Matthew

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NASB	Matthew 4:6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, 'HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU'; and 'ON their* HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.'"
AMPLIFIED 2015 2015	Matthew 4:6 And he said [mockingly] to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, 'HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU [to serve, care for, protect and watch over You]'; and 'THEY WILL LIFT YOU UP ON their HANDS, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.'" [Ps 91:11, 12]

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Bible Question: Why is does it translated "if", not "since"? It is the proper translation of the word.

Is there a translation that says "since"?

Bible Answer: Greetings Steve!

There are some who believe that 'ei' can be translated as "since" at times. However, it takes a combination of form and context which is not present in this verse. So, none of the translations I checked translated the verse as "since...".

Neither would I translate it this way. In fact, I think that "since" has been way overused to begin with. The simple conditional clause assumes the truth of the statement for the sake of argument. Thus, in this question, Satan is asking Jesus "If (for the sake of argument) you are the Son of God...." It is this assumption of fact that leads many to think that 'ei' can be translated as "since."

However, if we followed this rule all the time, we would end up with some very strange statements. Consider Mt. 12:27:

"And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges."

Do we really want to translate this verse, "Since I cast out demons by Beelzebub...."?

My preference is to stay with "if" unless the context absolutely demands it.

Your Brother in Christ,

Tim Moran

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Matthew