LUKE 17:2 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) It would be better if that person had a heavy weight tied to them and got thrown into the sea than if they cause a younger one to stumble.

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.

UST It would be better for that person if someone fastened a huge stone around his neck and threw him into the sea than if he were to cause someone to sin whose faith was weak.

BSB It would be better for him to have a millstone hung around his neck and to be thrown into the sea than {to cause} one of these little [ones] to stumble.

MSB It would be better for him to have a large millstone[fn] hung around his neck and to be thrown into the sea than {to cause} one of these little [ones] to stumble.

BLB It is better for him if a millstone is hung around his neck and he is thrown into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.

AICNT “[[But]][fn] It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, rather than causing one of these little ones to stumble.

17:2, But: Included in D(05). ‖ Some manuscripts read “However.” Latin(a b ff² i)

OEB It would be better for them if they had been flung into the sea with a millstone round their neck, rather than that they should cause even one of these little ones to stumble.

WEBBE It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, rather than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET It would be better for him to have a millstone tied around his neck and be thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.

LSV it is more profitable to him if a weighty millstone is put around his neck, and he has been cast into the sea, than that he may cause one of these little ones to stumble.

FBV For such people it would be better to have a millstone hung around the neck and be thrown into the sea than to cause these little ones to sin.

TCNT It would be better for him if a [fn]heavy millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to stumble.

17:2 heavy ¦ — ANT CT

T4T Suppose you caused one of these people who do not believe in me very strongly to sin. If a huge stone was fastened {someone fastened a huge stone} around your neck and you were thrown {and threw you} into the sea, you would consider that a severe punishment, but God will punish you even more severely if you cause someone to sin!

LEB It would be better for him if _⌊a millstone_⌋[fn] is placed around his neck and he is thrown into the sea than that he causes one of these little ones to sin.

17:2 Literally “a stone belonging to a mill”

BBE It would be well for him if a great stone was put round his neck and he was dropped into the sea, before he made trouble for any of these little ones.

Moff it would be well for him to have a millstone hung round his neck and be flung into the sea, rather than prove a hindrance to one of these little ones!

Wymth It would be well for him if, with a millstone round his neck, he were lying at the bottom of the sea, rather than that he should cause even one of these little ones to fall.

ASV It were well for him if a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, rather than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.

DRA It were better for him, that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should scandalize one of these little ones.

YLT it is more profitable to him if a weighty millstone is put round about his neck, and he hath been cast into the sea, than that he may cause one of these little ones to stumble.

Drby It would be [more] profitable for him if a millstone were hanged about his neck and he cast into the sea, than that he should be a snare to one of these little ones.

RV It were well for him if a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, rather than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble.

SLT It is profitable to him if the millstone of an ass were placed about his neck, and he cast into the sea, rather than he should offend one of these little ones.

Wbstr It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to fall into sin.

KJB-1769 It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.

KJB-1611 It were better for him that a milstone were hanged about his necke, and he cast into the Sea, then that he should offend one of these little ones.
(It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the Sea, then that he should offend one of these little ones.)

Bshps It were better for hym, that a mylstone were hanged about his necke, & he cast into the sea, then that he shoulde offende one of these litle ones.
(It were better for him, that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, then that he should offend one of these little ones.)

Gnva It is better for him that a great milstone were hanged about his necke, and that he were cast into ye sea, then that he should offende one of these litle ones.
(It is better for him that a great millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were cast into ye/you_all sea, then that he should offend one of these little ones. )

Cvdl It were better for him, that a mylstone were hanged aboute his neck, and he cast in to the see, then that he shulde offende one of these litle ones.
(It were better for him, that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast in to the sea, then that he should offend one of these little ones.)

TNT It were better for him that a mylstone were hanged aboute his necke and that he were cast into ye see then that he shuld offende one of this lytleons.
(It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and that he were cast into ye/you_all see then that he should offend one of this littleons. )

Wycl It is more profitable to him, if a mylne stoon be put aboute his necke, and he be cast in to the see, than that he sclaundre oon of these litle.
(It is more profitable to him, if a mylne stone be put about his neck, and he be cast in to the sea, than that he sclaundre one of these little.)

