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Today's Verse Analysis

Matthew 17:25 What do you think, Simon?

Simeon is asked by the tax collectors if Jesus pays tribute and he says, "yes." This is Christ's response.

Spoken to
an individual

Matthew 17:25 Τί σοι δοκεῖ, Σίμων; οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς ἀπὸ τίνων λαμβάνουσιν τέλη ἢ κῆνσον; ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν αὐτῶν ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων;

KJV Verse

Matthew 17:25 What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers?

NIV Verse:

Matthew 17:25 What do you think, Simon?  From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?

What His Listeners Heard:

What do you expect, Simon? Do the rulers of the earth get dues from everyone or tax from those children of theirs, or from those strangers?

Lost In Translation:

Taxes were apparently as big an issue in Jesus's time as they are now. Taxes are a form of compulsion. The absence of taxes is the absence of compulsion. This verse, however, sets up a clever play on the idea relating to Jesus's own situation. Notice, this question is about "kings of the earth" not "kings of the world." This is the critical word in this verse because Jesus usually refers to worldly leads as "worldly," that is, as "kings of the world," that is, lords of society, not the planet. 

KJV w/Translation Issues :

What thinkest(WW) thou , Simon? of(CW) whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of(CW) their own(IW) (MW) children, or of(CW) (MW) strangers?

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.