Mar 8:36 For what shall it profit a man,
Mar 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
Alternative version: For how can a man profit if by gaining an advantage on all of society and he loses himself?
Again, from verse to verse here, the original Greek is much more consistent and make more sense that the KJV translation. As we pointed out in the last verse, the word that was is there translated as "life" is translated here as "soul." It is misleading to change the English word when the Greek word stays the same.
Again, the larger context here is the problem with judging our lives by the standards of society. What Christ is saying here is our consciousness gives our lives meaning not society. Again, this continues the theme of the chapter, which focuses on the ignorance of society in knowing what is important, real, and true.
"Profit" is from ophellô (opheleo), which means "to own," "to pay," and "to be bound to render." This is the verb form of ôpheleia, which means "help," "aid," and "succor" as well as "profit," "advantage," or "gain from war."
"Gain" is from kerdainô, which means "to gain," "to gain an advantage," "to derive profit from," and "to save yourself from."
"Whole" is from holos (holos), which means "the whole," "entire," "the universe," and "safe and sound."
"World" is from kosmos, which mean "order," "good order," "ruler," "world order," "universe," and "the world of men." Matthew uses it when Christ is talking about the order in the universe, specifically the order of the world of men, as it is designed to be.
"Lose" is from zêmioô (zemioo), which means "to damage," "to cause loss," and "to penalize."
"Life" is from psuchê (psyche), which means "breath," "life," "self," "spirit," and "soul." It has the clear sense of the conscious self. It is also used to describe "the spirit" of things. It is often translated as "soul."
