What Does Luke 12:6 Mean in the King James?
Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God?
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 Greek word for “forgotten” carries the sense of slipping out of notice, so not one sparrow slips beyond God’s sight.
THE MEANING
The verse holds two measures together: five sparrows have a small market price, yet not one is forgotten before God. What people treat as negligible remains within God’s notice now. Being overlooked by others does not mean you are unseen by God.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that being treated as insignificant means you have been forgotten by God.
THE ROOT
ἐπιλελησμένον
epilelēsménon
GROWS FROM
λανθάνω
lanthanō
To escape notice, remain hidden, or go unseen.
The word behind “forgotten” belongs to the same word family as “escape notice.” The verse says no sparrow has slipped beyond God’s attention, even when its price makes it easy for people to overlook.
ALSO GROWS
lanthanō: To escape notice; to remain unseen.
λανθάνω
This is the root beneath “forgotten,” revealing the idea of a life slipping out of awareness.
lēthē: Forgetfulness; oblivion.
λήθη
This related word names the state of being lost from notice, sharpening the verse’s claim that no sparrow enters it before God.
THE PATTERN
No life becomes invisible to God because people assign it little value.
Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.THE THREAD
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.Hebrews uses the same Greek word family for “forgetful,” then uses its root again in “unawares”: some guests pass unnoticed even as they are welcomed. The shared root links God’s regard for the small with the hidden significance of an ordinary encounter.
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