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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Mat C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24 C25 C26 C27 C28
Mat 12 V1 V3 V5 V7 V9 V11 V13 V15 V17 V19 V21 V23 V25 V27 V29 V31 V33 V35 V37 V39 V41 V43 V47 V49
OET (OET-LV) Then it_is_going and is_taking with itself seven other spirits more_evil than itself, and having_come_in it_is_dwelling there, and the last state of_the that person is_becoming worse than the first.
Thus it_will_be also to_ the this - evil _generation.
OET (OET-RV) So it goes and find seven other spirits more evil than itself and they all go to live there, so the later state of that person is worse that it was at the beginning. So now, it’ll be just like that for this evil generation.”
In this section, the conflict between Jesus and the religious leaders increases. Jesus had already said several times that he was someone special. He said that he was greater than the temple (12:6). He said that he was Lord of the Sabbath (12:8). In this section, the religious leaders wanted to see a miraculous sign to confirm that he was really from God.
Jesus rebuked the religious leaders for asking for a sign, and he refused to give them an immediate sign. A sign would come later. It would be the sign of Jonah. By referring to the sign of Jonah, Jesus meant that he would be in the grave three days (12:40) before God resurrected him. He then told two stories and said that he was greater than Jonah and Solomon. Jesus warned them that if they did not recognize God’s work among them, they would be condemned.
Finally, Jesus told a story to warn the religious leaders of the spiritual dangers that faced them if they did not have the Holy Spirit in their lives.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
The religious leaders ask for a sign/miracle
The sign of Jonah
There is a parallel passage for 12:38–42 in Luke 11:29–32. There is a parallel passage for 12:43–45 in Luke 11:24–26.
This paragraph warns that removing evil from a person’s life is not enough. The person must also fill himself with good. The way that someone fills himself with good is not explicitly mentioned. The implied way is by following Jesus and having the Holy Spirit fill him.
Jesus used the present tense for all the verbs in 12:43–45. The present tense shows that this is a general example: these events commonly happen for this situation. Use the proper tense in your language to show that this is a general example.
Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself,
Then it goes away and finds seven other spirits that are more evil than itself. It brings them along,
Then he goes away and invites/calls seven other unclean/evil spirits. They are more evil than he is. He brings them back with him to the person,
Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself: This clause means that the unclean spirit goes away, finds seven other unclean spirits, and brings them back to his house. In some languages, it may be necessary to divide this long clause into several sentences. For example:
it goes off and finds seven other evil spirits even worse than itself. They all come (CEV)
Then he goes away and invites seven other unclean/evil spirits. These spirits are even worse than he is. He brings them with him
seven other spirits: These spirits are unclean/evil spirits like the first one. But they are even more evil.
and they go in and dwell there;
and they enter that house and remain there.
and they enter the person and live there and possess/control him.
they go in and dwell there: The pronoun they refers to the unclean spirit plus the seven other evil spirits. These eight evil spirits are pictured as entering and living in the person like people enter and live in a house.
Here are some other ways to translate this metaphor:
Keep the metaphor of the house. For example:
they enter that house and live there
Use terms that refer directly to evil spirits possessing a person. For example:
they all enter the person and live there (NLT)
they possess the person
Use general terms that could refer to either a house or a person. For example:
they go in and live there (NCV)
and the final plight of that man is worse than the first.
The later life of that person is worse than his earlier life.
So, that person will suffer more than before.
the final plight of that man is worse than the first: The word plight refers to the man’s “state of being” or his “life.” The eight demons will make this man’s life much worse than when the one demon was controlling his life.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
the person has even more trouble than before (NCV)
the life of that person is worse than before
the sufferings/troubles of that person will surpass those of before
So will it be with this wicked generation.”
And it will be the same with the evil people living today.”
That is the same thing that will happen to you wicked people of today.”
So will it be with this wicked generation: This clause is the conclusion or application of what Jesus said in 12:43–44. In this clause, Jesus compared the people of this evil generation to the person who had the evil spirit. He said that the end of the lives of the people of this generation will be worse than the beginning of their lives.
The people of this evil generation had seen Jesus cast out an evil spirit. If they did not replace the evil in their lives with the Holy Spirit, they would suffer.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
It is the same way with the evil people who live today. (NCV)
That is like what will happen to the evil people who live today.
The lives of the people of this evil generation will be like the life of the person with a demon. The end will be worse than the beginning.
this wicked generation: This phrase refers to the people who lived at the same time as Jesus. Many of them were evil/bad. A similar phrase occurs in 12:39a.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
evil people who live today
bad people who are alive now
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / go
πορεύεται
˱it˲_˓is˒_going
In a context such as this, your language might say “comes” instead of goes. Alternate translation: [it comes]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
εἰσελθόντα κατοικεῖ ἐκεῖ
˓having˒_come_in ˱it˲_˓is˒_dwelling there
Here Jesus implies that the evil spirits entered the man and lived in him. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [they having entered the man, it resides in him]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / exmetaphor
εἰσελθόντα κατοικεῖ ἐκεῖ
˓having˒_come_in ˱it˲_˓is˒_dwelling there
Here Jesus continues to refer to the person whom the evil spirit formerly controlled as if he were a house. When the evil spirits control the man, it is as if they are living in him as their home. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use simile form or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [having entered, they reside there as if he were their home] or [having overpowered the man, they possess him]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
κατοικεῖ
˱it˲_˓is˒_dwelling
Here Jesus speaks of the evil spirit living in the man, but he implies that the seven other spirits also live in the man. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [the spirits reside]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom
γίνεται τὰ ἔσχατα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐκείνου χείρονα τῶν πρώτων
˓is˒_becoming (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Τότε πορεύεται καί παραλαμβάνει μεθʼ ἑαυτοῦ ἑπτά ἑτέρα πνεύματα πονηρότερα ἑαυτοῦ καί εἰσελθόντα κατοικεῖ ἐκεῖ καί γίνεται τά ἔσχατα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐκείνου χείρονα τῶν πρώτων Οὕτως ἔσται καί τῇ γενεᾷ ταύτῃ τῇ πονηρᾷ)
Here, the phrase last things refers to the situation or condition of the man after the evil spirits return. The phrase the first things refers to the situation or condition of the man before the first evil spirit left him. Jesus means that the man’s situation or condition is now worse than it was when he only had one evil spirit possessing him. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [that man’s condition is now worse than it was before] or [the current situation of that man has become worse than the previous situation]
Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy
τῇ γενεᾷ ταύτῃ τῇ πονηρᾷ
¬the ˱to˲_generation this ¬the evil
Here, generation represents the people who are part of the generation, which means that they are adults who are currently alive. See how you translated the similar expression in [12:39](../12/39.md). Alternate translation: [with today’s people who are evil] or [with evil people of this generation]
12:22-45 The Messiah was rejected by the Pharisees, the teachers of religious law, and his own generation.
OET (OET-LV) Then it_is_going and is_taking with itself seven other spirits more_evil than itself, and having_come_in it_is_dwelling there, and the last state of_the that person is_becoming worse than the first.
Thus it_will_be also to_ the this - evil _generation.
OET (OET-RV) So it goes and find seven other spirits more evil than itself and they all go to live there, so the later state of that person is worse that it was at the beginning. So now, it’ll be just like that for this evil generation.”
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.
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