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989 B
Connecting Statement:
Jesus continues to respond to the Pharisees.
Make a tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad
Possible meanings are 1) "If you make a tree good, its fruit will be good, and if you make the tree bad, its fruit will be bad" or 2) "If you consider a tree to be good, it is because its fruit is good, and if you consider a tree to be bad, it is because its fruit is bad." This was a proverb. People were to apply its truth to how they can know whether a person is good or bad.
good ... bad
"healthy ... diseased"
a tree is recognized by its fruit
The words "tree" and "fruit" are metaphors for a person and his deeds, respectively. This can be translated in active form. Alternate translation: "people recognize trees by their fruit" or "people know whether a person is good or bad by looking at the results of that person's activities" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-activepassive and rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor)