αὐτοῦ and ἑαυτοῦ, Part 2

This is a continuation of a survey of the occurrences of αὐτοῦ and ἑαυτοῦ in the New Testament (see table below), particularly when associated with an article and noun in the accusative case. In another essay I understood τὴν παρθένον αὐτοῦ (ESV: his betrothed)1 differently from τὴν ἑαυτοῦ παρθένον (ESV: her as his betrothed and his betrothed respectively).2 It is not the customary way these phrases have been translated into English. I’ll pick up where I left off, considering the 12 occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ in Luke, 7 of which were associated with an accusative phrase [Table].

Jesus said (Luke 14:26-33 ESV):

If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own (ἑαυτοῦ) father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even3 his own (ἑαυτοῦ) life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever4 does not bear his own5 (ἑαυτοῦ) cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to6 complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet7 him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not,8 while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has (πᾶσιν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ ὑπάρχουσιν) cannot be my disciple.

This section, titled “The Cost of Discipleship” in the ESV, further demonstrates Jesus’ saying: No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.9 The phrase, and does not hate his own father,10 was καὶ οὐ μισεῖ τὸν πατέρα ἑαυτοῦ in Greek. This is the first time I’m seeing ἑαυτοῦ following the accusative phrase τὸν πατέρα. I assume that ἑαυτοῦ is implied throughout this list: “the father of himself and the mother of himself and the wife of himself and the children of himself and the brothers of himself and the sisters of himself.”

I would consider that interpretation virtually certain if the next occurrence were την εαυτου ψυχην, his own life,11 as it is in the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text. In the NET parallel Greek text and NA28, however, the word order was τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ again. I suppose I should hold onto this idea as an intuition rather than an interpretation that is “virtually certain.”

Or, perhaps, I shouldn’t be so fussy about the placement of ἑαυτοῦ relative to the noun. I was taking την εαυτου ψυχην as a reference to “the of himself life” as opposed to “the of God life” one possesses as a believer in Christ. And so, τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ was merely “the life of himself” as opposed to “the death of himself.” But as I struggle to spell it out, it seems more like a distinction without a difference.

In the next occurrence—Whoever does not bear his own cross12ἑαυτοῦ followed the accusative phrase again in the NET parallel Greek and NA28: τὸν σταυρὸν ἑαυτοῦ. It was τον σταυρὸν αυτου in the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text. According to an entry on Wikipedia:

Novum Testamentum Graece (The New Testament in Greek) is a critical edition of the New Testament in its original Koine Greek, forming the basis of most modern Bible translations and biblical criticism. It is also known as the Nestle–Aland edition after its most influential editors, Eberhard Nestle and Kurt Aland. The text, edited by the Institute for New Testament Textual Research, is currently in its 28th edition, abbreviated NA28.

The title is sometimes applied to the United Bible Societies (UBS) edition, which contains the same text (its fifth edition, “UBS5”, contains the text from NA28). The UBS edition is aimed at translators and so focuses on variants that are important for the meaning whereas the NA includes more variants.

The release of a 29th edition is expected in 2025.[1]

Methodology

The Greek text as presented is what biblical scholars refer to as the “critical text”. The critical text is an eclectic text compiled by a committee that compares readings from a large number of manuscripts in order to determine which reading is most likely to be closest to the original. They use a number of factors to help determine probable readings, such as the date of the witness (earlier is usually better), the geographical distribution of a reading, and the likelihood of accidental or intentional corruptions.

In other words, NA28 is a current scholarly best guess. The parallel Greek text in the NET is essentially NA27. So, any agreement between the two indicates a modicum of stability of a particular editorial committee’s best guess.13 When the NA28 agrees with the Stephanus Textus Receptus and/or Byzantine Majority Text and differs from the NET parallel Greek, I take that to mean a change in the best guess between the two editions of the critical text.

The final occurrence of εαυτου in this passage was the same in all four Greek texts: πᾶσιν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ ὑπάρχουσιν, all that he has.14 An example of Jesus’ hate for his mother and brothers follows (Luke 8:19-21 ESV):

Then his mother and his brothers came15 to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. And16 he was told,17 “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”18

This chapter begins: Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.19 His mother and brothers may have traveled some distance to see Him. His words probably stung them a bit. On the other hand, I would assume that those listening to Him would have understood if He had jumped up immediately to greet his mother and brothers, perhaps they even expected it. His gracious words perfectly illustrate his meaning regarding discipleship, and demonstrate his own single-minded devotion to God his Father and to those who hear the word of God and do it.

Matthew and Mark recorded a similar occasion, both followed by the same event:

Matthew 12:46-13:2 (ESV)

Mark 3:31-4:1 (ESV)

While he was still20 speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him.21 And22 his mother and his brothers23 came, and standing24 outside they sent to him and called25 him.
And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said26 to him, “Your mother and your brothers27 are outside, seeking you.”
But he replied to the man who told28 him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” And he answered29 them,30 “Who are my mother and my brothers?” [Table]
And looking about at those who sat around him,
And stretching out his hand toward his disciples,
he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
That same day31 Jesus went out of32 the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat33 and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large34 crowd gathered35 about him, so that he got into a boat36 and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was37 beside the sea on the land.

I bring it up to revisit the setup to the arrival of Jesus’ mother and his brothers in more current translations of Mark (Mark 3:20, 21 ESV):

Then he went38 home, and the39 crowd gathered again, so that they could not even40 eat. And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”

The Greek words translated home were εἰς οἶκον. The translation into an house (KJV) is more literal. The root οἶκος can mean home, but I still might translate it: “into a home.” I’m not privy to the reasons the translators of the ESV, NASB, NASB 1995, NASB 1977, Legacy Standard Bible, Holman Christian Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word Translation, Good News Translation, International Standard Version, Majority Standard Bible, New American Bible and the NET chose home here.

Even if Mark meant home, I understand why he didn’t write εἰς τόν οἶκον αὐτοῦ (Luke 1:23): “into his house” or “his home.”

Matthew 8:19, 20 (ESV)

Luke 9:57, 58 (ESV)

And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” As41 they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”42 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

The Greek words translated his family were οἱ παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ; literally “those from beside him.” The word translated heard this was ἀκούσαντες, a participle of ἀκούω: So, “those from beside him hearing.” Hearing what? The context seems clear that they were hearing what Jesus was doing, probably what He was saying, but more to the immediate point: hearing where He was at a particular moment in time because they went out (ἐξῆλθον, a form of ἐξέρχομαι). For what purpose? to seize him (κρατῆσαι αὐτόν) Why? for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”43

I didn’t question this translation at the time: The identity of οἱ παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ seemed confirmed when his mother and his brothers showed up standing outside.44 And home seemed like a reasonable assumption for εἰς οἶκον since they knew where to find Him. Brad Gray, the Founder of Walking The Text online, did a really interesting video—“From Nazareth to Capernaum” | Jesus In Galilee Pt 1 | EP168—about Jesus’ move to Capernaum. In it he described the distance from Nazareth to Capernaum as about 22 miles, a day’s journey on foot.

Subsequently, I’ve heard that some are offended by the idea that Mary, in particular, thought her Son was out of his mind. One proposed solution was to take οἱ παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ absolutely literally as some present in the house with Jesus. This is interesting because it would probably mean that αὐτοῦ should be understood as an adverb rather than as a personal pronoun. But if they were already present with Jesus, why did they leave to seize him, never to return in Mark’s Gospel narrative?

I suggest looking more closely at the words translated He is out of his mind: ὅτι ἐξέστη, an active form of ἐξίστημι: “to drive out of his senses; to amaze, astonish; to take by surprise, startle; to confound, be dismayed, be distraught; to change, displace; to become separated from (something), lose (something); to lose one’s mind, go insane, faint away.” Jesus was not doing or saying the things his mother and brothers expected Him to do or say.

We’re not told exactly what each person thought He should do or say. Mary’s concern for instance, may have been exactly what Mark and the Holy Spirit expressed: the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat.45 It’s not that hard to imagine a mother concerned that her firstborn is burning himself out at a furious pace, especially if she feels some responsibility for pushing Him out the door into this ministry (John 2:1-11).

The next occurrence was: την εαυτου ψυχην in the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text, or τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ in the NET parallel Greek and NA28, his own life, from If anyone comes to me and does not hateeven his own life, he cannot be my disciple.46 This hatred of “the of himself life” or “the soul of himself” was best expressed in Jesus’ prayer in the garden.

Matthew 26:38, 39 (ESV)

Mark 14:34-36 (ESV)

Luke 22:41, 42 (ESV)

Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” [Table]. And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him [Table]. And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done” [Table].

Paul shared his insights into this hatred as well (Romans 6:3, 4 ESV; Galatians 2:20, 21 NET):

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life (ζωῆς, a form of ζωή).

I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So the life I now live in the body, I live because of the faithfulness of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside God’s grace, because if righteousness could come through the law, then Christ died for nothing!

The next occurrence was: τὸν σταυρὸν ἑαυτοῦ in the NET parallel Greek text and NA28, or τον σταυρὸν αυτου in the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text: his own cross (ESV) from Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.47 In another essay I wrote: “To take up [my] cross is to join Jesus distrusting my own desires and saying to God, not my will but yours be done.” Here, in this context I’m thinking of it somewhat differently, perhaps more generally, as pursuing the ministry the Lord gives one in the grace He provides. Given that, I find it difficult to distinguish between ἑαυτοῦ, “the cross of himself,” and αυτου, “his cross.”

The final occurrence I’ll consider in this essay was: πᾶσιν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ ὑπάρχουσιν, all that he has, from So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.48 I tend to understand πᾶσιν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ ὑπάρχουσιν as “all that of himself there is.” If I were to think of it in terms of things, it would be those things that have him. The Greek word translated renounce was ἀποτάσσεται, a middle passive form of ἀποτάσσω: “to renounce, give up; to say goodbye, bid farewell, forsake, take leave, send away” (middle voice); “to be detached, be appointed” (passive voice). So, “to renounce, bid farewell, forsake, be detached from all that of himself there is.”

Matthew 22:36b-40 (ESV)

Mark 12:29b-31 (ESV)

Luke 10:27, 28 (ESV)

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment [Table]. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” [Table] “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one [Table]. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength’ [Table]. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these” [Table]. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all49 your soul50 and with all51 your strength52 and with all53 your mind,54 and your neighbor as yourself.” And [Jesus] said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

Who then can be saved?” Jesus’ astonished disciples asked in a slightly different context. But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”55 [F]or it is God who works in you, Paul wrote, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.56

I’ll continue with this in another essay. The tables mentioned above follow.

αὐτοῦ Occurrences

ἑαυτοῦ Occurrences

Total

Accusative Phrase

Total

Accusative Phrase

New Testament 1428 136 47 21
Matthew 267 90 2 0
Mark 163 46 0 0
Luke 249 72 12 6

Occurrences of αὐτοῦ preceding or following a phrase in the accusative case in Luke

