1
Ἐν οἷς ἐπισυναχθεισῶν τῶν μυριάδων τοῦ ὄχλου, ὥστε καταπατεῖν ἀλλήλους, ἤρξατο λέγειν πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ πρῶτον· Προσέχετε ἑαυτοῖς ἀπὸ τῆς ζύμης, ⸂ἥτις ἐστὶν ὑπόκρισις, τῶν Φαρισαίων⸃.
Meanwhile, when tens of thousands of the crowd had gathered together, so that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first: “Guard yourselves against the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
2
οὐδὲν δὲ συγκεκαλυμμένον ἐστὶν ὃ οὐκ ἀποκαλυφθήσεται, καὶ κρυπτὸν ὃ οὐ γνωσθήσεται.
Nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing hidden that will not be known.
3
ἀνθ’ ὧν ὅσα ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ εἴπατε ἐν τῷ φωτὶ ἀκουσθήσεται, καὶ ὃ πρὸς τὸ οὖς ἐλαλήσατε ἐν τοῖς ταμείοις κηρυχθήσεται ἐπὶ τῶν δωμάτων.
Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken into the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.
4
Λέγω δὲ ὑμῖν τοῖς φίλοις μου, μὴ φοβηθῆτε ἀπὸ τῶν ἀποκτεινόντων τὸ σῶμα καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα μὴ ἐχόντων περισσότερόν τι ποιῆσαι.
And I say to you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body and after that have nothing more they can do.
5
ὑποδείξω δὲ ὑμῖν τίνα φοβηθῆτε· φοβήθητε τὸν μετὰ τὸ ἀποκτεῖναι ⸂ἔχοντα ἐξουσίαν⸃ ἐμβαλεῖν εἰς τὴν γέενναν· ναί, λέγω ὑμῖν, τοῦτον φοβήθητε.
But I will show you whom to fear: fear the one who, after killing, has authority to throw into Gehenna. Yes, I say to you, fear him.
6
οὐχὶ πέντε στρουθία ⸀πωλοῦνται ἀσσαρίων δύο; καὶ ἓν ἐξ αὐτῶν οὐκ ἔστιν ἐπιλελησμένον ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ.
Are not five sparrows sold for two assaria? And not one of them has been forgotten before God.
Why this rendering
Luke.12.6 Observation
Syntactic observation
The count and the price of the sparrows differ between the books. Matthew 10:29 has δύο στρουθία ἀσσαρίου, **two** sparrows for **one** assarion; Luke 12:6 πέντε στρουθία ἀσσαρίων δύο, **five** sparrows for **two**. Five for two is two and a half for one, so Luke's are cheaper than Matthew's — the text does not do the arithmetic, but it shows when the verses are set side by side. What follows differs too: Matthew has οὐ πεσεῖται ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν ἄνευ τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν, not one falls to the ground apart from your Father; Luke οὐκ ἔστιν ἐπιλελησμένον ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ, not one **has been forgotten** before God, a perfect passive participle. Matthew speaks of falling, Luke of being forgotten. στρουθίον, sparrow, and ἀσσάριον occur four and two times in the corpus, and only in Matthew 10 and Luke 12. ἀσσάριον is a coin name from Latin as, and so falls under this corpus's transliteration.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “five sparrows for two assaria” and “has not been forgotten” — count and verb kept
Basis Transliterating coins is fixed, and the differing count is the datum here; the perfect passive is kept as a state.
Unpack the coin and match Matthew's count
Basis The amount is clear at once and the books become even.
Rejected This corpus transliterates coins where they are named (lepton, kodrantes, denarius, stater, talent); and matching the counts erases that the books price them differently.
7
ἀλλὰ καὶ αἱ τρίχες τῆς κεφαλῆς ὑμῶν πᾶσαι ἠρίθμηνται· ⸀μὴ φοβεῖσθε· πολλῶν στρουθίων διαφέρετε.
But even the hairs of your head have all been numbered. Do not fear; you are worth more than many sparrows.
8
Λέγω δὲ ὑμῖν, πᾶς ὃς ἂν ⸀ὁμολογήσῃ ἐν ἐμοὶ ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ὁμολογήσει ἐν αὐτῷ ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀγγέλων τοῦ θεοῦ·
And I say to you, everyone who confesses me before people, the Son of Man will also confess him before the angels of God;
9
ὁ δὲ ἀρνησάμενός με ἐνώπιον τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀπαρνηθήσεται ἐνώπιον τῶν ἀγγέλων τοῦ θεοῦ.
but the one who denies me before people will be denied before the angels of God.