Luth Es wäre ihm nützer, daß man einen Mühlstein an seinen Hals hängete und würfe ihn ins Meer, denn daß er dieser Kleinen einen ärgert.
(It were him user, that man a Mühlstein at/to his neck/throat hung and würfe him/it into_the sea, because/than that he this small_one(s) a annoys.)

ClVg Utilius est illi si lapis molaris imponatur circa collum ejus, et projiciatur in mare quam ut scandalizet unum de pusillis istis.[fn]
(Utilius it_is them when/but_if stone molaris imponatur around/about neck/spout his, and proyiciatur in/into/on the_sea how as scandalizet one from/about little_ones to_these. )

17.2 Si lapis molaris, etc. Secundum ritum provinciæ ubi erat ista criminum pœna, ut alligato saxo in profundum demergerentur. Et vere utilius innoxium pœna gravissima vitam finire, quam lædendo fratrem mortem mœreri perpetuam. De pusillis. Non ætate, sed fide et animo, qui occasiones quærunt quomodo scandalizentur, ideo consulere oportet vos his ne occasione vestri recedant a fide et a salute.

17.2 When/But_if stone molaris, etc. After/Second ritual provinces where was these_(ones) criminum punishment, as alligato saxo in/into/on depth demergerentur. And really/truly utilius harmless/innocent punishment serious/important/heavysima life finire, how lædendo brother death mœreri perpetualm. From/About little_ones. Not/No age, but with_faith and in_mind, who/which on_occasions they_seek how scandalizentur, therefore/for_that_reason consulere it_is_necessary you(pl) his not on_occasion yours they_retreat from with_faith and from salute.

UGNT λυσιτελεῖ αὐτῷ εἰ λίθος μυλικὸς περίκειται περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔρριπται εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν, ἢ ἵνα σκανδαλίσῃ τῶν μικρῶν τούτων ἕνα.
(lusitelei autōi ei lithos mulikos perikeitai peri ton traⱪaʸlon autou, kai erriptai eis taʸn thalassan, aʸ hina skandalisaʸ tōn mikrōn toutōn hena.)

SBL-GNT λυσιτελεῖ αὐτῷ εἰ ⸂λίθος μυλικὸς⸃ περίκειται περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔρριπται εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν ἢ ἵνα σκανδαλίσῃ ⸂τῶν μικρῶν τούτων ἕνα⸃.
(lusitelei autōi ei ⸂lithos mulikos⸃ perikeitai peri ton traⱪaʸlon autou kai erriptai eis taʸn thalassan aʸ hina skandalisaʸ ⸂tōn mikrōn toutōn hena⸃.)

RP-GNT Λυσιτελεῖ αὐτῷ εἰ μύλος ὀνικὸς περίκειται περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔρριπται εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν, ἢ ἵνα σκανδαλίσῃ ἕνα τῶν μικρῶν τούτων.
(Lusitelei autōi ei mulos onikos perikeitai peri ton traⱪaʸlon autou, kai erriptai eis taʸn thalassan, aʸ hina skandalisaʸ hena tōn mikrōn toutōn.)

TC-GNT Λυσιτελεῖ αὐτῷ εἰ [fn]μύλος ὀνικὸς περίκειται περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔρριπται εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν, ἢ ἵνα σκανδαλίσῃ [fn]ἕνα τῶν μικρῶν τούτων.
(Lusitelei autōi ei mulos onikos perikeitai peri ton traⱪaʸlon autou, kai erriptai eis taʸn thalassan, aʸ hina skandalisaʸ hena tōn mikrōn toutōn. )

17:2 μυλος ονικος ¦ λιθος μυλικος ANT CT

17:2 ενα των μικρων τουτων ¦ των μικρων τουτων ενα CT

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 17:1–10: Jesus taught his disciples about sin, faith, and duty

