"Having Power" Is Not "Can"

When we see the word “can” in Jesus’s words, we are often seeing a word that means, literally “having power.” We cannot look at the Greek word without thinking about power. Because of its mistranslation, much of what Jesus has to say about the nature of power is lost. Translating this verb as “can” or its negative, “cannot,” disguises what Jesus thought we should know about the nature of power, even miraculous forms of power. Unfortunately, we cannot assume that every “can” in Jesus’s words comes from this verb. Biblical translators are not that consistent.

The Greek word translated as “can” is usually dynamai (δύνμαται). This is the root word for our English words “dynamic,” “dynamo,” and “dynamite.” Even English speakers who do not know Greek get this sense of power just by seeing this word. The Greek nouns from the same root mean “power,” “might,” and “influence.” At best, our English helping verb “can” is a distant cousin to this very strong word. Not only does it mean to “have power,” but it is usually used in the passive or middle voice where the subject acts on/by/for themselves. To used the passive, as biblical translators sometimes do makes it weaker, “be able.” But the middle voice makes it stronger, "have power by yourselves.”

The Key Verb

In English, “can” is a helping verb, a secondary verb describing the state of the active verb. In translating Greek to English, we must use helping verbs to capture the different voices, tenses, and moods of the Greek verbs, but in Greek that work is all performed by the verbs ending.

In Greek verb “having power” is an action in its own right. Translating dynamaias “can” demotes the active verb to a helper. It also promotes the secondary verb giving it more power in the sentence. The focus of a dynamai sentence centers on power. The type of power is described by the secondary verb, a Greek infinitive, that is, a verbal noun. For example, in John 7:7:

NIV: The world cannot hate you…
Listeners Heard: No, it doesn't have the power by itself, this society, to hate you.

Not hating something and not having the power to hate to do something are two very different ideas. “Can” often indicates a choice. Dynamai always indicates an ability.

The Dynamic Verb

Jesus uses dynamai in sixty-one verses. Its basic form is the middle voice, that is, someone acting on, for, or by themselves. It means someone has the power within themselves, from their own abilities to do something by themselves. Conceptually, if something “has power,” we assume that it has that power in its nature so saying “by itself” is often unnecessary. Dynamai is the source of “miracles.”

This verb is related to both a noun and adjectives from the same root. The noun is  dynamis  (δυνάμις) that  means "power" and "might." It is sometimes translated as “miracle.” The related adjective, dynatos, means "strong," and "mighty." Its opposite is adynatos, which Jesus uses in three verses. It means "unable to do a thing," "powerless," and "without strength." As an adverb, it means "weakly," and "feebly."

A Few Instructive Verses

How does a more powerful translation help us understand Jesus’s meaning? Let us look at a few examples where Jesus talks about his power, starting with John 5:19:

NIV: …The Son can do nothing by himself.
Listeners Heard: The son doesn't have the power to make anything by himself.