10
καὶ πᾶς ὃς ἐρεῖ λόγον εἰς τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, ἀφεθήσεται αὐτῷ τῷ δὲ εἰς τὸ ἅγιον πνεῦμα βλασφημήσαντι οὐκ ἀφεθήσεται.
And everyone who will speak a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to the one who has blasphemed against the Holy Spirit it will not be forgiven.
11
ὅταν δὲ ⸀εἰσφέρωσιν ὑμᾶς ἐπὶ τὰς συναγωγὰς καὶ τὰς ἀρχὰς καὶ τὰς ἐξουσίας, μὴ ⸀μεριμνήσητε πῶς ⸂ἢ τί⸃ ἀπολογήσησθε ἢ τί εἴπητε·
And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry how or with what you will defend yourselves, or what you will say;
12
τὸ γὰρ ἅγιον πνεῦμα διδάξει ὑμᾶς ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ ὥρᾳ ἃ δεῖ εἰπεῖν.
for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what must be said.”
13
Εἶπεν δέ τις ⸂ἐκ τοῦ ὄχλου αὐτῷ⸃· Διδάσκαλε, εἰπὲ τῷ ἀδελφῷ μου μερίσασθαι μετ’ ἐμοῦ τὴν κληρονομίαν.
And someone from the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
14
ὁ δὲ εἶπεν αὐτῷ· Ἄνθρωπε, τίς με κατέστησεν ⸀κριτὴν ἢ μεριστὴν ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς;
But he said to him, “Man, who appointed me a judge or a divider over you?”
15
εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς αὐτούς· Ὁρᾶτε καὶ φυλάσσεσθε ἀπὸ ⸀πάσης πλεονεξίας, ὅτι οὐκ ἐν τῷ περισσεύειν τινὶ ἡ ζωὴ ⸀αὐτοῦ ἐστιν ἐκ τῶν ὑπαρχόντων ⸀αὐτῷ.
And he said to them, “Look, and guard yourselves against all greed, for a person’s life is not from what he possesses, even when he has more than enough.”
16
εἶπεν δὲ παραβολὴν πρὸς αὐτοὺς λέγων· Ἀνθρώπου τινὸς πλουσίου εὐφόρησεν ἡ χώρα.
And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a certain rich man bore well.
17
καὶ διελογίζετο ἐν ⸀ἑαυτῷ λέγων· Τί ποιήσω, ὅτι οὐκ ἔχω ποῦ συνάξω τοὺς καρπούς μου;
And he reasoned within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to gather my crops?’
18
καὶ εἶπεν· Τοῦτο ποιήσω· καθελῶ μου τὰς ἀποθήκας καὶ μείζονας οἰκοδομήσω, καὶ συνάξω ἐκεῖ πάντα ⸂τὸν σῖτον⸃ καὶ τὰ ἀγαθά μου,
And he said, ‘This I will do: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will gather all my grain and my good things,
19
καὶ ἐρῶ τῇ ψυχῇ μου· Ψυχή, ἔχεις πολλὰ ἀγαθὰ κείμενα εἰς ἔτη πολλά· ἀναπαύου, φάγε, πίε, εὐφραίνου.
and I will say to my life: “Life, you have many good things laid up for many years; rest, eat, drink, be merry.”’
20
εἶπεν δὲ αὐτῷ ὁ θεός· ⸀Ἄφρων, ταύτῃ τῇ νυκτὶ τὴν ψυχήν σου ⸀ἀπαιτοῦσιν ἀπὸ σοῦ· ἃ δὲ ἡτοίμασας, τίνι ἔσται;
But God said to him, ‘Fool, this night they demand your life from you; and what you have prepared, whose will it be?’
Why this rendering
Luke.12.20 Observation
Syntactic observation
Verses 13-21 are Luke's alone. ἀπαιτοῦσιν, they demand, is **third person plural with no subject.** ἀπαιτέω stands twice in the corpus, both in Luke, the other at **6:30** — from the one who takes what is yours, do not demand it back. Once it is what one must not demand, and once what is demanded is a life. Who demands the text does not say — God is the speaker just before, which invites reading it of God, though that would sit more naturally in the singular. Greek can leave a subjectless plural to mean something like they, people, and it stays open here. And the passage layers ψυχή: at v.19 the rich man speaks **to his own ψυχή** (ψυχή, you have many good things laid up for many years), at v.20 that ψυχή is demanded of him, and at vv.22-23 the disciples are told not to be anxious for their ψυχή. Five times in the chapter. In this corpus ψυχή is fixed as life, and v.19 is the only place where the word becomes someone addressed. ἄφρων, fool, occurs twice in Luke (11:40; 12:20) and nowhere else; εὐφορέω, to bear well (v.16), is unique in the corpus. The πλεονεξία of v.15 stands at Mark 7:22 and here only.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “they demand your life from you” — no subject supplied
Basis The text supplies no subject and neither does the rendering; ψυχή is kept as life, per the corpus decision, joining it to vv.19, 22, 23.
