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July 25th, 2026

7/25/2026

If you have been following these writings, or if you have been going to church, you probably would know that this Sunday’s title is the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost. And with this year being the “A Series”, you probably would also know that the Gospel Reading is from the Gospel according to Matthew. And with all the verses that have been skipped from time to time, you might be a bit surprised that the text for this Sunday follows right after last week’s reading, and it is just one text (13:44-52). And with this text Jesus is continuing with his parables.

The plan is for this website to focus on the Word of God. With the writings of this website, we have currently been going through the Gospel according to John, a significantly different Gospel account when compared to the other three, but also one with a lot of good news. And we are much farther along in that account, getting closer to Jesus’ arrest in Gethsemane. And we are taking a little bit of that account at a time, in the order in which it has been laid out, and we are also not skipping any parts.

Jesus has been doing a lot of talking recently. And this is unusual in the Gospel accounts at this time in Jesus’ life. The focus in those accounts at this point in time is usually the institution of the Lord’s Supper. For Jesus to talk so much within the Gospel according to John is significant, and his words are certainly important.

We are currently focusing on the words of Jesus that he uses nowhere else. He has been mentioning another “Paraclete” that is coming. That title literally means “to call alongside”, and the implication is that someone who is called to go alongside of you is helpful. That is who Jesus was, and that is also who the Holy Spirit is now. This will be the fourth time that this Paraclete is mentioned, and after the text below we will look at the “bigger picture” of those times he was mentioned, and you may see a structure within those times he was mentioned.

It should also be mentioned that we are going through that Gospel account with a unique translation called an EXTREMELY literal translation. If you are familiar with this style of translation, then you may wish to skip the next two paragraphs.

The first significant thing to mention regarding the description of this type of translation is that the chapter and verse numbers will not be included within the text itself. Both numbers were added quite later after the text was written, and they are certainly useful when someone is searching for a particular text, but the structure they imply is not always helpful. This pair of numerical designations makes the very beginning of the text important. There is always a first verse, and there is not always a fiftieth verse. With this structure, the focus tends to be on the beginning of the writing. The act of writing those verses is probably not the most important thing that the writer wants to get across to the reader. The biblical writers basically wanted the readers to focus on God and not on themselves. And the words are much more important than the numbers, and often those words lead the reader near the middle and/or the end of the text in some way, to give to the reader some structure to all the words being read. (More will be said about this later.)

It should also be noted that the words with hyphens occur when more than one English word is used to describe a single word of the ancient Greek. And it should also be noted that some of the words chosen below are meant to point out the close connection that often occurs between the English and Greek languages. It is also important to mention that the order of the words below is also the same order that is in the ancient Greek. This may help to show the important words, especially when another word besides the verb is first in the sentence or phrase. Sometimes this emphasis will be shown with a “(!)”. The exception to this translation order is that there are just a small number of words (like “therefore”, “now”) that are usually second in a sentence that are meant to be first when translated. And although it should be obvious, it should be said that repetition of words should be noted as another type of emphasis. One more thing to mention, although it does not happen in the text below, is that the verbs in capital letters are called HISTORICAL PRESENTS.  Historical presents are when a verb in a past tense is expected, but a verb in the present tense is given. More detail regarding the historical present has been explained elsewhere in these writings, and it may be helpful to read some of the other writings of this website. With all of the above things to consider, it will probably be helpful to have another translation or a study bible nearby as you read the text below.

What follows is an EXTREMELY literal translation of the first part of the what has been called the sixteenth chapter of the Gospel according to John (16:1-15). As was mentioned, Jesus is continuing to talk, and it was also mentioned that this is the last time he will be mentioning the other “Paraclete”. As was also mentioned, these times the Spirit was mentioned will be all put together. And hopefully that will be helpful. Again, these are Jesus’ words right before he was arrested and killed; you can imagine that he probably has a few important things to say:

“These-things(!)  I-have-spoken  to-you  in-order-that  not  to-be-scandalized.  Apo-synagogue  they-will-make  you;  but-on-the-contrary,  it-is-coming  an-hour,  that  every  the-one  having-killed  you,  he-thinks  a-service  to-offer  to-the  God.  And  these-things(!)  they-will-do  because  not  do-they-know  the  Father  nor  me.  But-on-the-contrary,  these-things  I-have-spoken  to-you,  in-order-that  when  it-comes,  the  hour  of-them,  you-may-remember  them,  that  I,  I-told  you.  Now  these-things  to-you,  out-of  the-beginning  not  I-said,  because  with  you  I-was.”

