Mark 12 : 14

Greek uses the article οἱ ('the [ones]') with the participle; Peshitta employs the demonstrative pronoun ܗܢܘܢ ('these'); Vulgate uses the relative pronoun Qui ('who'). All three function as subject markers for the participial clause, but differ in deixis and definiteness.

Greek καὶ ('and') coordinates the participle with the main verb; Peshitta uses ܕܝܢ ('but, now'), a discourse marker signaling narrative progression; Vulgate omits any conjunction, allowing the participle venientes to stand in asyndeton with the main verb.

Greek λέγουσιν αὐτῷ ('they say to him') and Vulgate dicunt ei mirror each other; Peshitta ܘܫܐܠܘܗܝ ('and they asked him') uses a verb of questioning rather than neutral speech, making the interrogative force explicit from the outset.

Greek and Vulgate both mark the end of the narrative introduction with punctuation (Greek · colon, Vulgate : colon); Peshitta integrates the vocative directly without punctuation break, reflecting different conventions for direct speech demarcation.

Greek οἴδαμεν ('we know') and Vulgate scimus place the verb first; Peshitta ܝܕܥܝܢ ܚܢܢ inverts to verb + explicit subject pronoun ('know we'), a typical Syriac construction emphasizing the subject through post-verbal position.

Greek ὅτι and Vulgate quia both employ a subordinating conjunction introducing the content clause; Peshitta uses the relative particle ܕ (prefixed to ܫܪܝܪ), a standard Syriac construction for indirect discourse that does not require a separate conjunction token.

Greek ἀληθὴς εἶ ('true you-are') and Peshitta ܕܫܪܝܪ ܐܢܬ ('true you-[are]') place the predicate adjective before the copula/pronoun; Vulgate verax es inverts to adjective + copula, but the semantic content remains identical across all three.

Greek marks the clause boundary with a raised dot (·); Vulgate uses a colon (:); Peshitta continues without punctuation, treating the explanatory γάρ clause as syntactically continuous with the preceding assertion.

Greek οὐ γὰρ ('not for') and Peshitta ܠܐ ܓܝܪ maintain the negative + causal particle order; Vulgate nec enim ('neither for') uses nec (a compound negative-coordinating conjunction) instead of simple non, slightly strengthening the negative force while preserving the explanatory function.

Greek βλέπεις ('you look') and Vulgate vides are second-person singular verbs; Peshitta ܚܐܪ ܐܢܬ ('look you') adds the explicit subject pronoun ܐܢܬ, a common Syriac practice for emphasis or clarity, though the verb alone would suffice grammatically.

Greek εἰς πρόσωπον ἀνθρώπων ('into [the] face of men') uses the preposition εἰς + accusative; Vulgate in faciem hominum mirrors this with in + accusative; Peshitta ܒܦܪܨܘܦܐ ܕܒܢܝ ܐܢܫܐ ('in [the] face of sons-of men') uses ܒ ('in') + genitive construct phrase. The Peshitta's 'sons of men' (ܕܒܢܝ ܐܢܫܐ) is a Semitic idiom for 'human beings,' semantically equivalent to Greek/Latin ἀνθρώπων/hominum.

Greek ἐπ᾽ ἀληθείας ('on [the basis of] truth') uses ἐπί + genitive to express the standard or basis; Vulgate in veritate ('in truth') employs in + ablative, a functional equivalent; Peshitta ܒܫܪܪܐ ('in/by truth') uses the preposition ܒ, which can denote instrument, manner, or sphere. All three convey teaching grounded in truth, but through different prepositional semantics.

Greek τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ('the way of God') uses double article construction (article + noun + article + genitive); Vulgate viam Dei omits articles (Latin lacks them); Peshitta ܐܘܪܚܐ ܕܐܠܗܐ ('way of God') uses the Syriac construct state (determined noun + ܕ + genitive), functionally equivalent to the Greek genitive but without separate article tokens.

Greek διδάσκεις ('you teach') and Vulgate doces are simple second-person verbs; Peshitta ܡܠܦ ܐܢܬ ('teach you') again supplies the explicit subject pronoun ܐܢܬ for emphasis, paralleling the earlier construction at token 17.

Greek ἔξεστιν ('it is lawful/permitted') is an impersonal verb expressing legal permissibility; Vulgate Licet ('it is permitted') is semantically identical; Peshitta ܫܠܝܛ ('it is allowed/lawful') uses a different root but conveys the same deontic modality. All three introduce the question of legal obligation.

Greek κῆνσον (Latin loanword 'census,' meaning 'poll-tax') and Vulgate tributum ('tribute') each use a single term; Peshitta ܟܣܦ ܪܫܐ ('silver [of the] head') employs a two-word construct phrase literally meaning 'head-silver,' a Semitic calque for poll-tax. This is an explanatory expansion clarifying the nature of the tax through native Syriac idiom.

Greek ἢ οὔ ('or not?') and Vulgate an non dabimus ('or shall we not give?') both pose a simple binary question; Peshitta ܐܘ ܠܐ ܢܬܠ ܐܘ ܠܐ ܢܬܠ ('or not shall-we-give or not shall-we-give') doubles the disjunctive phrase, creating an emphatic rhetorical structure. This repetition intensifies the either/or force of the question, a stylistic expansion not present in Greek or Latin.

Greek and Vulgate both close the verse with a question mark (Greek ; / Vulgate ?); Peshitta's punctuation system does not employ a distinct question mark, relying instead on interrogative particles and context to signal the question.