1
Καὶ ἤρξατο αὐτοῖς ἐν παραβολαῖς ⸀λαλεῖν· Ἀμπελῶνα ⸂ἄνθρωπος ἐφύτευσεν⸃, καὶ περιέθηκεν φραγμὸν καὶ ὤρυξεν ὑπολήνιον καὶ ᾠκοδόμησεν πύργον, καὶ ἐξέδετο αὐτὸν γεωργοῖς, καὶ ἀπεδήμησεν.
And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, and put a fence around it, and dug a vat beneath the press, and built a tower; and he let it out to farmers and went abroad.
A vat beneath the press renders ὑπολήνιον (hypolēnion), used once in the four Gospels. The opening lines take up Isaiah 5:1–2.
pronoun he = Jesus — the second and third “he” are the man
pronoun them = the chief priests, scribes and elders
pronoun it = the vineyard
2
καὶ ἀπέστειλεν πρὸς τοὺς γεωργοὺς τῷ καιρῷ δοῦλον, ἵνα παρὰ τῶν γεωργῶν λάβῃ ἀπὸ ⸂τῶν καρπῶν⸃ τοῦ ἀμπελῶνος·
And at the season he sent a slave to the farmers, to receive from them some of the fruit of the vineyard.
Slave (δοῦλος, doulos) — this edition keeps it apart from the servant of 9:35.
pronoun he = the man
pronoun them = the tenant farmers
3
⸀καὶ λαβόντες αὐτὸν ἔδειραν καὶ ἀπέστειλαν κενόν.
And taking him, they beat him and sent him away empty.
Empty (κενός, kenos) — the Greek says they sent him away empty, not empty-handed.
pronoun they = the farmers
pronoun him = the slave — both times
4
καὶ πάλιν ἀπέστειλεν πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἄλλον δοῦλον· ⸀κἀκεῖνον ⸀ἐκεφαλίωσαν καὶ ⸀ἠτίμασαν.
And again he sent another slave to them; and that one they struck on the head and dishonoured.
Struck on the head renders κεφαλιόω (kephalioō), used once in the four Gospels.
pronoun he = the man
pronoun them = the farmers
pronoun they = the farmers
Why this rendering
Mark.12.4 Hypothesis
Syntactic observation
ἐκεφαλίωσαν is the aorist of κεφαλιόω, a verb that occurs only here in the four Gospels and that the lexica record as rare in Greek generally. It comes from κεφαλή, head, so struck him on the head reads naturally — but the common verb of the same root, κεφαλαιόω, means to sum up, and differs by a single letter; the Textus Receptus in fact prints ἐκεφαλαίωσαν. So the word divides not only in sense but in spelling. SBLGNT prints the shorter form with a mark. The Textus Receptus also has λιθοβολήσαντες, having stoned him, before it, explaining how the head was struck; SBLGNT does not — the shorter form is the one without the explanation. The ἠτίμασαν that follows, they dishonoured him, is unique in this book, and the violence climbs by steps: ἔδειραν, they beat him (v.3) → the head and the shaming (v.4) → ἀπέκτειναν, they killed him (v.5). SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀κἀκεῖνον ⸀ἐκεφαλίωσαν ⸀ἠτίμασαν.).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “that one they struck on the head and dishonoured”
Basis Follows the root κεφαλή to the head, and does not import the stones (not in the base text).
“they cast stones at him and wounded him in the head”
Basis Follows the longer Textus Receptus form.
Rejected By our base-text decision we follow SBLGNT. And the stones explain a rare verb, so their addition is easier to account for than their loss.
Lost in translation
the uncertainty of the word A translation must choose, so struck on the head is settled, and the fact that the word is rare and uncertain disappears from the sentence.
this edition — none of the nine carries it (measured)
5
⸀καὶ ἄλλον ἀπέστειλεν· κἀκεῖνον ἀπέκτειναν, καὶ πολλοὺς ἄλλους, ⸂οὓς μὲν δέροντες οὓς δὲ ἀποκτέννοντες⸃.
And he sent another; and that one they killed — and many others, beating some and killing some.
The list runs out into “many others” — the parable does not count them.
pronoun he = the man
pronoun they = the farmers
6
ἔτι ⸂ἕνα εἶχεν, υἱὸν ἀγαπητόν· ἀπέστειλεν⸃ αὐτὸν ⸂ἔσχατον πρὸς αὐτοὺς⸃ λέγων ὅτι Ἐντραπήσονται τὸν υἱόν μου.
