MAT 12:39 Parallel Verse View

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

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object, red:negative.
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 But answering, he said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign, but a sign will not be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.

UST Then Jesus replied to them, “You people who are alive right now are wicked and faithless. You want me to do a miracle that proves that God sent me. However, the only miracle you will see is a miracle like the one that happened to the prophet Jonah.

BLB And answering He said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, and no sign will be given to it, except the sign of Jonah the prophet.

AICNT But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.

OEB ‘It is a wicked and unfaithful generation,’ answered Jesus, ‘that is asking for a sign, and no sign will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

WEBBE But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, but no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

LSV And He answering said to them, “A generation, evil and adulterous, seeks a sign, and a sign will not be given to it, except the sign of Jonah the prophet;

FBV “Evil people who don't trust in God are the ones who look for a miraculous sign. The only sign they will be given is the sign of the prophet Jonah,” Jesus told them.

TCNT But Jesus answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

T4T Then Jesus said to them, “You people have already seen me perform miracles, but you are evil, and you do not faithfully worship God [MET]! You want me to perform a miracle that would prove to you that God sent me, but God will enable you to see only one miracle. It will be like what happened to Jonah the prophet [MET].

LEB But he answered and[fn] said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation desires a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah!

12:39 *Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“answered”) has been translated as a finite verb

BBE But he, answering, said to them, An evil and false generation is looking for a sign; and no sign will be given to it but the sign of the prophet Jonah:

Moff He replied to them,
⇔ "It is an evil and disloyal generation that craves a Sign,
⇔ but no Sign will be given to it except the Sign of the prophet Jonah;

Wymth "Wicked and faithless generation!" He replied, "they clamour for a sign, but none shall be given to them except the sign of the Prophet Jonah.

ASV But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet:

DRA Who answering said to them: An evil and adulterous generation seeketh a sign: and a sign shall not be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.

YLT And he answering said to them, 'A generation, evil and adulterous, doth seek a sign, and a sign shall not be given to it, except the sign of Jonah the prophet;

Drby But he, answering, said to them, A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and a sign shall not be given to it save the sign of Jonas the prophet.

RV But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet:
(But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh/seeks after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet: )

SLT And he having answered, said to them, An evil generation and an adulteress seeks a sign; and no sign shall be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.

Wbstr But he answered and said to them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh for a sign, and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonah.

KJB-1769 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
(But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh/seeks after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: )

KJB-1611 But hee answered, and said to them, An euill and adulterous generation seeketh after a signe, and there shall no signe be giuen to it, but the signe of the Prophet Ionas.
(But he answered, and said to them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh/seeks after a sign, and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the Prophet Yonas.)

Bshps But he aunswered and sayde to them. The euyll and adulterous generation seketh a signe, and there shall no signe be geuen to it, but the signe of the prophete Ionas.
(But he answered and said to them. The evil and adulterous generation seeketh/seeks a sign, and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Yonas.)

Gnva But he answered and said to them, An euill and adulterous generation seeketh a signe, but no signe shall be giuen vnto it, saue that signe of the Prophet Ionas.
(But he answered and said to them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh/seeks a sign, but no sign shall be given unto it, save that sign of the Prophet Yonas. )

Cvdl And he answered and saide vnto the: This euell and aduouterous generacion seketh a token: and there shal no token be geuen the, but the token of the prophete Ionas.
(And he answered and said unto them: This evil and adulterous generation seeketh/seeks a token: and there shall no token be given them, but the token of the prophet Yonas.)

TNT He answered and sayde to the: The evyll and advoutrous generacion seketh a signe but ther shall no signe be geve to the saue the signe of the Prophete Ionas.
(He answered and said to them: The evil and advoutrous generation seeketh/seeks a sign but there shall no sign be give to the save the sign of the Prophet Yonas. )

Wycl Which answeride, and seide to hem, An yuel kynrede and a spouse brekere sekith a tokene, and a tokene shal not be youun to it, but the tokene of Jonas, the prophete.
(Which answered, and said to hem, An evil kindred and a spouse brekere seeketh/seeks a tokene, and a token shall not be given to it, but the token of Yonas, the prophet.)