Fix the subject to God and render soul — “your soul is required of you”
Basis God is the speaker, so it is read that way, with the settled rendering.
Rejected The Greek leaves a plural with an empty subject; filling it closes what the text leaves open. And soul departs from the fixed rendering of ψυχή and hides that it is one word with do not be anxious for your life at vv.22-23.
Lost in translation
the subjectless plural Korean can leave a subject unstated, but the degree of vagueness differs from the Greek; English must choose a subject or a passive, which closes it further. Either way the openness of the original does not cross over intact.
Survives in · ko
21
οὕτως ὁ θησαυρίζων ⸀ἑαυτῷ καὶ μὴ εἰς θεὸν πλουτῶν.
So is the one who stores up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
22
Εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ· Διὰ τοῦτο ⸂λέγω ὑμῖν⸃, μὴ μεριμνᾶτε τῇ ⸀ψυχῇ τί φάγητε, μηδὲ τῷ ⸀σώματι τί ἐνδύσησθε.
And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry for your life, what you will eat, nor for your body, what you will put on.
23
ἡ ⸀γὰρ ψυχὴ πλεῖόν ἐστιν τῆς τροφῆς καὶ τὸ σῶμα τοῦ ἐνδύματος.
For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
24
κατανοήσατε τοὺς κόρακας ὅτι οὐ σπείρουσιν οὐδὲ θερίζουσιν, οἷς οὐκ ἔστιν ταμεῖον οὐδὲ ἀποθήκη, καὶ ὁ θεὸς τρέφει αὐτούς· πόσῳ μᾶλλον ὑμεῖς διαφέρετε τῶν πετεινῶν.
Look at the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storeroom nor barn, and God feeds them. How much more are you worth than the birds!
25
τίς δὲ ἐξ ὑμῶν μεριμνῶν δύναται ⸂ἐπὶ τὴν ἡλικίαν αὐτοῦ προσθεῖναι⸃ ⸀πῆχυν;
And which of you by worrying can add a cubit to his lifespan?
26
εἰ οὖν ⸀οὐδὲ ἐλάχιστον δύνασθε, τί περὶ τῶν λοιπῶν μεριμνᾶτε;
If then you cannot do even the least thing, why do you worry about the rest?
27
κατανοήσατε τὰ κρίνα πῶς αὐξάνει· οὐ κοπιᾷ οὐδὲ νήθει· λέγω δὲ ὑμῖν, οὐδὲ Σολομὼν ἐν πάσῃ τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ περιεβάλετο ὡς ἓν τούτων.
Look at the lilies, how they grow: they neither labour nor spin. Yet I say to you, not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed like one of these.
28
εἰ δὲ ⸂ἐν ἀγρῷ τὸν χόρτον ὄντα σήμερον⸃ καὶ αὔριον εἰς κλίβανον βαλλόμενον ὁ θεὸς οὕτως ⸀ἀμφιέζει, πόσῳ μᾶλλον ὑμᾶς, ὀλιγόπιστοι.
And if God so clothes the grass which is in the field today and tomorrow is thrown into an oven, how much more you, you of little faith!
29
καὶ ὑμεῖς μὴ ζητεῖτε τί φάγητε ⸀καὶ τί πίητε, καὶ μὴ μετεωρίζεσθε,
And you, do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not be unsettled;
30
ταῦτα γὰρ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τοῦ κόσμου ⸀ἐπιζητοῦσιν, ὑμῶν δὲ ὁ πατὴρ οἶδεν ὅτι χρῄζετε τούτων.
for all these things the nations of the world seek after, but your Father knows that you need them.
31
πλὴν ζητεῖτε τὴν βασιλείαν ⸀αὐτοῦ, καὶ ⸀ταῦτα προστεθήσεται ὑμῖν.
Rather seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
32
Μὴ φοβοῦ, τὸ μικρὸν ποίμνιον, ὅτι εὐδόκησεν ὁ πατὴρ ὑμῶν δοῦναι ὑμῖν τὴν βασιλείαν.
