Matthew 5:17

Vocabulary (Greek word by word)

Μὴ (partic) "Not" is from me, which is the negative used in prohibitions and expressions of doubt meaning "not" and "no". As οὐ (ou) negates fact and statement; μή rejects, οὐ denies; μή is relative, οὐ absolute; μή subjective, οὐ objective.

νομίσητε [4 verses](2nd pl aor subj act) "Think" is from nomizo, which means "to use by custom", "to get accustomed to", "to enact" [for a legislator], "to own", "to acknowledge", "to esteem", "to hold in honor" and "to believe".

ὅτι (conj) "That" is from hoti, which introduces a statement of fact "with regard to the fact that", "seeing that" and acts as a causal adverb meaning "for what", "because", "since" and "wherefore".

ἦλθον (1st sg aor ind act) "I am come" is from erchomai, which means "to start", "to set out", "to come", "to go" and any kind of motion. It means both "to go" on a journey and "to arrive" at a place.

καταλῦσαι (aor inf act) "To destroy" is from katalyo, which means "to put down", "to destroy", "to dissolve", "to break up", "to dismiss", "to disband", "to abolish", "to bring to an end", "to unloose" and "to unyoke".

τὸν (article sg masc ac) "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

νόμον (noun sg masc acc) "The law" is nomos, which means "anything assigned", "a usage", "custom", "law", "ordinance" or "that which is a habitual practice". It is the basis of the English words "norm" and "normal".

ἢ (conj) "Or" is from e which is a particle meaning "either", "or" or "than".

τοὺς (article pl masc acc) "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

προφήτας: (noun pl masc acc) "The prophets" is from prophetes, which means "one who speaks for a god and interprets his will", "interpreter", "keepers of the oracle", "the highest level of priesthood in Egypt", "interpreter" and "herald". It is a form of the verb, prophao, which means "to shine light forth" or "to shine light before". Its roots are pros ("before"), phos ("light) and phaino ("shine.)

οὐκ (partic) "Not" is from ou which is the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences. The other negative adverb, μή applies to will and thought; οὐ denies, μή rejects; οὐ is absolute, μή relative; οὐ objective, μή subjective.

ἦλθον (1st sg aor ind act) "I am come" is from erchomai, which means "to start", "to set out", "to come", "to go" and any kind of motion. It means both "to go" on a journey and "to arrive" at a place.

καταλῦσαι (verb aor inf act) "To destroy" is from katalyo, which means "to put down", "to destroy", "to dissolve", "to break up", "to dismiss", "to disband", "to abolish", "to bring to an end", "to unloose" and "to unyoke".

ἀλλὰ (adv) "But" is from alla, which means "otherwise", "but", "still", "at least", "except", "yet", "nevertheless", "rather", "moreover", and "nay". It denotes an exception or a simple opposition.

πληρῶσαι: (aor inf act) "To fulfill" is from pleroo, which means "to fill", "to fulfill", "to make complete", "to pay in full", "to make pregnant" and "to fill full".

KJV — word by word

Think --(WF)  The word translated as "think" is the verb form of the Greek noun usually translated as "the law", which is discussed below. It is the basis for our word "normalize". For a legislator, it means to "enact a law", but it also means "to be used by custom" and "to be accustomed to". It comes from the meaning of the word as "traditions" or customary behavior. The KJV translation also makes it sound like it is a command, that is, an imperative verb. It isn't. It is an active verb indicating a possibility. "You might be getting accustomed to..." or "you might not assume".

not -- The negative used here is the Greek negative of a subjective opinion, commands, and requests. The sense is that "you don't want" to do something, not that it isn't done or don't think something that might be true. If it wasn't done or wasn't true, the objective negative of fact would be used. This is the negative of commands/requests, but this is not a command.

that -- The word translated as "that" introduces a statement of fact or cause.

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

am -- This helping verb indicates the present tense of the verb but the tense indicates something happening at a specific point in time, past, present, and future. 

come  -- The word translated as "come" primarily means "to start out". Christ usually uses it to mean "come" but not always. It indicates movement, especially its beginning, without indicating a direction toward or away from anything, so it works either as "come" or "go", but it is more like our phrase "being underway". Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. 

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

destroy -- The verb "destroy" is the Greek word that means to "destroy" and "break up", but it has a specific meaning in relation to the law. It means to annul or abolish a law. However, here, the "break up" meaning is significant as a contrast to the last word, which means "fill up".

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those") that the English "the". See this article for more. 

law, -- The word translated as "the law" throughout the Bible describes the social norms, which can be from "tradition", "common practice" or the "laws". Jesus also uses it to refer to the first five books of the OT written by Moses (Torah). It doesn't mean "law' in our modern legal sense of a legal statute. It is the basis for our word "normal" and social "norms". It is also the noun form of the word translated as "think" above. Christ uses it to refer to the traditions of the Jewish people. Living according to the laws of Moses was the norm for Christ's society. The word, however, refers to social norms in general. We can assume that Christ is referring to all such social norms. These "traditions" were passed down from Moses.

or -- "Or" is translated from a Greek word that means primarily "or" but serves as "than" in a comparison. The same word could also be the exclamation "hi" or the adverb meaning "in truth".

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those") that the English "the". See this article for more. 

prophets: --  (UW) The Greek word translated as "prophets" means "one who speaks for God", "interpreter" and was the highest level of priesthood in Egypt, but its root words mean "shine light before" and so "shining lights" or "enlightened" seems to capture the idea better. Christ uses it to refer not only to divine spokespeople, but their books in the OT. It is the verb that means "to shine before". Our word "luminaries" captures the idea very well. 

