1
⸀Ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐξελθὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ⸀τῆς οἰκίας ἐκάθητο παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν·
On that day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting beside the sea;
Out of the house — the house of 12:46, and he returns to it at verse 36.
first here Jesus Ἰησοῦς Iēsous
2
καὶ συνήχθησαν πρὸς αὐτὸν ὄχλοι πολλοί, ὥστε αὐτὸν ⸀εἰς πλοῖον ἐμβάντα καθῆσθαι, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ὄχλος ἐπὶ τὸν αἰγιαλὸν εἱστήκει.
and large crowds gathered to him, so that he got into a boat and sat, and all the crowd stood on the shore.
Sat — the posture of a teacher, as at 5:1.
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun he = Jesus
3
καὶ ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς πολλὰ ἐν παραβολαῖς λέγων· Ἰδοὺ ἐξῆλθεν ὁ σπείρων τοῦ σπείρειν.
And he spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Look, the sower went out to sow.
Parables (παραβολαί, parabolai) are things thrown alongside — comparisons, not only stories.
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun them = the crowds
4
καὶ ἐν τῷ σπείρειν αὐτὸν ἃ μὲν ἔπεσεν παρὰ τὴν ὁδόν, καὶ ⸂ἐλθόντα τὰ πετεινὰ⸃ κατέφαγεν αὐτά.
And as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and the birds came and devoured them.
Beside the road — the path, not the field.
pronoun he = the sower
pronoun them = the seeds that fell beside the road
5
ἄλλα δὲ ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ τὰ πετρώδη ὅπου οὐκ εἶχεν γῆν πολλήν, καὶ εὐθέως ἐξανέτειλεν διὰ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν βάθος γῆς,
Others fell on the rocky ground where they did not have much soil, and at once they sprang up, because the soil had no depth;
At once — Mark's word, kept here in the parable.
pronoun they = the seeds on the rocky ground — both times
6
ἡλίου δὲ ἀνατείλαντος ἐκαυματίσθη καὶ διὰ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν ῥίζαν ἐξηράνθη.
but when the sun rose they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered.
Scorched and withered — two verbs for one death.
pronoun they = the seeds on the rocky ground — both times
7
ἄλλα δὲ ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ τὰς ἀκάνθας, καὶ ἀνέβησαν αἱ ἄκανθαι καὶ ⸀ἔπνιξαν αὐτά.
Others fell on the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them.
Choked here is πνίγω (pnigō), the bare root; Mark 4:7 uses the prefixed form. This edition keeps the three of this root apart; English must spell the prefixes out.
pronoun them = the seeds among the thorns
8
ἄλλα δὲ ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν τὴν καλὴν καὶ ἐδίδου καρπόν, ὃ μὲν ἑκατὸν ὃ δὲ ἑξήκοντα ὃ δὲ τριάκοντα.
But others fell on the good soil and were yielding fruit — one a hundred, one sixty, one thirty.
A hundred, sixty, thirty — this book counts downward; Mark 4:8 counts upward.
9
ὁ ἔχων ⸀ὦτα ἀκουέτω.
Let the one who has ears hear.”
Let the one who has ears hear — the call closes the parable and returns at verse 43.
10
Καὶ προσελθόντες οἱ μαθηταὶ εἶπαν αὐτῷ· Διὰ τί ἐν παραβολαῖς λαλεῖς αὐτοῖς;
And the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”
Why do you speak to them in parables — the disciples ask about the manner, not the meaning.
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun you = Jesus
pronoun them = the crowds
11
ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν ⸀αὐτοῖς· Ὅτι ὑμῖν δέδοται γνῶναι τὰ μυστήρια τῆς βασιλείας τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἐκείνοις δὲ οὐ δέδοται.
And answering he said to them, “Because to you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens, but to them it has not been given.
Mysteries (μυστήρια, mystēria) are things disclosed, not things unknowable — plural here, singular in Mark 4:11.
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun them = the disciples — the second “them” is the crowds
pronoun you = the disciples
pronoun it = the knowing
12
ὅστις γὰρ ἔχει, δοθήσεται αὐτῷ καὶ περισσευθήσεται· ὅστις δὲ οὐκ ἔχει, καὶ ὃ ἔχει ἀρθήσεται ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ.
