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Today's Verse Analysis

Matthew 13:29 But he said, No;
Image

Parables, Parables of the Weeds

Spoken to
audience

Matthew 13:29 ὁ δέ φησιν Οὔ, μή ποτε συλλέγοντες τὰ ζιζάνια ἐκριζώσητε ἅμα αὐτοῖς τὸν σῖτον:

KJV Verse

Matthew 13:29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.

NIV Verse:

Matthew 13:29  ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them.

What His Listeners Heard:

That one, however, denied this, "Never! Then, gathering the weeds, you will uproot the wheat together with them.

Lost In Translation:

A rare word translated as "said" is used in this verse, but Jesus only uses this word in four verses, always to describe a master talking to a servant. The sense is a stronger statement than one of the common words for "said."

The verb translated as "root up/uproot" is a rare one in ancient Greek. It appears for the first time in the Septuagint, where it is used only three times to describe "uprooting" whole civilizations. It means literally "away from root" so it is easy to understand, but someone familiar with the OT may have recognized the analogy here.

KJV w/Translation Issues :

 But he(CW) said(CW), Nay; lest while ye gather(WF) up the tares, ye root(WT) up also(IW) the wheat with(CW) them.

KJV List (See full page for word-by-word analysis):
For analysis of each word of original Greek and biblical verses, click here.

Constantly Updated

My analysis standards and methods are constantly improving. New information on each verse is provided as articles are updated. It requires approximately two years for me to work through updating each of Jesus's verses.

What Jesus's Listeners Heard

The everyday meanings of the Greek words Jesus used were different than the definitions they have been given over time in biblical translation. The word translations here are based upon documents of his time such as the Greek Septuagint, not ideas unknown in his time.

About this Site

See what Jesus said in Greek and see how his words are changed in English translation. My goal is to translate Jesus's words as they were heard when he taught, not the way they are interpreted today. The work here resurrects the humor and cleverness of Jesus's words lost in translation.

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Each article provides detailed information on all the Greek words in each verse with links simplifying your own research. It compares the Greek to popular translations to show where words are confused, changed, left out, and added. This site offers research available nowhere else, such as how often Jesus uses a specific Greek word and links to a list of every verse in which he uses a given word.