He still had one, a beloved son. He sent him to them last, saying, ‘They will respect my son.'
A beloved son — the phrase the voice used at 1:11 and 9:7.
pronoun He = the man — both times
pronoun him = the son
pronoun them = the farmers
pronoun They = the farmers
pronoun my = the man
7
ἐκεῖνοι δὲ οἱ γεωργοὶ ⸂πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς εἶπαν⸃ ὅτι Οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ κληρονόμος· δεῦτε ἀποκτείνωμεν αὐτόν, καὶ ἡμῶν ἔσται ἡ κληρονομία.
But those farmers said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.'
The heir — the farmers name the son by his claim, not by his person.
pronoun This = the son
pronoun us = the farmers
pronoun him = the son
pronoun ours = the farmers
8
καὶ λαβόντες ⸂ἀπέκτειναν αὐτόν, καὶ ἐξέβαλον αὐτὸν⸃ ἔξω τοῦ ἀμπελῶνος.
And taking him they killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
Killed him, and threw him out — this book kills first and throws out after; Matthew 21:39 reverses it.
pronoun they = the farmers
pronoun him = the son — both times
9
⸀τί ποιήσει ὁ κύριος τοῦ ἀμπελῶνος; ἐλεύσεται καὶ ἀπολέσει τοὺς γεωργούς, καὶ δώσει τὸν ἀμπελῶνα ἄλλοις.
What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the farmers, and give the vineyard to others.
Owner renders κύριος (kyrios), the same word as “Lord”.
pronoun He = the owner of the vineyard
10
οὐδὲ τὴν γραφὴν ταύτην ἀνέγνωτε· Λίθον ὃν ἀπεδοκίμασαν οἱ οἰκοδομοῦντες, οὗτος ἐγενήθη εἰς κεφαλὴν γωνίας·
Have you not read this scripture: ‘The stone the builders rejected, this has become the head of the corner;
Head of the corner — the Greek says “head of the corner”, and whether that is a cornerstone or a capstone is not settled.
pronoun you = the hearers
pronoun this = the stone
11
παρὰ κυρίου ἐγένετο αὕτη, καὶ ἔστιν θαυμαστὴ ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ἡμῶν;
this came from the Lord, and it is marvellous in our eyes'?”
Our eyes — the quotation is from Psalm 118, the psalm the crowd sang at 11:9.
pronoun this = what happened to the stone
pronoun it = what happened
pronoun our = those speaking in the quotation
12
Καὶ ἐζήτουν αὐτὸν κρατῆσαι, καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν τὸν ὄχλον, ἔγνωσαν γὰρ ὅτι πρὸς αὐτοὺς τὴν παραβολὴν εἶπεν. καὶ ἀφέντες αὐτὸν ἀπῆλθον.
And they were seeking to seize him, and they feared the crowd; for they knew he had spoken the parable against them. And leaving him, they went away.
They knew he had spoken the parable against them — the writer says the hearing landed.
pronoun they = the chief priests, scribes and elders — every “they” here is the same
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun them = the chief priests, scribes and elders
13
Καὶ ἀποστέλλουσιν πρὸς αὐτόν τινας τῶν Φαρισαίων καὶ τῶν Ἡρῳδιανῶν ἵνα αὐτὸν ἀγρεύσωσιν λόγῳ.
And they send to him some of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to trap him in a word.
Trap (ἀγρεύω, agreuō) is a hunting word, used once in the four Gospels.
first here Pharisee Φαρισαῖος Pharisaios
first here Herodians Ἡρῳδιανοί Hērōdianoi
pronoun they = the chief priests, scribes and elders
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
14
⸀καὶ ἐλθόντες λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· Διδάσκαλε, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀληθὴς εἶ καὶ οὐ μέλει σοι περὶ οὐδενός, οὐ γὰρ βλέπεις εἰς πρόσωπον ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλ’ ἐπ’ ἀληθείας τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ διδάσκεις· ἔξεστιν ⸂δοῦναι κῆνσον Καίσαρι⸃ ἢ οὔ; δῶμεν ἢ μὴ δῶμεν;
And coming they say to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true, and that you defer to no one, for you do not look at the face of men but teach the way of God upon truth. Is it lawful to give the kensos to Caesar, or not? Shall we give, or shall we not give?”