For whoever has, it will be given to him and he will have more than enough; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.
More than enough renders περισσεύω (perisseuō), to overflow.
pronoun it = more
pronoun him = whoever has — both times
pronoun he = whoever does not have
13
διὰ τοῦτο ἐν παραβολαῖς αὐτοῖς λαλῶ, ὅτι βλέποντες οὐ βλέπουσιν καὶ ἀκούοντες οὐκ ἀκούουσιν οὐδὲ συνίουσιν·
This is why I speak to them in parables: because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.
Because — this book gives the parables as a result of not seeing; Mark 4:12 gives them as a purpose. The difference is real and both are left as they stand.
pronoun I = Jesus
pronoun them = the crowds
pronoun they = the crowds — every “they” here is the crowds
14
καὶ ἀναπληροῦται αὐτοῖς ἡ προφητεία Ἠσαΐου ἡ λέγουσα· Ἀκοῇ ἀκούσετε καὶ οὐ μὴ συνῆτε, καὶ βλέποντες βλέψετε καὶ οὐ μὴ ἴδητε.
And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is filled up, which says: ‘Hearing you will hear and never understand, and seeing you will see and never perceive.
Is filled up (ἀναπληρόω, anaplēroō) is a strengthened form of the fulfil-word.
first here Isaiah Ἠσαΐας Ēsaias
pronoun them = the crowds
pronoun which = the prophecy
pronoun you = those addressed in the quotation — both times
15
ἐπαχύνθη γὰρ ἡ καρδία τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου, καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν βαρέως ἤκουσαν, καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐκάμμυσαν· μήποτε ἴδωσιν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν ἀκούσωσιν καὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ συνῶσιν καὶ ἐπιστρέψωσιν, καὶ ἰάσομαι αὐτούς.
For the heart of this people has grown dull, and with their ears they heard heavily, and their eyes they closed — lest they see with the eyes and hear with the ears and understand with the heart and turn, and I heal them.'
Grown dull renders παχύνω (pachynō), to make thick or fat.
pronoun their = this people — both times
pronoun they = this people — both times
pronoun I = the one speaking in the quotation
pronoun them = this people
16
ὑμῶν δὲ μακάριοι οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ ὅτι βλέπουσιν, καὶ τὰ ὦτα ὑμῶν ὅτι ⸀ἀκούουσιν.
But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.
Blessed are your eyes — the beatitude form of chapter 5, turned to the disciples.
pronoun your = the disciples — both times
pronoun they = your eyes — the second “they” is your ears
17
ἀμὴν γὰρ λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι πολλοὶ προφῆται καὶ δίκαιοι ἐπεθύμησαν ἰδεῖν ἃ βλέπετε καὶ οὐκ εἶδαν, καὶ ἀκοῦσαι ἃ ἀκούετε καὶ οὐκ ἤκουσαν.
For Amen I say to you that many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see and did not see it, and to hear what you hear and did not hear it.
Longed (ἐπιθυμέω, epithymeō) is the desire-word of 5:28, here used well.
pronoun I = Jesus
pronoun you = the disciples — every “you” here is the disciples
pronoun it = what you see — the second “it” is what you hear
18
Ὑμεῖς οὖν ἀκούσατε τὴν παραβολὴν τοῦ ⸀σπείραντος.
So hear the parable of the one who sowed.
The parable of the one who sowed — the reading of the parable is given a title.
19
παντὸς ἀκούοντος τὸν λόγον τῆς βασιλείας καὶ μὴ συνιέντος, ἔρχεται ὁ πονηρὸς καὶ ἁρπάζει τὸ ἐσπαρμένον ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ· οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ παρὰ τὴν ὁδὸν σπαρείς.
For everyone hearing the word of the kingdom and not understanding it, the evil one comes and seizes what was sown in his heart; this is the one sown beside the road.
The evil one — Mark 4:15 says Satan; Luke 8:12 says the slanderer.
pronoun it = the word of the kingdom
pronoun his = everyone hearing
pronoun this = the seed sown beside the road
20
ὁ δὲ ἐπὶ τὰ πετρώδη σπαρείς, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τὸν λόγον ἀκούων καὶ εὐθὺς μετὰ χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν,
And the one sown on the rocky ground — this is the one hearing the word and at once receiving it with joy;
The soils become people; the writer makes no apology for the turn.
pronoun this = the seed sown on the rocky ground
pronoun it = the word
21
οὐκ ἔχει δὲ ῥίζαν ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἀλλὰ πρόσκαιρός ἐστιν, γενομένης δὲ θλίψεως ἢ διωγμοῦ διὰ τὸν λόγον εὐθὺς σκανδαλίζεται.
but he has no root in himself and is temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word he at once stumbles.
