What Does Luke 12:59 Mean in the King James?

I tell thee, thou shalt not depart thence, till thou hast paid the very last mite.

Luke 12:59 · KJV

The analysis reads the King James wording.

King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.

THE KEY

The smallest unpaid remainder is the boundary that holds the door shut until it is returned.

THE MEANING

Your departure stands behind a precise threshold: you do not leave until the final, smallest coin is paid back. Near completion still leaves the remainder owed; the verse makes the boundary exact.

WHAT THIS UNDOES

The belief that a nearly settled debt leaves you free to go.

THE ROOT

ἀποδῷς

apodōis

GROWS FROM

δίδωμι

didōmi

⁨δίδωμι⁩ (didōmi) means give; in ⁨ἀποδίδωμι⁩ (apodidōmi), with ⁨ἀπό⁩ (apo, from or back), the sense is give back, render, or pay.

The verb translated “paid” carries the idea of giving back what is owed. The verse ties departure to that return, down to the last coin.

ALSO GROWS

apodidōmi: Give back, render, pay.

ἀποδίδωμι

This is the verb behind “paid,” presenting payment as the return of what is owed.

apodosis: Repayment, rendering.

ἀπόδοσις

This related noun names the act of returning what is due, keeping the verse’s focus on the debt being settled.

antapodidōmi: Repay, recompense.

ἀνταποδίδωμι

The same giving root appears in repayment in response, making clear that what remains owed still binds the account.

THE PATTERN

What remains owed continues to govern the boundary of release until it is rendered.

And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.

Matthew 18:34 · KJVThe debt remains the condition governing release, and here the verse makes the full amount explicit.

Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.

Romans 13:7 · KJVThe same give-back verb appears in the call to render each due, showing how precisely what is owed is named.

The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.

Proverbs 22:7 · KJVDebt is pictured as a bond of service, echoing Luke’s link between what remains owed and restricted departure.

THE THREAD

Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.

Matthew 5:26 · KJV

Matthew’s parallel uses the same Greek verb for paying back and likewise sets departure after the final coin is paid. The shared give-back root makes the condition precise: the way out follows the return of what is owed.

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