Reference NET Parallel Greek ESV
Luke 1:13 καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰωάννην and you shall call his name John.
Luke 1:23 ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ he went to his home.
Luke 1:31 καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦν and you shall call his name Jesus.
Luke 1:49 καὶ ἅγιον τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ and holy is his name.
Luke 1:58 ὅτι ἐμεγάλυνεν κύριος τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ μετ᾿ αὐτῆς that the Lord had shown great mercy to her
Luke 1:64 ἀνεῴχθη δὲ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ παραχρῆμα And immediately his mouth was opened
Luke 2:21 καὶ ἐκλήθη τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦς he was called Jesus
Luke 2:34 καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς Μαριὰμ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ and said to Mary his mother
Luke 3:4 εὐθείας ποιεῖτε τὰς τρίβους αὐτοῦ make his paths straight.
Luke 3:17 διακαθᾶραι τὴν ἅλωνα αὐτοῦ to clear his threshing floor
καὶ συναγαγεῖν τὸν σῖτον εἰς τὴν ἀποθήκην αὐτοῦ and to gather the wheat into his barn
Luke 5:25 ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ δοξάζων τὸν θεόν <and went home, glorifying God
Luke 5:30 πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ at his disciples
Luke 6:13 προσεφώνησεν τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ he called his disciples
Luke 6:14 καὶ Ἀνδρέαν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ and Andrew his brother
Luke 6:20 Καὶ αὐτὸς ἐπάρας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ And he lifted up his eyes
εἰς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ ἔλεγεν on his disciples, and said:
Luke 6:45 ἐκ γὰρ περισσεύματος καρδίας λαλεῖ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks
Luke 7:1 Ἐπειδὴ ἐπλήρωσεν πάντα τὰ ρήματα αὐτοῦ After he had finished all his sayings
Luke 7:3 ἐλθὼν διασώσῃ τὸν δοῦλον αὐτοῦ to come and heal his servant
Luke 7:16 καὶ ὅτι ἐπεσκέψατο ὁ θεὸς τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ and “God has visited his people!”
Luke 7:38 καὶ στᾶσα ὀπίσω παρὰ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ and standing behind him at his feet
βρέχειν τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ to wet his feet
καὶ κατεφίλει τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ and kissed his feet
Luke 8:5 ἐξῆλθεν ὁ σπείρων τοῦ σπεῖραι τὸν σπόρον αὐτοῦ A sower went out to sow his seed.
Luke 8:41 παρεκάλει αὐτὸν εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ he implored him to come to his house
Luke 9:14 εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ And he said to his disciples
Luke 9:23 καὶ ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ and take up his cross
Luke 9:24 ὃς γὰρ ἂν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ σῶσαι For whoever would save his life
ὃς δ᾿ ἂν ἀπολέσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ but whoever loses his life
Luke 9:31 ἔλεγον τὴν ἔξοδον αὐτοῦ and spoke of his departure
Luke 9:32 εἶδον τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ they saw his glory
Luke 9:43 εἶπεν πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ Jesus said to his disciples
Luke 10:2 ἐργάτας ἐκβάλῃ εἰς τὸν θερισμὸν αὐτοῦ to send out laborers into his harvest
Luke 10:34 καὶ προσελθὼν κατέδησεν τὰ τραύματα αὐτοῦ He went to him and bound up his wounds
Luke 10:39 ἤκουεν τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ and listened to his teaching
Luke 11:1 καθὼς καὶ Ἰωάννης ἐδίδαξεν τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ as John taught his disciples
Luke 11:8 διὰ τὸ εἶναι φίλον αὐτοῦ because he is his friend
διά γε τὴν ἀναίδειαν αὐτοῦ yet because of his impudence
Luke 11:22 τὴν πανοπλίαν αὐτοῦ αἴρει he takes away his armor
καὶ τὰ σκῦλα αὐτοῦ διαδίδωσιν and divides his spoil
Luke 12:1 ἤρξατο λέγειν πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ πρῶτον he began to say to his disciples first
Luke 12:22 Εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς [αὐτοῦ] And he said to his disciples
Luke 12:25 δύναται ἐπὶ τὴν ἡλικίαν αὐτοῦ προσθεῖναι πῆχυν can add a single hour to his span of life
Luke 12:31 πλὴν ζητεῖτε τὴν βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ Instead, seek his kingdom
Luke 12:39 οὐκ |ἂν| ἀφῆκεν διορυχθῆναι τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ he would not have left his house to be broken into
Luke 12:46 καὶ τὸ μέρος αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῶν ἀπίστων θήσει and put him with the unfaithful
Luke 12:47 ἢ ποιήσας πρὸς τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ or act according to his will
Luke 13:15 ἕκαστος ὑμῶν τῷ σαββάτῳ οὐ λύει τὸν βοῦν αὐτοῦ Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox
Luke 14:17 ἀπέστειλεν τὸν δοῦλον αὐτοῦ he sent his servant
Luke 15:5 ἐπιτίθησιν ἐπὶ τοὺς ὤμους αὐτοῦ χαίρων he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
Luke 15:13 καὶ ἐκεῖ διεσκόρπισεν τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτοῦ and there he squandered his property
Luke 15:15 καὶ ἔπεμψεν αὐτὸν εἰς τοὺς ἀγροὺς αὐτοῦ who sent him into his fields
Luke 15:20 καὶ δραμὼν ἐπέπεσεν ἐπὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ and ran and embraced him
Luke 15:22 εἶπεν δὲ ὁ πατὴρ πρὸς τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ But the father said to his servants
καὶ δότε δακτύλιον εἰς τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ and put a ring on his hand
Luke 16:1 διασκορπίζων τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ was wasting his possessions
Luke 16:18 Πᾶς ὁ ἀπολύων τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ Everyone who divorces his wife
Luke 16:20 πρὸς τὸν πυλῶνα αὐτοῦ at his gate
Luke 16:21 ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ κύνες ἐρχόμενοι ἐπέλειχον τὰ ἕλκη αὐτοῦ Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores.
Luke 16:23 καὶ ἐν τῷ ᾅδῃ ἐπάρας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ and in Hades…he lifted up his eyes
Luke 17:2 εἰ λίθος μυλικὸς περίκειται περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ if a millstone were hung around his neck
Luke 17:16 καὶ ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον παρὰ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ and ohe fell on his face at Jesus’ feet
Luke 17:33 ὃς ἐὰν ζητήσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ περιποιήσασθαι Whoever seeks to preserve his life
Luke 18:13 ἀλλ᾿ ἔτυπτεν τὸ στῆθος |αὐτοῦ| but beat his breast
Luke 18:14 κατέβη οὗτος δεδικαιωμένος εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ this man went down to his house
Luke 22:36 καὶ ὁ μὴ ἔχων πωλησάτω τὸ ἱμάτιον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀγορασάτω μάχαιραν And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one.
Luke 22:50 καὶ ἀφεῖλεν τὸ οὖς αὐτοῦ τὸ δεξιόν and cut off his right ear
Luke 23:34 διαμεριζόμενοι δὲ τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ ἔβαλον |κλήρους| And they cast lots to divide his garments.
Luke 23:55 καὶ ὡς ἐτέθη τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ and how his body was laid
Luke 24:23 καὶ μὴ εὑροῦσαι τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ and when they did not find his body
Luke 24:26 καὶ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ and enter into his glory
Luke 24:50 καὶ ἐπάρας τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ and lifting up his hands

Occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ in a phrase in the accusative case

Reference NET Parallel Greek ESV
Luke 2:3 εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ πόλιν to his own town
Luke 11:21 φυλάσσῃ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ αὐλήν guards his own palace
Luke 14:26 μισεῖ τὸν πατέρα ἑαυτοῦ hate his own father
καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ And…his own life
Luke 14:27 βαστάζει τὸν σταυρὸν ἑαυτοῦ bear his own cross
Luke 15:20 ἦλθεν πρὸς τὸν πατέρα ἑαυτοῦ came to his father
Luke 24:27 τὰ περὶ ἑαυτοῦ the things concerning himself
Romans 4:19 κατενόησεν τὸ ἑαυτοῦ σῶμα he considered his own body
Romans 5:8 συνίστησιν δὲ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἀγάπην But…shows his love
Romans 8:3 τὸν ἑαυτοῦ υἱὸν πέμψας sending his own Son
1 Corinthians 7:2 ἕκαστος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα ἐχέτω each man should have his own wife
1 Corinthians 7:37 τηρεῖν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ παρθένον to keep her as his betrothed
1 Corinthians 7:38 ὁ γαμίζων τὴν ἑαυτοῦ παρθένον he who marries his betrothed
1 Corinthians 10:24 μηδεὶς τὸ ἑαυτοῦ ζητείτω Let no one seek his own good
1 Corinthians 10:29 συνείδησιν δὲ λέγω οὐχὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ I do not mean your conscience
Ephesians 5:28 ὁ ἀγαπῶν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα ἑαυτὸν ἀγαπᾷ He who loves his wife loves himself.
Ephesians 5:29 Οὐδεὶς γάρ ποτε τὴν ἑαυτοῦ σάρκα ἐμίσησεν For no one ever hated his own flesh
Ephesians 5:33 ἕκαστος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα οὕτως ἀγαπάτω ὡς ἑαυτόν let each one of you love his wife as himself
1 Thessalonians 2:12 τοῦ καλοῦντος ὑμᾶς εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ βασιλείαν who calls you into his own kingdom
1 Thessalonians 4:4 εἰδέναι ἕκαστον ὑμῶν τὸ ἑαυτοῦ σκεῦος κτᾶσθαι ἐν ἁγιασμῷ that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness
Revelation 10:7 ὡς εὐηγγέλισεν τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ δούλους τοὺς προφήτας just as he announced to his servants the prophets

Tables comparing Luke 14:26-28; 14:31, 32; 8:19-21; Matthew 13:1, 2; Mark 4:1; Matthew 12:46; 12:48; Mark 3:31, 32; 3:20; Luke 9:57 and 10:27 in the NET and KJV follow.

Luke 14:26-28 (NET)

Luke 14:26-28 (KJV)

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.

Luke 14:26 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 14:26 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 14:26 (Byzantine Majority Text)

εἴ τις ἔρχεται πρός με καὶ οὐ μισεῖ τὸν πατέρα ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τὴν μητέρα καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα καὶ τὰ τέκνα καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς καὶ τὰς ἀδελφὰς ἔτι τε καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ, οὐ δύναται εἶναι μου μαθητής ει τις ερχεται προς με και ου μισει τον πατερα εαυτου και την μητερα και την γυναικα και τα τεκνα και τους αδελφους και τας αδελφας ετι δε και την εαυτου ψυχην ου δυναται μου μαθητης ειναι ει τις ερχεται προς με και ου μισει τον πατερα αυτου και την μητερα και την γυναικα και τα τεκνα και τους αδελφους και τας αδελφας ετι δε και την εαυτου ψυχην ου δυναται μου μαθητης ειναι
Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

Luke 14:27 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 14:27 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 14:27 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὅστις οὐ βαστάζει τὸν σταυρὸν ἑαυτοῦ καὶ ἔρχεται ὀπίσω μου, οὐ δύναται εἶναι μου μαθητής και οστις ου βασταζει τον σταυρον αυτου και ερχεται οπισω μου ου δυναται μου ειναι μαθητης και οστις ου βασταζει τον σταυρον αυτου και ερχεται οπισω μου ου δυναται ειναι μου μαθητης
For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t sit down first and compute the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?

Luke 14:28 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 14:28 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 14:28 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Τίς γὰρ ἐξ ὑμῶν θέλων πύργον οἰκοδομῆσαι οὐχὶ πρῶτον καθίσας ψηφίζει τὴν δαπάνην, εἰ ἔχει εἰς ἀπαρτισμόν τις γαρ εξ υμων θελων πυργον οικοδομησαι ουχι πρωτον καθισας ψηφιζει την δαπανην ει εχει τα προς απαρτισμον τις γαρ εξ υμων ο θελων πυργον οικοδομησαι ουχι πρωτον καθισας ψηφιζει την δαπανην ει εχει τα εις απαρτισμον

Luke 14:31, 32 (NET)

Luke 14:31, 32 (KJV)

Or what king, going out to confront another king in battle, will not sit down first and determine whether he is able with 10,000 to oppose the one coming against him with 20,000? Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?

Luke 14:31 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 14:31 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 14:31 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Η τίς βασιλεὺς πορευόμενος ἑτέρῳ βασιλεῖ συμβαλεῖν εἰς πόλεμον οὐχὶ καθίσας πρῶτον βουλεύσεται εἰ δυνατός ἐστιν ἐν δέκα χιλιάσιν ὑπαντῆσαι τῷ μετὰ εἴκοσι χιλιάδων ἐρχομένῳ ἐπ᾿ αὐτόν η τις βασιλευς πορευομενος συμβαλειν ετερω βασιλει εις πολεμον ουχι καθισας πρωτον βουλευεται ει δυνατος εστιν εν δεκα χιλιασιν απαντησαι τω μετα εικοσι χιλιαδων ερχομενω επ αυτον η τις βασιλευς πορευομενος συμβαλειν ετερω βασιλει εις πολεμον ουχι καθισας πρωτον βουλευεται ει δυνατος εστιν εν δεκα χιλιασιν απαντησαι τω μετα εικοσι χιλιαδων ερχομενω επ αυτον
If he cannot succeed, he will send a representative while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace. Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.

Luke 14:32 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 14:32 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 14:32 (Byzantine Majority Text)

εἰ δὲ μή γε, ἔτι αὐτοῦ πόρρω ὄντος πρεσβείαν ἀποστείλας ἐρωτᾷ |τὰ| πρὸς εἰρήνην ει δε μηγε ετι αυτου πορρω οντος πρεσβειαν αποστειλας ερωτα τα προς ειρηνην ει δε μηγε ετι πορρω αυτου οντος πρεσβειαν αποστειλας ερωτα τα προς ειρηνην

Luke 8:19-21 (NET)

Luke 8:19-21 (KJV)

Now Jesus’ mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not get near him because of the crowd. Then came to him his mother and his brethren, and could not come at him for the press.

Luke 8:19 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 8:19 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 8:19 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Παρεγένετο δὲ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἡ μήτηρ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ οὐκ ἠδύναντο συντυχεῖν αὐτῷ διὰ τὸν ὄχλον παρεγενοντο δε προς αυτον η μητηρ και οι αδελφοι αυτου και ουκ ηδυναντο συντυχειν αυτω δια τον οχλον παρεγενοντο δε προς αυτον η μητηρ και οι αδελφοι αυτου και ουκ ηδυναντο συντυχειν αυτω δια τον οχλον
So he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” And it was told him by certain which said, Thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to see thee.

Luke 8:20 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 8:20 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 8:20 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ἀπηγγέλη δὲ αὐτῷ· ἡ μήτηρ σου καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί σου ἑστήκασιν ἔξω ἰδεῖν θέλοντες σε και απηγγελη αυτω λεγοντων η μητηρ σου και οι αδελφοι σου εστηκασιν εξω ιδειν σε θελοντες και απηγγελη αυτω λεγοντων η μητηρ σου και οι αδελφοι σου εστηκασιν εξω ιδειν σε θελοντες
But he replied to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.” And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it.

Luke 8:21 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 8:21 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 8:21 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς· μήτηρ μου καὶ ἀδελφοί μου οὗτοι εἰσιν οἱ τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ ἀκούοντες καὶ ποιοῦντες ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν προς αυτους μητηρ μου και αδελφοι μου ουτοι εισιν οι τον λογον του θεου ακουοντες και ποιουντες αυτον ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν προς αυτους μητηρ μου και αδελφοι μου ουτοι εισιν οι τον λογον του θεου ακουοντες και ποιουντες αυτον

Matthew 13:1, 2 (NET)

Matthew 13:1, 2 (KJV)

On that day after Jesus went out of the house, he sat by the lake. The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.