“Now  presently  I-am-going-away  toward  the-one  having-sent  me,  and  not-one  out-of  you  asks  me,  ‘Where  are-you-going-away?’  But-on-the-contrary,  because  these-things  I-have-spoken  to-you,  the  grief  has-filled  of-you  the  cardiac.  But-on-the-contrary,  I,  the-truth,  I-am-telling  to-you,  it-is-expedient  for-you  in-order-that  I,  I-should-come-away.  For  if  not  I-come-away,  the  Paraclete  not  he-will-come  toward  you;  now  if  I-travel,  I-will-send  him  toward  you.  And  having-come,  that-one,  he-will-convict  the  cosmos  concerning  sin  and  concerning  righteousness  and  concerning  judgment.  On-the-one-hand,  concerning  sin,  because  not  they-believe  into  me;  on-the-other-hand,  concerning  righteousness,  because  toward  the  Father  I-am-going-away,  and  no-longer  you-behold  me;  on-the-yet-another-hand  concerning  judgment,  because  the  ruler  of-the  cosmos,  this-one,  he-has-been-judged.”

“Still  many-things(!)  I-have  to-you  to-tell,  but-on-the-contrary,  not  you-are-able  to-bear  presently;  now  when  he-comes,  that-one,  the  Pneuma  of-the  truth,  he-will-guide  you  into  the  truth,  all;  for  not  he-will-speak  from  himself,  but-on-the-contrary,  what-things  he-will-hear,  he-will-speak,  and  the  coming-things  he-will-announce  to-you.  That-one(!),  me,  he-will-glorify,  because  out-of  the  thing-of-me,  he-will-take,  and  he-will-announce  to-you.  All-things  which  he-has,  the  Father,  mine  are;  on-account-of  this,  I-said  to-you  that  out-of  the  thing-of-me  he-takes,  and  he-will-announce  to-you.”

What follows are the verses that mention the Paraclete (and this is so easy to relate by using the chapter and verse designations; this can be seen as a benefit of those numbers), if you are interested in looking at them in more detail and the verbs that are connected to them: 14:26 (teach; remind), 15:26 (witness), 16:8 (convict)

The placement of these four Paraclete verbs is given within chapters 14 through 16. And their approximate presence is summarized in the line below. Each set of two verses is represented by an underline (“_”). And if there is just one verse left in the chapter, it will also be indicated with a line. A capital X indicates when one of those four verbs is within the two verses. Each period (“.”) indicates the beginning of a chapter.

.____________XX__.____________X_.___X_____________

A good question to ask is the following: So what? What this fully means will never be fully known. But hopefully the above layout was helpful in seeing a type of tabernacle or temple structure. Without the structure of chapter and verse, this type of a one-third and two-thirds structure, or of a halfway-endpoint structure, these two structures may be helpful. They may remind the Israelites of the layout of the tabernacle or temple, and it may be a good reminder of what else is in the scripture reminds God’s people of his special presence within this wilderness of sin. Both a one-third and a two-third’s position may be helpful as one moves along the way toward the goal; and the halfway and final positions are certainly good points as well. It may also be a good picture to have in the back of the mind as the text progresses.

