8:9 Then 6 his disciples asked him what this parable meant. 7 8:10 He 8 said, “You have been given 9 the opportunity to know 10 the secrets 11 of the kingdom of God, 12 but for others they are in parables, so that although they see they may not see, and although they hear they may not understand. 13
1 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in the final stage of the parable.
2 tn Grk “when it grew, after it grew.”
3 sn Unlike the parallel accounts in Matt 13:8 and Mark 4:8, there is no distinction in yield in this version of the parable.
4 tn Grk “said these things.”
5 tn The translation “had better listen!” captures the force of the third person imperative more effectively than the traditional “let him hear,” which sounds more like a permissive than an imperative to the modern English reader. This was Jesus’ common expression to listen and heed carefully (cf. Matt 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9, 23; Luke 14:35).
6 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
7 tn Grk “what this parable might be” (an optative after a secondary tense, in keeping with good Koine style).
8 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
9 tn This is an example of a so-called “divine passive,” with God understood to be the source of the revelation (see ExSyn 437-38).
10 tn Grk “it has been given to you to know.” The dative pronoun occurs first, in emphatic position in the Greek text, although this position is awkward in contemporary English.
11 tn Grk “the mysteries.”
sn The key term secrets (μυστήριον, musthrion) can mean either (1) a new revelation or (2) a revealing interpretation of existing revelation as in Dan 2:17-23, 27-30. Jesus seems to be explaining how current events develop old promises, since the NT consistently links the events of Jesus’ ministry and message with old promises (Rom 1:1-4; Heb 1:1-2). The traditional translation of this word, “mystery,” is misleading to the modern English reader because this English word suggests a secret which people have tried to uncover but which they have failed to understand (L&N 28.77).
12 sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.
13 sn A quotation from Isa 6:9. Thus parables both conceal or reveal depending on whether one is open to hearing what they teach.