At the end of chapter 16, Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees. He concluded his parable about Lazarus and the rich man. Here in 17:1–10, he spoke to his disciples and taught them about several issues.Scholars have different opinions about whether the teachings in this section are thematically related to Jesus’ teachings in chapter 16. Some scholars say that the teachings in the two chapters are not connected. Other scholars do see a broad connection. Green says, “Especially due to its location adjacent to prior accounts of Jesus’ interaction with Pharisees, this pericope recapitulates Jesus’ message to his followers: They are not to be like the Pharisees!” (p. 611). Liefeld says that “it is also possible to see a logical connection between the end of chapter 16 and the beginning of chapter 17, if we understand ‘the things that cause people to sin’ to be the sins of the Pharisees, such as those mentioned in 16:14.” Scholars also disagree about whether the paragraphs in this section are related to each other. About this, Liefeld says that “there is a common unifying theme of attitudes in the Christian community” (p. 994). Morris also mentions this possible connection: “The connecting link here may be the attitude of the religious leaders. They were in danger of using their wealth wrongly, and they were also in danger of leading their lesser brethren astray—temptations that would confront his disciples as well as people like the Pharisees” (p. 279). Nolland (p. 835) says, “Luke seems to have cobbled a unity together here of three separate blocks of tradition (verses 1–2, 3–4, 5–6). The catchword link “into/in the sea” from verse 2 to verse 6 helps to give a formal unity to the piece, and it is likely that he intends the blocks so juxtaposed, to mutually qualify the meaning of one another.” He also says, “As he opens this new section (17:1–19) Luke has brought together three blocks of tradition to form a unit about the adequacy, despite all human frailty, of even the most meager of kingdom faiths for the radical challenge of Jesus’ teaching” (p. 839).

English versions divide these verses into sections in different ways. For example:

Most versions put 17:1–10 together in one section and have one heading. (The Notes follow these versions.)
Some versions divide 17:1–10 into three sections with a heading for each one. For example, the GNT has:

17:1–4	Sin
17:5–6	Faith
17:7–10	A servant’s duty

Some other possible headings for this section are:

Jesus taught his disciples to not cause others to sin, to forgive others, and to serve him humbly

Teachings about Forgiveness and Faith (NLT)

Sin, Forgiveness, Faith, and Service (NET)

There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 18:6–7 and 18:15 and in Mark 9:42. However, Jesus may have spoken these passages in a different context from the one in this section.

17:2

This verse emphasizes how terrible it is for someone to cause a little one to sin. Even an awful death like drowning is better than the punishment that such a person will receive.

17:2a

It would be better for him

It would be better for such a person
People who tempt others like that would be fortunate
A person should prefer

It would be better for him: The clause It would be better introduces a comparison. The comparison is between two terrible punishments:

drowning in the sea with a millstone tied around the neck (17:2b);
the punishment for causing a little one to sin (17:1b).

Jesus was saying that the punishment for causing a little one to sin is worse than drowning. A person should prefer to drown rather than to cause a little one to sin. Languages compare such situations in various ways. For example:

^2bIf people tied a big stone around the neck of a person who did that and threw him in the ocean so that he drowned, ^2athat would be a little punishment. ^2cBut if he causes one of these little ones to sin, God will give him a really big punishment.

^2cThe person who causes a little one to sin will be punished ^2ain a way that will be worse than ^2bif a millstone were tied around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.

Use a natural way to express the comparison in your language.

17:2b

to have a millstone hung around his neck and to be thrown into the sea

if a millstone were tied around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. That would be better
if someone/others tied a heavy stone to their necks and threw them into the lake. That would be a little punishment,
to drown/die by being thrown into the sea with a heavy stone tied around his neck

to have a millstone hung around his neck and to be thrown into the sea: This part of the verse describes how a person might be punished. People might tie a millstone around the person’s neck and then throw the person into the sea. Some English versions mention the sea first. For example:

to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck (NIV)

But in some languages it may be more natural to mention these actions in the order they happen. For example:

if a large millstone were tied around his neck and he were thrown into the sea (GNT)

You should use a natural order in your language.

millstone hung…thrown: The verbs hung and thrown are passive. In some languages it may be more natural to use active verbs and supply a general subject like “people” or “someone.” For example:

if people tied a large stone around his neck and threw him into the sea

to be thrown into the sea: If someone is thrown into deep water with a millstone tied around his neck, he will sink and die by drowning. In some languages it may be necessary to make this implied information explicit. For example:

thrown into the sea to drown/die

the sea: The Greek word that the BSB translates as sea refers to a large, wide body of water. The water can be either salty or fresh. This word can also be used in contrast to land. The phrase the sea does not refer here to any particular sea.