Matthew 13:1 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 13:1 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 13:1 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐξελθὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς τῆς οἰκίας ἐκάθητο παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν εν δε τη ημερα εκεινη εξελθων ο ιησους απο της οικιας εκαθητο παρα την θαλασσαν εν δε τη ημερα εκεινη εξελθων ο ιησους απο της οικιας εκαθητο παρα την θαλασσαν
And such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat to sit while the whole crowd stood on the shore. And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.

Matthew 13:2 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 13:2 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 13:2 (Byzantine Majority Text)

καὶ συνήχθησαν πρὸς αὐτὸν ὄχλοι πολλοί, ὥστε αὐτὸν εἰς πλοῖον ἐμβάντα καθῆσθαι, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ὄχλος ἐπὶ τὸν αἰγιαλὸν εἱστήκει και συνηχθησαν προς αυτον οχλοι πολλοι ωστε αυτον εις το πλοιον εμβαντα καθησθαι και πας ο οχλος επι τον αιγιαλον ειστηκει και συνηχθησαν προς αυτον οχλοι πολλοι ωστε αυτον εις το πλοιον εμβαντα καθησθαι και πας ο οχλος επι τον αιγιαλον ειστηκει

Mark 4:1 (NET)

Mark 4:1 (KJV)

Again he began to teach by the lake. Such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the lake and sat there while the whole crowd was on the shore by the lake. And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land.

Mark 4:1 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 4:1 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 4:1 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Καὶ πάλιν ἤρξατο διδάσκειν παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν· καὶ συνάγεται πρὸς αὐτὸν ὄχλος πλεῖστος, ὥστε αὐτὸν εἰς πλοῖον ἐμβάντα καθῆσθαι ἐν τῇ θαλάσσῃ, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ὄχλος πρὸς τὴν θάλασσαν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἦσαν και παλιν ηρξατο διδασκειν παρα την θαλασσαν και συνηχθη προς αυτον οχλος πολυς ωστε αυτον εμβαντα εις το πλοιον καθησθαι εν τη θαλασση και πας ο οχλος προς την θαλασσαν επι της γης ην και παλιν ηρξατο διδασκειν παρα την θαλασσαν και συνηχθη προς αυτον οχλος πολυς ωστε αυτον εμβαντα εις το πλοιον καθησθαι εν τη θαλασση και πας ο οχλος προς την θαλασσαν επι της γης ην

Matthew 12:46 (NET)

Matthew 12:46 (KJV)

While Jesus was still speaking to the crowds, his mother and brothers came and stood outside, asking to speak to him. While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him.

Matthew 12:46 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 12:46 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 12:46 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Ἔτι αὐτοῦ λαλοῦντος τοῖς ὄχλοις ἰδοὺ ἡ μήτηρ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ εἱστήκεισαν ἔξω ζητοῦντες αὐτῷ λαλῆσαι ετι δε αυτου λαλουντος τοις οχλοις ιδου η μητηρ και οι αδελφοι αυτου ειστηκεισαν εξω ζητουντες αυτω λαλησαι ετι δε αυτου λαλουντος τοις οχλοις ιδου η μητηρ και οι αδελφοι αυτου ειστηκεισαν εξω ζητουντες αυτω λαλησαι

Matthew 12:48 (NET)

Matthew 12:48 (KJV)

To the one who had said this, Jesus replied, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?” But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?

Matthew 12:48 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 12:48 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 12:48 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν τῷ λέγοντι αὐτῷ· τίς ἐστιν ἡ μήτηρ μου καὶ τίνες εἰσὶν οἱ ἀδελφοί μου ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν τω ειποντι αυτω τις εστιν η μητηρ μου και τινες εισιν οι αδελφοι μου ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν τω ειποντι αυτω τις εστιν η μητηρ μου και τινες εισιν οι αδελφοι μου

Mark 3:31, 32 (NET)

Mark 3:31, 32 (KJV)

Then Jesus’ mother and his brothers came. Standing outside, they sent word to him, to summon him. There came then his brethren and his mother, and, standing without, sent unto him, calling him.

Mark 3:31 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 3:31 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 3:31 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Καὶ |ἔρχεται| ἡ μήτηρ αὐτοῦ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔξω στήκοντες ἀπέστειλαν πρὸς αὐτὸν καλοῦντες αὐτόν ερχονται ουν οι αδελφοι και η μητηρ αυτου και εξω εστωτες απεστειλαν προς αυτον φωνουντες αυτον ερχονται ουν οι αδελφοι και η μητηρ αυτου και εξω εστωτες απεστειλαν προς αυτον φωνουντες αυτον
A crowd was sitting around him and they said to him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are outside looking for you.” And the multitude sat about him, and they said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee.

Mark 3:32 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 3:32 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 3:32 (Byzantine Majority Text)

καὶ ἐκάθητο περὶ αὐτὸν ὄχλος, καὶ λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· ἰδοὺ ἡ μήτηρ σου καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί σου [καὶ αἱ ἀδελφαί σου] ἔξω ζητοῦσιν σε και εκαθητο οχλος περι αυτον ειπον δε αυτω ιδου η μητηρ σου και οι αδελφοι σου εξω ζητουσιν σε και εκαθητο οχλος περι αυτον ειπον δε αυτω ιδου η μητηρ σου και οι αδελφοι σου και αι αδελφαι σου εξω ζητουσιν σε

Mark 3:20 (NET)

Mark 3:19b, 20 (KJV)

Now Jesus went home, and a crowd gathered so that they were not able to eat. and they went into an house. (20) And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.

Mark 3:20 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 3:19b, 20 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 3:19b, 20 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Καὶ ἔρχεται εἰς οἶκον· καὶ συνέρχεται πάλιν [] ὄχλος, ὥστε μὴ δύνασθαι αὐτοὺς μηδὲ ἄρτον φαγεῖν και ερχονται εις οικον (20) και συνερχεται παλιν οχλος ωστε μη δυνασθαι αυτους μητε αρτον φαγειν και ερχονται εις οικον (20) και συνερχεται παλιν οχλος ωστε μη δυνασθαι αυτους μητε αρτον φαγειν

Luke 9:57 (NET)

Luke 9:57 (KJV)

As they were walking along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.

Luke 9:57 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 9:57 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 9:57 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Καὶ πορευομένων αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ εἶπεν τις πρὸς αὐτόν· ἀκολουθήσω σοι ὅπου ἐὰν ἀπέρχῃ εγενετο δε πορευομενων αυτων εν τη οδω ειπεν τις προς αυτον ακολουθησω σοι οπου αν απερχη κυριε εγενετο δε πορευομενων αυτων εν τη οδω ειπεν τις προς αυτον ακολουθησω σοι οπου αν απερχη κυριε

Luke 10:27 (NET)

Luke 10:27 (KJV)

The expert answered, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.” And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.

Luke 10:27 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 10:27 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 10:27 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν· ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐξ ὅλης [τῆς] καρδίας σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ ψυχῇ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ ἰσχύϊ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ σου, καὶ τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν αγαπησεις κυριον τον θεον σου εξ ολης της καρδιας σου και εξ ολης της ψυχης σου και εξ ολης της ισχυος σου και εξ ολης της διανοιας σου και τον πλησιον σου ως σεαυτον ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν αγαπησεις κυριον τον θεον σου εξ ολης της καρδιας σου και εξ ολης της ψυχης σου και εξ ολης της ισχυος σου και εξ ολης της διανοιας σου και τον πλησιον σου ως σεαυτον

1 1 Corinthians 7:36 (ESV)

2 1 Corinthians 7:37, 38 (ESV) Table

4 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had και (KJV: And) at the beginning of this clause. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

7 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had ὑπαντῆσαι (NET: to oppose) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had απαντησαι (KJV: to meet).

8 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had εἰ δὲ μή γε (NET: If he cannot succeed) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had ει δε μηγε (KJV: Or else).

9 John 6:44a (ESV) Table

10 Luke 14:26a (ESV)

11 Luke 14:26b (ESV)

12 Luke 14:27a (ESV)

13 While there is some hint of criticism of this methodology in Novum Testamentum Graece on Wikipedia, I found a short 2019 article, “Plans for the NA29 and UBS6,” on Evangelical Textual Criticism online. It is interesting in a gossipy sort of way, particularly in the comments.

14 Luke 14:33b (ESV)

16 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had δὲ (NET: So) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had και (KJV: And).

17 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had λεγοντων (KJV: by certain which said). The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

19 Luke 8:1a (ESV)

20 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had ετι δε (KJV: Whileyet) here, where the NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had simply Ἔτι (NET: Whilestill).

21 The NET parallel Greek text, NA28, Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had [εἶπεν δέ τις αὐτῷ· ἰδοὺ ἡ μήτηρ σου καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοί σου ἔξω ἑστήκασιν ζητοῦντες σοι λαλῆσαι] (NET: Someone told him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside wanting to speak to you.”) here. The ESV did not.

22 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had Καὶ |ἔρχεται| (NET: Thencame) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had ερχονται ουν (KJV: There came then).

23 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had αὐτοῦ following brothers. The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text did not.

25 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had καλοῦντες (NET: to summon) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had φωνουντες (KJV: calling).

27 The NET parallel Greek text, NA28 and Byzantine Majority Text had [καὶ αἱ ἀδελφαί σου] (“and your sisters,” not translated in the NET or ESV). The Stephanus Textus Receptus did not.

28 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had λέγοντι (NET: had said) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had ειποντι (KJV: that told).

30 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had λέγει (NET: and said) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had λεγων (KJV: saying).

31 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had Ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ (NET: On that day) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had εν δε τη ημερα εκεινη (KJV: The same day).

33 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had the article το preceding boat (KJV: ship). The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

34 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had πλεῖστος (NET: Such a large) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had πολυς (KJV: a great).

35 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had συνάγεται here in the present tense, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had συνηχθη (KJV: there was gathered) in the aorist tense.

36 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had the article το preceding boat (KJV: ship). The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

38 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had ἔρχεται here, a singular 3rd person form of ἔρχομαι, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had a plural form ερχονται (KJV: they went).

39 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had the article preceding crowd. The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text did not.

40 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had μηδὲ (not translated in the NET) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had μητε (KJV: so much as).

41 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had Καὶ here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had εγενετο δε (KJV: And it came to pass).

42 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had κυριε (KJV: Lord) here. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

43 Mark 3:21b (ESV)

44 Mark 3:31a (ESV)

45 Mark 3:20b (ESV)

46 Luke 14:26 (ESV)

47 Luke 14:27 (ESV)

48 Luke 14:33 (ESV)

55 Matthew 19:25b, 26 (ESV) Table

56 Philippians 2:13 (ESV) Table

αὐτοῦ and ἑαυτοῦ, Part 1

In another essay I understood τὴν παρθένον αὐτοῦ (ESV: his betrothed)1 differently from τὴν ἑαυτοῦ παρθένον (ESV: her as his betrothed and his betrothed).2 My decision was based primarily on Paul’s argument, but it isn’t the customary way these phrases have been translated into English. I want to do a survey of the occurrences of αὐτοῦ and ἑαυτοῦ in the New Testament, particularly when associated with an article and noun in the accusative case.

According to the Englishman’s Concordance on Bible Hub there are 1,428 occurrences of αὐτοῦ and 47 occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ [see Table below]. If I’ve counted and recognized the accusative case correctly, there are only 21 occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ flanked by an article and a noun in the accusative case [see Table below].

Matthew

With the caveats above regarding counting and my ability to recognize the accusative case in Greek, I found 267 occurrences of αὐτοῦ in the Gospel of Matthew. Only 90 of them were associated with an accusative phrase. There were 2 occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ, but neither were associated with an accusative phrase. In most occurrences αὐτοῦ followed the accusative phrase. There were 4 exceptions:

In Matthew 2:2 his star (ESV) was αὐτοῦ τὸν ἀστέρα. In Matthew 7:24 and 7:26 his house (ESV) was αὐτοῦ τὴν οἰκίαν. And in Matthew 26:51 his ear (ESV) was αὐτοῦ τὸ ὠτίον.

In 7 occurrences αὐτοῦ wasn’t translated (i.e., his usually) in the ESV: Matthew 3:4 εἶχεν τὸ ἔνδυμα αὐτοῦ was wore a garment. In Matthew 9:7 ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ was and went home. In Matthew 9:16 τὸ πλήρωμα αὐτοῦ was the patch. In Matthew 22:24 τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ was the widow. In Matthew 24:51 καὶ τὸ μέρος αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῶν ὑποκριτῶν θήσει was …and put him with the hypocrites. In that place… In Matthew 27:30 τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ was the head. And in Matthew 27:37 ἐπέθηκαν ἐπάνω τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ τὴν αἰτίαν αὐτοῦ was translated over his head they put the charge against him.

There were no occurrences of παρθένον in Matthew, so I latched onto τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ as a proxy. The phrase was translated his wife (ESV) in Matthew 1:24, 5:31, 5:32 [Table], 19:9 [Table] and 22:25. It was translated one’s wife (ESV) in Matthew 19:3 [Table] and (as mentioned above) the widow (ESV) in Matthew 22:24.

Both occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ are found in Jesus’ description of a wandering unclean spirit (Matthew 12:43-45 ESV):

When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and brings with it (ἑαυτοῦ) seven other spirits more evil than itself (ἑαυτοῦ), and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.

Here ἑαυτοῦ was translated it (KJV: himself) and itself (KJV: himself), rather than his own like most occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ associated with an accusative phrase [see Table below]. As a matter of interest, τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ in Matthew 27:31 was translated his own clothes (ESV).

Mark

I found 163 occurrences of αὐτοῦ in the Gospel of Mark. Only 46 of them were associated with an accusative phrase. There were no occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ. In most occurrences αὐτοῦ followed the accusative phrase. There were 4 exceptions:

In Mark 7:19 his heart (ESV) was αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν καρδίαν. In Mark 14:47 his ear (ESV) was αὐτοῦ τὸ ὠτάριον. In Mark 14:65 his face (ESV) was αὐτοῦ τὸ πρόσωπον. And in Mark 15:19 his head (ESV) was αὐτοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν.

Only 1 occurrence of αὐτοῦ wasn’t translated (i.e., his usually) in the ESV: Mark 13:34 ἀφεὶς τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτοῦ was when he leaves home. There were no occurrences of παρθένον in Mark, so again I used τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ as a proxy. The phrase was translated his wife (ESV) in Mark 10:11.

Luke

I found 249 occurrences of αὐτοῦ in the Gospel of Luke. Only 72 of them were associated with an accusative phrase. In all of those occurrences αὐτοῦ followed the accusative phrase. There were 5 occurrences where αὐτοῦ was not translated (i.e., his usually) in the ESV:

In Luke 1:58 ὅτι ἐμεγάλυνεν κύριος τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ μετ᾿ αὐτῆς was that the Lord had shown great mercy to her. In Luke 2:21 καὶ ἐκλήθη τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦς was he was called Jesus. In Luke 5:25 ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ δοξάζων τὸν θεόν was and went home, glorifying God. In Luke 12:46 καὶ τὸ μέρος αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῶν ἀπίστων θήσει was and put him with the unfaithful. And in Luke 15:20 καὶ δραμὼν ἐπέπεσεν ἐπὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ was translated and ran and embraced him.

There were 12 occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ, 7 of which were associated with an accusative phrase [see Table below]. The first occurrence follows (Luke 2:1, 3-5 ESV).

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered…And all went to be registered, each to his own3 (ἑαυτοῦ) town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth,4 to Judea, to the city of David,5 which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,6 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed7 (τῇ ἐμνηστευμένῃ αὐτῷ), who was with child.

Here, the Greek word translated his own was ἑαυτοῦ (NET Parallel Greek and NA28) or ιδιαν (Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text). It is fairly clear why Luke chose τὴν ἑαυτοῦ πόλιν (or, την ιδιαν πολιν) rather than τὴν πόλιν αὐτοῦ. The latter implies current residence, i.e., the town of Nazareth. The words ἑαυτοῦ or ιδιαν alert the reader that Joseph had a different relationship to this particular town: because [Joseph] was of the house and lineage of David he went to be registered to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem.

The next occurrence is similar, though more subtle (Luke 11:21, 22 ESV).

When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own (ἑαυτοῦ) palace, his goods are safe; but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil [Table].

Here again, the Greek word translated his own was ἑαυτοῦ: his goods (τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ) are safe When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace (τὴν ἑαυτοῦ αὐλήν). Why did Luke choose τὴν ἑαυτοῦ αὐλήν rather than τὴν αὐλήν αὐτοῦ? Matthew and Mark chose τὴν οἰκίαν τοῦ ἰσχυροῦ (a strong man’s house)8 until someone bound the strongman. Then it became τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτοῦ (his house).9

I think Luke’s choice highlights that his palace, before it was taken from him, was not merely the current residence of the strong man, but in some sense it shared his identity, like Joseph’s relationship to Bethlehem. It was “the of himself palace” or “the palace of himself” in ways that his goods (τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ), his armor (τὴν πανοπλίαν αὐτοῦ) and his spoil (τὰ σκῦλα αὐτοῦ) were not.

This is borne out in the next occurrence, where ἑαυτοῦ, when not part of an accusative phrase, is simply “oneself” in the genitive case (Luke 11:26 ESV):

Then [the unclean spirit]10 goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself (ἑαυτοῦ), and they enter11 and dwell there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first.

The next occurrence of ἑαυτοῦ was a little more difficult to grasp (Luke 13:18, 19 ESV):

He said therefore,12 “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his (ἑαυτοῦ) garden, and it grew and became a tree,13 and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.”

The Greek words translated his garden were κῆπον ἑαυτοῦ: literally, “garden of himself.” Neither Matthew’s nor Mark’s Gospel account seemed particularly helpful at first (Matthew 13:31, 32 ESV):

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants (τῶν λαχάνων) and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

In Matthew’s account Jesus’ parable described βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν (The kingdom of heaven; literally, heavens) rather than βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ (the kingdom of God). He wrote of a man who ἔσπειρεν ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ αὐτοῦ (sowed in his field) rather than ἔβαλεν εἰς κῆπον ἑαυτοῦ (sowed in his garden). Am I straining gnats, I wondered, trying to distinguish between two interchangeable words: αὐτοῦ and ἑαυτοῦ?

Mark wrote (Mark 4:30-32 ESV):

And he said, “With what14 can we compare the kingdom of God, or what15 parable shall we use16 for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest17 of all the seeds18 on earth, yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants (τῶν λαχάνων) and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”

In Mark’s account there was no mention of a man or a garden beyond τῶν λαχάνων (ESV: the garden plants), just a general description of an event: ὃς ὅταν σπαρῇ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς (ESV: which, when sown on the ground). He (and Matthew, for that matter) seemed more focused on the contrast of a tiny seed to a tree with large branches. Of course, I began to take that contrast more personally than I recall before, puzzling over Luke’s man who sowed that tiny seed in the “garden of himself.”

“If you’re really out there, I really want to know you,”19 was a tiny seed. I voiced the words in prayer, but they didn’t originate with me. I had no clue I was asking for eternal life as Jesus understood it. Even as that tiny seed began to grow into an insatiable appetite for the Bible, even as I labored to set the Gospels to music, I was too dull-witted to make the connection. Only when I sang the words for a more literate friend, and he commented on them,20 did I begin to understand—this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent21—as Jesus’ definition of eternal life.

Over the past forty-five years that knowledge of the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom [He has] sent has grown considerably. From time to time I get a flash of the whole, but that vision is too immense for me to hold on to for very long. Most of the time I wander around in Him as He leads me through the Bible, focusing on details like why Luke used ἑαυτοῦ rather than αὐτοῦ, marveling at the connections that are made, like so many branches of a tree: for “‘In him we live and move and have our being.’”22

Jesus seemed distressed when Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us” (John 14:8-11 ESV).

Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long,23 and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How24 can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works [Table]. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe25 on account of the works themselves.

So, Luke’s choice of the word ἑαυτοῦ refocused my attention. Jesus wasn’t talking about mustard seeds, or fields, or trees, or even nesting birds specifically, but the kingdom of God (or the kingdom of heaven). Even more to the point, He described that kingdom’s formation and growth from a tiny seed within an individual: εἰς κῆπον ἑαυτοῦ: literally, “into [the] garden of himself.”

Though, I’m skipping ahead a bit, Paul chose ἑαυτοῦ to describe God’s kingdom (1 Thessalonians 2:11, 12 ESV):

For you know how, like a father with his (ἑαυτοῦ) children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own (ἑαυτοῦ) kingdom and glory [Table].

The Greek words translated into his own kingdom were εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ βασιλείαν, literally, “into the of himself kingdom” or “into the kingdom of himself.” Abide in me, and I in you, Jesus said. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.26 And He promised (John 15:7, 8 ESV):

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples [Table].

And Paul wrote (2 Corinthians 5:16-21 ESV):

From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though27 we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come [Table]. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation [Table]; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God [Table].

The Greek verb translated we might become was γενώμεθα, a form of γίνομαι in the subjunctive mood:

The subjunctive mood indicates probability or objective possibility. The action of the verb will possibly happen, depending on certain objective factors or circumstances. It is oftentimes used in conditional statements (i.e. ‘If…then…’ clauses) or in purpose clauses. However if the subjunctive mood is used in a purpose or result clause, then the action should not be thought of as a possible result, but should be viewed as a definite outcome that will happen as a result of another stated action.

The Greek conjunction translated so that was ἵνα. This is a purpose clause and “should be viewed as a definite outcome that will happen.” The most important words effecting that outcome are ἐν αὐτῷ, in him: not on our own or by our own efforts, not apart from Him, but in Him. Abiding, remaining, staying in Him causes the seed of his word to grow into the kingdom of God in the garden of ourselves.

I’ll continue with this in another essay. The tables mentioned above follow.

αὐτοῦ Occurrences

ἑαυτοῦ Occurrences

Total

Accusative Phrase

Total

Accusative Phrase

New Testament 1428 136 47 21
Matthew 267 90 2 0
Mark 163 46 0 0
Luke 249 72 12 6

Occurrences of αὐτοῦ preceding or following a phrase in the accusative case in Matthew

Reference NET Parallel Greek ESV
Matthew 1:2 τὸν Ἰούδαν καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ Judah and his brothers
Matthew 1:11 τὸν Ἰεχονίαν καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ Jechoniah and his brothers
Matthew 1:21 καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦν you shall call his name Jesus
αὐτὸς γὰρ σώσει τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν αὐτῶν for he will save his people from their sins
Matthew 1:23 καλέσουσιν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἐμμανουήλ they shall call his name Immanuel
Matthew 1:24 παρέλαβεν τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ he took his wife
Matthew 1:25 ἐκάλεσεν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦν he called his name Jesus
Matthew 2:2 εἴδομεν γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὸν ἀστέρα For we saw his star
Matthew 2:13 παράλαβε τὸ παιδίον καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ take the child and his mother
Matthew 2:14 παρέλαβεν τὸ παιδίον καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ took the child and his mother
Matthew 2:20 παράλαβε τὸ παιδίον καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ take the child and his mother
Matthew 2:21 παρέλαβεν τὸ παιδίον καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ took the child and his mother
Matthew 3:3 εὐθείας ποιεῖτε τὰς τρίβους αὐτοῦ make his paths straight
Matthew 3:4 ὁ Ἰωάννης εἶχεν τὸ ἔνδυμα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τριχῶν καμήλου John wore a garment of camel’s hair
καὶ ζώνην δερματίνην περὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ and a leather belt around his waist
Matthew 3:7 ἰδὼν δὲ πολλοὺς τῶν Φαρισαίων καὶ Σαδδουκαίων ἐρχομένους ἐπὶ τὸ βάπτισμα |αὐτοῦ| But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism
Matthew 3:12 καὶ διακαθαριεῖ τὴν ἅλωνα αὐτοῦ and he will clear his threshing floor
καὶ συνάξει τὸν σῖτον αὐτοῦ and gather his wheat
Matthew 4:18 καὶ Ἀνδρέαν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ and Andrew his brother
Matthew 4:21 καὶ Ἰωάννην τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ and John his brother
Matthew 5:2 καὶ ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ And he opened his mouth
Matthew 5:31 ὃς ἂν ἀπολύσῃ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ Whoever divorces his wife
Matthew 5:32 πᾶς ὁ ἀπολύων τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ everyone who divorces his wife
Matthew 5:45 ὅτι τὸν ἥλιον αὐτοῦ ἀνατέλλει ἐπὶ πονηροὺς For he makes his sun rise on the evil
Matthew 6:27 προσθεῖναι ἐπὶ τὴν ἡλικίαν αὐτοῦ πῆχυν ἕνα add a single hour to his span of life
Matthew 6:33 καὶ τὴν δικαιοσύνην αὐτοῦ and his righteousness
Matthew 7:24 ὅστις ᾠκοδόμησεν αὐτοῦ τὴν οἰκίαν ἐπὶ τὴν πέτραν who built his house on the rock
Matthew 7:26 ὅστις ᾠκοδόμησεν αὐτοῦ τὴν οἰκίαν ἐπὶ τὴν ἄμμον who built his house on the sand
Matthew 8:14 εἶδεν τὴν πενθερὰν αὐτοῦ βεβλημένην καὶ πυρέσσουσαν he saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever.
Matthew 9:7 ἐγερθεὶς ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ he rose and went home.
Matthew 9:16 αἴρει γὰρ τὸ πλήρωμα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἱματίου for the patch tears away from the garment
Matthew 9:38 ἐκβάλῃ ἐργάτας εἰς τὸν θερισμὸν αὐτοῦ to send out laborers into his harvest
Matthew 10:24 οὐδὲ δοῦλος ὑπὲρ τὸν κύριον αὐτοῦ nor a servant above his master
Matthew 10:38 ὃς οὐ λαμβάνει τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ whoever does not take his cross
Matthew 10:39 ὁ εὑρὼν τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἀπολέσει αὐτήν Whoever finds his life will lose it
ὁ ἀπολέσας τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ εὑρήσει αὐτήν whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
Matthew 10:42 οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσῃ τὸν μισθὸν αὐτοῦ he will by no means lose his reward.
Matthew 12:19 οὐδὲ ἀκούσει τις ἐν ταῖς πλατείαις τὴν φωνὴν αὐτοῦ nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets
Matthew 12:29 καὶ τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ ἁρπάσαι and plunder his goods
καὶ τότε τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτοῦ διαρπάσει Then indeed he may plunder his house.
Matthew 12:33 Ἢ ποιήσατε τὸ δένδρον καλὸν καὶ τὸν καρπὸν αὐτοῦ καλόν Either make the tree good and its fruit good
ἢ ποιήσατε τὸ δένδρον σαπρὸν καὶ τὸν καρπὸν αὐτοῦ σαπρόν or make the tree bad and its fruit bad
Matthew 12:49 καὶ ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα |αὐτοῦ| And stretching out his hand
ἐπὶ τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ εἶπεν toward his disciples, he said
Matthew 13:41 ἀποστελεῖ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ The Son of Man will send his angels
Matthew 13:54 καὶ ἐλθὼν εἰς τὴν πατρίδα αὐτοῦ and coming to his hometown
Matthew 15:6 οὐ μὴ τιμήσει τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ he need not honor his father
Matthew 15:32 Ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς προσκαλεσάμενος τοὺς μαθητὰς (NA28: Ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς προσκαλεσάμενος τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ) Then Jesus called his disciples to him
Matthew 16:13 ἠρώτα τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ he asked his disciples
Matthew 16:24 ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ take up his cross
Matthew 16:25 ὃς γὰρ ἐὰν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ σῶσαι ἀπολέσει αὐτήν For whoever would save his life will lose it
ὃς δ᾿ ἂν ἀπολέσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ εὑρήσει αὐτήν but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it
Matthew 16:27 καὶ τότε ἀποδώσει ἑκάστῳ κατὰ τὴν πρᾶξιν αὐτοῦ and then he will repay each person according to what he has done
Matthew 17:1 καὶ Ἰωάννην τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ and John his brother
Matthew 17:27 καὶ ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ and when you open its mouth
Matthew 18:6 συμφέρει αὐτῷ ἵνα κρεμασθῇ μύλος ὀνικὸς περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck
Matthew 19:3 εἰ ἔξεστιν ἀπολῦσαι τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ Is it lawful to divorce one’s wife
Matthew 19:9 ὃς ἂν ἀπολύσῃ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ whoever divorces his wife
Matthew 20:1 μισθώσασθαι ἐργάτας εἰς τὸν ἀμπελῶνα αὐτοῦ to hire laborers for his vineyard
Matthew 20:2 ἀπέστειλεν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸν ἀμπελῶνα αὐτοῦ he sent them into his vineyard.
Matthew 20:28 καὶ δοῦναι τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ and to give his life
Matthew 21:34 ἀπέστειλεν τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ he sent his servants
λαβεῖν τοὺς καρποὺς αὐτοῦ to get his fruit
Matthew 21:35 καὶ λαβόντες οἱ γεωργοὶ τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ And the tenants took his servants
Matthew 21:37 ὕστερον δὲ ἀπέστειλεν πρὸς αὐτοὺς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ Finally he sent his son to them
Matthew 21:38 καὶ σχῶμεν τὴν κληρονομίαν αὐτοῦ and have his inheritance
Matthew 21:45 Καὶ ἀκούσαντες οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ οἱ Φαρισαῖοι τὰς παραβολὰς αὐτοῦ When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables
Matthew 22:3 καὶ ἀπέστειλεν τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ and sent his servants
Matthew 22:5 ὃς δὲ ἐπὶ τὴν ἐμπορίαν αὐτοῦ another to his business
Matthew 22:6 οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ κρατήσαντες τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ while the rest seized his servants
Matthew 22:7 καὶ πέμψας τὰ στρατεύματα αὐτοῦ and he sent his troops
Matthew 22:24 ἐπιγαμβρεύσει ὁ ἀδελφὸς αὐτοῦ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ his brother must marry the widow
Matthew 22:25 ἀφῆκεν τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ left his wife to his brother
Matthew 24:18 ἆραι τὸ ἱμάτιον αὐτοῦ to take his cloak
Matthew 24:31 καὶ ἀποστελεῖ τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ And he will send out his angels
καὶ ἐπισυνάξουσιν τοὺς ἐκλεκτοὺς αὐτοῦ and they will gather his elect
Matthew 24:43 καὶ οὐκ ἂν εἴασεν διορυχθῆναι τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτοῦ and would not have let his house be broken into
Matthew 24:49 καὶ ἄρξηται τύπτειν τοὺς συνδούλους αὐτοῦ and begins to beat his fellow servants
Matthew 24:51 καὶ τὸ μέρος αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῶν ὑποκριτ …and put him with the hypocrites. In that place…
Matthew 25:14 καὶ παρέδωκεν αὐτοῖς τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ and entrusted to them his property
Matthew 26:51 ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα ἀπέσπασεν τὴν μάχαιραν αὐτοῦ stretched out his hand and drew his sword
ἀφεῖλεν αὐτοῦ τὸ ὠτίον and cut off his ear
Matthew 26:65 τότε ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς διέρρηξεν τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ Then the high priest tore his robes
Matthew 26:67 Τότε ἐνέπτυσαν εἰς τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ Then they spit in his face
Matthew 27:30 καὶ ἔτυπτον εἰς τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ and struck him on the head
Matthew 27:31 καὶ ἐνέδυσαν αὐτὸν τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ and put his own clothes on him
Matthew 27:32 ἵνα ἄρῃ τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ to carry his cross
Matthew 27:35 διεμερίσαντο τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ they divided his garments
Matthew 27:37 ἐπέθηκαν ἐπάνω τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ τὴν αἰτίαν αὐτοῦ over his head they put the charge against him
Matthew 27:53 καὶ ἐξελθόντες ἐκ τῶν μνημείων μετὰ τὴν ἔγερσιν αὐτοῦ and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection

Occurrences of αὐτοῦ preceding or following a phrase in the accusative case in Mark

Reference NET Parallel Greek ESV
Mark 1:3 εὐθείας ποιεῖτε τὰς τρίβους αὐτοῦ make his paths straight
Mark 1:6 ζώνην δερματίνην περὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ a leather belt around his waist
Mark 1:19 Ἰωάννην τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ John his brother
Mark 1:41 ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ he stretched out his hand
Mark 3:27 τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ διαρπάσαι and plunder his goods
καὶ τότε τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτοῦ διαρπάσει Then indeed he may plunder his house.
Mark 4:32 ὥστε δύνασθαι ὑπὸ τὴν σκιὰν αὐτοῦ τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ κατασκηνοῦν so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade
Mark 5:22 πίπτει πρὸς τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ he fell at his feet
Mark 6:1 καὶ ἔρχεται εἰς τὴν πατρίδα αὐτοῦ and came to his hometown
Mark 6:14 φανερὸν γὰρ ἐγένετο τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ for Jesus’ name had become known
Mark 6:27 ἐνέγκαι τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ to bring John’s head
Mark 6:28 καὶ ἤνεγκεν τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πίνακι and brought his head on a platter
Mark 6:29 ἦλθον καὶ ἦραν τὸ πτῶμα αὐτοῦ they came and took his body
Mark 6:41 καὶ ἐδίδου τοῖς μαθηταῖς (NA28: καὶ ἐδίδου τοῖς μαθηταῖς [αὐτοῦ]) and gave them to the disciples
Mark 6:45 εὐθὺς ἠνάγκασεν τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ ἐμβῆναι εἰς τὸ πλοῖον Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat
Mark 7:19 ὅτι οὐκ εἰσπορεύεται αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν καρδίαν since it enters not his heart
Mark 7:25 ἐλθοῦσα προσέπεσεν πρὸς τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ and came and fell down at his feet
Mark 7:33 ἔβαλεν τοὺς δακτύλους αὐτοῦ he put his fingers
εἰς τὰ ὦτα αὐτοῦ into his ears
Mark 8:23 καὶ πτύσας εἰς τὰ ὄμματα αὐτοῦ and when he had spit on his eyes
Mark 8:25 εἶτα πάλιν |ἐπέθηκεν| τὰς χεῖρας ἐπὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again
Mark 8:26 καὶ ἀπέστειλεν αὐτὸν εἰς οἶκον αὐτοῦ And he sent him to his home
Mark 8:27 καὶ ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ ἐπηρώτα τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ And on the way he asked his disciples
Mark 8:33 ὁ δὲ ἐπιστραφεὶς καὶ ἰδὼν τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ But turning and seeing his disciples
Mark 8:34 καὶ ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀκολουθείτω μοι and take up his cross and follow me
Mark 8:35 ὃς γὰρ ἐὰν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν |αὐτοῦ| σῶσαι For whoever would save his life
ὃς δ᾿ ἂν ἀπολέσει τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ but whoever loses his life
Mark 8:36 καὶ ζημιωθῆναι τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ and forfeit his soul
Mark 9:21 καὶ ἐπηρώτησεν τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ And Jesus asked his father
Mark 9:31 ἐδίδασκεν γὰρ τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ for he was teaching his disciples
Mark 9:41 οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσῃ τὸν μισθὸν αὐτοῦ will by no means lose his reward
Mark 9:42 περίκειται μύλος ὀνικὸς περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ a great millstone were hung around his neck
Mark 10:7 ἕνεκεν τούτου καταλείψει ἄνθρωπος τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ Therefore a man shall leave his father
Mark 10:11 ὃς ἂν ἀπολύσῃ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ Whoever divorces his wife
Mark 10:45 καὶ δοῦναι τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ λύτρον ἀντὶ πολλῶν and to give his life as a ransom for many
Mark 10:50 ὁ δὲ ἀποβαλὼν τὸ ἱμάτιον αὐτοῦ And throwing off his cloak
Mark 12:43 καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ And he called his disciples
Mark 13:16 ἆραι τὸ ἱμάτιον αὐτοῦ to take his cloak
Mark 13:27 καὶ ἐπισυνάξει τοὺς ἐκλεκτοὺς [αὐτοῦ] and gather his elect
Mark 13:34 ἀφεὶς τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτοῦ when he leaves home
ἑκάστῳ τὸ ἔργον αὐτοῦ each with his work
Mark 14:47 καὶ ἀφεῖλεν αὐτοῦ τὸ ὠτάριον and cut off his ear
Mark 14:65 καὶ περικαλύπτειν αὐτοῦ τὸ πρόσωπον and to cover his face
Mark 15:19 καὶ ἔτυπτον αὐτοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν And they were striking his head
Mark 15:21 ἄρῃ τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ to carry his cross
Mark 15:24 καὶ διαμερίζονται τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ and divided his garments

Occurrences of αὐτοῦ preceding or following a phrase in the accusative case in Luke