Temporary renders πρόσκαιρος (proskairos) — for a season only.
pronoun he = the one sown on rocky ground — both times
pronoun himself = the same
22
ὁ δὲ εἰς τὰς ἀκάνθας σπαρείς, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τὸν λόγον ἀκούων, καὶ ἡ μέριμνα τοῦ αἰῶνος ⸀τούτου καὶ ἡ ἀπάτη τοῦ πλούτου συμπνίγει τὸν λόγον, καὶ ἄκαρπος γίνεται.
And the one sown into the thorns — this is the one hearing the word, and the care of this age and the deceit of wealth choke the word, and it becomes fruitless.
Deceit of wealth — the Greek word can also be “delight”, and readings of it differ.
pronoun this = the seed sown into the thorns
pronoun it = the word
23
ὁ δὲ ἐπὶ τὴν ⸂καλὴν γῆν⸃ σπαρείς, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τὸν λόγον ἀκούων καὶ ⸀συνιείς, ὃς δὴ καρποφορεῖ καὶ ποιεῖ ὃ μὲν ἑκατὸν ὃ δὲ ἑξήκοντα ὃ δὲ τριάκοντα.
But the one sown on the good soil — this is the one hearing the word and understanding it, who indeed bears fruit and produces one a hundred, one sixty, one thirty.”
Understanding — only this book makes understanding the mark of the good soil.
pronoun this = the seed sown on good soil
pronoun it = the word
pronoun who = the one hearing and understanding
24
Ἄλλην παραβολὴν παρέθηκεν αὐτοῖς λέγων· Ὡμοιώθη ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ἀνθρώπῳ ⸀σπείραντι καλὸν σπέρμα ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ αὐτοῦ.
He set another parable before them, saying: “The kingdom of the heavens has become like a man who sowed good seed in his field.
Has become like stands in a past tense, not the present of verse 31.
pronoun He = Jesus
pronoun them = the crowds
pronoun who = a man
pronoun his = the man
25
ἐν δὲ τῷ καθεύδειν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἦλθεν αὐτοῦ ὁ ἐχθρὸς καὶ ⸀ἐπέσπειρεν ζιζάνια ἀνὰ μέσον τοῦ σίτου καὶ ἀπῆλθεν.
But while people were sleeping his enemy came and sowed weeds over, among the wheat, and went away.
Weeds renders ζιζάνια (zizania), a named plant that looks like wheat until it heads.
pronoun his = the man
Why this rendering
Matt.13.25 Observation
Syntactic observation
ζιζάνιον occurs eight times in Matthew (13:25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 36, 38, 40) and not at all in Mark or John — the parable itself is Matthew's alone. The lexica record the word as a weed resembling wheat, and the parable stands on that resemblance: at v.26 it is only when the crop bears fruit that τότε ἐφάνη, then it appeared — meaning that while growing they were indistinguishable. The verb is notable too: ἐπισπείρω is σπείρω with ἐπι-, over or in addition — to sow on top of what was sown — and it occurs only here in the four Gospels. And the reason the master gives at v.29 for not pulling them is ἐκριζώσητε ἅμα αὐτοῖς τὸν σῖτον, lest you uproot the wheat along with them; that the roots are tangled is stated by this sentence rather than by any word. The interpretation at 37-43 names the elements one by one — sower, field, good seed, weeds, enemy, harvest, harvesters: seven in order. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀ἐπέσπειρεν).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “weeds” — a wheat-like weed, species unspecified
Basis The text does not name the plant, only implies the resemblance; the species is left open.
Name the species, e.g. “darnel”
Basis Renders it as the plant the lexica identify.
Rejected Naming the species has the translation specify what the text does not. What the parable needs is only that it resembles wheat, and v.26 says that itself.
26
ὅτε δὲ ἐβλάστησεν ὁ χόρτος καὶ καρπὸν ἐποίησεν, τότε ἐφάνη καὶ τὰ ζιζάνια.