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

am -- (WT) This helping verb indicates the present tense of the verb but the tense indicates something happening at a specific point in time, past, present, and future. 

not -- (CW) The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence to captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

come  -- The word translated as "come" primarily means "to start out". Christ usually uses it to mean "come" but not always. It indicates movement, especially its beginning, without indicating a direction toward or away from anything, so it works either as "come" or "go", but it is more like our phrase "being underway". Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas.

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

destroy,-- The verb "destroy" is the Greek word that means to "destroy" and "break up", but it has a specific meaning in relation to the law. It means to annul or abolish a law. However, here, the "break up" meaning is significant as a contrast to the last word, which means "fill up".

but -- The Greek word translated as "but" denotes an exception or simple opposition. It is used to emphasize the contrast between things like we use "rather". It is the Greek word "other" like we use "otherwise".

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

fulfil.  -- "Fulfill" is a verb that means "to fill", "to fulfill" and "to fill full". Finally, we have "fulfill" from a word that means to fill full of something, like being filled full of food. It also means to impregnate or make complete.

NIV — word by word

Do  -- This helping verb is used to create commands, negative statements, and smooth word flow in English, but the Greek could be either a question or a statement.

not -- The negative used here is the Greek negative of a subjective opinion, commands, and requests. The sense is that "you don't want" to do something, not that it isn't done or don't think something that might be true. If it wasn't done or wasn't true, the objective negative of fact would be used. This is the negative of commands/requests, but this is not a command.

think -- (WF)  The word translated as "think" is the verb form of the Greek noun usually translated as "the law", which is discussed below. It is the basis for our word "normalize". For a legislator, it means to "enact a law", but it also means "to be used by custom" and "to be accustomed to". It comes from the meaning of the word as "traditions" or customary behavior. The KJV translation also makes it sound like it is a command, that is, an imperative verb. It isn't. It is an active verb indicating a possibility. "You might be getting accustomed to..." or "you might not assume".

that -- The word translated as "that" introduces a statement of fact or cause.

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

have -- (WT) This helping verb indicates the present tense of the verb but the tense indicates something happening at a specific point in time, past, present, and future. 

come -- The word translated as "come" primarily means "to start out". Christ usually uses it to mean "come" but not always. It indicates movement, especially its beginning, without indicating a direction toward or away from anything, so it works either as "come" or "go", but it is more like our phrase "being underway". Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas. 

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

abolish -- The verb "abolish" is the Greek word that means to "destroy" and "break up", but it has a specific meaning in relation to the law. It means to annul or abolish a law. However, here, the "break up" meaning is significant as a contrast to the last word, which means "fill up".

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those") that the English "the". See this article for more. 

Law, -- The word translated as "the law" throughout the Bible describes the social norms, which can be from "tradition", "common practice" or the "laws". Jesus also uses it to refer to the first five books of the OT written by Moses (Torah). It doesn't mean "law' in our modern legal sense of a legal statute. It is the basis for our word "normal" and social "norms". It is also the noun form of the word translated as "think" above. Christ uses it to refer to the traditions of the Jewish people. Living according to the laws of Moses was the norm for Christ's society. The word, however, refers to social norms in general. We can assume that Christ is referring to all such social norms. These "traditions" were passed down from Moses.

or -- "Or" is translated from a Greek word that means primarily "or" but serves as "than" in a comparison. The same word could also be the exclamation "hi" or the adverb meaning "in truth".

the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article. The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that", "these", "those") that the English "the". See this article for more. 

Prophets: --  (UW) The Greek word translated as "prophets" means "one who speaks for God", "interpreter" and was the highest level of priesthood in Egypt, but its root words mean "shine light before" and so "shining lights" or "enlightened" seems to capture the idea better. Christ uses it to refer not only to divine spokespeople, but their books in the OT. It is the verb that means "to shine before". Our word "luminaries" captures the idea very well. 

I -- This is from the first-person, singular form of the verb.

have -- This helping verb indicates the present tense of the verb but the tense indicates something happening at a specific point in time, past, present, and future. 

not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact. Adding "really" to the sentence to captures the same idea. When a negative precedes the verb, it affects the whole clause. When it precedes other words, its force is limited to those words.

come  -- The word translated as "come" primarily means "to start out". Christ usually uses it to mean "come" but not always. It indicates movement, especially its beginning, without indicating a direction toward or away from anything, so it works either as "come" or "go", but it is more like our phrase "being underway". Our English word "show up" captures both the "start" and "come" ideas.

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

abolish -- The verb "abolish" is the Greek word that means to "destroy" and "break up", but it has a specific meaning in relation to the law. It means to annul or abolish a law. However, here, the "break up" meaning is significant as a contrast to the last word, which means "fill up".

them -- This English objective pronoun is added though not in the Greek source. In Greek, pronoun objects are not repeated after each verb because they are implied by their first occurrence.

but -- The Greek word translated as "but" denotes an exception or simple opposition. It is used to emphasize the contrast between things like we use "rather". It is the Greek word "other" like we use "otherwise".

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

fulfill  -- "Fulfill" is a verb that means "to fill", "to fulfill" and "to fill full". Finally, we have "fulfill" from a word that means to fill full of something, like being filled full of food. It also means to impregnate or make complete.

them - This English objective pronoun is added though not in the Greek source. In Greek, pronoun objects are not repeated after each verb because they are implied by their first occurrence.