In some areas people may not be familiar with large seas. If that is true in your language, you can translate it with a more familiar term. For example:

into a lake/river

a millstone: A millstone is a large, heavy stone. People used stones like this to grind grain to make flour.

Sometimes a person rotated the stone. At other times an animal turned the stone.For more information, see “Mill, Millstone” by C. G. Rasmussen in Volume 3, ISBE, pp. 355–56.

Some other ways to translate the word millstone are:

large stone

very heavy stone

17:2c

than to cause one of these little ones to stumble.

than if he caused one of these little ones to sin.
but if they cause one of these childlike ones to disobey/deny God, they will receive a big punishment.
rather than to cause an innocent/vulnerable person like one of these to sin in that way.

than to cause one of these little ones to stumble: This verse implies that God will severely punish a person who causes little ones to sin. The punishment will be far worse than if someone had killed him by drowning him. In some languages it may be necessary to make some of this information explicit. For example:

than to endure the way that God would punish him for causing one of these little ones to sin

cause…to stumble: Translate cause…to stumble in a similar way as you translated “stumbling blocks” in 17:1a.

these little ones: The phrase little ones often refers to children. In this context Jesus used the phrase figuratively to refer to people who are innocent or weak in some way. They need protection and help.Scholars interpret the phrase “these little ones” in a number of ways. Some of the major views are: (1) It refers to people who believe in Jesus, both old and young. They are weak from the world’s viewpoint. (2) It refers to people whose faith is weak. They may have trusted in Jesus for only a short time, or they may still be deciding whether they should trust him. (3) It refers more generally to people who are weak or vulnerable in some way; for example, they may be poor or low in status. (4) It refers literally to children. The word these refers to people who were listening to Jesus and probably to others like them. Some ways to translate this are:

one of these childlike people

an innocent/vulnerable person like these

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

λυσιτελεῖ αὐτῷ εἰ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Λυσιτελεῖ αὐτῷ εἰ λίθος μυλικός περίκειται περί τόν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ καί ἔρριπται εἰς τήν θάλασσαν ἤ ἵνα σκανδαλίσῃ τῶν μικρῶν τούτων ἕνα)

Jesus is drawing a comparison to the punishment for causing people to sin. He means that this person’s punishment for causing people to sin will be worse than if he had drowned in the sea. No one would actually put a stone around his neck and throw him into the sea as an alternative to that punishment, and Jesus is not saying that anyone will do so. Alternate translation: [The punishment he will receive will be worse than if]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

λίθος μυλικὸς περίκειται περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ

˓a˒_stone (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Λυσιτελεῖ αὐτῷ εἰ λίθος μυλικός περίκειται περί τόν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ καί ἔρριπται εἰς τήν θάλασσαν ἤ ἵνα σκανδαλίσῃ τῶν μικρῶν τούτων ἕνα)

The implication is that someone would tie the stone around the person’s neck. Alternate translation: [if someone were to attach a millstone around his neck]

Note 3 topic: translate-unknown

λίθος μυλικὸς

A millstone is a very large, heavy, circular stone that is used for grinding grain into flour. If your readers would not be familiar with a millstone, you could use a general expression in your translation. Alternate translation: [a heavy stone] or [a heavy wheel]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

σκανδαλίσῃ

˱he˲_˓may˒_stumble

See how you translated the similar terms in [17:1](../17/01.md). Alternate translation: [he should tempt … to sin]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

τῶν μικρῶν τούτων

¬the ˱of˲_little_‹ones› these

This could be: (1) a reference to children who love Jesus and who are physically little compared to adults. Alternate translation: [these children who believe in me] (2) a figurative reference to people whose faith is new and has not yet become mature and strong. Alternate translation: [these new believers] or (3) a figurative reference to people who are not important from a human perspective. Alternate translation: [these common people]

Parallel LUKE 17:2

Section 17:1–10: Jesus taught his disciples about sin, faith, and duty

17:2

17:2a

17:2b

17:2c