MARK 12:31 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.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, 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 The second is this, ‘You will love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

UST ¶ Here is the next most important law: ‘You must care for people you know as much as you care for yourselves.’ No other laws are more important than these two laws!”

BSB [The] second [is] this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[fn] No other commandment is greater than these.”

MSB [The] second, like [it],[fn] [is] this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[fn] No other commandment is greater than these.”

12:31 CT does not include like it.

12:31 Leviticus 19:18

BLB The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is not another commandment greater than these."

AICNT The second is {this},[fn] ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”[fn]

12:31, this: Some manuscripts read “like it.”

12:31, Leviticus 19:18

OEB The second is this – “You must love your neighbour as you love yourself.” There is no commandment greater than these.’

WEBBE The second is like this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

WMBB (Same as above)

NET The second is: ‘ Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

LSV and the second [is] like [it], this, You will love your neighbor as yourself—there is no other command greater than these.”

FBV The second is ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[fn] There's no more important commandment than these.”

12:31 Quoting Leviticus 19:18.

TCNT [fn]And a second like it is this: ‘Yoʋ shall love yoʋr neighbor as yoʋrself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

12:31 And a second like it is this ¦ And a second is like it HF ¦ The second is this ECM NA SBL WH

T4T The next most important commandment is: ‘You must love people you come in contact with as much as you love yourself.’ No other commandment is more important than these two!”

LEB The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’[fn] There is no other commandment greater than these.”

12:31 A quotation from Lev 19:18|link-href="None"

BBE The second is this, Have love for your neighbour as for yourself. There is no other law greater than these.

Moff The second is this: You must love your neighbour as yourself. There is no other command greater than these."

Wymth "The second is this: `Thou shalt love thy fellow man as thou lovest thyself.' "Other Commandment greater than these there is none."

ASV The second is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

DRA And the second is like to it: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these.

YLT and the second [is] like [it], this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself; — greater than these there is no other command.'

Drby And a second like it [is] this: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is not another commandment greater than these.

RV The second is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
(The second is this, Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neighbour as thyself/yourself. There is none other commandment greater than these. )

SLT And the second like it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. No other command is greater than these.

Wbstr And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: there is no other commandment greater than these.

KJB-1769 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
( And the second is like, namely this, Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neighbour as thyself/yourself. There is none other commandment greater than these. )

KJB-1611 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt loue thy neighbour as thy selfe: there is none other commandement greater then these.
(And the second is like, namely this, Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neighbour as thyself/yourself: there is none other commandment greater then these.)

Bshps And the seconde is lyke vnto this: Thou shalt loue thy neyghbour as thy selfe. There is none other commaundement greater then these.
(And the second is like unto this: Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neighbour as thyself/yourself. There is none other commandment greater then these.)

Gnva And the second is like, that is, Thou shalt loue thy neighbour as thy selfe. There is none other commandement greater then these.
(And the second is like, that is, Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neighbour as thyself/yourself. There is none other commandment greater then these. )

Cvdl and the seconde is like vnto it: Thou shalt loue thy neghboure as thy self. There is none other greater commaundement then these.
(and the second is like unto it: Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neighbour as thy/your self. There is none other greater commandment then these.)

TNT And the seconde is lyke vnto this: Thou shalt love thy neghbour as thy silfe. Ther is none other commaundement greater then these.
(And the second is like unto this: Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neghbour as thy/your self. There is none other commandment greater then these. )

Wycl This is the firste maundement. And the secounde is lijk to this, Thou schalt loue thi neiybore as thi silf. Ther is noon other maundement gretter than these.
(This is the first commandment. And the second is like to this, Thou/You shalt/shall love thy/your neighbour as thyself/yourself. There is noon other commandment greater than these.)

Luth Und das andere ist ihm gleich: Du sollst deinen Nächsten lieben wie dich selbst; es ist kein ander größer Gebot denn diese.
(And the other/different is him even: You(sg) should your(s) neighbour love(v) as/like you/yourself himself/itself; it is no/not at_the bigger commandment/command because/than this/these.)

