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Today's Verse Analysis

Matthew 15:28 O woman, great [is] your faith:...

A Canaanite (that is, non-Judean) woman, makes a humorous play on words when asking for Jesus to cure child.

Spoken to
an individual

Matthew 15:28  Ὦ γύναι, μεγάλη σου ἡ πίστις: γενηθήτω σοι ὡς θέλεις

KJV Verse

Matthew 15:28 O woman, impressive is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.

NIV Verse:

Matthew 15:28 Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.

What His Listeners Heard:

Oh, woman! Great is this trust belonging to you! It must happen to you as you desire.

Lost In Translation:

There is no verb  in the first clause as in the KJV, but "is" can be assumed by the form of "great" and "faith" as subjects without a verb. The "you have" in the NIV is just wrong. The verb translated as "be it/is granted" in the second clause means "to become" or "to happen." The form is a third-person command which be translated as "let it happen" or "it must happen."

KJV w/Translation Issues :

O woman, impressive(CW) is thy (MW) faith: be(WW) it unto thee even as thou wilt(WT).

KJV List (See full page for word-by-word analysis):
For analysis of each word of original Greek and biblical verses, click here.

Constantly Updated

My analysis standards and methods are constantly improving. New information on each verse is provided as articles are updated. It requires approximately two years for me to work through updating each of Jesus's verses.

What Jesus's Listeners Heard

The everyday meanings of the Greek words Jesus used were different than the definitions they have been given over time in biblical translation. The word translations here are based upon documents of his time such as the Greek Septuagint, not ideas unknown in his time.

About this Site

See what Jesus said in Greek and see how his words are changed in English translation. My goal is to translate Jesus's words as they were heard when he taught, not the way they are interpreted today. The work here resurrects the humor and cleverness of Jesus's words lost in translation.

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Each article provides detailed information on all the Greek words in each verse with links simplifying your own research. It compares the Greek to popular translations to show where words are confused, changed, left out, and added. This site offers research available nowhere else, such as how often Jesus uses a specific Greek word and links to a list of every verse in which he uses a given word.