Luke 14:29

Otherwise, ¹  when he has laid ²  a foundation and is not able to finish the tower, ³  all who see it ⁴  will begin to make fun of ⁵  him.

For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him,

"Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him,

Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh at you!

If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you're going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you:

For fear that if he makes a start and is not able to go on with it to the end, all who see it will be laughing at him,

Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him,

"lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,

Otherwise, ¹  when he has laid ²  a foundation and is not able to finish the tower, ³  all who see it ⁴  will begin to make fun of ⁵  him.

¹ tn Grk “to complete it, lest.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation and ἵνα μήποτε ({ina mhpote, “lest”) has been translated as “Otherwise.”

² tn The participle θέντος (qentos) has been taken temporally.

³ tn The words “the tower” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

⁴ tn The word “it” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

⁵ tn Or “mock,” “ridicule.” The person who did not plan ahead becomes an object of joking and ridicule.