ClVg Secundum autem simile est illi: Diliges proximum tuum tamquam teipsum. Majus horum aliud mandatum non est.
(After/Second however simile it_is them: Diliges next_door your(sg) as_if yourself. Mayus of_these something_else command(n) not/no it_is. )

UGNT δευτέρα αὕτη, ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν. μείζων τούτων ἄλλη ἐντολὴ οὐκ ἔστιν.
(deutera hautaʸ, agapaʸseis ton plaʸsion sou hōs seauton. meizōn toutōn allaʸ entolaʸ ouk estin.)

SBL-GNT ⸀δευτέρα αὕτη· Ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν. μείζων τούτων ἄλλη ἐντολὴ οὐκ ἔστιν.
(⸀deutera hautaʸ; Agapaʸseis ton plaʸsion sou hōs seauton. meizōn toutōn allaʸ entolaʸ ouk estin.)

RP-GNT Καὶ δευτέρα ὁμοία αὕτη, Ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν. Μείζων τούτων ἄλλη ἐντολὴ οὐκ ἔστιν.
(Kai deutera homoia hautaʸ, Agapaʸseis ton plaʸsion sou hōs seauton. Meizōn toutōn allaʸ entolaʸ ouk estin.)

TC-GNT [fn]Καὶ δευτέρα ὁμοία αὕτη, Ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς [fn]σεαυτόν. Μείζων τούτων ἄλλη ἐντολὴ οὐκ ἔστι.
(Kai deutera homoia hautaʸ, Agapaʸseis ton plaʸsion sou hōs seauton. Meizōn toutōn allaʸ entolaʸ ouk esti. )

12:31 καὶ δευτέρα ὁμοία αὕτη ¦ καὶ δευτέρα ὁμοία αὐτῇ HF ¦ δευτέρα αὕτη ECM NA SBL WH

12:31 σεαυτον ¦ εαυτον ANT

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

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 12:28–34: Jesus taught people which command is the most important

A scribe asked Jesus which was the greatest commandment in the law. Jesus said that there are two great commands: love the Lord your God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself.

The scribe in this section may have been honestly seeking the truth. Or he may have been trying to discredit Jesus by asking him a difficult question.Mark 12:34 may imply that the man truly wanted to know the answer. In the parallel passage in Matthew 22:34–40, a scribe asked this same question to test Jesus. Nothing in this section in Mark suggests that the scribe was testing Jesus. It would be good to translate this section so that either interpretation is possible.

It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

The Most Important Commandment (CEV, NLT)

God’s greatest command is to love him and our neighbors

There is a parallel passage for this section in Matthew 22:34–40. Mark 12:30–31 is also parallel to Luke 10:27.

12:31a

The second is this:

And this is the second most important of God’s commands/laws:
The next command/law that is more important than others is this:

The second is this: Here Jesus introduced the second most important of God’s commands. Here are some other ways to introduce this in English:

The second most important commandment is this: (GW)

Here is God’s command that is the next in importance:

Introduce it in a natural way in your language.

12:31b

‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

‘Love^(sing) your fellow man as you love yourself.’
‘You^(plur) must love other people in the same way that you love yourselves.’

In this part of the verse Jesus was quoting from Leviticus 19:18. If you use footnotes, you may want to cross-reference this verse.

Love your neighbor as yourself: In both Hebrew and Greek, this command is in a singular form, like the command in 12:30. This indicates that it is a command to each person, but it applies to all people. Jesus made a general statement about how people should treat each other.

Languages have different ways to express commands like this. In some languages it may be more natural to use words like “we” and “our” or “they” and “their.” For example:

We^(incl) must love our fellow men in the same way that we love ourselves.

People must love their neighbors in the same way that they love themselves.

Love: The Greek word that the BSB translates here as Love is the same word that was used in 12:30a. In this context it refers to the concern and affection that people should have toward other people. They should treat them kindly and seek to help them.