And when the crop sprouted and produced fruit, then the weeds appeared too.
Then the weeds appeared too — the difference shows only at the heading.
27
προσελθόντες δὲ οἱ δοῦλοι τοῦ οἰκοδεσπότου εἶπον αὐτῷ· Κύριε, οὐχὶ καλὸν σπέρμα ⸀ἔσπειρας ἐν τῷ σῷ ἀγρῷ; πόθεν οὖν ἔχει ζιζάνια;
And the slaves of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where then did it get weeds?'
Sir renders κύριε (kyrie), the same word as “Lord”.
pronoun him = the master of the house
pronoun you = the master of the house
pronoun your = the master of the house
pronoun it = the field
28
ὁ δὲ ἔφη αὐτοῖς· Ἐχθρὸς ἄνθρωπος τοῦτο ἐποίησεν. οἱ δὲ ⸂δοῦλοι αὐτῷ λέγουσιν⸃· Θέλεις οὖν ἀπελθόντες ⸀συλλέξωμεν αὐτά;
And he said to them, ‘An enemy of a man did this.' And the slaves say to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and collect them?'
An enemy of a man keeps the Greek order, which is odd and is not smoothed.
pronoun he = the master of the house
pronoun them = the slaves
pronoun this = the sowing of weeds
pronoun him = the master of the house
pronoun us = the slaves
29
ὁ δέ ⸀φησιν· Οὔ, μήποτε συλλέγοντες τὰ ζιζάνια ἐκριζώσητε ἅμα αὐτοῖς τὸν σῖτον·
But he says, ‘No — lest in collecting the weeds you uproot the wheat along with them.
Uproot (ἐκριζόω, ekrizoō) is built on the word for a root.
pronoun he = the master of the house
pronoun you = the slaves
pronoun them = the weeds
30
ἄφετε συναυξάνεσθαι ἀμφότερα ⸀μέχρι τοῦ θερισμοῦ· καὶ ἐν καιρῷ τοῦ θερισμοῦ ἐρῶ τοῖς θερισταῖς· Συλλέξατε πρῶτον τὰ ζιζάνια καὶ δήσατε αὐτὰ εἰς δέσμας πρὸς τὸ κατακαῦσαι αὐτά, τὸν δὲ σῖτον ⸀συναγάγετε εἰς τὴν ἀποθήκην μου.
Let both grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the harvesters: collect the weeds first and bind them into bundles to burn them up, but gather the wheat into my barn.'”
Bundles (δέσμαι, desmai) is used once in the four Gospels.
pronoun I = the master of the house
pronoun them = the weeds
pronoun my = the master of the house
31
Ἄλλην παραβολὴν παρέθηκεν αὐτοῖς λέγων· Ὁμοία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν κόκκῳ σινάπεως, ὃν λαβὼν ἄνθρωπος ἔσπειρεν ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ αὐτοῦ·
He set another parable before them, saying: “The kingdom of the heavens is like a grain of mustard, which a man took and sowed in his field;
Mustard seed — the parable of Mark 4:31, here with a man and his field.
pronoun He = Jesus
pronoun them = the crowds
pronoun which = a mustard seed
pronoun his = a man
32
ὃ μικρότερον μέν ἐστιν πάντων τῶν σπερμάτων, ὅταν δὲ αὐξηθῇ μεῖζον τῶν λαχάνων ἐστὶν καὶ γίνεται δένδρον, ὥστε ἐλθεῖν τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ κατασκηνοῦν ἐν τοῖς κλάδοις αὐτοῦ.
it is smaller than all the seeds, but when it has grown it is greater than the garden herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.”
Becomes a tree — Mark 4:32 says only that it makes great branches. The two are left as they stand.
pronoun it = the mustard seed — every “it” here is the same
pronoun its = the grown plant
33
Ἄλλην παραβολὴν ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς· Ὁμοία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ζύμῃ, ἣν λαβοῦσα γυνὴ ⸀ἐνέκρυψεν εἰς ἀλεύρου σάτα τρία ἕως οὗ ἐζυμώθη ὅλον.
He spoke another parable to them: “The kingdom of the heavens is like leaven, which a woman took and hid inside three sata of flour until the whole was leavened.”