Do not fear, little flock, for your Father was pleased to give you the kingdom.
33
πωλήσατε τὰ ὑπάρχοντα ὑμῶν καὶ δότε ἐλεημοσύνην· ποιήσατε ἑαυτοῖς βαλλάντια μὴ παλαιούμενα, θησαυρὸν ἀνέκλειπτον ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, ὅπου κλέπτης οὐκ ἐγγίζει οὐδὲ σὴς διαφθείρει·
Sell your possessions and give alms. Make for yourselves money bags that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in the heavens, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
Why this rendering
Luke.12.33 Observation
Syntactic observation
βαλλάντιον, a money bag, is **Luke's alone**, four times (10:4; 12:33; 22:35, 36). Matthew, Mark and John do not have it; the word standing in that place is πήρα, a bag, which three of the four books have (Matt 10:10; Mark 6:8; four in Luke). So Luke uses πήρα and has βαλλάντιον besides. And the four interlock: at 10:4 they are to carry no money bag; at 22:35 he asks, when I sent you without a money bag, did you lack anything; at 22:36 he reverses it, now let the one who has a money bag take it. Between them, 12:33 tells them to make **money bags that do not wear out**. παλαιόω, to grow old, is unique in the corpus. Matthew 6:19-20 has a saying of the same texture with no money bag in it, going instead to θησαυρίζετε, store up — θησαυρίζω twice in Matthew (6:19, 20) and once in Luke (12:21). And where Matthew names two destroyers, σὴς καὶ βρῶσις, moth and eating, Luke names one, σής.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “money bag” — kept apart from πήρα, one word with 22:35-36
Basis Luke has both words and chose between them; keeping them apart lets the four places interlock.
Blur it with πήρα as “purse” or “bag”
Basis Both are things carried, and the distinction is slight.
Rejected At 10:4 and 22:35-36 the two words stand **side by side** (neither money bag nor bag); blurring them makes those verses say one thing twice.
34
ὅπου γάρ ἐστιν ὁ θησαυρὸς ὑμῶν, ἐκεῖ καὶ ἡ καρδία ὑμῶν ἔσται.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
35
Ἔστωσαν ὑμῶν αἱ ὀσφύες περιεζωσμέναι καὶ οἱ λύχνοι καιόμενοι,
Let your waists be girded and your lamps burning,
36
καὶ ὑμεῖς ὅμοιοι ἀνθρώποις προσδεχομένοις τὸν κύριον ἑαυτῶν πότε ἀναλύσῃ ἐκ τῶν γάμων, ἵνα ἐλθόντος καὶ κρούσαντος εὐθέως ἀνοίξωσιν αὐτῷ.
and be like people waiting for their own master, for when he returns from the wedding feast, so that when he comes and knocks they may open to him at once.
37
μακάριοι οἱ δοῦλοι ἐκεῖνοι, οὓς ἐλθὼν ὁ κύριος εὑρήσει γρηγοροῦντας· ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι περιζώσεται καὶ ἀνακλινεῖ αὐτοὺς καὶ παρελθὼν διακονήσει αὐτοῖς.
Blessed are those slaves whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Amen I say to you that he will gird himself and have them recline and come and serve them.
Why this rendering
Luke.12.37 Observation
Syntactic observation
The master returns and **girds himself and serves** the slaves. Matthew 24:45-47 and Mark 13:34-37 also have the watching slave, but the master serving is **Luke's alone.** περιζώννυμι, to gird, occurs three times in Luke (12:35, let your waists be girded; 12:37, the master girds himself; 17:8, a slave girds himself and serves) and never in Matthew or Mark. So within one chapter the word attaches once to slaves and once to the master, and at 17:8 to a slave again — and 17:8, where the master does not thank the slave, cuts directly against 12:37. διακονέω, to serve, occurs eight times in Luke and is taken up at 22:27, I am among you as the one who serves. γρηγορέω, to stay awake, occurs six times in Matthew and six in Mark, and **only here in Luke** — the Gethsemane charge to stay awake (Matt 26:38; Mark 14:34) Luke 22 writes without the word. The second or third watch at v.38 counts the night in the Roman way, in four.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “will gird himself … and serve them” — one word with 12:35 and 17:8
Basis Three places, one word; one rendering shows both that slave and master do the same thing and that 17:8 cuts against it.
Vary it to suit each place — “put on an apron”
Basis Girding oneself is unfamiliar in current English and Korean.
