John 14:24 He that loves me not

Spoken to
Apostles

At the Last Supper, Jesus gives his final message to the apostles. After Jesus connects caring about his with taking care of his commands.

KJV

John 14:24 He that loves me not keeps not my sayings: and the word which you hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.

NIV

John 14:24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

LISTENERS HEARD

The one not wanting to care about me, doesn't take care of these ideas of mine. And the idea, the one you hear, is not my own. Instead, it belongs to the one sending me, Father's.

MY TAKE

What we care about is what we do.

LOST IN TRANSLATION

You can't see it in English translation, but in the first part of this verse, Jesus is saying that subjective opinions create objective facts. He does this by using two different negatives. The first is the negative of opinion, referring to the word translated as "love," which is an opinion. The second negative is the objective one, used with the verb translated as "keeps," an action. A more accurate translation would be "the one not caring about me, doesn't take care of these ideas of mine."

The words translated as "sayings/teaching" and as "words/words" are both the same word, but this word is the source of our word "logic." It is not the Greek word that means "word." Its primary meaning is "calculation," but I prefer to translate it as "ideas" or "message." The first use of this word is plural; the second is singular.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES
10
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "he" is not the common word usually translated as "he."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "that" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "loves" is not an active verb but a participle, "caring about."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "heaven" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "saying" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "word" is the same word translated as "sayings" above.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "but" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "the" doesn't exist in the source.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "which" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "sent" is not an active verb but a participle, "sending."
# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES
17
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "anyone" is not the common word usually translated as "he."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "who" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "love" is not an active verb but a participle, "caring about."
  • WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "will" indicates the future tense, but that is not the tense here.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "obey" is the same word translated as "keeps" in the NIV's previous verse.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "the/this" before "heaven" is not shown in the English translation.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "teaching" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • WN  - Wrong Number- The word "teaching" is translated as singular but the Greek word is plural, "ideas."
  • WN  - Wrong Number- The word "these" is translated as plural but the Greek word is singular.
  • WN  - Wrong Number- The word "words" is translated as plural but the Greek word is singular.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "which" is not shown in the English translation.
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "but" is not shown in the English translation.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "they" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "belong to" is not an active verb but a genitive, "belonging to."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "the" doesn't exist in the source.
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "who" does not capture the word's specific meaning.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "sent" is not an active verb but a participle, "sending."
EACH WORD of KJV

He   -- (CW) The word translated as "he" is the Greek definite article; without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.  This is not the pronoun "he."

that -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "that" in the Greek source. It was added because the next verb was translated as active rather than as a participle.

loves -- (WF) The word translated as "love" expresses a lot of different ideas including "to be fond of," "to greet with affection," "to persuade," and "to be contented with." Jesus however, applies it to relationships where we have a duty to care for others: family, God, etc. Another word, also translated as "love," is used to for relationships of affectionate friendship that are more voluntary. To distinguish this word, translating it as "cares for" seems to work best. See this article on love for more information. The form is a participle, not an active verb.

me -- "Me" is the regular first-person pronoun in Greek as the object of the verb or preposition. As the object of a preposition, an accusative object indicates movement towards something or a position reached as a result of that movement.

not -- The negative used here is the Greek negative of a subjective opinion, commands, and requests. The sense is that "you don't want" or "think" something, not that it isn't done or thought.   Since this refers to "love," it applies to an opinion. When a negative precedes the verb, as it does here, it affects the whole clause.

keeps - The word translated as "keep" means "to watch over," "to guard," "to take care of," "to give heed to," "to keep," "to test by observation or trial," and "to observe." Jesus uses this word seventeen times, almost always with the idea of "keeping" in commandments or words. "Keep" works well because it combines the idea of "guarding" and "observing," but "take care of" works even better when this verb is used with related ideas such as "love" or "cares for."

not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words. 

my -- "My" is the first-person possessive singular pronoun. This pronoun follows the noun so "of mine."  As a genitive object of a preposition, as here, it means movement away from something or a position away from something else.

missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more. 

sayings:-- (CW) "Sayings" is translated from a Greek word that means "calculation," or "reasoning," but it has many, many specific meanings from "deliberation" to "narrative."  It is the source of our word "logic" and is the root word for all the English words that end in "-ology." Most biblical translations translated it as "word" for somewhat poetic reasons, and that is how it is translated below.  More about this word in this article. It has no relationship with the Greek words for "say." In English, we would say "idea" to describe it but it also means the communication of various types, so "message" often works better.

