a period of time. In this case, Matthew’s portrayal helps to dramatize this remarkable moment for the readers. In addition, the repetition of this phrase contrasts the scene in the previous chapter in which it was not a prominent synagogue official but a lowly leper who came and “was bowing down” before Jesus with his plea for help (cf. 8:2).

 
19

And Jesus got up and began to follow him, and so did His disciples.

καὶ ἐγερθεὶς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἠκολούθει αὐτῷ καὶ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ.

 
20

And behold, a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His garment;

Καὶ ἰδοὺ γυνὴ αἱμορροοῦσα δώδεκα ἔτη προσελθοῦσα ὄπισθεν ἥψατο τοῦ κρασπέδου τοῦ ἱματίου αὐτοῦ·

behold
Refer to the discussion on verse 2 above.

garment
Refer to the discussion on verse 16 above.

 
21

for she was saying to herself, “If I only touch His garment, I will be saved from this.”

ἔλεγεν γὰρ ἐν ἑαυτῇ· Ἐὰν μόνον ἅψωμαι τοῦ ἱματίου αὐτοῦ σωθήσομαι.

garment
Refer to the discussion on verse 16 above.

saved from this
While most translations have something like “get well” or “be healed” here, the Greek word used is σῴζω (sōzō; “save”). Thus, the translation here as “saved” better conveys the fundamental meaning of the Greek term. Many times throughout the New Testament, this term refers to spiritual salvation, however, the salvation this woman has in mind is physical healing from her hemorrhage (cf. v. 20). The added words in italics “from this” help to communicate this clearly.

 
22

But Jesus turning and seeing her said, “Daughter, take courage; your faith has saved you.” At once the woman was saved from her hemorrhage.

ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς στραφεὶς καὶ ἰδὼν αὐτὴν εἶπεν· Θάρσει, θύγατερ· ἡ πίστις σου σέσωκέν σε. καὶ ἐσώθη ἡ γυνὴ ἀπὸ τῆς ὥρας ἐκείνης.

saved from her hemorrhage
Refer to the discussion on verse 21 above.

 
23

And when Jesus came into the official’s house, and saw the flute-players and the crowd in noisy disorder,

καὶ ἐλθὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν τοῦ ἄρχοντος καὶ ἰδὼν τοὺς αὐλητὰς καὶ τὸν ὄχλον θορυβούμενον

 
24

He was saying, “Leave; for the girl has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him.

ἔλεγεν· Ἀναχωρεῖτε, οὐ γὰρ ἀπέθανεν τὸ κοράσιον ἀλλὰ καθεύδει· καὶ κατεγέλων αὐτοῦ.

was saying
Matthew uses the imperfect tense when portraying Jesus’ speech and the crowd’s laughter. To better capture the sense of the imperfect in both cases, this translation has rendered ἔλεγεν (elegen) as “was saying” instead of “said.” Such a rendering helps to dramatize both actions: Jesus is pictured as making His point when readers see that the crowd began laughing at Him.

 
25

But when the crowd had been sent out, coming in, He took her by the hand, and the girl got up.

ὅτε δὲ ἐξεβλήθη ὁ ὄχλος, εἰσελθὼν ἐκράτησεν τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῆς, καὶ ἠγέρθη τὸ κοράσιον.

 
26

And this news spread throughout all that land.

καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἡ φήμη αὕτη εἰς ὅλην τὴν γῆν ἐκείνην.

 
27

And as Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”

Καὶ παράγοντι ἐκεῖθεν τῷ Ἰησοῦ ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ δύο τυφλοὶ κράζοντες καὶ λέγοντες· Ἐλέησον ἡμᾶς, υἱὲ Δαυίδ.

 
28

And when He entered the house, the blind men came up to Him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.”

ἐλθόντι δὲ εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν προσῆλθον αὐτῷ οἱ τυφλοί, καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Πιστεύετε ὅτι δύναμαι τοῦτο ποιῆσαι; λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· Ναί, κύριε.

 
29

Then He touched their eyes, saying, “It shall be done to you according to your faith.”

τότε ἥψατο τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν λέγων· Κατὰ τὴν πίστιν ὑμῶν γενηθήτω ὑμῖν.

 
30

And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, “See that no one knows about this!”

καὶ ἠνεῴχθησαν αὐτῶν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί. καὶ ἐνεβριμήθη αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς λέγων· Ὁρᾶτε μηδεὶς γινωσκέτω·

 
31

But they went out and spread the news about Him throughout all that land.

οἱ δὲ ἐξελθόντες διεφήμισαν αὐτὸν ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ γῇ ἐκείνῃ.

 
32

Now as they were going out, behold, a mute, demon-possessed man was brought to Him.

Αὐτῶν δὲ ἐξερχομένων ἰδοὺ προσήνεγκαν αὐτῷ ἄνθρωπον κωφὸν δαιμονιζόμενον·

behold
Refer to the discussion on verse 2 above.

 
33

And after the demon was cast out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds marveled, saying, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”

καὶ ἐκβληθέντος τοῦ δαιμονίου ἐλάλησεν ὁ κωφός. καὶ ἐθαύμασαν οἱ ὄχλοι λέγοντες· Οὐδέποτε ἐφάνη οὕτως ἐν τῷ Ἰσραήλ.

saying
The term “saying” translates the Greek participle λέγοντες (legontes). Because the participle modifies the primary verb, “marveled,” the translation “saying” reflects the Greek sentence structure better than “and said.” This translation therefore demonstrates how the crowd’s statement is treated as a subset and expression of their amazement.

 
34

But the Pharisees were saying, “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.”

οἱ δὲ Φαρισαῖοι ἔλεγον· Ἐν τῷ ἄρχοντι τῶν δαιμονίων ἐκβάλλει τὰ δαιμόνια.

 
35

And Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

Καὶ περιῆγεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τὰς πόλεις πάσας καὶ τὰς κώμας, διδάσκων ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς αὐτῶν καὶ κηρύσσων τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς βασιλείας καὶ θεραπεύων πᾶσαν νόσον καὶ πᾶσαν μαλακίαν.

 
36

And seeing the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and downcast like sheep without a shepherd.

Ἰδὼν δὲ τοὺς ὄχλους ἐσπλαγχνίσθη περὶ αὐτῶν ὅτι ἦσαν ἐσκυλμένοι καὶ ἐρριμμένοι ὡσεὶ πρόβατα μὴ ἔχοντα ποιμένα.

downcast
The term “downcast” translates the passive Greek participle ἐρριμμένοι (errimmenoi), a verb which literally translates to “be cast down.” Such imagery communicates the idea of suffering in the Bible (cf. Job 22:29; Ps 37:14; Prov 7:26).

 
37

Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.

τότε λέγει τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ· Ὁ μὲν θερισμὸς πολύς, οἱ δὲ ἐργάται ὀλίγοι·

 
38

Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”

δεήθητε οὖν τοῦ κυρίου τοῦ θερισμοῦ ὅπως ἐκβάλῃ ἐργάτας εἰς τὸν θερισμὸν αὐτοῦ.

 
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The Hebrew Old Testament is taken from the Unicode/XML Westminster Leningrad Codex
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