The other apostles express displeasure because James and John asked for good places at the table.
Mark 10:43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister:
Mark 10:43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,
NLT Mark 10:43 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant,
Not in this way, however, is it among you, but whoever wants to become great by himself among you, he will be a servant of yous.
This verse starts by contrasting the idea of "becoming" against the idea of "seeming" or "imagining" in the previous verse. There is also a hidden play on words between the idea of servants in this verse and the idea of masters in the previous. Both words that Jesus used in the previous verse to describe power began with the idea it coming "down" from the ruling class, using power down on others. In contrast, the word translated as "minister" begins with a prefix which means "in the midst of," "by," and "among." So serving exists among people while ruling is from above them.
You won't notice this unless you study Jesus's word closely, but the structure of the phrase "your servant" is unusual because it is actually "your servant." Jesus usually says "that servant of yours" but that gets translated as "your servant." This verse demonstrates that he could use the simpler version most other places because he does so here, but he chooses to use the more complicated form for a variety of reasons (see this article.)
- WT - Wrong Tense - The verb "shall" seems to indicate the verb is the future tense, but the verb is in the present tense.
- CW - Confusing Word -- The "but" is not the common word usually translated as "but."
- CW - Confusing Word -- The "will" does not mean the future tense. It means "want" or "desire."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "be" means "become" or "happen."
- WF - Wrong Form - The "be" is not an active verb but an infinite, "to become."
- MW - Missing Word -- The conjunction "but" or "however" is not shown in the English translation.
- MW - Missing Word -- The verb "be" is not shown in the English translation.
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "must" means "will" or "going to."
- MW - Missing Word -- The adverb "so" or "in this way" is not shown in the English translation.
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "different" means "no" or "not."
- MW - Missing Word -- The verb "instead" is not shown in the English translation.
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "be" means "become."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "leader" is not a noun but an article that means "great."
- must -- (WW) This "must" is not justified by the verb form, which is the future tense and requires a "shall" or "will" or "going to" here.
But -- The Greek word translated as "but" means "but", "however", and "on the other hand". Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better.
so -- The adverb translated as "so" means "in this way," "so much," and "that is why."
shall -- (WT) This seems to indicate that the verb is in the future tense. It isn't. It is in the present tense.
it -- This is from the third-person singular form of the verb.
not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact,
be -- The verb here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It is not in the future tense, but the present, "it is."
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 almost always uses this conjunction to connect a negative clause, "not this," with a positive one, "instead this."
whosoever-- "Whoever" is from a special construction connecting a pronoun with a conditional particle. Together, they begin a relative, conditional clause that refers to each individual person or thing.
will -- (CW)The Greek word translated as "will" is not the same as the helping verb "will" in English, which primarily expresses the future tense. This verb expresses consent and even a delight in doing something. It means "to consent" and "to be resolved to a purpose". We should say "want" or "desire" to make this clear.
be -- (WW, WF)The word translated as "be" means "to become," that is, to enter into a new state. In Greek, especially as used by Jesus, it is the opposite of "being," which is existence in the current state. It is an infinitive, "to become."
great -- The word translated as "great" means "big", "high" "great," and "impressive."
among -- The word translated as "among" also means "within", "with," or "among."
you, -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.
shall -- This "shall" indicates that the verb is the future tense.
be -- The verb "be" 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. -
your -- The word translated as "your" is plural addressing a group of Jesus's listeners.
minister: -- The word translated here as "minister" actually means "servant." It is not the Greek word usually translated as "servant," which really means "slave."
missing "but" -- (MW) The untranslated Greek word means "but", "however", and "on the other hand". Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better.
Not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact. This word appears later in the verse, not near the beginning.
so -- The adverb translated as "so" means "in this way," "so much," and "that is why."
missing "be" -- (MW) The untranslated verb here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It is not in the future tense, but the present, "it is."
with -- The word translated as "with" also means "within", "with," or "among."
you: -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.
Instead-- The Greek word translated as "instead" denotes an exception or simple opposition. It is used to emphasize the contrast between things like we use "rather". It is the Greek word "other" like we use "otherwise".
whosoever-- "Whoever" is from a special construction connecting a pronoun with a conditional particle. Together, they begin a relative, conditional clause that refers to each individual person or thing.
wants -- The Greek word translated as "will" is not the same as the helping verb "will" in English, which primarily expresses the future tense. This verb expresses consent and even a delight in doing something. It means "to consent" and "to be resolved to a purpose". We should say "want" or "desire" to make this clear.
to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the following verb requires a "to" in English.
become -- The word translated as "to become" means "to become," that is, to enter into a new state. In Greek, especially as used by Jesus, it is the opposite of "being," which is existence in the current state. It is an infinitive, "to become."
great -- The word translated as "great" means "big", "high" "great," and "impressive."
among -- The word translated as "among" also means "within", "with," or "among."
you, -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.
must -- (WW) This "must" is not justified by the verb form, which is the future tense and requires a "shall" or "will" or "going to" here.
be -- The verb "be" 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. -
your -- The word translated as "your" is plural addressing a group of Jesus's listeners.
servant: -- The word translated here as "minister" actually means "servant." It is not the Greek word usually translated as "servant," which really means "slave."