The tabernacle and the temple were very special places. There was a place of sacrifice (where the two XX’s are), sort of the bad news, but having that allowed a person to go even farther, to the “holy of holies”, the most holy place (where the third and fourth X’s designate a structure, like the tabernacle or the temple). The Epistle to the Hebrews has a similar structure, and the first part of the epistle helps the reader to see that upcoming structure within in the text. (You may wish to look at Hebrews 1:1-4 and see how the mention of the significant words of “Son” and the “cleansing of sins” are near the one-third and two-thirds places in that first, run-on sentence.)

The above point gives some structure to the text, especially since there were no chapter and verse divisions when the writing first happened. Another good question to be asked at this point is the following: So what? It could again be said that what this means will never be fully known.

Jesus is taking some time out of his busy schedule to talk. And he is talking to some very special people. He is getting closer to his death, his sacrifice. With all that in mind, it is not too surprising that the next chapter is sometimes called Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer”. After the structure of the place of sacrifice, after the movement to an EXTREMELY special place, Jesus is going to do his job, acting like the “go-between”, a high priest, someone who is between the Father and the world. And that is a wonderful perspective. And more could be said about that when these words are examined in greater detail.

The thought of a wonderful perspective may be also seen in the four verbs that the Holy Spirit accomplishes. That the Spirit teaches, reminds, witnesses, and convicts, those are four significant verbs. Why those four verbs, and why that order?

It is unfortunate that some people believe that there are four gospel accounts because of a lack of communication amongst the followers of Jesus after his ascension. Why else would there be such repetition? At the heart of the matter, the basic problem is that the four accounts are often treated as a history lesson, to help know what happened. With that perspective comes an EXTREMELY optimistic view of human nature. Some people believe that they do not need a Savior; they just need a good history teacher. And they rarely get one in a public school.

When something important happens, it is repeated. When God comes down, that is a significant event. And the normal order of the four gospel accounts is Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, mainly because of the order of their corresponding living creatures of the Lord’s throne of a man, lion, ox, and eagle (see Ezekiel 1). A throne is an EXTREMELY significant chair.  With those living creatures being connected to the Lord’s throne, and with a throne comes glory or significance or some ramifications, the four Gospel Accounts have great significance. It is not just a history lesson; it is a salvation story, a story that REALLY happened. And Jesus really rescues.

There is a more “Hebrew” way of ordering the accounts, and this is done in at least one of the New Testament manuscripts. The authors are put first, the longer one first, and the secretaries are second, with the same issue regarding their length. With this ordering, basically the second and fourth accounts switch places: Matthew, John, Luke, Mark. (And this ordering is the reason behind an additional and significantly more positive ending being given to the Gospel according to Mark in some manuscripts; see 16:9-20.)

It may be hard to see an entire Gospel account summarized as one verb, but the lack of a numerical chapter-and-verse structure may help to see a special order within the accounts and both a purpose and a summary when it comes to their differences. Much could be said about the connections between these two things, but the comments will be kept to a minimum, and the reader may have a LOT more thoughts on the topic. Please feel free to share them.

Matthew and the Spirit teaches. Jesus does a LOT of teaching in this account. With the living creature of this account being a man, there is a close connection to teaching here.
John and the Spirit reminds. Jesus does a LOT of the same things that he did in the other accounts, his miracles, his words, and his actions as he headed toward the cross—being lifted up. And with the living creature of this account being the eagle, there is a connection to reminders, but with a slightly higher perspective.

Luke and the Spirit witnesses. Jesus does a LOT of things that support other people. With the living creature of this account being an ox, Jesus is certainly a strong one, but one who is gentle and willing to help others who are needing some help. And help is needed by all people. In this account, Jesus is “setting his face” toward Jerusalem, and the variety of people he helps along the way is significant.

Mark and the Spirit convicts. Jesus does a LOT of things to remind the people around them that they are sinners, to get back a proper perspective. It is interesting that, in this account, where in Luke (8:25), while Jesus is in the boat with the disciples during the storm, he asks them, “Where is the faith of you?”, in the Gospel according to Mark (4:40), he asks them a question with a slightly more negative perspective, “Not yet do you have faith?” One can see in Jesus a more pessimistic view of the disciples. Jesus needs to convict them (and us) regarding the made-up definitions of sin and righteousness and judgment. All of us naturally have our own definitions of these things. Jesus wants us to have better definitions, the right definitions, his definitions.