Reference

NET Parallel Greek

ESV
Luke 1:13 καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰωάννην and you shall call his name John.
Luke 1:23 ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ he went to his home.
Luke 1:31 καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦν and you shall call his name Jesus.
Luke 1:49 καὶ ἅγιον τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ and holy is his name.
Luke 1:58 ὅτι ἐμεγάλυνεν κύριος τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ μετ᾿ αὐτῆς that the Lord had shown great mercy to her
Luke 1:64 ἀνεῴχθη δὲ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ παραχρῆμα And immediately his mouth was opened
Luke 2:21 καὶ ἐκλήθη τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦς he was called Jesus
Luke 2:34 καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς Μαριὰμ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ and said to Mary his mother
Luke 3:4 εὐθείας ποιεῖτε τὰς τρίβους αὐτοῦ make his paths straight.
Luke 3:17 διακαθᾶραι τὴν ἅλωνα αὐτοῦ to clear his threshing floor
καὶ συναγαγεῖν τὸν σῖτον εἰς τὴν ἀποθήκην αὐτοῦ and to gather the wheat into his barn
Luke 5:25 ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ δοξάζων τὸν θεόν and went home, glorifying God
Luke 5:30 πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ at his disciples
Luke 6:13 προσεφώνησεν τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ he called his disciples
Luke 6:14 καὶ Ἀνδρέαν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ and Andrew his brother
Luke 6:20 Καὶ αὐτὸς ἐπάρας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ And he lifted up his eyes
εἰς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ ἔλεγεν on his disciples, and said:
Luke 6:45 ἐκ γὰρ περισσεύματος καρδίας λαλεῖ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks
Luke 7:1 Ἐπειδὴ ἐπλήρωσεν πάντα τὰ ρήματα αὐτοῦ After he had finished all his sayings
Luke 7:3 ἐλθὼν διασώσῃ τὸν δοῦλον αὐτοῦ to come and heal his servant
Luke 7:16 καὶ ὅτι ἐπεσκέψατο ὁ θεὸς τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ and “God has visited his people!”
Luke 7:38 καὶ στᾶσα ὀπίσω παρὰ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ and standing behind him at his feet
βρέχειν τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ to wet his feet
καὶ κατεφίλει τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ and kissed his feet
Luke 8:5 ἐξῆλθεν ὁ σπείρων τοῦ σπεῖραι τὸν σπόρον αὐτοῦ A sower went out to sow his seed.
Luke 8:41 παρεκάλει αὐτὸν εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ he implored him to come to his house
Luke 9:14 εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ And he said to his disciples
Luke 9:23 καὶ ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ and take up his cross
Luke 9:24 ὃς γὰρ ἂν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ σῶσαι For whoever would save his life
ὃς δ᾿ ἂν ἀπολέσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ but whoever loses his life
Luke 9:31 ἔλεγον τὴν ἔξοδον αὐτοῦ and spoke of his departure
Luke 9:32 εἶδον τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ they saw his glory
Luke 9:43 εἶπεν πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ Jesus said to his disciples
Luke 10:2 ἐργάτας ἐκβάλῃ εἰς τὸν θερισμὸν αὐτοῦ to send out laborers into his harvest
Luke 10:34 καὶ προσελθὼν κατέδησεν τὰ τραύματα αὐτοῦ He went to him and bound up his wounds
Luke 10:39 ἤκουεν τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ and listened to his teaching
Luke 11:1 καθὼς καὶ Ἰωάννης ἐδίδαξεν τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ as John taught his disciples
Luke 11:8 διὰ τὸ εἶναι φίλον αὐτοῦ because he is his friend
διά γε τὴν ἀναίδειαν αὐτοῦ yet because of his impudence
Luke 11:22 τὴν πανοπλίαν αὐτοῦ αἴρει he takes away his armor
καὶ τὰ σκῦλα αὐτοῦ διαδίδωσιν and divides his spoil
Luke 12:1 ἤρξατο λέγειν πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ πρῶτον he began to say to his disciples first
Luke 12:22 Εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς [αὐτοῦ] And he said to his disciples
Luke 12:25 δύναται ἐπὶ τὴν ἡλικίαν αὐτοῦ προσθεῖναι πῆχυν can add a single hour to his span of life
Luke 12:31 πλὴν ζητεῖτε τὴν βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ Instead, seek his kingdom
Luke 12:39 οὐκ |ἂν| ἀφῆκεν διορυχθῆναι τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ he would not have left his house to be broken into
Luke 12:47 ἢ ποιήσας πρὸς τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ or act according to his will
Luke 13:15 ἕκαστος ὑμῶν τῷ σαββάτῳ οὐ λύει τὸν βοῦν αὐτοῦ Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox
Luke 14:17 ἀπέστειλεν τὸν δοῦλον αὐτοῦ he sent his servant
Luke 15:5 ἐπιτίθησιν ἐπὶ τοὺς ὤμους αὐτοῦ χαίρων he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
Luke 15:13 καὶ ἐκεῖ διεσκόρπισεν τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτοῦ and there he squandered his property
Luke 15:15 καὶ ἔπεμψεν αὐτὸν εἰς τοὺς ἀγροὺς αὐτοῦ who sent him into his fields
Luke 15:20 καὶ δραμὼν ἐπέπεσεν ἐπὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ and ran and embraced him
Luke 15:22 εἶπεν δὲ ὁ πατὴρ πρὸς τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ But the father said to his servants
καὶ δότε δακτύλιον εἰς τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ and put a ring on his hand
Luke 16:1 διασκορπίζων τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ was wasting his possessions
Luke 16:18 Πᾶς ὁ ἀπολύων τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ Everyone who divorces his wife
Luke 16:20 πρὸς τὸν πυλῶνα αὐτοῦ at his gate
Luke 16:21 ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ κύνες ἐρχόμενοι ἐπέλειχον τὰ ἕλκη αὐτοῦ Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores.
Luke 16:23 καὶ ἐν τῷ ᾅδῃ ἐπάρας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ and in Hades…he lifted up his eyes
Luke 17:2 εἰ λίθος μυλικὸς περίκειται περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ if a millstone were hung around his neck
Luke 17:16 καὶ ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον παρὰ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet
Luke 17:33 ὃς ἐὰν ζητήσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ περιποιήσασθαι Whoever seeks to preserve his life
Luke 18:13 ἀλλ᾿ ἔτυπτεν τὸ στῆθος |αὐτοῦ| but beat his breast
Luke 18:14 κατέβη οὗτος δεδικαιωμένος εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ this man went down to his house
Luke 22:36 καὶ ὁ μὴ ἔχων πωλησάτω τὸ ἱμάτιον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀγορασάτω μάχαιραν And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one.
Luke 22:50 καὶ ἀφεῖλεν τὸ οὖς αὐτοῦ τὸ δεξιόν and cut off his right ear
Luke 23:34 διαμεριζόμενοι δὲ τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ ἔβαλον |κλήρους| And they cast lots to divide his garments.
Luke 23:55 καὶ ὡς ἐτέθη τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ and how his body was laid
Luke 24:23 καὶ μὴ εὑροῦσαι τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ and when they did not find his body
Luke 24:26 καὶ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ and enter into his glory
Luke 24:50 καὶ ἐπάρας τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ and lifting up his hands

Occurrences of ἑαυτοῦ in a phrase in the accusative case

Reference NET Parallel Greek ESV
Luke 2:3 εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ πόλιν to his own town
Luke 11:21 φυλάσσῃ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ αὐλήν guards his own palace
Luke 14:26 μισεῖ τὸν πατέρα ἑαυτοῦ hate his own father
καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ And…his own life
Luke 14:27 βαστάζει τὸν σταυρὸν ἑαυτοῦ bear his own cross
Luke 15:20 ἦλθεν πρὸς τὸν πατέρα ἑαυτοῦ came to his father
Luke 24:27 τὰ περὶ ἑαυτοῦ the things concerning himself
Romans 4:19 κατενόησεν τὸ ἑαυτοῦ σῶμα he considered his own body
Romans 5:8 συνίστησιν δὲ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἀγάπην But…shows his love
Romans 8:3 τὸν ἑαυτοῦ υἱὸν πέμψας sending his own Son
1 Corinthians 7:2 ἕκαστος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα ἐχέτω each man should have his own wife
1 Corinthians 7:37 τηρεῖν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ παρθένον to keep her as his betrothed
1 Corinthians 7:38 ὁ γαμίζων τὴν ἑαυτοῦ παρθένον he who marries his betrothed
1 Corinthians 10:24 μηδεὶς τὸ ἑαυτοῦ ζητείτω Let no one seek his own good
1 Corinthians 10:29 συνείδησιν δὲ λέγω οὐχὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ I do not mean your conscience
Ephesians 5:28 ὁ ἀγαπῶν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα ἑαυτὸν ἀγαπᾷ He who loves his wife loves himself.
Ephesians 5:29 Οὐδεὶς γάρ ποτε τὴν ἑαυτοῦ σάρκα ἐμίσησεν For no one ever hated his own flesh
Ephesians 5:33 ἕκαστος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα οὕτως ἀγαπάτω ὡς ἑαυτόν let each one of you love his wife as himself
1 Thessalonians 2:12 τοῦ καλοῦντος ὑμᾶς εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ βασιλείαν who calls you into his own kingdom
1 Thessalonians 4:4 εἰδέναι ἕκαστον ὑμῶν τὸ ἑαυτοῦ σκεῦος κτᾶσθαι ἐν ἁγιασμῷ that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness
Revelation 10:7 ὡς εὐηγγέλισεν τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ δούλους τοὺς προφήτας just as he announced to his servants the prophets

Tables comparing Matthew 7:24; 22:24; 1:24; 22:25; Mark 14:65; 10:11; Luke 2:3-5; Matthew 12:29; Luke 11:26; 13:18, 19; Mark 4:30, 31; John 14:9; 14:11 and 2 Corinthians 5:16 in the NET and KJV follow.

Matthew 7:24 (NET)

Matthew 7:24 (KJV)

“Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them is like a wise man who built his house on rock. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

Matthew 7:24 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 7:24 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 7:24 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Πᾶς οὖν ὅστις ἀκούει μου τοὺς λόγους |τούτους| καὶ ποιεῖ αὐτούς, ὁμοιωθήσεται ἀνδρὶ φρονίμῳ, ὅστις ᾠκοδόμησεν αὐτοῦ τὴν οἰκίαν ἐπὶ τὴν πέτραν πας ουν οστις ακουει μου τους λογους τουτους και ποιει αυτους ομοιωσω αυτον ανδρι φρονιμω οστις ωκοδομησεν την οικιαν αυτου επι την πετραν πας ουν οστις ακουει μου τους λογους τουτους και ποιει αυτους ομοιωσω αυτον ανδρι φρονιμω οστις ωκοδομησεν την οικιαν αυτου επι την πετραν

Matthew 22:24 (NET)

Matthew 22:24 (KJV)

“Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and father children for his brother.’ Saying, Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.

Matthew 22:24 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 22:24 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 22:24 (Byzantine Majority Text)

λέγοντες· διδάσκαλε, Μωϋσῆς εἶπεν· ἐάν τις ἀποθάνῃ μὴ ἔχων τέκνα, ἐπιγαμβρεύσει ὁ ἀδελφὸς αὐτοῦ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀναστήσει σπέρμα τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ λεγοντες διδασκαλε μωσης ειπεν εαν τις αποθανη μη εχων τεκνα επιγαμβρευσει ο αδελφος αυτου την γυναικα αυτου και αναστησει σπερμα τω αδελφω αυτου λεγοντες διδασκαλε μωσης ειπεν εαν τις αποθανη μη εχων τεκνα επιγαμβρευσει ο αδελφος αυτου την γυναικα αυτου και αναστησει σπερμα τω αδελφω αυτου

Matthew 1:24 (NET)

Matthew 1:24 (KJV)

When Joseph awoke from sleep he did what the angel of the Lord told him. He took his wife, Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

Matthew 1:24 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 1:24 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 1:24 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ἐγερθεὶς δὲ |ὁ| Ἰωσὴφ ἀπὸ τοῦ ὕπνου ἐποίησεν ὡς προσέταξεν αὐτῷ ὁ ἄγγελος κυρίου καὶ παρέλαβεν τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ διεγερθεις δε ο ιωσηφ απο του υπνου εποιησεν ως προσεταξεν αυτω ο αγγελος κυριου και παρελαβεν την γυναικα αυτου διεγερθεις δε ο ιωσηφ απο του υπνου εποιησεν ως προσεταξεν αυτω ο αγγελος κυριου και παρελαβεν την γυναικα αυτου

Matthew 22:25 (NET)

Matthew 22:25 (KJV)

Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children he left his wife to his brother. Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother:

Matthew 22:25 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 22:25 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 22:25 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ἦσαν δὲ παρ᾿ ἡμῖν ἑπτὰ ἀδελφοί· καὶ ὁ πρῶτος γήμας ἐτελεύτησεν, καὶ μὴ ἔχων σπέρμα ἀφῆκεν τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ ησαν δε παρ ημιν επτα αδελφοι και ο πρωτος γαμησας ετελευτησεν και μη εχων σπερμα αφηκεν την γυναικα αυτου τω αδελφω αυτου ησαν δε παρ ημιν επτα αδελφοι και ο πρωτος γαμησας ετελευτησεν και μη εχων σπερμα αφηκεν την γυναικα αυτου τω αδελφω αυτου

Mark 14:65 (NET)

Mark 14:65 (KJV)

Then some began to spit on him, and to blindfold him, and to strike him with their fists, saying, “Prophesy!” The guards also took him and beat him. And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands.

Mark 14:65 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 14:65 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 14:65 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Καὶ ἤρξαντο τινες ἐμπτύειν αὐτῷ καὶ περικαλύπτειν αὐτοῦ τὸ πρόσωπον καὶ κολαφίζειν αὐτὸν καὶ λέγειν αὐτῷ· προφήτευσον, καὶ οἱ ὑπηρέται ραπίσμασιν αὐτὸν ἔλαβον και ηρξαντο τινες εμπτυειν αυτω και περικαλυπτειν το προσωπον αυτου και κολαφιζειν αυτον και λεγειν αυτω προφητευσον και οι υπηρεται ραπισμασιν αυτον εβαλλον και ηρξαντο τινες εμπτυειν αυτω και περικαλυπτειν το προσωπον αυτου και κολαφιζειν αυτον και λεγειν αυτω προφητευσον και οι υπηρεται ραπισμασιν αυτον εβαλλον

Mark 10:11 (NET)

Mark 10:11 (KJV)

So he told them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her.

Mark 10:11 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 10:11 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 10:11 (Byzantine Majority Text)

καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· ὃς ἂν ἀπολύσῃ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ καὶ γαμήσῃ ἄλλην μοιχᾶται ἐπ᾿ αὐτήν και λεγει αυτοις ος εαν απολυση την γυναικα αυτου και γαμηση αλλην μοιχαται επ αυτην και λεγει αυτοις ος εαν απολυση την γυναικα αυτου και γαμηση αλλην μοιχαται επ αυτην

Luke 2:3-5 (NET)

Luke 2:3-5 (KJV)

Everyone went to his own town to be registered. And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

Luke 2:3 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 2:3 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 2:3 (Byzantine Majority Text)

καὶ ἐπορεύοντο πάντες ἀπογράφεσθαι, ἕκαστος εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ πόλιν και επορευοντο παντες απογραφεσθαι εκαστος εις την ιδιαν πολιν και επορευοντο παντες απογραφεσθαι εκαστος εις την ιδιαν πολιν
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family line of David. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)

Luke 2:4 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 2:4 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 2:4 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Ἀνέβη δὲ καὶ Ἰωσὴφ ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἐκ πόλεως Ναζαρὲθ εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν εἰς πόλιν Δαυὶδ ἥτις καλεῖται Βηθλέεμ, διὰ τὸ εἶναι αὐτὸν ἐξ οἴκου καὶ πατριᾶς Δαυίδ ανεβη δε και ιωσηφ απο της γαλιλαιας εκ πολεως ναζαρετ εις την ιουδαιαν εις πολιν δαβιδ ητις καλειται βηθλεεμ δια το ειναι αυτον εξ οικου και πατριας δαβιδ ανεβη δε και ιωσηφ απο της γαλιλαιας εκ πολεως ναζαρετ εις την ιουδαιαν εις πολιν δαυιδ ητις καλειται βηθλεεμ δια το ειναι αυτον εξ οικου και πατριας δαυιδ
He went to be registered with Mary, who was promised in marriage to him, and who was expecting a child. To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

Luke 2:5 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 2:5 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 2:5 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ἀπογράψασθαι σὺν Μαριὰμ τῇ ἐμνηστευμένῃ αὐτῷ, οὔσῃ ἐγκύῳ απογραψασθαι συν μαριαμ τη μεμνηστευμενη αυτω γυναικι ουση εγκυω απογραψασθαι συν μαριαμ τη μεμνηστευμενη αυτω γυναικι ουση εγκυω

Matthew 12:29 (NET)

Matthew 12:29 (KJV)

How else can someone enter a strong man’s house and steal his property, unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can thoroughly plunder the house. Or else how can one enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house.