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article; without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more. 

word -- (CW) "Word" is translated from a Greek word that means "calculation," or "reasoning," but it has many, many specific meanings from "deliberation" to "narrative."  It is the source of our word "logic" and is the root word for all the English words that end in "-ology." Most biblical translations translated it as "word" for somewhat poetic reasons. However, when applied to people, it means "repute" or "reputation." More about this word in this article. In English, we would say "idea" to describe it but it also means the communication of various types, so "message" often works better. This word was translated as "sayings" above.

which - The word translated as "which" is a demonstrative pronoun ("this" "that"), but it often acts as a pronoun "which," "what," "who," "whosoever," "where," "for which reason," and many similar meanings.

you -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the verb.

hear -- "Hear" is from a Greek verb that means "to hear" and "to listen." It has the same sense as the English not only of listening but of understanding.   It also means "to listen" and "to understand," but amusingly, it also means "to be silent." The accusative object is the person/thing heard about, while the genitive is the person/thing heard from.  However, two genitives can be used with the sense of "hear of a thing from a person."

is -- The verb "is" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. With the genitive object, the sense is "belongs to." This is why the genitive "my" is avoided here.

not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

mine, -- "Mine" is the first-person adjective, not the common pronoun, used in Greek to create a possessive or as the object of a preposition. Unlike the genitive pronoun used as a possessive, its case matches its noun. Perhaps "mine own" captures its best.

but -- (CW) The Greek word translated as "but" denotes an exception or simple opposition. It is used to emphasize the contrast between things like we use "instead," "but instead,"or "rather." It is not the common word usually translated as "but." It is the Greek word "other" like we use "otherwise." Jesus often uses this conjunction to connect a negative clause, "not this," with a positive one, "instead this." CW - Confusing Word -- The "but" is not the common word usually translated as "but."

the -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "the" in the Greek source.

Father-- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father.

's  -- The apostrophe "s" comes from the noun's genitive form. This case usually requires the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession for which an apostrophe "s" can be substituted. However, it can also mean "belonging to," "part of," "which is," "than" (in comparisons), or  "for," "concerning" or "about" with transitive verbs.

which   -- (CW) The word translated as "which" is the Greek definite article; without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more. 

sent -- (WF) "Sent" is from a Greek verb that means "send," "send forth," "send away," "conduct," and "escort." This is the second most common word Jesus uses that is translated as "send out," but this one doesn't have the prefix that has the sense of "out."The form is a participle, not an active verb.

me. -- "Me" is the regular first-person pronoun in Greek as the object of the verb or preposition. As the object of a preposition, an accusative object indicates movement towards something or a position reached as a result of that movement.

EACH WORD of NIV

Anyone -- (CW) The word translated as "anyone" is the Greek definite article; without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.  This is not the pronoun "he."

who -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "that" in the Greek source. It was added because the next verb was translated as active rather than as a participle.

does -- This English helping verb is used to create questions, commands, negative statements, and smooth word flow in translation from Greek

not -- The negative used here is the Greek negative of a subjective opinion, commands, and requests. The sense is that "you don't want" or "think" something, not that it isn't done or thought.   Since this refers to "love," it applies to an opinion. When a negative precedes the verb, as it does here, it affects the whole clause.

loves -- (WF) The word translated as "love" expresses a lot of different ideas including "to be fond of," "to greet with affection," "to persuade," and "to be contented with." Jesus however, applies it to relationships where we have a duty to care for others: family, God, etc. Another word, also translated as "love," is used to for relationships of affectionate friendship that are more voluntary. To distinguish this word, translating it as "cares for" seems to work best. See this article on love for more information. The form is a participle, not an active verb.

me -- "Me" is the regular first-person pronoun in Greek as the object of the verb or preposition. As the object of a preposition, an accusative object indicates movement towards something or a position reached as a result of that movement.

will  -- (WT) This helping verb "will" indicates the future tense, but the verb is not the future.