To compare the accounts is one benefit that is easy to accomplish because of the great and wonderful invention of the codex (a fancy name for “book”). Can you imagine having four long scrolls that need to be unrolled and rolled to their proper places to compare similar events? One thing that also happened that was helpful in keeping it a reverent observation was that the titles of Jesus and God-related words were that they were abbreviated, a reminder that something special is happening. We do not fully understand it. But we can certainly fully receive it as a gift. And Jesus is the Father’s gift to you.

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July 18th, 2026

7/18/2026

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If you have been following along with these writings, or if you have been going to church, you probably would know that this Sunday’s title is the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost. And with this year being the “A Series”, the Gospel Reading is from the Gospel according to Matthew, and it is a bit farther along than last week’s reading from the thirteenth chapter (13:1-9, 18-23). The first part of this week’s reading actually follows right after second part of the last week’s reading (13:24-30, 36-43). And Jesus continues to give other parables.

The plan is for this website to focus on the Word of God. With the writings of this website, we have currently been going through the Gospel according to John, a significantly different Gospel account when compared to the other three, but also one with a lot of good news. And we are much farther along in that account, getting closer to Jesus’ arrest in Gethsemane. And we are taking a little bit of that account at a time, in the order in which it has been laid out, and we are not skipping any parts. And we are currently focusing on the words of Jesus, and he has been mentioning another “Paraclete” that is coming. That title literally means to call alongside, and the implication is that someone who is called to go alongside of you is helpful. That is who Jesus was. And that is also who the Holy Spirit is now.

It should be mentioned that we are going through that Gospel account with a unique translation called an EXTREMELY literal translation. If you are familiar with this style of translation, then you may wish to skip the next two paragraphs.

The first significant thing to mention regarding the description of this type of translation is that the chapter and verse numbers will not be included within the text itself. Both numbers were added quite later after the text was written, and they are certainly useful when someone is searching for a particular text, but the structure they imply is not always helpful. This pair of numerical designations makes the very beginning of the text important. There is always a first verse, and there is not always a fiftieth verse. With this structure, the focus tends to be on the beginning of the writing. The act of writing those verses is probably not the most important thing that the writer wants to get across to the reader. The biblical writers basically wanted the readers to focus on God and not on themselves. And the words are much more important than the numbers, and often those words lead the reader near the middle and/or the end of the text in some way, to give to the reader some structure to all the words being read.

It should also be noted that the words with hyphens occur when more than one English word is used to describe a single word of the ancient Greek. And it should also be noted that some of the words chosen below are meant to point out the close connection that often occurs between the English and Greek languages. (This can help to make the Greek language a bit easier to learn; and this time only “brotherly love” is mentioned and not “agape-love”.) It is also important to mention that the order of the words below is also the same order that is in the ancient Greek. This may help to show the important words, especially when another word besides the verb is first in the sentence or phrase. Sometimes this emphasis will be shown with a “(!)”. The exception to this translation order is that there are just a small number of words (like “therefore”, “now”) that are usually second in a sentence that are meant to be first when translated. And although it should be obvious, it should be said that repetition of words should be noted as another type of emphasis. One more thing to mention, although it does not happen in the text below, is that the verbs in capital letters are called HISTORICAL PRESENTS.  An historical present is when a verb in a past tense is expected, but a verb in the present tense is given. More detail regarding the historical present has been explained elsewhere in these writings, and it may be helpful to read some of the other writings of this website. With all of the above things to consider, it will probably be helpful to have another translation or a study bible nearby as you read the text below.

