The Meaning of Matthew 17:17 Explained

Matthew 17:17

KJV: Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.

YLT: And Jesus answering said, 'O generation, unstedfast and perverse, till when shall I be with you? till when shall I bear you? bring him to me hither;'

Darby: And Jesus answering said, O unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to me.

ASV: And Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? bring him hither to me.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then  Jesus  answered  and said,  O  faithless  and  perverse  generation,  how long  shall I be  with  you?  how long  shall I suffer  you?  bring  him  hither  to me. 

What does Matthew 17:17 Mean?

Context Summary

Matthew 17:9-21 - Lack Of Faith Rebuked
As Raphael suggests in his great painting, there is a close connection between the mountain and the valley. The glory of the one did not make our Lord indifferent to the bitter need of the other. It seems as though He desired to impress on us the great truth, that we must have the seclusion and exaltation of communion with God before we can successfully deal with the anguish and terror that devastate human lives. See Matthew 17:21.
In Matthew 17:17 our Lord grieves over the unbelief of His disciples. Though they had enjoyed His careful teaching, they had failed to grasp His secret, which He here again elaborates. Faith is openness to God. It is the lifting of the curtain, that the healing light may enter. The tiny seed unlocks its little doorway to welcome the entering life of nature; and as this continues to enter, it forces the rootlet downward and the green shoot upward. It is thus also with the life of God in the soul. Let this life of God in and there is no limit to what it will effect. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 17

1  The transfiguration of Jesus
14  He heals the boy with a demon,
22  foretells his own passion,
24  and pays tribute

Greek Commentary for Matthew 17:17

Perverse [διεστραμμενη]
Distorted, twisted in two, corrupt. Perfect passive participle of διαστρεπω — diastrephō f0). [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Matthew 17:17

Luke 9:41 How long shall I be with you and bear with you? [εως ποτε εσομαι προς υμας και ανεχομαι υμων]
Here the two questions of Mark 9:19 (only one in Matthew 17:17) are combined in one sentence. [source]
Acts 13:8 To turn aside [διαστρεπσαι]
First aorist active infinitive of διαστρεπω — diastrephō old verb to turn or twist in two, to distort, to pervert (cf. Matthew 17:17; Luke 23:2). [source]
Philippians 2:15 Crooked and perverse [σκολίας - διεστραμμένης]
Crooked, see on untoward, Acts 2:40; see on froward, 1 Peter 2:18. Perverse, lit., warped, twisted. See on Matthew 17:17; see on Luke 23:14. [source]
Philippians 2:15 Blameless [αμεμπτοι]
Free from censure Harmless (ακεραιοι — akeraioi). Unmixed, unadulterated as in Romans 16:19. Without blemish Without spot, “unblemished in reputation and in reality” (Vincent). In the midst of (μεσον — meson). Preposition with genitive. Crooked Old word, curved as opposed to ορτος — orthos straight. See note on Acts 2:40. Perverse (diestrammenēs). Perfect passive participle of diastrephō to distort, to twist, to turn to one side (διεστραμμενης — dia in two). Old word. See note on Matthew 17:17 and note on Acts 13:10. [source]
Philippians 2:15 Without blemish [αμωμα]
Without spot, “unblemished in reputation and in reality” (Vincent). In the midst of (μεσον — meson). Preposition with genitive. Crooked Old word, curved as opposed to ορτος — orthos straight. See note on Acts 2:40. Perverse (diestrammenēs). Perfect passive participle of diastrephō to distort, to twist, to turn to one side (διεστραμμενης — dia in two). Old word. See note on Matthew 17:17 and note on Acts 13:10. [source]
Philippians 2:15 Crooked [σκολιας]
Old word, curved as opposed to ορτος — orthos straight. See note on Acts 2:40. Perverse (diestrammenēs). Perfect passive participle of diastrephō to distort, to twist, to turn to one side (διεστραμμενης — dia in two). Old word. See note on Matthew 17:17 and note on Acts 13:10. [source]
Philippians 2:15 Perverse [diestrammenēs)]
Perfect passive participle of diastrephō to distort, to twist, to turn to one side Old word. See note on Matthew 17:17 and note on Acts 13:10. [source]

What do the individual words in Matthew 17:17 mean?

Answering now - Jesus said O generation unbelieving and perverted how long when with you will I be will I bear with Bring to Me him here
Ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν γενεὰ ἄπιστος καὶ διεστραμμένη ἕως πότε μεθ’ ὑμῶν ἔσομαι ἀνέξομαι φέρετέ μοι αὐτὸν ὧδε

Ἀποκριθεὶς  Answering 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Participle Passive, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ἀποκρίνομαι  
Sense: to give an answer to a question proposed, to answer.
δὲ  now 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: δέ  
Sense: but, moreover, and, etc.
  - 
Parse: Article, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
Ἰησοῦς  Jesus 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰησοῦς  
Sense: Joshua was the famous captain of the Israelites, Moses’ successor.
εἶπεν  said 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: λέγω  
Sense: to speak, say.
  O 
Parse: Interjection
Root: ὦ2  
Sense: the interjection, O!.
γενεὰ  generation 
Parse: Noun, Vocative Feminine Singular
Root: γενεά  
Sense: fathered, birth, nativity.
ἄπιστος  unbelieving 
Parse: Adjective, Vocative Feminine Singular
Root: ἄπιστος  
Sense: unfaithful, faithless, (not to be trusted, perfidious).
διεστραμμένη  perverted 
Parse: Verb, Perfect Participle Middle or Passive, Vocative Feminine Singular
Root: διαστρέφω  
Sense: to distort, turn aside.
ἕως  how  long 
Parse: Preposition
Root: ἕως  
Sense: till, until.
ἔσομαι  will  I  be 
Parse: Verb, Future Indicative Middle, 1st Person Singular
Root: εἰμί  
Sense: to be, to exist, to happen, to be present.
ἀνέξομαι  will  I  bear  with 
Parse: Verb, Future Indicative Middle, 1st Person Singular
Root: ἀνέχομαι  
Sense: to hold up.
φέρετέ  Bring 
Parse: Verb, Present Imperative Active, 2nd Person Plural
Root: φέρω  
Sense: to carry.
μοι  to  Me 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Dative 1st Person Singular
Root: ἐγώ  
Sense: I, me, my.
ὧδε  here 
Parse: Adverb
Root: ὧδε  
Sense: here, to this place, etc.