UTN uW Translation Notes:

Matthew 12 General Notes

Structure and Formatting

5. Jesus teaches about the gospel of the kingdom of God, and opposition to Jesus begins (11:1-12:50) * Arguments with the Pharisees about the Sabbath (12:1–14) * Picking heads of grain on the Sabbath (12:1–8) * Healing a man on the Sabbath (12:9–14) * Jesus fulfills a quotation from Isaiah (12:15–21) * Argument with the Pharisees about casting out demons (12:22–30) * Jesus teaches on words and God’s judgment (12:31–37) * Jesus condemns “this generation” (12:38–45) * Jesus’ true family (12:46–50)Some translations set each line of poetry farther to the right than the rest of the text to make it easier to read. The ULT does this with the poetry in 12:18–21, which is a quotation from Isaiah 42:1–4.

Special Concepts in this Chapter

The Sabbath

In the law that God gave to Moses, God commanded the Israelites to rest on the seventh day, which was called the Sabbath. The Jewish religious leaders disagreed with each other about what kinds of things a person could do on the Sabbath and still rest as God had commanded. For example, they debated which emergencies were serious enough that someone could do work on the Sabbath without disobeying God’s command. In 12:1–14, the Pharisees and Jesus engage in these kinds of debates about the Sabbath. Jesus disagrees with how the Pharisees understand the Sabbath, and he argues for a different view. If your readers may not understand what the Sabbath is and why Jesus and the Pharisees are debating about it, you may need to include some information in a footnote. (See: sabbath)

Casting out demons

Demons are evil spiritual beings who can control people and who serve Satan. They usually use the people they control to hurt themselves or others. In 12:22, Matthew briefly describes how Jesus drove out a demon who caused the man it controlled to be blind and mute, that is, unable to see or speak. In response, the crowds wonder whether Jesus is the special “Son of David.” However, the Pharisees accuse Jesus of using the power of Beelzebul, that is, Satan, to cast out demons. Jesus tells them that it does not make sense for Satan, who rules the demons, to empower someone to cast out demons.

“Blasphemy against the Spirit”

In 12:31–32, Jesus speaks about “blasphemy of the Spirit” and speaking “against the Holy Spirit.” He indicates that God will forgive all kinds of sins, including speaking against Jesus himself. However, God will not forgive people who speak against the Holy Spirit. Jesus says these things because the Pharisees said that he cast out demons by the power of Beelzebul. Jesus implies that he actually cast out demons by the power of the Holy Spirit. So, since the Pharisees have called the Holy Spirit Beelzebul, they have blasphemed or spoken against the Spirit. Christians debate what counts as this kind of blasphemy and why God will not forgive people for it. In your translation, you should express the idea as generally as Jesus does. (See: blasphemy and holyspirit)

The sign of Jonah

In 12:39–41, Jesus refers to a story about a prophet named Jonah. God told Jonah to prophesy in the city of Nineveh that God would destroy it. Jonah instead got on a boat to go the opposite direction. God sent a bad storm on the ocean, and to stop the storm Jonah had the sailors throw him into the ocean. God then had a huge fish swallow Jonah. He was inside the fish for three days and three nights, and then the fish spit Jonah out onto the shore. Jonah then did prophesy in the city of Nineveh, and the people there repented and asked God for mercy. In response, God chose not to destroy the city. You can read this story in Jonah 1–4. When Jesus refers to “the sign of Jonah,” he is speaking about this story, particularly about how Jonah was in the fish for three days and nights. Jesus indicates that he will be in his tomb for three days, just as Jonah was in the fish for three days.

Important Figures of Speech in this Chapter

The parable about the strong man

In 12:29, Jesus describes how thieves must subdue and tie up a strong man before they can steal things from his house. Jesus does not directly state how to apply this proverb. However, most Christians think that Satan is like the strong man, and the demons that Jesus casts out are like the strong man’s things. In this case, Jesus is like the thieves who tie up the strong man. Jesus is saying that, since he can cast out demons, it proves that he has subdued and conquered Satan, just as thieves can only steal things after they have subdued the strong man. You should not include this extra information in your translation, but if it would be helpful for your readers, you could include it in a footnote. (See: figs-parables)

Demons living in people as if they were houses

In 12:43–45, Jesus tells a story that describes people as if they were houses that demons could live in. When a demon is living in someone, this means that the demon is controlling that person. If possible, preserve this metaphor. If it is necessary, you could use simile form or state the meaning more plainly. See the notes on this verse for translation options. (See: figs-metaphor)

Jesus’ mother and brothers

In 12:46–50, Jesus’ mother and brothers arrive and want to talk with Jesus. In response, Jesus says that his disciples, those who do God’s will, are his mother and brothers and sisters. In other words, Jesus calls his disciples, who are those who do God’s will, his family members. He means that they are as close and important to him as his own family. This is an important metaphor that appears throughout the Bible, so preserve the metaphor or express the idea in simile form. See the notes on these verses for translation options. (See: figs-metaphor)

Other Possible Translation Difficulties in this Chapter

Singular and plural forms of “you”

Most of the forms of “you” in this chapter appear in speeches that Jesus gives to many people around him. Because of this, most forms of “you” in this chapter are plural. You should assume forms of “you” are plural unless a note specifies that the form is singular. (See: figs-yousingular)

The quotation from Isaiah 42:1–4 in 12:18–21

Matthew quotes a long section of Isaiah in this chapter. However, he does not quote every line, specifically leaving out parts of Isaiah 42:4. Also, in many places his quotation does not directly match the Hebrew version of Isaiah. However, since Matthew quotes these verses for a specific reason and in a different language (Greek), you should translate what Matthew wrote, not what you might find in Isaiah 42:1–4.