What follows is an EXTREMELY literal translation of a second part of the what has been called the fifteenth chapter of the Gospel according to John (15:18-27); Jesus is continuing to talk. And he talks A LOT. He talked about the other “Paraclete” in the previous chapter, and he brings that up again in this section. Again, these are Jesus’ words right before he was arrested and killed:

“If  the  cosmos,  you  it-hates,  know  that  me(!),  proton  you,  it-has-hated.  If  out-of  the  cosmos  you-were,  the  cosmos,  really,  the  own,  it-would-brotherly-love;  now  because  out-of  the  cosmos,  not  you-are,  but-on-the-contrary,  I,  I-chose-out  you,  out-of  the  cosmos,  on-account-of  this,  it-hates  you,  the  cosmos.”

“Remember  the  logos  which  I,  I-said  to-you,  ‘Not  is  a-slave  greater-than  the  lord  of-him.’  If  me  they-persecuted,  also  you  they-will-persecute.  If  the  logos  of-me  they-kept,  also  the  yours,  they-will-keep.  But-on-the-contrary,  these-things,  all  they-will-do  into  you,  on-account-of  the  name  of-me,  because  not  they-recognize  the-one  having-sent  me.  If not  I-had-come  and  I-had-spoken  to-them,  sin  not  they-would-have.  Now  presently,  an-outward-showing  not  they-have  concerning  the  sin  of-them.  The  one,  me(!)  hating,  also  the  Pater  of-me,  he-hates.  If  the  works  not  I-had-done  in  them,  which  no-one  else  he-did,  sin  not  they-would-have.  Now  presently,  both  they-have-seen,  and  they-have-hated  both  me  and  the  Pater  of-me.  But-on-the-contrary,  in-order-that  it-may-be-fulfilled,  the  logos  which  in  the  law  of-them,  it-having-been-written,  that  ‘they-hated  me  freely’.  When  he-comes,  the  Paraclete  whom  I,  I-will-send  to-you,  from  the  Pater,  the  Pneuma  of-the  Truth,  which  from  the  Pater  he-travels-out,  that-one  he-will-witness  concerning  you;  now  also  you,  you-witness,  because  from  beginning  with  me  you-are.

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July 11th, 2026

7/11/2026

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This Sunday’s title is the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost. You probably knew that already. And with this year being the “A Series”, you also probably knew that the Gospel Reading is from the Gospel according to Matthew. The readings are slowly making their way through that account. But with last week’s reading being a jump from the tenth chapter of the account to the eleventh chapter, you are ready for the fact that this week’s reading jumps to the thirteenth chapter (13:1-9, 18-23). Part of this is the third of five sermons in the Gospel according to Matthew; that sermon is basically parables, and you may be familiar with the parable of the man who goes out to sow his seed. You may also be familiar with the Collect of the Day as well. God’s words do not glow in the dark (at least they do not USUALLY do that), but they are EXTTREMELY special words. And they do some very amazing things.

The plan is for this website to focus on the Word of God. With the writings of this website, we have currently been going through the Gospel according to John, a significantly different Gospel account when compared to the other three, but also one with a lot of good news. We are much farther along in that account, getting closer to Jesus’ arrest in Gethsemane. And we are taking a little bit of that account at a time, in the order in which it has been laid out, and we are not skipping any parts. And we are currently looking at the part of that account where Jesus essentially talks for an EXTREMELY long time.

It should be mentioned that we are going through that Gospel account with a unique translation called an EXTREMELY literal translation. If you are familiar with this style of translation, then you may wish to skip the next two paragraphs.

The first significant thing to mention regarding the description of this type of translation is that the chapter and verse numbers will not be included within the text itself. Both numbers were added quite later after the text was written, and they are certainly useful when someone is searching for a particular text, but the structure they imply is not always helpful. This pair of numerical designations tends to focus the reader on the very beginning of the text, where the writer started, and that is usually not be the most important thing that the writer wants to get across to the reader. His action of writing the document is definitely not the most important thing. The biblical writers basically wanted the readers to focus on God and not on themselves. And the words are much more important than the numbers, and often those words lead the reader near the middle and/or the end of the text in some way, to give to the reader some structure to all the words being read.