Sata is a dry measure kept as sound; three of them is a great deal of flour. Hid is the same verb as at verse 44.
pronoun He = Jesus
pronoun them = the crowds
pronoun which = leaven
Why this rendering
Matt.13.33 Observation
Syntactic observation
σάτον is a measure and occurs at two places in the four Gospels — here and Luke 13:21, the same parable. The lexica record it as the Hebrew seah (סְאָה) in Greek letters. This project has transliterated measures and coins (lepton, kodrantes, modios, milion), and the same handling applies. And a number is attached — σάτα τρία, three sata: the text counts the quantity. ζύμη, leaven, stands four times in Matthew (13:33, 16:6, 11, 12), twice in Mark (8:15) and twice in Luke (12:1, 13:21). At ch. 16 it is a negative word for the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees, while here the kingdom is likened to it — one word running two ways. Luke 12:1 goes so far as to gloss the negative use: ἥτις ἐστὶν ὑπόκρισις, which is hypocrisy. The verb repays attention too: ἐνέκρυψεν is κρύπτω with ἐν-, hid inside, sharing its root with the treasure hidden in the field at v.44 of the same chapter (κεκρυμμένῳ … ἔκρυψεν). The leaven is not put in but hidden. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀ἐνέκρυψεν).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “hid in three sata of flour” — transliterated, and hid
Basis Transliterating measures is fixed for the four Gospels, and hid keeps the root shared with v.44.
“mixed into three measures of flour”
Basis Uses a familiar measure and a natural verb.
Rejected 말 imports a Korean measure the text does not have, and mixed severs the root shared with hid at v.44. Having already transliterated modios and milion, there is no ground for a conventional measure only here.
34
Ταῦτα πάντα ἐλάλησεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐν παραβολαῖς τοῖς ὄχλοις, καὶ χωρὶς παραβολῆς ⸀οὐδὲν ἐλάλει αὐτοῖς·
All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and without a parable he spoke nothing to them;
Without a parable he spoke nothing — the same summary as Mark 4:34, without the private explaining.
pronoun them = the crowds
35
ὅπως πληρωθῇ τὸ ῥηθὲν διὰ τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος· Ἀνοίξω ἐν παραβολαῖς τὸ στόμα μου, ἐρεύξομαι κεκρυμμένα ἀπὸ ⸀καταβολῆς.
so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled: “I will open my mouth in parables; I will pour out things hidden from the founding.”
From the foundation — the manuscripts differ over whether “of the world” stands after it. The quotation is Psalm 78:2.
pronoun I = the one speaking in the quotation — both times
pronoun my = the same
Why this rendering
Matt.13.35 Observation
Syntactic observation
The fulfilment formula arrives in yet another shape. Set this book's introductions side by side: 1:22 and 2:15 have ὑπὸ κυρίου διὰ τοῦ προφήτου, by the Lord through the prophet; 2:17, 4:14 and 12:17 have διά with the prophet's name (Jeremiah, Isaiah); 2:23 has διὰ τῶν προφητῶν, through the prophets, plural and unnamed; and 13:35 has διὰ τοῦ προφήτου — singular and unnamed. Four shapes within one book. The quotation itself is notable — ἐρεύξομαι is closer to pour out or belch forth and occurs only here in the four Gospels, while κεκρυμμένα, hidden things, shares its root with 13:33 and 13:44 in this same chapter. And ἀπὸ καταβολῆς is not followed by κόσμου, of the world — SBLGNT marks the place, and the Textus Receptus line prints κόσμου. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀καταβολῆς.).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “spoken through the prophet” · “I will pour out things hidden from the foundation”
Basis Keeps the unnamed singular and does not supply κόσμου; the four differing formulas are the datum.
Supply a prophet's name, or add of the world
Basis Completes the source and the phrase.
Rejected The name is not in the text and κόσμου is not in the base text. That Matthew uses four shapes of the formula is visible only by counting, and filling in reduces them to three.
36
Τότε ἀφεὶς τοὺς ὄχλους ἦλθεν εἰς τὴν ⸀οἰκίαν. καὶ προσῆλθον αὐτῷ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ λέγοντες· ⸀Διασάφησον ἡμῖν τὴν παραβολὴν τῶν ζιζανίων τοῦ ἀγροῦ.
Then leaving the crowds he went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.”
Into the house — the house he left at verse 1.
