Matthew 3:15

Vocabulary (Greek word by word)

Ἄφες (2nd sg aor imperat act) "Suffer" is from aphiemi, which means "to let fall", "to send away", "to let loose", "to get rid of", "to leave alone", "to pass by", "to permit" and "to send forth from oneself". This is the same word that is usually translated as "leave" and "forgive" in the New Testament.

ἄρτι, (adv) "Now" is from arti which means "just", "exactly", "now" and "presently".

οὕτω (adv) "Thus" is from houtos, which means "this", "that", "the nearer". As an adverb, it means "in this way", "therefore", "so much", "to such an extent" and "that is why".

γὰρ (partic) "For" comes from gar which is the introduction of a clause explaining a reason or explanation: "for", "since" and "as". In an abrupt question it means "why" and "what".

πρέπον [1 verse](part sg pres act neut nom) Untranslated is prepo, which means "to be clearly seen", "to be conspicuous", "loud and clear" (sounds), "to be strong or rank" (smells), "to resemble", "to be conspicuously fitting" and "to be seemly".

ἐστὶν (3rd sg pres ind act ) "It becometh" (with prepo above) is from eimi, which means "to be", "to exist", "to be the case" and "is possible".

ἡμῖν (pron 1st pl masc dat) "Us" is from ego, which is the first person singular pronoun meaning "I". It also means "I at least", "for my part", "indeed" and "for myself".

πληρῶσαι (verb 2nd sg aor imperat mid, aor inf act ) "To fulfill" is from pleroo, which mean "to fill", "to fulfill", "to make complete", "to pay in full", "to make pregnant" and "to fill full".

πᾶσαν (adj sg fem acc) "All" is from pas which means "all", "the whole", "every", "anyone", "all kinds" and "anything".

δικαιοσύνην (noun sg fem acc) "Righteousness" is from dikaiosyne, which means "righteousness", "justice", "fulfillment of the law" and "the business of a judge".

KJV — word by word

Suffer The Greek word translated as "suffer", means to let something go or drop, especially in the sense of not caring about it. There is no "it", but in English when we tell someone to "drop it", we add the "it".

it to be so -- (IP) There is nothing that can be translated as "it to be so " in the Greek source. The "it" might be assumed, since the object of an action is often assumed from the context in Greek.

now: The Greek word translated as "now" means "just", "exactly" and "now" in the sense of "just now" when applied to time. Christ usually seems to use it in the sense of "now".

for -- The word translated as "for" introduces a reason or explanation. In today's English, we would usually say, "because" or write "this is because" to prevent run-on sentences

thus -- The word translated in KJV as "thus" is in its adverbial form, so it means "in this manner" or "in this way".

it -- This is from the third-person, singular form of the verb.

missing "is obvious" -- (MW) The untranslated verb means "to be seen clearly" and, from that, "to be conspicuous" and that "to be conspicuously fitting". However, many Bibles offer it as "fitting" from the most derived definition. This is used only by Jesus here, so it is likely he used it for its specific meaning of being seen in an unmistakable way. The word meaning "to be clearly seen" or made conspicuous in some other way (loud, smelly). This is less about what is "fitting" or "proper", than it is about gaining visibility.

becometh -- (WW) -- The verb "becometh" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. When followed by an indirect object (dative), as it is here, the sense is, "we have" to do something. "It is for us to fulfill". It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. Translating it as "becometh" is not anything like how it is used in Greek. In English, there is a clear line between the concept of being and the concept of becoming, but it is even clearer in Greek. "Being" is continuing to exist in a current state. "Becoming" is the transition to a new state. They are in many ways complementary opposites in Greek and used that way, especially by Jesus.

us -- The "us" here is in the form of an indirect object, which has many uses in Greek. Many of those uses work here. It could mean "it is clearly seen..." "...with us" (the instrumental dative), "...in us" (location), "...for us" (benefit), or "of us" (possessive).

to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English.

fulfill -- The word translated as "to fulfill" means to fill up or complete. Christ uses it in many different ways, but he often uses it in a context like this meaning to complete a prophecy or what was written in scriptures. The form of the word could be a command ("Complete!"), or an infinitive ("to complete") or a simple statement ("it completes").

all -- The word translated as "all" is the Greek adjective meaning "all", "the whole", "every" and similar ideas.

righteousness. -- The word translated as "righteousness" also means "justice" and generally "fulfillment of the law". When applied to God, it works best as "justice", but when applied to people "virtue" works better since we don't use "righteousness" much anymore. The word translated as "righteousness" carries the sense of virtue but specifically that of fulfilling legal or social requirements. This ties it to the idea of fulfilling the law. We use the term "justice" more commonly today.

NIV — word by word

Let-- The Greek word translated as "let", means to let something go or drop, especially in the sense of not caring about it.

it -- There is no "it", but in English when we tell someone to "drop it", we add the "it". Plus the object is often assumed in ancient Greek.

be -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "it to be so" in the Greek source. The "it" might be assumed, since the object of an action is often assumed from the context in Greek.

missing "for" -- (MW) The untranslated word "for" introduces a reason or explanation. In today's English, we would usually say, "because" or write "this is because" to prevent run-on sentences

so -- The word "so" is in its adverbial form, so it means "in this manner" or "in this way".

now -- The word "now" means "just", "exactly" and "now" in the sense of "just now" when applied to time. Christ usually seems to use it in the sense of "now".

it -- This is from the third-person, singular form of the verb.

is --  The verb "is" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. When followed by an indirect object (dative), as it is here, the sense is, "we have" to do something. "It is for us to fulfill".   It also equates terms or assigns characteristics.

proper -- (WW, WF) This verb means "to be seen clearly" and, from that, "to be conspicuous" and that "to be conspicuously fitting". However, many Bibles offer it as "fitting" from the most derived definition. This is used only by Jesus here, so he is likely he used it for its specific meaning of being seen in an unmistakable way. The word meaning "to be clearly seen" or made conspicuous in some other way (loud, smelly). This is less about what is "fitting" or "proper", that it is about gaining visibility.

for -- This word "for" comes from the dative case of the following word that requires the addition of a preposition in English, but the translator must decide which preposition to use: with the verb "to be" the sense is "for".

us -- The "us" here is in the form of an indirect object, which has many uses in Greek. Many of those work here. It could mean "it is clearly seen..." "...with us" (the instrumental dative), "...in us" (location), "...for us" (benefit), or "of us" (possessive).

to do this -- (IP) There is nothing that can be translated as "to do this" in the Greek source.

to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English.

fulfill -- The word translated as "to fulfill" means to fill up or complete. Christ uses it in many different ways, but he often uses it in a context like this meaning to complete a prophecy or what was written in scriptures. The form of the word could be a command ("Complete!"), or an infinitive ("to complete") or a simple statement ("it completes").

all -- The word translated as "all" is the Greek adjective meaning "all", "the whole", "every" and similar ideas.

righteousness. -- The word translated as "righteousness" also means "justice" and generally "fulfillment of the law". When applied to God, it works best as "justice", but when applied to people "virtue" works better since we don't use "righteousness" much anymore. The word translated as "righteousness" carries the sense of virtue but specifically that of fulfilling legal or social requirements. This ties it to the idea of fulfilling the law. We use the term "justice" more commonly today.