Matthew 12:29 (NET Parallel Greek)

Matthew 12:29 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Matthew 12:29 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ἢ πῶς δύναται τις εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν τοῦ ἰσχυροῦ καὶ τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ ἁρπάσαι, ἐὰν μὴ πρῶτον δήσῃ τὸν ἰσχυρόν; καὶ τότε τὴν οἰκίαν αὐτοῦ διαρπάσει η πως δυναται τις εισελθειν εις την οικιαν του ισχυρου και τα σκευη αυτου διαρπασαι εαν μη πρωτον δηση τον ισχυρον και τοτε την οικιαν αυτου διαρπασει η πως δυναται τις εισελθειν εις την οικιαν του ισχυρου και τα σκευη αυτου διαρπασαι εαν μη πρωτον δηση τον ισχυρον και τοτε την οικιαν αυτου διαρπασει

Luke 11:26 (NET)

Luke 11:26 (KJV)

Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there, so the last state of that person is worse than the first.” Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.

Luke 11:26 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 11:26 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 11:26 (Byzantine Majority Text)

τότε πορεύεται καὶ παραλαμβάνει ἕτερα πνεύματα πονηρότερα ἑαυτοῦ ἑπτὰ καὶ εἰσελθόντα κατοικεῖ ἐκεῖ· καὶ γίνεται τὰ ἔσχατα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐκείνου χείρονα τῶν πρώτων τοτε πορευεται και παραλαμβανει επτα ετερα πνευματα πονηροτερα εαυτου και εισελθοντα κατοικει εκει και γινεται τα εσχατα του ανθρωπου εκεινου χειρονα των πρωτων τοτε πορευεται και παραλαμβανει επτα ετερα πνευματα πονηροτερα εαυτου και ελθοντα κατοικει εκει και γινεται τα εσχατα του ανθρωπου εκεινου χειρονα των πρωτων

Luke 13:18, 19 (NET)

Luke 13:18, 19 (KJV)

Thus Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? To what should I compare it? Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I resemble it?

Luke 13:18 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 13:18 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 13:18 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Ἔλεγεν οὖν· τίνι ὁμοία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τίνι ὁμοιώσω αὐτήν ελεγεν δε τινι ομοια εστιν η βασιλεια του θεου και τινι ομοιωσω αυτην ελεγεν δε τινι ομοια εστιν η βασιλεια του θεου και τινι ομοιωσω αυτην
It is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the wild birds nested in its branches.” It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it.

Luke 13:19 (NET Parallel Greek)

Luke 13:19 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Luke 13:19 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὁμοία ἐστὶν κόκκῳ σινάπεως, ὃν λαβὼν ἄνθρωπος ἔβαλεν εἰς κῆπον ἑαυτοῦ, καὶ ἠύξησεν καὶ ἐγένετο εἰς δένδρον, καὶ τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ κατεσκήνωσεν ἐν τοῖς κλάδοις αὐτοῦ ομοια εστιν κοκκω σιναπεως ον λαβων ανθρωπος εβαλεν εις κηπον εαυτου και ηυξησεν και εγενετο εις δενδρον μεγα και τα πετεινα του ουρανου κατεσκηνωσεν εν τοις κλαδοις αυτου ομοια εστιν κοκκω σιναπεως ον λαβων ανθρωπος εβαλεν εις κηπον εαυτου και ηυξησεν και εγενετο εις δενδρον μεγα και τα πετεινα του ουρανου κατεσκηνωσεν εν τοις κλαδοις αυτου

Mark 4:30, 31 (NET)

Mark 4:30, 31 (KJV)

He also asked, “To what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use to present it? And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it?

Mark 4:30 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 4:30 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 4:30 (Byzantine Majority Text)

Καὶ ἔλεγεν· πῶς ὁμοιώσωμεν τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ ἢ ἐν τίνι αὐτὴν παραβολῇ θῶμεν και ελεγεν τινι ομοιωσωμεν την βασιλειαν του θεου η εν ποια παραβολη παραβαλωμεν αυτην και ελεγεν τινι ομοιωσωμεν την βασιλειαν του θεου η εν ποια παραβολη παραβαλωμεν αυτην
It is like a mustard seed that when sown in the ground, even though it is the smallest of all the seeds in the ground— It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth:

Mark 4:31 (NET Parallel Greek)

Mark 4:31 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

Mark 4:31 (Byzantine Majority Text)

ὡς κόκκῳ σινάπεως, ὃς ὅταν σπαρῇ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, μικρότερον ὂν πάντων τῶν σπερμάτων τῶν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ως κοκκω σιναπεως ος οταν σπαρη επι της γης μικροτερος παντων των σπερματων εστιν των επι της γης ως κοκκον σιναπεως ος οταν σπαρη επι της γης μικροτερος παντων των σπερματων εστιν των επι της γης

John 14:9 (NET)

John 14:9 (KJV)

Jesus replied, “Have I been with you for so long and yet you have not known me, Philip? The person who has seen me has seen the Father! How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

John 14:9 (NET Parallel Greek)

John 14:9 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

John 14:9 (Byzantine Majority Text)

λέγει αὐτῷ |ὁ| Ἰησοῦς· |τοσούτῳ χρόνῳ| μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν εἰμι καὶ οὐκ ἔγνωκας με, Φίλιππε; ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ ἑώρακεν τὸν πατέρα· πῶς σὺ λέγεις· δεῖξον ἡμῖν τὸν πατέρα λεγει αυτω ο ιησους τοσουτον χρονον μεθ υμων ειμι και ουκ εγνωκας με φιλιππε ο εωρακως εμε εωρακεν τον πατερα και πως συ λεγεις δειξον ημιν τον πατερα λεγει αυτω ο ιησους τοσουτον χρονον μεθ υμων ειμι και ουκ εγνωκας με φιλιππε ο εωρακως εμε εωρακεν τον πατερα και πως συ λεγεις δειξον ημιν τον πατερα

John 14:11 (NET)

John 14:11 (KJV)

Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father is in me, but if you do not believe me, believe because of the miraculous deeds themselves. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.

John 14:11 (NET Parallel Greek)

John 14:11 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

John 14:11 (Byzantine Majority Text)

πιστεύετε μοι ὅτι ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ πατρὶ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί· εἰ δὲ μή, διὰ τὰ ἔργα αὐτὰ πιστεύετε πιστευετε μοι οτι εγω εν τω πατρι και ο πατηρ εν εμοι ει δε μη δια τα εργα αυτα πιστευετε μοι πιστευετε μοι οτι εγω εν τω πατρι και ο πατηρ εν εμοι ει δε μη δια τα εργα αυτα πιστευετε μοι

2 Corinthians 5:16 (NET)

2 Corinthians 5:16 (KJV)

So then from now on we acknowledge no one from an outward human point of view. Even though we have known Christ from such a human point of view, now we do not know him in that way any longer. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.

2 Corinthians 5:16 (NET Parallel Greek)

2 Corinthians 5:16 (Stephanus Textus Receptus)

2 Corinthians 5:16 (Byzantine Majority Text)

῞Ωστε ἡμεῖς ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν οὐδένα οἴδαμεν κατὰ σάρκα· εἰ καὶ ἐγνώκαμεν κατὰ σάρκα Χριστόν, ἀλλὰ νῦν οὐκέτι γινώσκομεν ωστε ημεις απο του νυν ουδενα οιδαμεν κατα σαρκα ει δε και εγνωκαμεν κατα σαρκα χριστον αλλα νυν ουκετι γινωσκομεν ωστε ημεις απο του νυν ουδενα οιδαμεν κατα σαρκα ει δε και εγνωκαμεν κατα σαρκα χριστον αλλα νυν ουκετι γινωσκομεν

1 1 Corinthians 7:36 (ESV)

2 1 Corinthians 7:37, 38 (ESV) Table

8 Matthew 12:29a (ESV) and Mark 3:27a (ESV) Table

9 Matthew 12:29b (ESV) and Mark 3:27b (ESV) Table

10 Luke 11:24a (ESV)

12 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had οὖν (NET: Then) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had δε (KJV: Then).

13 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had μεγα (KJV: great) following tree. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

14 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had πῶς (NET: To what) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had τινι (KJV: Whereunto).

16 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had θῶμεν (NET: to present) here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had παραβαλωμεν (KJV: shall we compare).

18 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had εστιν (KJV: that be) following seeds. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

21 John 17:3 (ESV)

22 Acts 17:28a (ESV)

24 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had και (KJV: and) at the beginning of this clause. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

25 The Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had μοι (KJV: me) following believe. The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 did not.

26 John 15:4 (ESV) Table

27 The NET parallel Greek text and NA28 had εἰ καὶ here, where the Stephanus Textus Receptus and Byzantine Majority Text had ει δε και (KJV: yea, though).

Condemnation or Judgment? – Part 12

I am considering a pastor’s advice offered in another blog as an example of confusing directions and as a case in point: If wicked (râshâʽ, לרשע) sinners (raʽ, רע) are those who refuse to stop trusting in human beings, whether others or themselves, we all qualify.  And this journey to discover just who these sinners are was prompted by my bias that—He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked[1] (râshâʽ, רשע)—prophesies Jesus’ return to earth to preach the Gospel effectively (as opposed to executing people for a thousand years).

The pastor’s advice was essentially a to-do list: refuse, consider the consequences, focus on God and ignore the lies of the enemy, avoid/run, and accountability.  I considered the first two in the previous essay and will pick up again here.

Focus on God and ignore the lies of the enemy
Find fulfillment in your first love and ignore the enemy’s temptation towards the satisfaction of the flesh.

I have no quarrel with this if it is by the Holy Spirit.  This should be item number one on the list.  I, however, found a way to attempt this in the flesh.  My Dad could calculate how much I cost him to the penny, even a scuff mark on the floor.  I had already cost Jesus his life.  I didn’t want to cost Him anything more.  I thought my emotions in response to his sacrifice should motivate me to live a sinless life.  (I don’t think I even considered righteousness at the time or anything beyond not sinning.)  So, I didn’t believe Paul’s words in the sixth chapter of Romans were true, but merely hyperbole to affect my emotions, to motivate ME to action, not something I should believe to be saved (Romans 6:3, 4 NET):

Or do you not know that as many as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  Therefore we have been buried with him through baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may live a new life.

That new life (ἐν καινότητι ζωῆς περιπατήσωμεν; walk in newness of life [ESV]) is here and now: Now this is eternal life – that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you sent.[2]  For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death,[3] Paul continued; that is if we believe that we have been buried with him through baptism into death, then and only then we will certainly also be united in the likeness of his resurrection.[4]

We know that our old man was crucified with him so that the body of sin would no longer dominate us, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.[5]  Should I deny this because of my behavior?  No, I believe until it changes my behavior.  Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.[6]  Paul continued (Romans 6:11-14 NET):

So you too consider yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires, and do not present your members to sin as instruments to be used for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who are alive from the dead and your members to God as instruments to be used for righteousness.  For sin will have no mastery over you, because you are not under law but under grace.

But if I attempt to find fulfillment in laws or rules or procedures, even the pastor’s to-do list, I have fallen away from grace and committed a superπορνεία.  And that is essentially the context of the concept first [e.g., foremost as opposed to first in temporal order] love: But I have this against you, Jesus said to the church at Ephesus, You have departed from your first love![7]

[Addendum 8/16/16: The words translated you and your are singular.  Though the letters were intended to be read by the churches the content is addressed primarily to the angel of each individual church.  I found a pdf online with color codes highlighting when the pronouns and verbs are singular and plural.  The commentary to the right of this pdf assumes that angel meant human pastor, which I also assumed until very recently.  I haven’t thought through the implications yet of angel as a higher order being in this particular context.  I don’t know whether a plural church might be addressed with singular pronouns and verbs.  My understanding of the message to/about the church in Ephesus which follows was predicated on a false assumption that the pronouns and verbs were plural.]

I know your works as well as your labor and steadfast endurance, He had said previously, and that you cannot tolerate evil.  You have even put to the test those who refer to themselves as apostles (but are not), and have discovered that they are false.  I am also aware that you have persisted steadfastly, endured much for the sake of my name, and have not grown weary.[8]

The Ephesian church was a successful church.  Am I wrong to imagine that they had developed offices and procedures, filled with officers operating under strict protocols?  That they had constructed this self-sustaining church with their own hands?  But what happens when the love which is the fulfillment (πλήρωμα) of the law[9] becomes an office, a ministry, a subdivision of the Church rather than the fruit of the Spirit empowering every individual believer?  Therefore, remember from what high state you have fallen and repent, Jesus continued.  Do the deeds you did at the first [e.g., first in temporal order since knowing Christ]; if not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place – that is, if you do not repent.[10]  In other words, their first (πρῶτα, a form of πρῶτος) deeds when they were more faithful and less successfully sophisticated were their foremost (πρώτην, another form of πρῶτος) in Jesus’ eyes.