Rejected The unfamiliarity is in the Greek too; and varying it erases that Luke puts one word at all three places.
38
⸂κἂν ἐν τῇ δευτέρᾳ κἂν⸃ ἐν τῇ τρίτῃ φυλακῇ ἔλθῃ καὶ εὕρῃ οὕτως, μακάριοί ⸀εἰσιν ἐκεῖνοι.
Even if he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them so, blessed are they.
39
Τοῦτο δὲ γινώσκετε ὅτι εἰ ᾔδει ὁ οἰκοδεσπότης ποίᾳ ὥρᾳ ὁ κλέπτης ἔρχεται, ⸂οὐκ ἂν⸃ ἀφῆκεν ⸀διορυχθῆναι τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ.
But know this: if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief comes, he would not have let his house be dug through.
40
καὶ ⸀ὑμεῖς γίνεσθε ἕτοιμοι, ὅτι ᾗ ὥρᾳ οὐ δοκεῖτε ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἔρχεται.
You also be ready, for at an hour you do not think the Son of Man comes.”
41
Εἶπεν ⸀δὲ ὁ Πέτρος· Κύριε, πρὸς ἡμᾶς τὴν παραβολὴν ταύτην λέγεις ἢ καὶ πρὸς πάντας;
And Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or also to everyone?”
42
⸂καὶ εἶπεν⸃ ὁ κύριος· Τίς ἄρα ἐστὶν ὁ πιστὸς οἰκονόμος, ⸀ὁ φρόνιμος, ὃν καταστήσει ὁ κύριος ἐπὶ τῆς θεραπείας αὐτοῦ τοῦ διδόναι ἐν καιρῷ ⸀τὸ σιτομέτριον;
And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful household manager, the prudent one, whom the master will set over his household staff to give them their grain ration at the right time?
43
μακάριος ὁ δοῦλος ἐκεῖνος, ὃν ἐλθὼν ὁ κύριος αὐτοῦ εὑρήσει ποιοῦντα οὕτως·
Blessed is that slave whom his master, when he comes, will find doing so.
44
ἀληθῶς λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἐπὶ πᾶσιν τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν αὐτοῦ καταστήσει αὐτόν.
Truly I say to you that he will set him over all his possessions.
45
ἐὰν δὲ εἴπῃ ὁ δοῦλος ἐκεῖνος ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ· Χρονίζει ὁ κύριός μου ἔρχεσθαι, καὶ ἄρξηται τύπτειν τοὺς παῖδας καὶ τὰς παιδίσκας, ἐσθίειν τε καὶ πίνειν καὶ μεθύσκεσθαι,
But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master delays his coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk,
46
ἥξει ὁ κύριος τοῦ δούλου ἐκείνου ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ᾗ οὐ προσδοκᾷ καὶ ἐν ὥρᾳ ᾗ οὐ γινώσκει, καὶ διχοτομήσει αὐτὸν καὶ τὸ μέρος αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῶν ἀπίστων θήσει.
the master of that slave will come on a day he does not expect and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in two and put his portion with the unbelieving.
47
ἐκεῖνος δὲ ὁ δοῦλος ὁ γνοὺς τὸ θέλημα τοῦ κυρίου ⸀αὐτοῦ καὶ μὴ ἑτοιμάσας ⸀ἢ ποιήσας πρὸς τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ δαρήσεται πολλάς·
And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not prepare or act according to his will shall be beaten with many blows;
48
ὁ δὲ μὴ γνοὺς ποιήσας δὲ ἄξια πληγῶν δαρήσεται ὀλίγας. παντὶ δὲ ᾧ ἐδόθη πολύ, πολὺ ζητηθήσεται παρ’ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ᾧ παρέθεντο πολύ, περισσότερον αἰτήσουσιν αὐτόν.
but the one who did not know, and did what deserved blows, shall be beaten with few. And from everyone to whom much was given, much will be required; and to whom much was entrusted, they will ask the more.
49
Πῦρ ἦλθον βαλεῖν ⸀ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ τί θέλω εἰ ἤδη ἀνήφθη;
I came to throw fire upon the earth, and what more would I wish, if it has already been kindled?
50
βάπτισμα δὲ ἔχω βαπτισθῆναι, καὶ πῶς συνέχομαι ἕως ⸀ὅτου τελεσθῇ.
But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how I am constrained until it is completed!