It should also be noted that the words with hyphens occur when more than one English word is used to describe a single word of the ancient Greek. And some of the words chosen below are meant to point out the close connection that often occurs between the English and Greek languages. (This can help to make the Greek language a bit easier to learn; and this time you get to experience the different types of love!) It is also important to mention that the order of the words below is also the same order that is in the ancient Greek. This may help to show the important words, especially when another word besides the verb is first in the sentence or phrase. Sometimes this emphasis will be shown with a “(!)”. The exception to this translation order is that there are just a small number of words (like “therefore”, “now”) that are usually second in a sentence that are meant to be first when translated. And although it should be obvious, it should be said that repetition of words should be noted as another type of emphasis. One more thing to mention, although it does not happen in the text below, is that the verbs in capital letters are called HISTORICAL PRESENTS.  An historical present is when a verb in a past tense is expected, but a verb in the present tense is given. More detail regarding the historical present has been explained elsewhere in these writings, and it may be helpful to read some of the other writings of this website. With all of the above things to consider, it will probably be helpful to have another translation or a study bible nearby as you read the text below.

What follows is an EXTREMELY literal translation of the first part of the what has been called the fifteenth chapter of the Gospel according to John (15:1-17); Jesus is continuing to talk. And he talks A LOT. He talked about the other “Paraclete” in the last section, and he will not bring that up again in this section. You may look ahead if you wish (15:26-27; 16:7-11; that is one nice thing about chapter and verse designations; those sentences are easy to find, based on that information). Or you may choose to wait and enjoy just the following section of scripture of Jesus’ words:

“I,  I-am  the  vine,  the  true-one;  and  the  Pater  of-me,  the  land-worker  he-is.  Every  branch  in  me  not  bearing  fruit,  he-takes  it;  and  every-one  the  fruit  bearing,  he-cleanses  it,  in-order-that  fruit,  more,  it-may-bear.  Already  you(!),  clean,  you-are,  on-account-of  the  word  which  I-have-spoken  to-you.  Remain  in  me,  and-I  in  you,  just-as  the  branch,  not  is-able,  fruit  to-bear  from  itself,  if  not  it-remains  in  the  vine,  thus  not-also  you,  if  not  in  me  you-remain.”

“I,  I-am  the  vine;  you,  the  branches.  The-one  remaining  in  me  and-I  in  him,  this-one  bears  fruit,  much;  because  without  me,  not  you-are-able  to-do  nothing.  If  not  anyone  remains  in  me,  he-was-thrown  out  as  the  branch,  and  he-was-dried-out,  and  they-synagogue  them,  and  into  the  fire  they-throw,  and  it-is-burned.  If  you-remain  in  me  and  the  words  of-me,  in  you  it-remains,  the  whatever  you-want,  ask,  and  it-will-happen  to-you.  In  this  he-was-glorified,  the  Pater  of-me,  in-order-that  fruit,  much  you-bear,  and  you-would-become  to-me  disciples.”

“Just-as  he-agape-ed  me,  the  Pater,  I-also  you(!)  I-agape-ed;  remain  in  the  agape,  the  my.  If  the  commands  of-me  you-watch,  you-will-remain  in  the  agape  of-me,  just-as  I,  the  commands  of-the  Pater  of-me  I-have-watched,  and  I-remain  of-him  in  the  agape.  These-things  I-have-spoken  to-you  in-order-that  the  joy,  the  my,  in  you  it-may-be,  and  the  joy  of-you  it-may-be-filled.”
“This  is  the  command,  the  my,  in-order-that  you-agape  one-another,  just-as  I-agape-ed  you.  Greater  than-this  agape,  no-one  has,  that  anyone  the  psyche  of-him  he-should-place  on-behalf-of  the-brotherly-loved-ones  of-him.  You,  brotherly-loved-ones  of-me  you-are,  if  you-do  what  I,  I-command  you.  No-longer  I-say  to-you  “slaves”,  because  the  slave  not  he-knows  what  he-is-doing  of-him,  the  lord;  now  you  I-have-called  “brotherly-loved-ones”,  because  all-things  which  I-heard  back-from  the  Pater  of-me,  I-have-made-known  to-you.  Not  you,  me,  you-chose-out,  but-on-the-contrary,  I,  I-chose-out  you,  and  I-placed  you,  in-order-that  you,  you-should-go-out  and  fruit  you-should-bear,  and  the  fruit  of-you  it-should-remain,  in-order-that  the  what  ever  you-may-ask  the  Pater  in  the  name  of-me,  he-may-give  to-you.  These-things  I-command  to-you,  that  you-agape  one-another.”