Luth Und er antwortete und sprach zu ihnen: Die böse und ehebrecherische Art sucht ein Zeichen, und es wird ihr kein Zeichen gegeben werden denn das Zeichen des Propheten Jona.
(And he replied and spoke to/for to_them: The evil and adulterous Art searches a sign, and it becomes you(pl)/their/her no/not sign given become because/than the sign the prophet(s) Yona.)

ClVg Qui respondens ait illis: Generatio mala et adultera signum quærit: et signum non dabitur ei, nisi signum Jonæ prophetæ.[fn]
(Who responding he_said to_them: Generation evil and adulteress sign/signal seeks: and sign/signal not/no will_be_given to_him, except sign/signal Yonæ the_prophets. )

12.39 Nisi signum Jonæ. Ostendit Judæos ad instar Ninivitarum criminosos, et nisi pœniteant subversioni proximos. Sed sicut illis et denuntiatur supplicium, et demonstratur remedium: ita Judæi non debent desperare veniam, si saltem postquam Christus resurrexit a mortuis, commoniti egerint pœnitentiam: quia mors Christi reconciliatio est mundi.

12.39 Unless sign/signal Yonæ. Ostendit Yudahos to instar Ninivitarum criminosos, and except pœniteant subversioni neighbours. But like to_them and announcementtur supplicium, and demonstratur remedy: so/thus Jews not/no they_should desperare I_will_come, when/but_if at_least/after_all after Christ/Messiah rose_again from dead, commoniti they_did repentance: because death of_Christ reconciliatio it_is world.

UGNT ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς, γενεὰ πονηρὰ καὶ μοιχαλὶς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ, καὶ σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ, εἰ μὴ τὸ σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου.
(ho de apokritheis eipen autois, genea ponaʸra kai moiⱪalis saʸmeion epizaʸtei, kai saʸmeion ou dothaʸsetai autaʸ, ei maʸ to saʸmeion Yōna tou profaʸtou.)

SBL-GNT ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Γενεὰ πονηρὰ καὶ μοιχαλὶς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ, καὶ σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ εἰ μὴ τὸ σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου.
(ho de apokritheis eipen autois; Genea ponaʸra kai moiⱪalis saʸmeion epizaʸtei, kai saʸmeion ou dothaʸsetai autaʸ ei maʸ to saʸmeion Yōna tou profaʸtou.)

RP-GNT Ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς, Γενεὰ πονηρὰ καὶ μοιχαλὶς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ· καὶ σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ, εἰ μὴ τὸ σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου.
(Ho de apokritheis eipen autois, Genea ponaʸra kai moiⱪalis saʸmeion epizaʸtei; kai saʸmeion ou dothaʸsetai autaʸ, ei maʸ to saʸmeion Yōna tou profaʸtou.)

TC-GNT Ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς, Γενεὰ πονηρὰ καὶ μοιχαλὶς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ· καὶ σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ, εἰ μὴ τὸ σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου.
(Ho de apokritheis eipen autois, Genea ponaʸra kai moiⱪalis saʸmeion epizaʸtei; kai saʸmeion ou dothaʸsetai autaʸ, ei maʸ to saʸmeion Yōna tou profaʸtou. )

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

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 12:38–45: Jesus rebuked those who asked for a sign

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.

12:39a

Jesus replied, “A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign,

Jesus answered them, “The people who ask me for a miracle from heaven are evil/bad and like a married woman who is immoral.
Jesus replied, “You want to see a surprising sign because you are evil/bad people. You are people who do not follow/obey God.

Jesus responded to the scribes and Pharisees in a way that showed that he refused to do what they wanted. The Greek introduces this refusal with a conjunction that is often translated as “but.”

In some languages, it is not natural or necessary to use a “but” here.