Consider the most appropriate term to describe this type of love. Some languages may have an idiom for it. It is possible that you may need to use different expressions to refer to love for people and love for God.

your neighbor: The word neighbor is singular, but it refers to any and all neighbors. In some languages it may be more natural to use a plural form to express this. The word neighbor means “someone who lives nearby.” It was also used to refer to people who were of the same social group or who spoke the same language. To the Jews the phrase “Love your neighbor” meant to love your fellow Jew.

In his teaching Jesus expanded the meaning of neighbor. To Jesus, the phrase “Love your neighbor” meant to love anyone you meet. (See Luke 10:27–37.) In some languages you may want to include a footnote about this.

Here are some other ways to translate the phrase your neighbor:

others (CEV)

your fellow people

12:31c

No other commandment is greater than these.”

There is no other command of God that is more important than these two commands.”
God has given no greater command than these two commands.”
These are the greatest commandments of all.”

No other commandment is greater than these: This clause indicates that no other command of God is greater than the two commands that were mentioned in 12:30 and 12:31. In this context the word greater means “more important.”In Matthew 22:40 Jesus said that all the Jewish Scriptures are based on these two commands.

Here is another way to translate this sentence:

Those two commands are more important than any others. (TRT)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

δευτέρα

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

Here, the scribe is using the word second to refer to what is the second most important thing. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable figure of speech or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [The next most significant] or [The second greatest]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / nominaladj

δευτέρα

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

Jesus is using the adjective second as a noun to mean the second commandment. Your language may use adjectives in the same way. If not, you could translate this word with an equivalent phrase. Alternate translation: [The second commandment]

Note 3 topic: translate-ordinal

δευτέρα

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

If your language does not use ordinal numbers, you could use a cardinal number here or an equivalent expression. Alternate translation: [Number two]

Note 4 topic: writing-quotations

αὕτη, ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν

this (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

Here Jesus quotes from the Old Testament scriptures, specifically from [Leviticus 19:18](../lev/19/18.md). If it would be helpful to your readers, you could format these words in a different way and include this information in a footnote. Alternate translation: [is this commandment from the book of Leviticus: ‘You will love your neighbor as yourself]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / quotations

αὕτη, ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν

If it would be clearer in your language, you could translate this so that there is not a quotation within a quotation. Alternate translation: [is that one should love one’s neighbor as oneself.]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / yousingular

ἀγαπήσεις & σου & σεαυτόν

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

Since in this command God is addressing each specific person who is part of God’s people, the words You, your, and yourself are singular.

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / declarative

ἀγαπήσεις

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

The author of the quotation is using the future form to give a command. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the idea using a form that expresses a command or obligation. Alternate translation: [You should love] or [You must love]

Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / ellipsis

ὡς σεαυτόν

as yourself

The author of the quotation is leaving out some of the words that in many languages a sentence would need in order to be complete. You could supply these words from earlier in the sentence if it would be clearer in your language. Alternate translation: [as you love yourself]

Note 9 topic: figures-of-speech / simile

ὡς σεαυτόν

as yourself

The author of the quotation assumes that people love themselves, so he wants these people to love their neighbors just as much. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state that explicitly. Alternate translation: [as deeply as yourself]

μείζων τούτων ἄλλη ἐντολὴ οὐκ ἔστιν

greater_‹than› these (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

Alternate translation: [All other commandments are less important than these]

Note 10 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

ἄλλη ἐντολὴ οὐκ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Δευτέρα αὕτη Ἀγαπήσεις τόν πλησίον σοῦ ὡς σεαυτόν μείζων τούτων Ἄλλη ἐντολή οὐκ ἐστίν)

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of commandment, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [nothing that God commanded us that is]

Note 11 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

τούτων

these

Here, the word these refers to the two commandments that Jesus has just quoted. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [those two commandments]

Parallel MARK 12:31

Section 12:28–34: Jesus taught people which command is the most important

12:31a

12:31b

12:31c