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July 4th, 2026

7/4/2026

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This Sunday’s title is the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost. And the pattern continues of, with this year being the “A Series”, currently making our way through the Gospel according to Matthew. Last week’s reading was at the end of Jesus’ second sermon in that account, and this week’s reading makes a jump into the next chapter, with the reading being Matthew 11:25-30, and Jesus has some very gentle words within that text. There are certainly some passages of Law within the Gospel according to Matthew (and some of them were heard last week), but there are also many passages of Gospel. The text happens to be a passage of comfort and blessing. And there is certainly more to come.

With the writings of this website, we have been going through the Gospel according to John, a significantly different Gospel account, but also one with a lot of good news. We are much farther along in that account, getting closer to Jesus’ arrest in Gethsemane. And we are taking a little bit of that account at a time, in the order in which it has been laid out, and we are not skipping any parts.

It should be mentioned that we are going through that Gospel account with a unique translation called an EXTREMELY literal translation. If you are familiar with this style of translation, then you may skip the next two paragraphs.

The first significant thing to mention regarding the description of this type of translation is that the chapter and verse numbers will not be included within the text itself. Both numbers were added quite later after the text was written, and they are certainly useful when someone is searching for a particular text, but the structure they imply is not always helpful. This pair of numerical designations tends to focus the reader on the very beginning of the text, where the writer started, and that is usually not be the most important thing that the writer wants to get across to the reader. The biblical writers basically wanted the readers to focus on God and not on themselves. The words are much more important than the numbers, and often those words lead the reader near the middle and/or the end of the text in some way, to give to the reader some structure to all the words being read. (Those two places of middle and end are often important, and they can also remind the reader of the layout of the tabernacle/temple; near the middle was the place of sacrifice, and that allowed one to go farther on to a place of great and wonderful significance, what was called “the Holy of Holies” or “the Most Holy Place”.)

It should also be noted that the words with hyphens occur when more than one English word is used to describe a single word of the ancient Greek. And some of the words chosen below are meant to point out the close connection that often occurs between the English and Greek languages. (This can help to make the Greek language a bit easier to learn.) It is also important to mention that the order of the words below is also the same order that is in the ancient Greek. This may help to show the important words, especially when another word besides the verb is first in the sentence or phrase. Sometimes this emphasis will be shown with a “(!)”. The exception to this translation order is that there are just a small number of words (like “therefore”, “now”) that are usually second in a sentence that are meant to be first when translated. And although it should be obvious, it should be said that repetition of words should be noted as another type of emphasis. One more thing to mention is that the verbs in capital letters are called HISTORICAL PRESENTS.  An historical present is when a verb in a past tense is expected, but a verb in the present tense is given. More detail regarding the historical present has been explained elsewhere in these writings, and it may be helpful to read some of the other writings of this website. With all of the above things to consider, it will probably be helpful to have another translation or a study bible nearby as you read the text below.

What follows is an EXTREMELY literal translation of what could be called the second part of the what has been called the fourteenth chapter of the Gospel according to John (14:15-31); Jesus is continuing to talk. And this time he is talking about the other “Paraclete” that is coming; more about that will be after the text:

“If  you-agape  me,  the  commands,  the  my,  you-will-watch.  And-I,  I-will-request  the  Pater,  and  another  Paraclete  he-will-give  to-you,  in-order-that  with  you(!)  into  the  age  he-may-be.  The  Spirit  of-the  truth,  whom  the  cosmos  not  is-able-to  to-receive,  because  not  it-beholds  him  nor  it-knows;  you,  you-know  him,  because  alongside  you  he-remains,  and   in  you  he-will-be.”

