translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: MAT

label: NET translator note

text: Grk “it happened when.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο ( egeneto , “it happened that”) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.


text: “River” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity. The region referred to here is sometimes known as Transjordan (i.e., “across the Jordan”).


text: Grk “And Pharisees.” sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7 .


text: , however, reads ἀνθρώπῳ here.


label: NET textual note

text: A few important mss ( א Φ pc ) have the name “Jesus” here, but it is probably not original. Nevertheless, this translation routinely specifies the referents of pronouns to improve clarity, so that has been done here. tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


text: Grk “heart” (a collective singular).


text: includes the pronoun in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.


text: Here δέ ( de ) has not been translated.


text: Grk “from the womb of the mother” (an idiom).


text: The verb εὐνουχίζω occurs twice in this verse, translated the first time as “made eunuchs” and the second time as “became eunuchs.” The term literally refers to castration. The second occurrence of the word in this verse is most likely figurative, though, referring to those who willingly maintain a life of celibacy for the furtherance of the kingdom (see W. D. Davies and D. C. Allison, Matthew [ICC], 3:23).


text: Grk “people.”


text: Grk “so that he would lay his hands on them and pray.”


text: Grk “the disciples scolded them.” In the translation the referent has been specified as “those who brought them,” since otherwise the statement could be understood to mean that the disciples scolded the children rather than their parents who brought them.


text: Grk “went from there.”


text: Grk “And behold one came.” The Greek word ἰδού ( idou ) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1 ). Here καί ( kai ) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.


text: Grk “kept.” The implication of this verb is that the man has obeyed the commandments without fail, so the adverb “wholeheartedly” has been added to the translation to bring out this nuance.


text: Grk “these things.” The referent of the pronoun (the laws mentioned by Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. sn While the rich man was probably being sincere when he insisted I have wholeheartedly obeyed all these laws , he had confined his righteousness to external obedience. The rich man’s response to Jesus’ command – to give away all he had – revealed that internally he loved money more than God.


text: The words “the money” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.


text: Grk “he had many possessions.” This term ( κτῆμα , kthma ) is often used for land as a possession.


text: Grk “Truly ( ἀμήν , amhn ), I say to you.”


text: Grk “I say to you.”


text: A few late witnesses (579 1424 pc ) read κάμιλον ( kamilon , “rope”) for κάμηλον ( kamhlon , “camel”), either through accidental misreading of the text or intentionally so as to soften Jesus’ words.


text: The plural Greek term ἄνθρωποις ( anqrwpois ) is used here in a generic sense, referring to both men and women (cf. NASB 1995 update, “people”). Because of the contrast here between mere mortals and God (“impossible for men , but for God all things are possible”) the phrase “mere humans” has been used in the translation. There may also be a slight wordplay with “the Son of Man” in v. 28 .


text: Grk “Then answering, Peter said.” This construction is somewhat redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified in the translation.


text: Grk “We have left everything and followed you.” Koine Greek often used paratactic structure when hypotactic was implied.


text: Here δέ ( de ) has not been translated.