Matthew 13:21
13:21 But he has no root in himself and does not endure; 1 when 2 trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away.
Matthew 14:23
14:23 And after he sent the crowds away, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone.
Matthew 16:24
16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to become my follower, 3 he must deny 4 himself, take up his cross, 5 and follow me.
Matthew 18:26
18:26 Then the slave threw himself to the ground 6 before him, saying, 7 ‘Be patient with me, and I will repay you everything.’
Matthew 27:42
27:42 “He saved others, but he cannot save himself! He is the king of Israel! If he comes down 8 now from the cross, we will believe in him!
1 tn Grk “is temporary.”
2 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
3 tn Grk “to come after me.”
4 tn This translation better expresses the force of the Greek third person imperative than the traditional “let him deny,” which could be understood as merely permissive.
5 sn To bear the cross means to accept the rejection of the world for turning to Jesus and following him. Discipleship involves a death that is like a crucifixion; see Gal 6:14.
6 tn Grk “falling therefore the slave bowed down to the ground.” The redundancy of this expression signals the desperation of the slave in begging for mercy.
7 tc The majority of mss (א L W 058 0281 Ë1,13 33 Ï it syp,h co) begin the slave’s plea with “Lord” (κύριε, kurie), though a few important witnesses lack this vocative (B D Θ 700 pc lat sys,c Or Chr). Understanding the parable to refer to the Lord, scribes would be naturally prone to add the vocative here, especially as the slave’s plea is a plea for mercy. Thus, the shorter reading is more likely to be authentic.
8 tn Here the aorist imperative καταβάτω (katabatw) has been translated as a conditional imperative. This fits the pattern of other conditional imperatives (imperative + καί + future indicative) outlined by ExSyn 489.