Jesus replied: The Greek word that the BSB literally translates as replied indicates that Jesus responded to the scribes and Pharisees. It does not indicate that he was answering a question.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

He responded (GW)

He said to them

wicked: This word also means “bad,” “evil,” or “sinful.”

adulterous generation: The word adulterous refers to someone who is unfaithful to his/her spouse. Here this word is used in a figurative way. Jesus called the scribes and Pharisees adulterous because they were unfaithful to God. They were unfaithful in the sense that they did not obey him and follow him with all their hearts.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

Change the metaphor to a simile. For example:
you are people who are unfaithful to God like an adulterous spouse/wife
you are like a married woman who is immoral
Translate the meaning. For example:
you are not following God
you do not obey God

generation: The word generation refers to all the people who lived at the same time as Jesus. Here it refers specifically to the scribes and Pharisees.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

the people of this day (GNT)

you are people who

demands a sign: The Greek word that the BSB translates as demands also means “wants, seeks, desires.”

Here are some other ways to translate this word:

asks for (NIV)

want (CEV)

want to see (NCV)

12:39b

but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

But no miracle will be done for them except the miracle like the one that happened to the prophet Jonah.
The only the sign that I will show you is a sign like the one that God did to/for the prophet Jonah long ago.

but: There is a contrast here. The contrast is between what the people wanted, and what Jesus would give them. The BSB introduces this contrast with the conjunction but.

none will be given it: This clause means that “no sign will be done” or “no sign will be shown” to this wicked and adulterous generation.

This clause is passive. Here are some other ways to translate it:

Use a passive verb. For example:
no sign will be shown to this wicked and adulterous generation
no sign will be given to them (NCV)
no sign will be done for you
Use an active verb. For example:
the only sign I will give them (NLT)
this generation will receive no sign
you will not see any miracle

except the sign of the prophet Jonah: This clause refers to the miracle that happened to the prophet Jonah. He was in the stomach of a huge fish for three days. Then he came out alive.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

except a sign like what happened to the prophet Jonah

a miracle that is like the one that God did to the prophet Jonah long ago

This clause does not mean that Jonah did a miracle.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / 123person

γενεὰ πονηρὰ καὶ μοιχαλὶς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ, καὶ σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἀποκριθείς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς Γενεά Πονηρά καί Μοιχαλίς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ καί σημεῖον οὒ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ εἰ μή τό σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου)

Jesus is speaking about his audience in the third person instead of directly addressing them. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use the second person instead. Alternate translation: [You, an evil and adulterous generation, seek a sign, but no sign will be given to you]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

γενεὰ πονηρὰ καὶ μοιχαλὶς & ἐπιζητεῖ & αὐτῇ

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 [11:16](../11/16.md). Alternate translation: [today’s people, who are evil and adulterous, seek … to them] or [Evil and adulterous people of this generation seek … to them]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

μοιχαλὶς

Here Jesus speaks of people who do not fully trust and obey God as if they were adulterous. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [unfaithful] or [disobedient]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

σημεῖον

˓a˒_sign

Here, just as in [12:38](../12/38.md), the implication is that the sign is a miracle that proves that Jesus’ authority comes from God. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [a sign that shows that my authority is from God]

Note 5 topic: grammar-connect-exceptions

καὶ σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ, εἰ μὴ τὸ σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου

If it would appear in your language that Jesus was making a statement here and then contradicting it, you could reword this to avoid using an exception clause. Alternate translation: [but the only sign that it will be given is the sign of Jonah the prophet]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ

˓a˒_sign ˓a˒_sign sign (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἀποκριθείς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς Γενεά Πονηρά καί Μοιχαλίς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ καί σημεῖον οὒ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ εἰ μή τό σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου)

If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. If you need to say who does the action, it could be: (1) God the Father. Alternate translation: [God will not give it a sign] (2) Jesus. Alternate translation: [I will not give it a sign]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

τὸ σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ τοῦ προφήτου

Here, Jesus is using the possessive form to describe a sign that happened to Jesus. Jesus will describe this sign in the following verse. If this is not clear in your language, you could express the idea in another way. Alternate translation: [the sign that Jonah the prophet experienced] or [the sign related to Jonah the prophet]

Parallel MAT 12:39

Section 12:38–45: Jesus rebuked those who asked for a sign

12:39a

12:39b