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun his = Jesus
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun us = the disciples
37
ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς ⸀εἶπεν· Ὁ σπείρων τὸ καλὸν σπέρμα ἐστὶν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου·
And answering he said, “The one sowing the good seed is the Son of Man;
The reading is given piece by piece, with no picture left over.
pronoun he = Jesus
38
ὁ δὲ ἀγρός ἐστιν ὁ κόσμος· τὸ δὲ καλὸν σπέρμα, οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ υἱοὶ τῆς βασιλείας· τὰ δὲ ζιζάνιά εἰσιν οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ πονηροῦ,
and the field is the world; and the good seed — these are the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are the sons of the evil one;
The field is the world — not the church, and the text says so plainly.
pronoun these = the good seed
39
ὁ δὲ ἐχθρὸς ὁ σπείρας αὐτά ἐστιν ὁ διάβολος· ὁ δὲ θερισμὸς συντέλεια ⸀αἰῶνός ἐστιν, οἱ δὲ θερισταὶ ἄγγελοί εἰσιν.
and the enemy who sowed them is the slanderer; and the harvest is the completion of the age; and the harvesters are angels.
Slanderer renders διάβολος (diabolos); this edition does not use “devil”. Completion of the age renders συντέλεια (synteleia), a word this book alone uses.
pronoun who = the enemy
pronoun them = the weeds
40
ὥσπερ οὖν συλλέγεται τὰ ζιζάνια καὶ πυρὶ ⸀καίεται, οὕτως ἔσται ἐν τῇ συντελείᾳ τοῦ ⸀αἰῶνος·
So just as the weeds are collected and burned with fire, so will it be at the completion of the age.
So will it be — the same closing as verse 49.
pronoun it = the completion of the age
41
ἀποστελεῖ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ, καὶ συλλέξουσιν ἐκ τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ πάντα τὰ σκάνδαλα καὶ τοὺς ποιοῦντας τὴν ἀνομίαν,
The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom everything that causes stumbling and those who work lawlessness,
Everything that causes stumbling renders τὰ σκάνδαλα (ta skandala), the trap-word as a noun. Lawlessness is the word of 7:23.
pronoun his = the Son of Man — both times
pronoun they = his angels
42
καὶ βαλοῦσιν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν κάμινον τοῦ πυρός· ἐκεῖ ἔσται ὁ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὁ βρυγμὸς τῶν ὀδόντων.
and will throw them into the furnace of fire. There there will be the weeping and the grinding of teeth.
The weeping and the grinding of teeth — both with the article, as at 8:12.
pronoun them = those gathered out
43
Τότε οἱ δίκαιοι ἐκλάμψουσιν ὡς ὁ ἥλιος ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτῶν. ὁ ἔχων ⸀ὦτα ἀκουέτω.
Then the righteous will shine out like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let the one who has ears hear.
Shine out (ἐκλάμπω, eklampō) is used once in the four Gospels.
pronoun their = the righteous
44
⸀Ὁμοία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν θησαυρῷ κεκρυμμένῳ ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ, ὃν εὑρὼν ἄνθρωπος ἔκρυψεν, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς χαρᾶς αὐτοῦ ὑπάγει καὶ ⸂πωλεῖ πάντα ὅσα ἔχει⸃ καὶ ἀγοράζει τὸν ἀγρὸν ἐκεῖνον.
The kingdom of the heavens is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and from his joy he goes and sells all he has and buys that field.
From his joy — the Greek says the joy is the reason for the selling.
pronoun which = the treasure
pronoun his = the man
pronoun he = the man
45
Πάλιν ὁμοία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ⸀ἀνθρώπῳ ἐμπόρῳ ζητοῦντι καλοὺς μαργαρίτας·
Again, the kingdom of the heavens is like a merchant seeking good pearls;
Merchant (ἔμπορος, emporos) is a trader who travels.
46
⸂εὑρὼν δὲ⸃ ἕνα πολύτιμον μαργαρίτην ἀπελθὼν πέπρακεν πάντα ὅσα εἶχεν καὶ ἠγόρασεν αὐτόν.
and finding one costly pearl, he went and sold all he had and bought it.