NLT
But -- The Greek word translated as "but" means "but", "however", and "on the other hand". Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better.
untranslated -- (MW) The untranslated adverb means "in this way," "so much," and "that is why."
among -- The word translated as "among" also means "within", "with," or "among."
you: -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.
it -- This is from the third-person singular form of the verb.
will-- (WT) This seems to indicate that the verb is in the future tense. It isn't. It is in the present tense.
be -- The verb here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It is not in the future tense, but the present, "it is."
different. -- (WW) The Greek word translated as "different" is the Greek negative, ?not," used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact. This word appears later in the verse, not near the beginning.
missing "instead" ---- (MW) The untranslated Greek word denotes an exception or simple opposition as we use "instead." It is used to emphasize the contrast between things like we use "rather". It is the Greek word "other" like we use "otherwise".
whosoever-- "Whoever" is from a special construction connecting a pronoun with a conditional particle. Together, they begin a relative, conditional clause that refers to each individual person or thing.
wants -- The Greek word translated as "will" is not the same as the helping verb "will" in English, which primarily expresses the future tense. This verb expresses consent and even a delight in doing something. It means "to consent" and "to be resolved to a purpose". We should say "want" or "desire" to make this clear.
to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the following verb requires a "to" in English.
be -- (WW) The word translated as "be" means "to become," that is, to enter into a new state. In Greek, especially as used by Jesus, it is the opposite of "being," which is existence in the current state. It is an infinitive, "to become."
a -- There is no indefinite article in Greek, but when a word doesn't have a definite article, the indefinite article can be added in English translation.
leader -- (WW) The word translated as "leader" means "big", "high" "great," and "impressive." It is not a noun but an adjective.
among -- The word translated as "among" also means "within", "with," or "among."
you, -- The Greek pronoun "you" here is plural and in the form of an indirect object, "to you", "for you", etc.
must -- (WW) This "must" is not justified by the verb form, which is the future tense and requires a "shall" or "will" or "going to" here.
be -- The verb "be" 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. -
your -- The word translated as "your" is plural addressing a group of Jesus's listeners.
servant: -- The word translated here as "minister" actually means "servant." It is not the Greek word usually translated as "servant," which really means "slave."
οὐχ [269 verses](adv) "Not" is from ou which is 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.
οὕτως [54 verses](adv) "So" is from houtos, which, as an adverb, it means "in this way", "therefore", "so much", "to such an extent," and "that is why." -- "This" is translated from a Greek word that means "this", "that", "the nearer."
δέ [446 verses](conj/adv) "But" is de which means "but" and "on the other hand." It is the particle that joins sentences in an adversarial way but can also be a weak connective ("and") and explanation of cause ("so").
ἐστὶν [614 verses](verb 3rd sg pres ind act) "Shall be" is from esti which means "to be", "to exist", "to be the case," and "is possible."
ἐν [413 verses](prep) "Among" is from en, which means "in", "on", "at", "by", "among", "within", "surrounded by", "in one's hands", "in one's power," and "with".
ὑμῖν [289 verses](pron 2nd pl dat) "To you" is humin the plural form of su the pronoun of the second person, "you."
ἀλλ᾽ [154 verses](conj) "But" is alla, which means "instead," "otherwise," "but," "still," "at least," "except," "yet," nevertheless," "rather," "moreover," and "nay." Followed by οὐ, the sense is "still," and "at least." Followed by γὰρ. the sense is "but really" and "certainly."
ὃς ἂν [36 verses](pron sg masc nom)(partic) This is a special construction that means "whoever" "whatever," or "who if any." It combines the relative pronoun (hos) or the demostrative pronoun (hostis) with the particle of possibility (an). The literal sense is "this one might." Together, they begin a relative, conditional clause that refers to each individual.
θέλῃ (verb 3rd sg pres subj act) "Will" is from thelo, which as a verb means "to be willing (of consent rather than desire)", "to wish", "to ordain", "to decree", "to be resolved to a purpose" "to maintain", "to hold", "to delight in, and "will (too express a future event)." As an adverb, "willingly," and "gladly." and "to desire." As an adjective, it means "wished for" and "desired."
μέγας (adj sg masc nom) "Great" is from megas, which means "big", "full-grown", "vast", "high", "great", "mighty", "strong (of the elements)",l "Loud" (of sounds), "over-great,(with a bad sense), "impressive" (of style), AND "long" ( of days).
γενέσθαι (verb aor inf mid) "Be" is from ginomai, which means "to become", "to come into being", "to happen", "to be produced," and "to be." It means changing into a new state of being. It is the complementary opposite of the verb "to be" (eimi)which indicates existence in the same state.
ἐν (conj) "Among" is from en, which means "in", "on", "at", "by", "among", "within", "surrounded by", "in one's hands", "in one's power," and "with". -- The word translated as "in" also means "within", "with," or "among."
ὑμῖν (pron 2nd pl dat) "You" is from humin, the 2nd person pronoun.
ἔσται ( verb 3rd sg fut ind mid ) "Shall be" is eimi, which means "to be", "to exist", "to be the case," of circumstance and events "to happen", and "is possible." (The future form is esomai. The 3rd person present indicative is "esti.")
ὑμῶν (pron 2nd pl gen) "Your" is humon, the plural possessive form of su the pronoun of the second person, "you."
διάκονος, (noun sg masc nom) "Minister" is from the noun diakonos, which means "servant", "messenger," and "attendant." This is the source for our word "deacon." As a verb, it is from diakoneô, which "to act as a servant", "to minister," and "to perform services."