Kensos is a Latin tax-word kept as sound; this edition keeps it apart from the other tax-word at Luke 20:22. Do not look at the face is a Semitic turn for showing no partiality.
first here Caesar Καῖσαρ Kaisar
pronoun they = those sent
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun we = those sent — both times
pronoun you = Jesus — both times
15
ὁ δὲ εἰδὼς αὐτῶν τὴν ὑπόκρισιν εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Τί με πειράζετε; φέρετέ μοι δηνάριον ἵνα ἴδω.
But knowing their hypocrisy he said to them, “Why do you test me? Bring me a denarius to look at.”
Denarius is a coin kept as sound; a denarius was a day's wage.
pronoun their = those sent
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun them = those sent
pronoun you = those sent
pronoun me = Jesus — both times
16
οἱ δὲ ἤνεγκαν. καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· Τίνος ἡ εἰκὼν αὕτη καὶ ἡ ἐπιγραφή; οἱ δὲ εἶπαν αὐτῷ· Καίσαρος.
And they brought one. And he says to them, “Whose image is this, and whose inscription?” And they said to him, “Caesar's.”
Image renders εἰκών (eikōn) — the word behind “icon”.
pronoun they = those sent — both times
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun them = those sent
pronoun this = the image on the coin
pronoun him = Jesus
17
⸂ὁ δὲ⸃ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν ⸀αὐτοῖς· ⸂Τὰ Καίσαρος ἀπόδοτε⸃ Καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ. καὶ ⸀ἐξεθαύμαζον ἐπ’ αὐτῷ.
And Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's.” And they were utterly amazed at him.
Give back (ἀποδίδωμι, apodidōmi) is stronger than “give” — to render what is owed.
first here Jesus Ἰησοῦς Iēsous
pronoun them = those sent
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun they = those sent
Why this rendering
Mark.12.17 Observation
Syntactic observation
Question and answer use different verbs. In v.14 they use δίδωμι three times — ἔξεστιν δοῦναι κῆνσον Καίσαρι, is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar; δῶμεν ἢ μὴ δῶμεν, shall we give or not give? In v.17 Jesus answers with ἀποδίδωμι — ἀπόδοτε. With the prefix ἀπο- it is not giving but giving back: the lexica gloss it toward paying off a debt or a wage — handing over what was the other party's to begin with. And ἀποδίδωμι occurs only this once in all of Mark — δίδωμι in v.14 and ἀποδίδωμι in v.17 divide precisely, inside one scene. Verse 16 lays the ground between them: whose is the εἰκών, the image, and the ἐπιγραφή, the inscription? They answer Caesar's, and then comes give back. The second half, τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ, does not say what bears God's image — the parallel is left open. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸂ὁ δὲ⸃ ⸀αὐτοῖς· ⸂Τὰ ἀπόδοτε⸃ ⸀ἐξεθαύμαζον).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's.”
Basis Renders the ἀπο- as giving back, splitting it from the giving of v.14. The change of verb is the substance of the answer.
“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's.”
Basis Uses the conventional rendering.
Rejected 바치라 is the word of v.14 — answering in the questioner's word erases the move by which Jesus changed the verb. English render keeps some of the sense of repaying; give does not.
Lost in translation
the open parallel The logic — the coin bears Caesar's image, so it goes back to Caesar — is inside the sentence; what bears God's image is not said. The silence survives any translation, but the smoother the rendering, the more the parallel sounds complete.
Survives in · this edition — 9 of the nine carry it (this language among them)
18
Καὶ ἔρχονται Σαδδουκαῖοι πρὸς αὐτόν, οἵτινες λέγουσιν ἀνάστασιν μὴ εἶναι, καὶ ⸀ἐπηρώτων αὐτὸν λέγοντες·
And Sadducees come to him, who say there is no resurrection, and they were asking him,
The writer explains who the Sadducees are, as he explained the Pharisees at 7:3.
first here Sadducees Σαδδουκαῖος Saddoukaios
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
pronoun who = the Sadducees
pronoun they = the Sadducees
19
Διδάσκαλε, Μωϋσῆς ἔγραψεν ἡμῖν ὅτι ἐάν τινος ἀδελφὸς ἀποθάνῃ καὶ καταλίπῃ γυναῖκα καὶ ⸂μὴ ἀφῇ τέκνον⸃, ἵνα λάβῃ ὁ ἀδελφὸς αὐτοῦ τὴν ⸀γυναῖκα καὶ ἐξαναστήσῃ σπέρμα τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ.