Costly (πολύτιμος, polytimos) is the word used of the ointment at John 12:3.
pronoun he = the merchant
pronoun it = the pearl
47
Πάλιν ὁμοία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν σαγήνῃ βληθείσῃ εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν καὶ ἐκ παντὸς γένους συναγαγούσῃ·
Again, the kingdom of the heavens is like a dragnet thrown into the sea and gathering from every kind;
Dragnet (σαγήνη, sagēnē) is a named kind of net, used once in the four Gospels.
Why this rendering
Matt.13.47 Observation
Syntactic observation
The net arrives here as a third word in this book. 4:18 has ἀμφίβληστρον, the circular casting-net; 4:20-21 δίκτυον, a net in general; and 13:47 σαγήνη — which the lexica record as a large dragnet drawn between boats. All three are in Matthew; Mark uses only δίκτυον (1:18, 19). σαγήνη occurs only here in the four Gospels. The word meshes with the parable's content: ἐκ παντὸς γένους συναγαγούσῃ, gathering from every kind, requires a net that sweeps rather than selects — and so v.48 follows with the sorting of good from rotten afterwards. The structure matches the weeds of the same chapter (24-30, 36-43): mixed now, separated at the end. And vv.42 and 50 close on the same sentence — Matthew's six-times formula, the weeping and the grinding of teeth.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “dragnet” — kept apart from the casting-net of 4:18 and the nets of 4:20
Basis Three words in Matthew get three renderings; here a sweeping net is what makes gathering from every kind work.
nets in all three places
Basis One word reads more easily.
Rejected Matthew used three words and Mark one. Merging erases the difference in lexical range between the authors, and blurs why this parable can speak of every kind.
48
ἣν ὅτε ἐπληρώθη ἀναβιβάσαντες ἐπὶ τὸν αἰγιαλὸν καὶ καθίσαντες συνέλεξαν τὰ καλὰ εἰς ⸀ἄγγη, τὰ δὲ σαπρὰ ἔξω ἔβαλον.
which, when it was full, they drew up onto the shore, and sitting down they collected the good into vessels, but the rotten they threw out.
Rotten is the spoiled-fish word of 7:17 — here it is used of fish.
pronoun which = the dragnet
pronoun it = the dragnet
pronoun they = the fishermen — both times
49
οὕτως ἔσται ἐν τῇ συντελείᾳ τοῦ αἰῶνος· ἐξελεύσονται οἱ ἄγγελοι καὶ ἀφοριοῦσιν τοὺς πονηροὺς ἐκ μέσου τῶν δικαίων
So will it be at the completion of the age: the angels will go out and separate the evil from among the righteous
Separate the evil from among the righteous — the order is the reverse of the weeds, where the weeds were gathered first.
pronoun it = the completion of the age
50
καὶ βαλοῦσιν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν κάμινον τοῦ πυρός· ἐκεῖ ἔσται ὁ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὁ βρυγμὸς τῶν ὀδόντων.
and throw them into the furnace of fire. There there will be the weeping and the grinding of teeth.”
Verse 42 is repeated word for word — the writer closes the set as he opened it.
pronoun them = the evil
51
⸀Συνήκατε ταῦτα πάντα; λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· ⸀Ναί.
“Have you understood all these things?” They say to him, “Yes.”
Yes — the disciples' whole answer is one word.
pronoun you = the disciples
pronoun these things = the parables
pronoun They = the disciples
pronoun him = Jesus
52
ὁ δὲ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Διὰ τοῦτο πᾶς γραμματεὺς μαθητευθεὶς ⸂τῇ βασιλείᾳ⸃ τῶν οὐρανῶν ὅμοιός ἐστιν ἀνθρώπῳ οἰκοδεσπότῃ ὅστις ἐκβάλλει ἐκ τοῦ θησαυροῦ αὐτοῦ καινὰ καὶ παλαιά.
And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe discipled to the kingdom of the heavens is like a master of a house who brings out of his store new things and old.”
Discipled renders μαθητεύω (mathēteuō) as a passive — the verb of 28:19. New things and old — the new comes first.
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun them = the disciples
pronoun who = a master of a house
pronoun his = the master of a house
53
καὶ ἐγένετο ὅτε ἐτέλεσεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τὰς παραβολὰς ταύτας, μετῆρεν ἐκεῖθεν.
And when Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there.