What was that high state?  I take Paul’s prayer as my starting point (Ephesians 3:14-19 NET):

I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on the earth is named.  I pray that according to the wealth of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit (πνεύματος, a form of πνεῦμα) in the inner person, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love, you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up (πληρωθῆτε, another form of πληρόω) to all the fullness (πλήρωμα) of God.

I don’t have much to say about ignoring “the enemy’s temptation toward the satisfaction of the flesh.”  Satan is finite.  I doubt that many of us merit his personal attention.  I was confronted by what I assume was a demon once.  I don’t recall what it said.  I said something like, “Jesus wouldn’t like it if I did that.”  It growled and left.  No, I wasn’t frightened in the moment, but the memory of it bothered me for weeks.  That’s probably why I don’t remember what it said.

So submit to God, James wrote.  But resist the devil and he will flee from you.[11]  I’ve never found resisting the devil particularly helpful since temptation usually comes from my own desires: But each one is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desires.[12]  Though I didn’t always think so, I now assume that the sin in my flesh (Romans 7:15-20) and the evil ideas, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander that come out of my heart function apart from the inspiration or activation of demons, evil spirits or devils.  Believing the Gospel is far more fruitful as it pertains to sin and righteousness.  Perhaps I am being very slow and dense.  Believing the Gospel is probably the best way to submit to God which is in turn the most powerful way to resist the devil relative to any frontal assault I might mount on my own.

Nathan’s response to David, however, has been particularly helpful with sexual temptation (2 Samuel 12:1-4 NET):

So the Lord (yehôvâh, יהוה) sent Nathan to David.  When he came to David, Nathan said, “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor (Table).  The rich man had a great many flocks and herds (Table).  But the poor man had nothing except for a little lamb he had acquired.  He raised it, and it grew up alongside him and his children.  It used to eat his food, drink from his cup, and sleep in his arms.  It was just like a daughter to him (Table).

“When a traveler arrived at the rich man’s home, he did not want to use one of his own sheep or cattle to feed the traveler who had come to visit him.  Instead, he took the poor man’s lamb and cooked it for the man who had come to visit him (Table).”

Here there is no mention of resisting the devil or the “lies of the enemy.”  After David committed adultery with Uriah’s wife, Nathan as yehôvâh’s prophet pictured sexual desire as a hungry traveler who should be shown hospitality with that which is one’s own as opposed to that belonging to another.

Avoid/Run
Keep yourself out of a situation that may cause you to fall. If tempted, run while it’s still light.

Flee sexual immorality (πορνείαν, a form of πορνεία),[13] Paul wrote the Corinthians.  I’ve written elsewhere what I think about πορνεία, that it can mean adultery.  I think the “sin of premarital sex,” however, has more to do with middle-class values than yehôvâh’s law.  It is unfortunate, to say the least, that the meaning of πορνεία was stretched to free young men primarily (when they repent of their “sins of premarital sex”) from their marital obligations to pursue their educations and higher earning potentials.

I expect Jesus to speak to us as He spoke to other religious people (Mark 7:6-9 NET):

“Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites [e.g., actors], as it is written: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.  They worship me in vain, teaching as doctrine the commandments of men.’  Having no regard for the command of God, you hold fast to human tradition.”  He also said to them, “You neatly reject the commandment of God in order to set up your tradition.”

Be that as it may if temptation is external to the one being tempted, leaving is good advice.  If you find that you only lust in your heart during or after your visit to a strip club, stop going to strip clubs.  I think that coincides well with flee πορνείαν if Paul meant sexualized pagan worship: Don’t go to church there.

I won’t eat at Hooter’s, not because I lust after the young waitresses.  I stared a nude woman dead in the eyes when I needed to talk to her on set.  But put a clothed woman in front of me with great cleavage and my eyes wander away from hers, even away from her lips (and I do a lot more lip reading as I age).  Well, they don’t mind, a friend told me.  I do.  An old man like me staring at young women’s cleavage is embarrassing and not worth the effort it takes not to do it.  I get my chicken wings to go (and, yes, I tip my waitress).

Music was the big thing for me.  I consider myself a recovering musician.  For years I played nothing but hymns and tried to compose a non-sensual music.  I didn’t know how to do that so I wrote music to accompany Scripture.  The only thing that changed was the calendar-age of the women I gave goose bumps when I played.  Eventually I gave it up and have been relieved not to have music in my head all the time.  This is not to say that playing or composing music is inherently evil.  I am considering only my hyper-sensual relationship to music.  Frank Zappa described it best.  Who knows, maybe it was his relationship, too.

I would like to highlight two rather obvious limits to fleeing and to the meaning of πορνεία.  If anyone thinks he is acting inappropriately toward his virgin, if she is past the bloom of youth and it seems necessary, he should do what he wishes; he does not sin.  Let them marry.[14]  The Greek word translated thinks he is acting inappropriately is ἀσχημονεῖν (a form of ἀσχημονέω).  To what manner of inappropriateness does ἀσχημονεῖν refer?  It comes from ἀσχήμων, which Paul used obliquely for the penis or vagina a little later in this letter: and those members we consider less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our unpresentable members (ἀσχήμονα, a form of ἀσχήμων) are clothed with dignity[15]

Love, by the way, does not act inappropriately: It is not rude (ἀσχημονεῖ, another form of ἀσχημονέω).[16]  So we have behavior between a man and his woman that is not sin: Let them marry.  And it is not love either.  Again, I will make my appeal for fuck and fucking.  They are very evocative words in the English language, distinguished and distinguishable from love, if we abandon our religious pretensions in favor of accurate verbal communication.

Therefore they were seeking again to seize Him, and He eluded their grasp.[17]  I remember vividly the moment I stared at this verse and realized it wasn’t describing some otherworldly event.  Jesus hiked up his skirt, hoofed it and outran the old men who wanted to stone Him.  And I imagine young John was huffing it out right beside Him.  As they lost their pursuers around a corner, leaned against a wall to catch their breath and laughed together, the Son of God became human to me.

Perhaps Simon the Pharisee expected Jesus to hike up his skirt and hoof it, if He were a prophet.  Had Jesus fled from Mary we would have a very different story to consider.  Maybe it would be more to our liking; that’s difficult to say.

I’ll conclude this in another essay.

Condemnation or Judgment? – Part 13

Back to The Angels Will Gather

Back to Paul’s Religious Mind Revisited – Part 1

[1] Isaiah 11:4b (NIV)

[2] John 17:3 (NET)

[3] Romans 6:5a (NET)

[4] Romans 6:5b (NET)

[5] Romans 6:6 (NET)

[6] Romans 6:8 (NET)

[7] Revelation 2:4 (NET)

[8] Revelation 2:2, 3 (NET)

[9] Romans 13:10b (NET)

[10] Revelation 2:5 (NET)

[11] James 4:7 (NET)

[12] James 1:14 (NET)

[13] 1 Corinthians 6:18a (NET)

[14] 1 Corinthians 7:36 (NET)

[15] 1 Corinthians 12:23 (NET)

[16] 1 Corinthians 13:5a (NET)

[17] John 10:39 (NASB)

Young, Virginal or Single

In Romans, Part 30 I said that sexual desire for someone other than my wife was like a distant early warning system, alerting me to which I was asserting control.  Things may not be so clear, however, for the young, virginal or single.  Simply put, how does one distinguish between the sexual desire that is of the flesh and sexual desire for a spouse-to-be?

Paul wrote, If anyone thinks he is acting inappropriately (ἀσχημονεῖν, a form of ἀσχημονέω) toward his virgin, if she is past the bloom of youth and it seems necessary (ὀφείλει, a form of ὀφείλω), he should do what he wishes (θέλει, a form of θέλω); he does not sin.  Let them marry (γαμείτωσαν, a form of γαμέω).1  So if a man (Paul seems to be addressing men) thinks his kissing, fondling, whatever, is inappropriate toward a virgin…  (And I wouldn’t get too carried away with the technicality virgin.)  If a man thinks his kissing, fondling, whatever is inappropriate toward a woman he has not married…  The word translated thinks he is acting inappropriately here is the same word translated rude in [Love] is not rude (ἀσχημονεῖ, another form of ἀσχημονέω), it is not self-serving, it is not easily angered or resentful.2

If she is past the bloom of youth, in other words, she is not too young, and it seems necessary (ὀφείλει, a form of ὀφείλω)…  I realize, on the surface of things, this reads like the man alone makes this decision.  But here with Paul’s reprise of a woman’s sexual rights, or a sexual debt owed to the woman (A husband should give to his wife her sexual rights [ὀφειλὴν, a form of ὀφειλή])3 that superficial reading comes most profoundly into question.  Once a woman has decided that she is owed sexual gratification there is not much a man can do about it but marry her or drop her hard.  I hope it is clear that the third option, to take advantage of her sexually and then drop her hard, is of the flesh.

Paul made no secret of the fact that he preferred that men remain single, An unmarried (ἄγαμος) man is concerned about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord.  But a married (γαμήσας, another form of γαμέω) man is concerned about the things of the world, how to please his wife, and he is divided.4  I wish (θέλω) that everyone was as I am, he wrote.  But each has his own gift from God, one this way, another that.5   In the next verse of instruction to the unmarried it seems on the surface that Paul has stacked the deck in favor of remaining single, but as I examine his word choices in detail I think the opposite is actually the case, so that no one but those gifted by God to do so choose to remain single.

But the man who is firm (ἕστηκεν, a form of ἵστημι) in his commitment (ἑδραῖος), and is under (ἔχων, a form of ἔχω) no necessity (ἀνάγκην, a form of ἀναγκή) but has (ἔχει, another form of ἔχω) control (ἐξουσίαν, a form of ἐξουσία) over his will (θελήματος, a form of θέλημα), and has decided (κέκρικεν, a form of κρίνω) in his own mind (καρδίᾳ, a form of καρδία) to keep (τηρεῖν, a form of τηρέω) his own virgin, does well (καλῶς; literally, “beautifully“).6

The phrase firm in his commitment (to stand immovable) is fairly clear even in English as an allusion to an erection.  Paul wanted men to really grapple with the caliber of commitment required.  Then, and is under (literally, having) no necessity, hearkens back to verse 2, because of πορνείας (a form of πορνεία), let each man have (ἐχέτω, another form of ἔχω) his own wife.7  Though necessity here might refer to a pregnancy, I’m convinced that Paul would say that that man’s choice to marry was already made.  It is the same word (ἀνάγκην, a form of ἀναγκή) Paul used in verse 26, Because of the impending crisis (τὴν ἐνεστῶσαν ἀνάγκην) I think it best for you to remain as you are.8  In the NKJV the same phrase was translated the present distress.  The allusion now is to a painful erection.

So I have a man who is 1) firm in his commitment, 2) has no necessity or distress concerning that commitment, but 3) has control (ἐξουσίαν, a form of ἐξουσία) over his will (θελήματος, a form of θέλημα).  This hearkens back to the ἐξουσιάζει that the wife has over her husband’s body: it is not the husband who has the rights (ἐξουσιάζει, a form of ἐξουσιάζω) to his own body (σώματος, a form of σῶμα), but the wife.9  In other words, this particular woman has not crept very deeply into this particular man’s mind, or heart as the case may be.  And, 4) he has decided (κέκρικεν, a form of κρίνωjudged) in his own mind (καρδίᾳ, a form of καρδία; literally, heart) to keep (τηρεῖν, a form of τηρέω) his own virgin.

It sounds as if the man has decided to keep the woman a virgin, but I think there is more to τηρεῖν (a form of τηρέω) than that.  He will keep her, provide for her maintenance and support, love her, care for her (perhaps live with her) in every way a man would keep a wife, except that he will not have sexual relations with her.  And how firm in his commitment will he remain, without painful distress, having control over his will?  That, I think, is more what Paul had in mind here, so that the one who dared such a thing did it with the power of God and, at very least, the acquiescence of his beloved, if not her full participation and support. [Addendum June 27, 2024: I had a change of heart about the Greek in this passage later.]

I have played a lot of weddings in my life, for the ceremony, not the party after.  I have heard the jokes by priests, pastors and preachers at the rehearsal, that “this isn’t the real thing.”  I was close enough to one of those pastors to actually get at what he meant.  He hated wedding rehearsals, not because it was another night away from his family without pay, but because he feared that the young couple would be so carried away by the rehearsal that they would have sex (with each other) twenty-four hours too soon.  I didn’t know what to make of that at the time.  Now I wish to say clearly that I think it is part of the religious mind.  It is exactly the same species of religious thought as the one who supposes that he is free of the sin of adultery because his serial sexual relationships were never blessed by a priest, pastor or rabbi.

 


1 1 Corinthians 7:36 (NET)

2 1 Corinthians 13:5 (NET)

3 1 Corinthians 7:3a (NET) Table

4 1 Corinthians 7:32-34a (NET) Table

5 1 Corinthians 7:7 (NET) Table

6 1 Corinthians 7:37 (NET) Table

7 1 Corinthians 7:2a (NKJV)

8 1 Corinthians 7:26 (NET)

9 1 Corinthians 7:4b (NET) Table