not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

obey - (CW) The word translated as "obey" means "to watch over," "to guard," "to take care of," "to give heed to," "to keep," "to test by observation or trial," and "to observe." Jesus uses this word seventeen times, almost always with the idea of "keeping" in commandments or words. "Keep" works well because it combines the idea of "guarding" and "observing," but "take care of" works even better when this verb is used with related ideas such as "love" or "cares for." In the previous verse, the NIV translated this as "keeps," so its translation here as "obey" is confusing.

my -- "My" is the first-person possessive singular pronoun. This pronoun follows the noun so "of mine."  As a genitive object of a preposition, as here, it means movement away from something or a position away from something else.

missing "the/this" -- (MW) The untranslated word is the Greek definite article," the," which usually precedes a noun and, without a noun, takes the meaning of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," and "those"). See this article for more.

teaching:-- (CW, WN) "Teaching" is translated from a Greek word that means "calculation," or "reasoning," but it has many, many specific meanings from "deliberation" to "narrative."  It is the source of our word "logic" and is the root word for all the English words that end in "-ology." Most biblical translations translated it as "word" for somewhat poetic reasons, and that is how it is translated below.  More about this word in this article. It has no relationship with the Greek words for "say." In English, we would say "idea" to describe it but it also means the communication of various types, so "message" often works better. The word is plural, not singular.

missing "and"  -- (MW) The untranslated word "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

These --  (WN) The word translated as "these" is the Greek definite article; without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.  This word is singular, not plural.

words -- (CW, WN) "Word" is translated from a Greek word that means "calculation," or "reasoning," but it has many, many specific meanings from "deliberation" to "narrative."  It is the source of our word "logic" and is the root word for all the English words that end in "-ology." Most biblical translations translated it as "word" for somewhat poetic reasons. However, when applied to people, it means "repute" or "reputation." More about this word in this article. In English, we would say "idea" to describe it but it also means the communication of various types, so "message" often works better. This word was translated as "sayings" above.

missing "which"  -- (MW) The untranslated word "which" is a demonstrative pronoun ("this" "that"), but it often acts as a pronoun "which," "what," "who," "whosoever," "where," "for which reason," and many similar meanings.

you -- This is from the second-person, plural form of the verb.

hear -- "Hear" is from a Greek verb that means "to hear" and "to listen." It has the same sense as the English not only of listening but of understanding.   It also means "to listen" and "to understand," but amusingly, it also means "to be silent." The accusative object is the person/thing heard about, while the genitive is the person/thing heard from.  However, two genitives can be used with the sense of "hear of a thing from a person."

is -- The verb "is" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. With the genitive object, the sense is "belongs to." This is why the genitive "my" is avoided here.

not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

my own, -- "My own" is the first-person adjective, not the common pronoun, used in Greek to create a possessive or as the object of a preposition. Unlike the genitive pronoun used as a possessive, its case matches its noun. Perhaps "mine own" captures its best.

missing "but"  -- (MW) The untranslated word "but" denotes an exception or simple opposition. It is used to emphasize the contrast between things like we use "instead," "but instead,"or "rather." It is not the common word usually translated as "but." It is the Greek word "other" like we use "otherwise." Jesus often uses this conjunction to connect a negative clause, "not this," with a positive one, "instead this." CW - Confusing Word -- The "but" is not the common word usually translated as "but."

they -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "they" in the Greek source.

belong to --  (WF) The belong comes from the noun's genitive form. This case usually requires the addition of a preposition in English.  The most common is the "of" of possession for which an apostrophe "s" can be substituted. However, it can also mean "belonging to," "part of," "which is," "than" (in comparisons), or  "for," "concerning" or "about" with transitive verbs. This is not an active verb, but a genitive form.

the -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "the" in the Greek source.

Father-- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father.

who -- (CW) The word translated as "who" is the Greek definite article; without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.

sent -- (WF) "Sent" is from a Greek verb that means "send," "send forth," "send away," "conduct," and "escort." This is the second most common word Jesus uses that is translated as "send out," but this one doesn't have the prefix that has the sense of "out."The form is a participle, not an active verb.

me. -- "Me" is the regular first-person pronoun in Greek as the object of the verb or preposition. As the object of a preposition, an accusative object indicates movement towards something or a position reached as a result of that movement.

