Question: In the Emphatic Diaglott, Matthew 23:28 says “...an enemy has done this...” If you then look at the word-for-word Greek section it says: “An enemy, a man, this has done...,” which as far as I know doesn’t turn up in other translations. The word in Greek is... “anthropos.” It was suggested that this reading gave weight to the idea that Jesus was not referring to a supernatural fallen-angel devil, but rather a man as the enemy.
Answer: The critical text has ἐχθρὸς ἄνθρωπος τοῦτο ἐποίησεν, “a hostile man has done this”. The word exthros means “hostile,” and the word anthropos means “man”; together it means “an enemy”. The Diaglott is over translating by rendering the adjective as a noun, and then translating anthropos as a second independent noun. It should just be translated “an enemy has done this”.
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Author: Jonathan Burke & John Mannell
Keywords: Enemy, Devil, Wheat tares, Darnel, Tares
Bible reference(s): Matthew 23:28
Source: Jonathan Burke & John Mannell, September 25, 2014.
Page indexed by: inWORD Bible Software.