Matthew 8:22

“But Jesus says to him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.””

Matthew 8:22 · direct translation from the Greek
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With the Greek beneath

22

Matthew 8:22, word by word

JesusἸησοῦςIēsous

Jesus

Jesus, the Greek form of the Hebrew Yehoshua (Joshua), which means "YHWH saves". It is the name the angel told Joseph to give him (Matthew 1:21).

Where else “Iēsous” appears
saysλέγειlegei

say

To express something in words to others.

Where else “legei” appears
“FollowἈκολούθειAkolouthei

follow as disciple

To leave everything to go with Jesus as a disciple.

Where else “Akolouthei” appears
letἄφεςaphes

allow

To permit: the children coming to Jesus.

Where else “aphes” appears
the deadνεκροὺςnekrous

dead

Someone who no longer has life, whose body has no breath left.

Where else “nekrous” appears
buryθάψαιthapsai

bury

Bury.

Where else “thapsai” appears

Parallel passages

Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.

Following Jesus

Luke 9:57-62

A similar saying; scholars discuss whether it is the same saying in another setting or a repeated one.

See them side by side

Matthew 8:18-22

18Now seeing large crowds around him, Jesus gave orders to go away to the other side. 19And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20And Jesus says to him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 21Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 22But Jesus says to him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Luke 9:57-62

57And as they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 59And he said to another, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.” 60But he said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61And another also said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first allow me to say goodbye to those at my home.” 62But Jesus said, “No one who puts his hand to a plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

The context

21Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”

22 · This verse (above)

23And when he got into a boat, his disciples followed him.

Read all of Matthew 8

To study Matthew 8 in a group

  1. 1. What it says

    What did the centurion say to Jesus about his servant, and how did Jesus respond (vv. 8–10)?

  2. 2. What it means

    What do these healings and the calming of the sea show about who Jesus is (v. 27)?

  3. 3. How I live it

    The centurion asked for help for his servant (vv. 5–6). Whom could you stand with today in a need that isn't yours?

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