“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if someone's brother dies and leaves a wife and leaves no child, his brother is to take the wife and raise up seed for his brother.
Raise up seed is a Semitic turn kept word for word.
first here Moses Μωϋσῆς Mōysēs
pronoun us = the Sadducees
pronoun his = the dead man — both times
20
ἑπτὰ ἀδελφοὶ ἦσαν· καὶ ὁ πρῶτος ἔλαβεν γυναῖκα, καὶ ἀποθνῄσκων οὐκ ἀφῆκεν σπέρμα·
There were seven brothers; and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed;
The case is built as a puzzle, not as a question about God.
21
καὶ ὁ δεύτερος ἔλαβεν αὐτήν, καὶ ἀπέθανεν ⸂μὴ καταλιπὼν⸃ σπέρμα, καὶ ὁ τρίτος ὡσαύτως·
and the second took her, and died leaving no seed; and the third likewise.
Likewise — the writer stops listing and sums the rest.
pronoun her = the wife
22
καὶ ⸂οἱ ἑπτὰ⸃ οὐκ ἀφῆκαν σπέρμα· ⸀ἔσχατον πάντων ⸂καὶ ἡ γυνὴ ἀπέθανεν⸃.
And the seven left no seed. Last of all the woman died too.
Last of all — the woman is named only as the last to die.
23
ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει ⸂ὅταν ἀναστῶσιν⸃ τίνος αὐτῶν ἔσται γυνή; οἱ γὰρ ἑπτὰ ἔσχον αὐτὴν γυναῖκα.
In the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.”
Whose wife will she be? — the puzzle is put in one line.
pronoun they = the seven
pronoun she = the woman
pronoun her = the woman
24
⸂ἔφη αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς⸃· Οὐ διὰ τοῦτο πλανᾶσθε μὴ εἰδότες τὰς γραφὰς μηδὲ τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ θεοῦ;
Jesus said to them, “Is this not why you go astray — that you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God?
Go astray (πλανάω, planaō) is to wander off the road; the word closes verse 27 too.
pronoun them = the Sadducees
pronoun this = not knowing the scriptures or the power of God
pronoun you = the Sadducees
25
ὅταν γὰρ ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστῶσιν, οὔτε γαμοῦσιν οὔτε ⸀γαμίζονται, ἀλλ’ εἰσὶν ὡς ⸀ἄγγελοι ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς·
For when they rise from the dead they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in the heavens.
Like angels — the Greek says “as angels”, not that they become angels.
pronoun they = those who rise
26
περὶ δὲ τῶν νεκρῶν ὅτι ἐγείρονται οὐκ ἀνέγνωτε ἐν τῇ βίβλῳ Μωϋσέως ἐπὶ τοῦ βάτου ⸀πῶς εἶπεν αὐτῷ ὁ θεὸς λέγων· Ἐγὼ ὁ θεὸς Ἀβραὰμ καὶ ⸂ὁ θεὸς Ἰσαὰκ καὶ ὁ⸃ θεὸς Ἰακώβ;
And concerning the dead, that they are raised — have you not read in the book of Moses, at the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob'?
At the bush names the place in the scroll — a way of citing before chapters existed.
first here Abraham Ἀβραάμ Abraam
first here Isaac Ἰσαάκ Isaak
first here Jacob Ἰακώβ Iakōb
pronoun they = the dead
pronoun you = the Sadducees
pronoun him = Moses
pronoun I = God
27
οὐκ ἔστιν ⸀θεὸς νεκρῶν ⸀ἀλλὰ ζώντων· ⸀πολὺ πλανᾶσθε.
He is not God of the dead but of the living. You go far astray.”
You go far astray — the wandering-word again, this time with “far”.
pronoun He = God
pronoun You = the Sadducees
28
Καὶ προσελθὼν εἷς τῶν γραμματέων ἀκούσας αὐτῶν συζητούντων, ⸀ἰδὼν ὅτι καλῶς ⸂ἀπεκρίθη αὐτοῖς⸃, ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτόν· Ποία ἐστὶν ⸂ἐντολὴ πρώτη πάντων⸃;
And one of the scribes came up, hearing them disputing, and seeing that he had answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is first of all?”
