Synoptic Gospels Primer - Why Parables? (Greek)

Parallel Texts in Matthew, Mark & Luke

3. Why Parables?
Matt 13:10-17 // Mark 4:10-12 // Luke 8:9-10

context

Greek synopsis

English synopsis

analysis

source hypotheses

appendix

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Greek Text

The reconstruction of the gospel texts below is based on the critical edition of E. Nestle's Novum Testamentum Graece presented with a fuller critical apparatus in Kurt Aland's Synopsis Quattuor Evangeliorum ed. ii (Stuttgart: Württembergiche Bibelanstalt, 1964) pp. 175-177. The matched column format & color coding employed here is the original work of the author of this electronic edition. The accented Greek script used to compose this synopsis is the unicode font, Palatino Linotype.

WHY PARABLES?
Matthew 13		Mark 4		Luke 8
10	Καὶ προσελϑόντες	10	Καὶ ὅτε ἐγένετο
			κατὰ μόνας
			ἠρώτων	9	Ἐπηρώτων
			αὐτὸν		δὲ αὐτὸν
			*οἱ περὶ αὐτον
	οἱ μαϑηταὶ		σὺν τοῖς δώδεκα*		οἱ μαϑηταὶ αὐτοῦ
	εἶπαν αῦτῷ·
	διὰ τὶ				τίς αὕτη εἴη
	ἐν παραβολαῖς		τὰς παραβολάς		ἡ παραβολή
	λαλεῖς αὐτοῖς;
11	ὁ δὲ ἀποκροϑεὶς	11	καὶ		ὁ δὲ
	εἶπεν·		ἔλεγεν αὐτοῖς·	10	εἶπεν·
	ὅτι ὑμῖν		Ὑμῖν		Ὑμῖν
		**	τὸ μυστήριον
	δέδοται		δέδοται		δέδοται
	γνῶναι				γνῶναι
	τὰ μυστήρια				τὰ μυστήρια
	τῆς βασιλείας		τῆς βασιλείας		τῆς βασιλείας
	τῶν οὐρανῶν,		τοῦ ϑεοῦ·**		τοῦ ϑεοῦ·
	ἐκείνοις δὲ		ἐκείνοις δὲ		τοῖς δὲ
			τοῖς ἔξω		λοιποῖς
	οὐ δέδοται.
12	ὅστις γὰρ ἔχει,
	δoϑήσεται αὐτῷ
	καὶ
	περοσσευϑήσεται·
	ὅστις δὲ
	οὐκ ἔχει,
	καὶ ὃ ἔχει
	ἀρϑήσεται
	ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ.
13	διὰ τοῦτο
	ἐν παραβολαῖς		ἐν παραβολαῖς		ἐν παραβολαῖς,
	αὐτοῖς		τὰ πάντα
	λαλῶ,		γίνεται,
***	ὅτι	12	ἵνα		ἵνα
	βλέποντες		βλέποντες		βλέποντες
			βλέπωσιν
	οὐ βλέπουσιν		καὶ μὴ ἴδωσιν		μή βλέπωσιν
	καὶ ἀκούοντες		καὶ ἀκούοντες		καὶ ἀκούοντες
	οὐκ ἀκούουσιν		ἀκούωσιν
	οὐδὲ συνίουσιν***		καὶ μὴ συνιῶσιν		μὴ συνιῶσιν
14	καὶ
	ἀναπληροῦται
	αὐτοῖς
	ἡ προϕητεία
	Ἠσαΐου
	ἡ λέγουσα·
	ἀκοῇ
	ἀκούσετε
	καὶ οὐ
	μὴ συνῆτε,
	καὶ βλέποντες
	βλέψετε
	καὶ οὐ
	μὴ ἴδῆτε,
15	ἐπαχύνϑη γὰρ
	ἡ καρδία
	τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου,
	καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν
	βαρέως ἤκουσαν,
	καὶ
	τοὺς ὀϕϑαλμοὺς
	αὐτῶν
	ἐκάμμυσαν·
	μήποτε ἴδῶσιν		μήποτε
	τοῖς ὀϕϑαλμοῖς
	καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν
	ακούωσιν
	καὶ τῇ καρδὶᾳ
	συνῶσιν
	καὶ
	ἐπιστρεψῶσιν,		ἐπιστρεψῶσιν,
	καὶ ἰάσομαι		καὶ ἀϕεϑῇ
	αὐτους.		αὐτοῖς.
16	ὑμῶν δὲ μακάριοι				[see Luke 10:23 below]
	οἱ ὀϕϑαλμοὶ
	ὅτι βλέπουσιν,
	καὶ τὰ ὦτα ὑμῶν
	ὅτι ἀκούουσιν.
17	ἀμὴν γὰρ
	λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι
	πολλοὶ προϕῆται
	καὶ δίκαιοι
	ἐπεϑύμησαν ἰδεῖν
	ἅ βλέπετε
	καὶ οὐκ εἶδαν,
	καὶ ἀκοῦσαι
	ἃ ἀκούετε
	καὶ οὐκ ἤκουσαν.

* Note: A handful of mss. (including codex Bezae) & Origen have "his disciples" (μαϑηταὶ αὐτοῦ) in Mark 4:10 (like Luke) rather than "those who were about him with the 12" (οἱ περὶ αὐτον σὺν τοῖς δώδεκα). Textual critics generally consider the longer version original because

it is in most mss. including the oldest;

it is more awkward & therefore less likely to be a later correction.

** Note: The wording of Mark 4:11 in the Byzantine recension & codex Bezae exactly parallels Luke 8:10 (including γνῶναι) except for the singular τὸν μυστήριον. Text critics regard the wording found in 4th c. mss. (codex Sinaiticus & codex Vaticanus) as probably original.

*** Note: The dependent clause in Matt 13:13 is worded like Mark 4:12 in codex Bezae. Textual critics generally regard this as a harmonization by one 5th c. scribe.

Color Key

Blue Three texts use same vocabulary.

Teal Two texts use same vocabulary.

Black Words unique to a particular text.

No parallel passage in this gospel.

context Greek synopsis English synopsis analysis source hypotheses appendix

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last revised 01 March 2023