The Meaning of Mark 8:37 Explained

Mark 8:37

KJV: Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

YLT: Or what shall a man give as an exchange for his life?

Darby: for what should a man give in exchange for his soul?

ASV: For what should a man give in exchange for his life?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Or  what  shall  a man  give  in exchange  for his  soul? 

What does Mark 8:37 Mean?

Context Summary

Mark 8:22-38 - The Cost Of Following Jesus
Our attention has been drawn to the Master's sighs; here, however, was another characteristic act. He spat on the eyes of the blind man, perhaps to excite his expectation and faith. Repulsive as ophthalmia is in the East, it did not repel Him nor staunch the flow of His pity.
We do not at once see everything clearly, but step by step we come unto perfect vision. Here we see through a glass darkly, there face to face. There was a great price to be paid; it was only through suffering and death that Jesus could do His greatest work, in redeeming and cleansing the children of men. He might have been the miracle-worker apart from Calvary; but to be the Savior, He must not spare Himself but be willing to pour out His soul even unto death. It was hard for the Apostles to learn this lesson; they wanted the Master to spare Himself. Peter, especially, sought to dissuade Him; but the Lord knew better the desperate need of men and how it must be met. There are three conditions to be fulfilled by those who have resolved to follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. 1. We must deny self; 2. Each must take up his cross; 3. We must think more of others than of ourselves. If these are realized, the soul is following Christ and making progress, even though it deems itself stagnant or drifting back. [source]

Chapter Summary: Mark 8

1  Jesus feeds the people miraculously;
10  refuses to give a sign to the Pharisees;
14  admonishes his disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod;
22  gives a blind man his sight;
27  acknowledges that he is the Jesus who should suffer and rise again;
34  and exhorts to patience in persecution for the profession of the gospel

What do the individual words in Mark 8:37 mean?

What for shall give a man [as] an exchange for the soul of him
τί γὰρ δοῖ ἄνθρωπος ἀντάλλαγμα τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ

δοῖ  shall  give 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: διδῶ 
Sense: to give.
ἄνθρωπος  a  man 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ἄνθρωπος  
Sense: a human being, whether male or female.
ἀντάλλαγμα  [as]  an  exchange 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: ἀντάλλαγμα  
Sense: that which is given in place of another thing by way of exchange.
τῆς  for  the 
Parse: Article, Genitive Feminine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
ψυχῆς  soul 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Feminine Singular
Root: ψυχή  
Sense: breath.
αὐτοῦ  of  him 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Root: αὐτός  
Sense: himself, herself, themselves, itself.

What are the major concepts related to Mark 8:37?

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