First of all — the scribe asks for a ranking, not for a rule.
pronoun them = Jesus and the Sadducees
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun him = Jesus
29
⸂ἀπεκρίθη ὁ Ἰησοῦς⸃ ὅτι Πρώτη ⸀ἐστίν· Ἄκουε, Ἰσραήλ, κύριος ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν κύριος εἷς ἐστιν,
Jesus answered, “The first is: ‘Hear, Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord;
Hear, Israel — this book alone keeps the opening line of the Shema; Matthew 22:37 begins at the loving.
first here Israel Ἰσραήλ Israēl
pronoun our = Israel
30
καὶ ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐξ ὅλης ⸀τῆς καρδίας σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ψυχῆς σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς διανοίας σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ἰσχύος ⸀σου.
and you shall love the Lord your God out of your whole heart and out of your whole life and out of your whole mind and out of your whole strength.'
Life here is ψυχή (psychē), often rendered “soul”. Strength (ἰσχύς, ischys) — Matthew 22:37 does not have this fourth word at all.
pronoun you = the hearer
pronoun your = the hearer — every “your” here is the hearer
Why this rendering
Mark.12.30 Observation
Syntactic observation
The list Jesus quotes has four members — καρδία, heart; ψυχή, life; διάνοια, mind; ἰσχύς, strength. When the scribe repeats it in vv.32-33 the list has three — καρδία, σύνεσις (understanding), ἰσχύς. ψυχή drops out and διάνοια becomes σύνεσις. Each of those two words occurs exactly once in Mark: διάνοια at v.30, σύνεσις at v.33. The man repeating does not repeat exactly — and yet at v.34 Jesus says he answered νουνεχῶς, with a mind, an adverb that is likewise unique in Mark. The copying tradition moved to close the gap: the Textus Receptus restores ψυχή to v.33, evening it to four. SBLGNT leaves three. In its place v.33 adds what Jesus did not say — that this is more than all ὁλοκαυτώματα and θυσίαι, whole burnt offerings and sacrifices; ὁλοκαύτωμα too is unique in Mark. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀τῆς ⸀σου.).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted Four in v.30, three in v.33 — rendered mismatched
Basis Follows the base text and does not erase the mismatch of the repetition.
Add soul to v.33, evening it to four
Basis Follows the Textus Receptus.
Rejected By our base-text decision we follow SBLGNT, and the direction runs one way: copyists who conform a quotation to its source are common; copyists who unconform one are rare.
Lost in translation
the difference between διάνοια and σύνεσις The first leans toward the organ of thinking, the second toward the grasp that puts things together. Mind and understanding overlap enough in English that the scribe's substitution blurs.
Survives in · Sahidic Coptic / Armenian (Western) / Vulgata Clementina / this edition — 9 of the nine carry it (this language among them)
31
⸀δευτέρα αὕτη· Ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν. μείζων τούτων ἄλλη ἐντολὴ οὐκ ἔστιν.
The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these.”
As yourself — the measure of the second commandment.
pronoun this = the second commandment
pronoun You = the hearer
pronoun your = the hearer
pronoun yourself = the hearer
pronoun these = the two commandments
32
⸀καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ ὁ γραμματεύς· Καλῶς, διδάσκαλε, ἐπ’ ἀληθείας εἶπες ὅτι εἷς ἐστιν καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἄλλος πλὴν αὐτοῦ·
And the scribe said to him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken upon truth, that he is one and there is no other besides him;
Upon truth keeps the Greek preposition rather than smoothing it. Only this book lets the scribe answer back approvingly.
pronoun him = Jesus — “he is one and there is no other besides him” is God
pronoun You = Jesus
pronoun he = God
33
καὶ τὸ ἀγαπᾶν αὐτὸν ἐξ ὅλης ⸀τῆς καρδίας καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ⸀συνέσεως καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ἰσχύος καὶ τὸ ἀγαπᾶν τὸν πλησίον ὡς ἑαυτὸν ⸀περισσότερόν ἐστιν πάντων τῶν ὁλοκαυτωμάτων καὶ θυσιῶν.
and to love him out of the whole heart and out of the whole understanding and out of the whole strength, and to love the neighbour as oneself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
Understanding (σύνεσις, synesis) stands here where verse 30 had mind — the scribe does not quote it back exactly.
pronoun him = God
pronoun oneself = the one who loves
34
καὶ ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἰδὼν ⸀αὐτὸν ὅτι νουνεχῶς ἀπεκρίθη εἶπεν αὐτῷ· Οὐ μακρὰν εἶ ἀπὸ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ. καὶ οὐδεὶς οὐκέτι ἐτόλμα αὐτὸν ἐπερωτῆσαι.
