Matius 8:18

Challenging Professed Followers

8:18 Now when Jesus saw a large crowd ¹  around him, he gave orders to go to the other side of the lake. ² 

Matius 13:3

13:3 He ³  told them many things in parables, ⁴  saying: “Listen! ⁵  A sower went out to sow. ⁶ 

Matius 19:11

19:11 He ⁷  said to them, “Not everyone can accept this statement, except those to whom it has been given.

Matius 19:22

19:22 But when the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he was very rich. ⁸ 

Matius 20:32

20:32 Jesus stopped, called them, and said, “What do you want me to do for you?”

Matius 22:18

22:18 But Jesus realized their evil intentions and said, “Hypocrites! Why are you testing me?

Matius 28:18

28:18 Then Jesus came up and said to them, ⁹  “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

[8:18]  ¹ tc ‡ Codex B and some Sahidic mss read simply ὄχλον (oclon, “crowd”), the reading that NA²⁷ follows; the first hand of א, as well as ˹ and a few others, has ὄχλους (oclous, “crowds”); other witnesses read πολὺν ὄχλον (polun oclon, “a large crowd”). But the reading most likely to be original seems to be πολλούς ὄχλους (pollou" oclou"). It is found in א² C L Θ 0233 ˹³ 33 Ï lat; it is judged to be superior on internal grounds (the possibility of accidental omission of πολλούς/πολύν in isolated witnesses) and, to a lesser extent, external grounds (geographically widespread, various texttypes). For reasons of English style, however, this phrase has been translated as “a large crowd.”

[8:18]  ² tn The phrase “of the lake” is not in the Greek text but is clearly implied; it has been supplied here for clarity.

[13:3]  ³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[13:3]  ⁴ sn Though parables can contain a variety of figures of speech (cf. the remainder of chapter 13), many times they are simply stories that attempt to teach spiritual truth (which is unknown to the hearers) by using a comparison with something known to the hearers. In general, parables usually advance a single idea, though there may be many parts and characters in a single parable and subordinate ideas may expand the main idea further. The beauty of using the parable as a teaching device is that it draws the listener into the story, elicits an evaluation, and demands a response.

[13:3]  ⁵ tn Grk “Behold.”

[13:3]  ⁶ sn A sower went out to sow. The background for this well-known parable, drawn from a typical scene in the Palestinian countryside, is a field through which a well-worn path runs. Sowing would occur in late fall or early winter (October to December) in the rainy season, looking for sprouting in April or May and a June harvest. The use of seed as a figure for God’s giving life has OT roots (Isa 55:10-11). The point of the parable of the sower is to illustrate the various responses to the message of the kingdom of God.

[19:11]  ⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[19:22]  ⁸ tn Grk “he had many possessions.” This term (κτῆμα, kthma) is often used for land as a possession.

[28:18]  ⁹ tn Grk “coming, Jesus spoke to them, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn, “saying”) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.