“Not  I-will-leave  you  orphans;  I-am-coming  toward  you.  Yet  a-micron  and  the  cosmos,  me,  no-longer  it-beholds;  now  you,  you-behold  me,  because  I,  I-live  also,  you,  you-will-live.  In  that  the  day,  you-will-know,  you,  that  I,  in  the  Pater  of-me,  and  you  in  me,  and-I   in  you.  The-one  having  the  commands  of-me  and  watching  them,  that-one  is  the-one-agape-ing  me;  now  the  one-agape-ing  me,  he-will-be-agape-ed  by  the  Pater  of-me,  and-I  I-will-agape  him,  and  I-will-be-apparent  to-him  myself.”

HE-SAYS  to-him,  Judas,  not  the  Iscariot,  “Lord,  and  what  has-happened  that  to-us  you-are-about  to-be-apparent,  yourself,  and  not  to-the  cosmos?”

He-answered,  Jesus,  and  he-said  to-him,  “If  anyone  agapes  me,  the  logos  of-me  he-will-watch,  and  the  Pater  of-me,  he-will-agape  him,  and  toward  him  we-will-come,  and  an-abode(!)  alongside  him  we-will-make.  The-one  not  agape-ing  me,  the  words  of-me,  not  he-watches;  and  the  logos  which  you-hear,  not  is  mine,  but-on-the-contrary,  of-the-one  having-sent  me,  Pater.  These-things  I-have-spoken  to-you,  alongside  you  remaining;  now  the  Paraclete,  the  Spirit,  the  Holy,  the-one-which  he-will-send,  the  Pater  in  the  name  of-me,  that-one,  you,  he-will-teach  all-things,  and  he-will-hypo-remind  you  all-things  which  I-said  to-you,  I.  Peace(!)  I-leave  with-you,  peace,  the  my,  I-give  to-you;  not  just-as  the  cosmos  gives,  I,  I-give  to-you.  Do-not  let-be-disturbed  of-you  the  cardiac;  nor  let-it-be-cowardly.  You-heard  that  I,  I-said  to-you:  I-am-going-away,  and  I-am-coming  toward  you.  If  you-agape-ed  me,  you-would-have-rejoiced  ever  that  I-am-traveling  toward  the  Pater,  because  the  Pater,  greater  than-me  he-is.  And  presently  I-have-said  to-you  before  to-happen,  in-order-that  when  it-happens,  you-may-believe.  No-longer  many-things  I-will-speak  with  you,  for  he-is-coming,  the  of-the  cosmos  ruler,  and  in  me,  not  he-has  anything,  but-on-the-contrary,  in-order-that  it-may-know,  the  cosmos,  that  I-agape  the  Pater,  and  just-as  he-enjoined  me,  the  Pater,  thus  I-do.  Rise,  let-us-go  from-here.”

As was mentioned in the previous blog, this part of the Gospel according to John contains one of the most talkative Jesus’s of all four accounts. He talks for almost four chapters, and that is a significant length.

Much could be said about that. Much will be said about that, God willing, in the near future, with these blogs. Probably the most helpful comment at the present time would be to direct the reader’s attention to the promise of a Paraclete. Note that it is NOT a parakeet. Literally  speaking, it is someone who is called alongside. And the implication is that, being alongside, the Paraclete is able to help.

Since Jesus is calling the Holy Spirit ANOTHER Paraclete, that implies that he, himself, is also a type of Paraclete. That is a comforting thing. And THAT point brings up that there is a wide variety of ways to translate this word. You may want to look for some in some various translations of the bible.

For this blog, we will be adding up all the verbs that this Paraclete will be doing. In the last section of the text above, the two basic verbs of this other Paraclete are the verbs “to teach” and “to remind”. Those may be helpful to remember as other verbs will be shared.

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