And Jesus, seeing that he had answered with a mind, said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared question him any longer.
With a mind renders νουνεχῶς (nounechōs), used once in the four Gospels — “having one's wits about one”.
pronoun he = the scribe
pronoun him = the scribe — “question him” is Jesus
pronoun You = the scribe
35
Καὶ ἀποκριθεὶς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἔλεγεν διδάσκων ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ· Πῶς λέγουσιν οἱ γραμματεῖς ὅτι ὁ χριστὸς υἱὸς ⸂Δαυίδ ἐστιν⸃;
And answering, Jesus was saying as he taught in the temple, “How do the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?
The questioning turns around — he asks them now.
first here Christ Χριστός Christos
first here daughter Δαυίδ Dauid
36
⸀αὐτὸς Δαυὶδ εἶπεν ἐν ⸂τῷ πνεύματι τῷ⸃ ἁγίῳ· ⸀Εἶπεν ⸀κύριος τῷ κυρίῳ μου· ⸀Κάθου ἐκ δεξιῶν μου ἕως ἂν θῶ τοὺς ἐχθρούς σου ⸀ὑποκάτω τῶν ποδῶν σου.
David himself said in the Holy Spirit, ‘The Lord said to my Lord: sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.'
The Lord said to my Lord — the same English word stands for two different words in the Greek quotation, and the sentence turns on the difference.
pronoun himself = David
pronoun my = David — the second “my” is the first Lord speaking in the quotation
pronoun your = my Lord in the quotation — both times
37
⸀αὐτὸς Δαυὶδ λέγει αὐτὸν κύριον, καὶ πόθεν ⸂αὐτοῦ ἐστιν υἱός⸃; καὶ ὁ πολὺς ὄχλος ἤκουεν αὐτοῦ ἡδέως.
David himself calls him Lord — so how is he his son?” And the great crowd was hearing him gladly.
How is he his son? — the question is left unanswered, and the crowd is glad.
pronoun himself = David
pronoun him = the Christ — “hearing him gladly” is Jesus
pronoun he = the Christ
pronoun his = David
38
Καὶ ⸂ἐν τῇ διδαχῇ αὐτοῦ ἔλεγεν⸃· Βλέπετε ἀπὸ τῶν γραμματέων τῶν θελόντων ἐν στολαῖς περιπατεῖν καὶ ἀσπασμοὺς ἐν ταῖς ἀγοραῖς
And in his teaching he was saying, “Beware of the scribes, who want to walk about in long robes, and greetings in the marketplaces,
Long robes (στολαί, stolai) are the garments of standing.
pronoun his = Jesus
pronoun who = the scribes
39
καὶ πρωτοκαθεδρίας ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς καὶ πρωτοκλισίας ἐν τοῖς δείπνοις,
and the front seats in the synagogues and the chief couches at suppers —
Places of honour renders one word (πρωτοκλισίαι, prōtoklisiai) — the first couches at table.
40
οἱ κατεσθίοντες τὰς οἰκίας τῶν χηρῶν καὶ προφάσει μακρὰ προσευχόμενοι· οὗτοι λήμψονται περισσότερον κρίμα.
who devour the houses of the widows and for a pretext pray at length. These will receive greater judgement.”
Devour the houses of widows — and the next scene is a widow at the treasury.
pronoun who = the scribes
pronoun These = the scribes
41
Καὶ ⸀καθίσας ⸀κατέναντι τοῦ γαζοφυλακίου ἐθεώρει πῶς ὁ ὄχλος βάλλει χαλκὸν εἰς τὸ γαζοφυλάκιον· καὶ πολλοὶ πλούσιοι ἔβαλλον πολλά·
And sitting down opposite the treasury he was watching how the crowd throws copper into the treasury. And many rich people were throwing in much.
Treasury (γαζοφυλάκιον, gazophylakion) is the temple chest. Copper names the metal, the smallest money.
pronoun he = Jesus
42
καὶ ἐλθοῦσα μία χήρα πτωχὴ ἔβαλεν λεπτὰ δύο, ὅ ἐστιν κοδράντης.
And one poor widow came and threw in two leptons, which is a kodrantes.
