Exegesis:
ti gar ōpheleitai anthrōpos lit. ‘in what respect is a man profited,’ i.e. ‘what profit does a man have.’
ōpheleō pass ‘to be profited,’ ‘to acquire profit.’
heauton de apolesas ē zēmiōtheis lit. ‘but having lost himself or being punished.’ heauton may go with apolesas only, or with both apolesas and zēmiōtheis, the latter verb interpreted as ‘to forfeit’ (cf. Mk. 8.36). The former is more probable, since disjunctive ē suggests that the verbs are to be differentiated. Hence the phrase heauton de apolesas contrasts with kerdēsas ton kosmon holon and is best understood as referring to dying and zēmiōtheis is to be understood as in 1 Cor 3.15 and refers to punishment after death (cf. 12.5 and 16.23ff).
Translation:
Loses or forfeits himself, or, ‘loses himself and is punished’ (as advocated in Exegesis). The first phrase may also be rendered, ‘ruins himself’ (cf. Willibrord), ‘causes his own destruction/perdition’ (cf. Zürcher Bibel), ‘he himself perishes,’ “is himself lost” (Good News Translation); or negatively expressed, ‘does not preserve himself,’ ‘does no longer possess his own self.’ For ‘to be punished,’ or, ‘to suffer punishment,’ ‘to suffer (pain) because of one’s sins.’
Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.