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV

[821 verses](article sg masc nom)  "He" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

μὴ [447 verses](conj) "Not" is me , which is the negative used in prohibitions and expressions of doubt meaning "not" and "no." As οὐ (ou) negates fact and statement; μή rejects, οὐ denies; μή is relative, οὐ absolute; μή subjective, οὐ objective. With pres. or aor. subj. used in a warning or statement of fear, "take care" It can be the conjunction "lest" or "for fear that." Used before tis with an imperative to express a will or wish for something in independent sentences and, with subjunctives, to express prohibitions.

ἀγαπῶν [32 verses](part sg pres act masc nom) "Love" is agapao, which means "to be fond of," "to greet with affection," "to persuade," "to caress," "to prize," "to desire," "to be pleased with," and "to be contended with."  This love is more associated with affection in relationships where we are obligated. Jesus uses another word. Jesus uses another word, phileô, which means "to love," "to like," "to be fond of doing," and "to show affection" to express "love" in the sense of like and dislike.He never uses the word eros, which describes romantic, sexual love.

με [49 verses](pron 1st sg masc acc) "Me" is eme, which is the objective first-person, objective, singular pronoun that means  "me."

τοὺς [821 verses](article pl masc nom)  Untranslated is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").  -

λόγους [80 verses](noun pl masc acc) "Sayings" is logos, which means "word," "computation," "relation," "explanation," "law," "rule of conduct," "continuous statement," "tradition," "discussion," "reckoning," "reputation" (when applied to people), and "value."

μου [239 verses](adj sg masc gen) "My" is from mou (emou), which means "me," and "mine." As a genitive object means movement away from something or a position away from something else.

οὐ [269 verses](partic) "Not" is ou , the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences.  The other negative adverb, μή applies to will and thought; οὐ denies, μή rejects; οὐ is absolute, μή relative; οὐ objective, μή subjective.

τηρεῖ: [17 verses](verb 3rd sg pres ind act ) "Keeps" is tereo, which means "to watch over," "to guard," "to take care of," "to give heed to," "to keep," "to test by observation or trial," and "to observe." 

καὶ [1089 verses](conj/adv) "And" is kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "also." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even," "also," and "just."

[821 verses](article sg masc nom)  "These" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

λόγος -- "Words" is logos, which means "word," "computation," "relation," "explanation," "law," "rule of conduct," "continuous statement," "tradition," "discussion," "reckoning," "reputation" (when applied to people), and "value."

ὃν [294 verses](pron sg masc acc) "Which" is hos, which means "this," "that," "he," "she," "which," "what," "who," "whosoever," "where," "for which reason," and many similar meanings. -

ἀκούετε [95 verses](verb 2nd pl pres ind act) "Hear" is akouo,  which means "hear of," "hear tell of," "what one actually hears," "know by hearsay," "listen to," "give ear to," "hear and understand," and "understand." The accusative object is the person/thing heard about, while the genitive is the person/thing heard from.  However, two genitives can be used with the sense of "hear of a thing from a person." -

οὐκ [269 verses](partic) "Not" is ou , the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences.  The other negative adverb, μή applies to will and thought; οὐ denies, μή rejects; οὐ is absolute, μή relative; οὐ objective, μή subjective.

ἐστίν.[614 verses](3rd sg pres ind act) "Is" is eimi, which means "to be," "to exist," "to be the case," of circumstance and events "to happen,"  and "is possible." With the genitive object, the sense is "belongs to." It can also mean "must" with a dative.

ἐμὸς[28 verses](adj sg masc nom) "Mine" is emos, which means "mine," "of me," "my," "relating to me," and "against me." The form can also be the object of a preposition, "me."

ἀλλὰ [154 verses](conj) "But" is alla, which means "instead," "otherwise," "but," "still," "at least," "except," "yet," nevertheless," "rather," "moreover," and "nay."

τοῦ [821 verses](article sg masc gen)  "Which" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

πέμψαντός [39 verses](part sg aor act masc gen) "Sent" is pempo, which means "send," "send forth," "send away," "conduct," and "escort."

με [49 verses](pron 1st sg masc acc) "Me" is eme, which is the objective first-person, objective, singular pronoun that means  "me."

πατρός. [191 verses](noun sg masc gen) "Father" is pater, which means "father," "grandfather," "author," "parent," and "forefathers."

Front Page Date