Lepta and kodrantes are coins kept as sound. Only this book converts one into the other, for readers who count in Roman money.
pronoun which = the two lepta
Why this rendering
Mark.12.42 Observation
Syntactic observation
ὅ ἐστιν κοδράντης — the author converts the currency. The lexica record λεπτόν as the smallest Greek coin in circulation and κοδράντης as a transliteration of the Latin quadrans. What the text shows is that two names stand side by side and one is converted into the other. So Mark explains Greek money by Roman money — the same device as glossing Aramaic into Greek at 5:41, 7:11, 7:34, except that here what is carried across is not a language but a currency. Both words occur only here in the book. The χαλκός, copper, of v.41 is the word of 6:8, the coin they were not to put in their belts; γαζοφυλάκιον, treasury, comes twice in v.41 and once in v.43 — all three in this paragraph. χήρα, widow, also comes three times: vv.40, 42, 43. Immediately after the scribes are said to devour widows' houses (κατεσθίω, v.40), one widow puts everything she has into the treasury. κατεσθίω occurs twice in Mark; the other is 4:4, where birds devour the seed.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “threw in two lepta, which is a kodrantes”
Basis Keeps both coin names transliterated. Mark's device is the pairing of two names; both must stand for the conversion to be visible.
“put in two very small copper coins, worth a few cents”
Basis Renders the size of the sum in today's terms.
Rejected Drop the names and what Mark did — carry one currency across into another — is gone, leaving only a conversion the translator has newly made. How small the sum is, v.44 says for itself.
Lost in translation
the reader the conversion is aimed at A gloss converting Greek money into Roman reads as aimed at a Roman-side reader, but that is an inference from the device, not something the text says.
Survives in · this edition — 9 of the nine carry it (this language among them)
43
καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ ⸀εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἡ χήρα αὕτη ἡ πτωχὴ πλεῖον πάντων ⸀ἔβαλεν τῶν βαλλόντων εἰς τὸ γαζοφυλάκιον·
And calling his disciples he said to them, “Amen I say to you that this poor widow threw in more than all those throwing into the treasury.
More than all — the measure is not the amount.
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun his = Jesus
pronoun them = the disciples
pronoun I = Jesus
pronoun you = the disciples
44
πάντες γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ περισσεύοντος αὐτοῖς ἔβαλον, αὕτη δὲ ἐκ τῆς ὑστερήσεως αὐτῆς πάντα ὅσα εἶχεν ἔβαλεν, ὅλον τὸν βίον αὐτῆς.
For they all threw in out of what overflows for them; but she, out of her falling short, threw in everything she had — her whole life.”
Her whole life renders ὅλον τὸν βίον (holon ton bion) — “life” here means her living, what she had to live on. The last word of the scene is the same word Greek uses for a life.
pronoun they = the rich people
pronoun them = the rich people
pronoun she = the widow
pronoun her = the widow — both times
Why this rendering
Mark.12.44 Observation
Syntactic observation
The sentence is built on two symmetrical prepositional phrases — ἐκ τοῦ περισσεύοντος, out of what overflows, and ἐκ τῆς ὑστερήσεως, out of her falling short. The others give from surplus; she gives from lack. ὑστέρησις is unique in Mark, and its root is the word of 10:21, where the rich man is told ἕν σε ὑστερεῖ, one thing you fall short of — the man who had everything fell short by one, and the woman who has nothing gives everything out of falling short. The last words reopen the sentence: ὅλον τὸν βίον αὐτῆς. βίος occurs only here in Mark and reads two ways — what it takes to live (livelihood) and living itself (life). Since πάντα ὅσα εἶχεν, all that she had, has already said the property, the final phrase points past it unless it merely repeats. As with ψυχή at 8:35-37, one word carries two weights.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “threw in everything she had — her whole life”
Basis Leaves βίος open both ways. The preceding phrase has already said the property, so the last phrase is not made to repeat it.
“all she had to live on”
Basis Fixes it as livelihood for clarity.
Rejected It gains clarity by narrowing. Since the clause before already said all that she had, reading it as livelihood makes the final phrase a repetition, and leaves no reason for Mark to have placed βίος last.
Lost in translation
the two weights of βίος English has no one word holding both livelihood and life. Whichever way it goes, the other side is pushed into a footnote.
Survives in · this edition — 6 of the nine carry it (not this language)