When Jesus had finished — the formula of 7:28, closing the third great speech.
pronoun he = Jesus
54
καὶ ἐλθὼν εἰς τὴν πατρίδα αὐτοῦ ἐδίδασκεν αὐτοὺς ἐν τῇ συναγωγῇ αὐτῶν, ὥστε ἐκπλήσσεσθαι αὐτοὺς καὶ λέγειν· Πόθεν τούτῳ ἡ σοφία αὕτη καὶ αἱ δυνάμεις;
And coming to his hometown he was teaching them in their synagogue, so that they were astounded and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these works of power?
Hometown (πατρίς, patris) is the father's place; this book does not name it here either.
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun them = the people of the town
pronoun their = the people of the town
pronoun they = the people of the town
pronoun this man = Jesus
55
οὐχ οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τοῦ τέκτονος υἱός; ⸀οὐχ ἡ μήτηρ αὐτοῦ λέγεται Μαριὰμ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ Ἰάκωβος καὶ ⸀Ἰωσὴφ καὶ Σίμων καὶ Ἰούδας;
Is this not the carpenter's son? Is his mother not called Mary, and his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?
The carpenter's son — Mark 6:3 calls him the carpenter. The difference is real and is left as it stands.
first here Mariam Μαριάμ Mariam
first here James Ἰάκωβος Iakōbos
first here Joseph Ἰωσήφ Iōsēph
first here Simon Σίμων Simōn
first here Judas Ἰούδας Ioudas
pronoun this = Jesus
pronoun his = Jesus — both times
Why this rendering
Matt.13.55 Observation
Syntactic observation
In the same scene the two books introduce the man differently. Mark 6:3: οὐχ οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τέκτων, ὁ υἱὸς τῆς Μαρίας — is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary? Matthew 13:55: οὐχ οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τοῦ τέκτονος υἱός — is this not the carpenter's son? Mark attaches the trade to Jesus himself; Matthew attaches it to the father. The parent named divides too: Mark says son of Mary and names no father; Matthew names him by the father's trade and then gives the mother's name separately. τέκτων occurs once in each book (Matt 13:55, Mark 6:3), landing on a different person, and is absent from Luke and John altogether. Luke 4:22, in the same scene, has Οὐχὶ υἱός ἐστιν Ἰωσὴφ οὗτος, is this not Joseph's son — the father's name given and the trade withheld. Three ways, then: Mark the trade only (of Jesus), Matthew the trade only (of the father, unnamed), Luke the name only (no trade). The order of the brothers' names differs as well — Mark: James, Joses, Judas, Simon; Matthew: James, Joseph, Simon, Judas — and the second name itself divides between Ἰωσῆτος and Ἰωσήφ. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀οὐχ ⸀Ἰωσὴφ).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “Is this not the carpenter's son?” — kept apart from Mark 6:3's the carpenter
Basis Renders each book as printed. Whom the trade attaches to is the difference between them, and it is not harmonised.
Level both to the carpenter's son
Basis One man, one description.
Rejected Mark calls Jesus himself ὁ τέκτων. Levelling erases a statement found only in Mark, and with it the fact that τέκτων lands once in each book on a different person.
56
καὶ αἱ ἀδελφαὶ αὐτοῦ οὐχὶ πᾶσαι πρὸς ἡμᾶς εἰσιν; πόθεν οὖν τούτῳ ταῦτα πάντα;
And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?”
All his sisters — sisters are named here, though never counted.
pronoun his = Jesus
pronoun us = the people of the town
pronoun this man = Jesus
pronoun these things = his wisdom and works
57
καὶ ἐσκανδαλίζοντο ἐν αὐτῷ. ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Οὐκ ἔστιν προφήτης ἄτιμος εἰ μὴ ἐν τῇ ⸀πατρίδι καὶ ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ αὐτοῦ.
And they were made to stumble because of him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honour except in his hometown and in his own house.”
In his own house — Mark 6:4 adds “and among his relatives”.
pronoun they = the people of the town
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun them = the people of the town
pronoun his = a prophet — both times
58
καὶ οὐκ ἐποίησεν ἐκεῖ δυνάμεις πολλὰς διὰ τὴν ἀπιστίαν αὐτῶν.
And he did not do many works of power there, because of their unbelief.
He did not do — Mark 6:5 says he could not. This book changes it, and this edition keeps the difference.
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun their = the people of the town