OET interlinear MAT 8:17

8:17a

This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: There are two ways to interpret the way that 8:17a is connected to 8:16b–c:

1. It is the purpose for which Jesus healed people. According to this interpretation, Jesus cast out demons and healed the sick so that scripture would be fulfilled. For example:

   He did this to make come true what the prophet Isaiah had said (GNT) (BSB, NIV, GNT, ESV, KJV, NASB, REB, RSV, NCV)

2. It is the result of Jesus healing people. According to this interpretation, Jesus cast out demons and healed the sick, and as a result scripture was fulfilled. For example:

   So God’s promise came true, just as the prophet Isaiah had said (CEV) (GW, CEV, NLT, JBP)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). The Greek conjunction in this sentence clearly indicates purpose.

A similar clause occurs in 1:22. See how you translated that clause.

to fulfill: The word fulfill means “to make come true” or “to make happen as it was foretold/prophesied.”

Here are some other ways to translate this word:

He did this to make come true what the prophet Isaiah had said (GNT)

He did these things to bring about what Isaiah the prophet had said (NCV)

what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as through the prophet Isaiah can also be translated as “by the prophet Isaiah” (as also in the ESV). This phrase indicates that the following words did not come from Isaiah himself. They came from God through Isaiah. God spoke the following words to Isaiah, and Isaiah then spoke them to the people. Isaiah also wrote them down.

This is a passive clause. Some ways to translate it are:

• Use a passive verb. For example:

  what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah (NIV)

• Use an active verb. For example:

  the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said (NLT)

  what God spoke to the people through the prophet Isaiah

prophet: A prophet is a person who spoke on behalf of God. God spoke to the prophet Isaiah through words and visions. Then the prophet told God’s message (the prophecy) to the people or wrote it down for their use.

See how you translated prophet in 1:22 and 4:14. See also prophet in the Glossary for further information.

8:17b

Verse 8:17b is a quote from Isaiah 53:4. It is also a Hebrew form of poetry called a parallelism. In a parallelism, an idea is repeated.

In the example below, one parallel pair in 8:17b is underlined. The other parallel pair is made bold. Notice that the parts of each pair are similar in meaning.

He took on our infirmities

and carried our diseases.

In some languages, people will think that the parallel parts in 8:17b describe different events. In other words, they will think that “He took on our infirmities” and “carried our diseases” describe different events.

If that is true in your language, you should:

• Indicate that both expressions refer to the same thing. For example:

  He took on our infirmities,

  I repeat, he carried our diseases.

• Combine the parallel parts. For example:

  He took on our infirmities and diseases.

  He took away all our infirmities.

He took on our infirmities and carried our diseases: Early Christians understood these words from Isaiah to refer to Jesus dealing with sin, sorrow and sickness when he died on the cross. The verb took on means that in some sense Jesus “took away” people’s sins and diseases, and he “took them on himself.” The verb carried is a synonym. He “carried away” or “removed” people’s sins and sicknesses, and he “carried/bore” them on himself on the cross. He paid for them and removed them when he died. In the passage from Isaiah, the verbs took and carried seem to have only a spiritual sense.

However, Matthew applied this verse to Jesus healing people. The way Matthew applied this verse from Isaiah, the verb took means “took away” and the verb carried mean “removed” in the sense of “healed.” These verbs have a physical sense.

Here are some other ways to translate these verbs:

• Use verbs that refer only to the spiritual sense of “bearing” people’s sickness as found in Isaiah. For example:

  He took our suffering on him and carried our diseases. (NCV)

• Find verbs that can be used in both a spiritual and physical sense. For example:

  He himself took our sickness and carried away our diseases. (GNT)

• Use verbs that refer to the physical healing in the Matthew context. For example:

  He healed our diseases and made us well. (CEV)

He: The pronoun He is emphasized in the Greek. Some English versions show this emphasis. For example:

He himself (NJB)