Why this rendering
Luke.12.50 Observation
Syntactic observation
This verse answers back to what we saw at Matthew 20:22. At Mark 10:38 Jesus asks James and John about a **baptism** along with the cup — τὸ βάπτισμα ὃ ἐγὼ βαπτίζομαι βαπτισθῆναι. **Matthew 20:22 has no baptism** (only the cup). And **Luke has none at that point either** — Luke 18:31-33 is the same passage and records neither baptism nor cup nor the brothers' request. Yet Luke keeps the phrase and puts it **here, at 12:50**: βάπτισμα … βαπτισθῆναι, the same build as Mark's, now said of himself rather than asked of others. So the three books divide over one phrase — Mark keeps it in the parallel, Matthew never uses it, Luke drops it there and relocates it. The distribution supports the picture: βαπτίζω occurs seven times in Matthew, six of them in ch. 3 and the last at 28:19 — the middle of the ministry is empty. Luke has ten: the six of ch. 3, then 7:29-30, **11:38** (a Pharisee marvelling that he had not washed), and **12:50**. συνέχω, to be gripped, occurs six times in Luke and once in Matthew, and here it is he who is gripped.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “I have a baptism to be baptized with” — one word with Mark 10:38
Basis The same construction needs the same rendering for the divergence to show; its absence at Matthew 20:22 and Luke 18:31 is recorded in the analysis.
Render by sense — “I have an ordeal to undergo”
Basis Lets the reader see that no water baptism is meant.
Rejected The word is βάπτισμα and the text does not unpack it; a sense rendering cuts the link to Mark 10:38 and makes it impossible to weigh that Matthew never uses the word in mid-ministry.
51
δοκεῖτε ὅτι εἰρήνην παρεγενόμην δοῦναι ἐν τῇ γῇ; οὐχί, λέγω ὑμῖν, ἀλλ’ ἢ διαμερισμόν.
Do you think that I came to give peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.
52
ἔσονται γὰρ ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν πέντε ἐν ⸂ἑνὶ οἴκῳ⸃ διαμεμερισμένοι, τρεῖς ἐπὶ δυσὶν καὶ δύο ἐπὶ τρισίν,
For from now on five in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three.
53
⸀διαμερισθήσονται πατὴρ ἐπὶ υἱῷ καὶ υἱὸς ἐπὶ πατρί, μήτηρ ⸀ἐπὶ ⸀θυγατέρα καὶ θυγάτηρ ἐπὶ ⸂τὴν μητέρα⸃, πενθερὰ ἐπὶ τὴν νύμφην αὐτῆς καὶ νύμφη ἐπὶ τὴν ⸀πενθεράν.
They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
54
Ἔλεγεν δὲ καὶ τοῖς ὄχλοις· Ὅταν ⸀ἴδητε νεφέλην ἀνατέλλουσαν ⸀ἐπὶ δυσμῶν, εὐθέως λέγετε ⸀ὅτι Ὄμβρος ἔρχεται, καὶ γίνεται οὕτως·
And he also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, at once you say, ‘A rainstorm is coming,’ and so it happens.
55
καὶ ὅταν νότον πνέοντα, λέγετε ὅτι Καύσων ἔσται, καὶ γίνεται.
And when a south wind is blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens.
56
ὑποκριταί, τὸ πρόσωπον τῆς γῆς καὶ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ οἴδατε δοκιμάζειν, τὸν ⸂δὲ καιρὸν⸃ τοῦτον πῶς ⸂οὐκ οἴδατε δοκιμάζειν⸃;
Hypocrites! You know how to judge the face of the earth and of the sky, but how is it that you do not know how to judge this present time?
57
Τί δὲ καὶ ἀφ’ ἑαυτῶν οὐ κρίνετε τὸ δίκαιον;
And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?
58
ὡς γὰρ ὑπάγεις μετὰ τοῦ ἀντιδίκου σου ἐπ’ ἄρχοντα, ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ δὸς ἐργασίαν ἀπηλλάχθαι ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ, μήποτε κατασύρῃ σε πρὸς τὸν κριτήν, καὶ ὁ κριτής σε ⸀παραδώσει τῷ πράκτορι, καὶ ὁ πράκτωρ σε ⸀βαλεῖ εἰς φυλακήν.
For as you are going with your accuser before a ruler, on the way make an effort to be released from him, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison.
59
λέγω σοι, οὐ μὴ ἐξέλθῃς ἐκεῖθεν ἕως ⸂καὶ τὸ⸃ ἔσχατον λεπτὸν ἀποδῷς.
I say to you, you will never come out from there until you have paid back even the last lepton.”