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Mark 9:45

ESV And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.
NIV And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.
NASB And if your foot is causing you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life without a foot, than, having your two feet, to be thrown into hell.
CSB And if your foot causes you to fall away, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.
NLT If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one foot than to be thrown into hell with two feet.
KJV And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
NKJV And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched—

What does Mark 9:45 mean?

Jesus continues His admonition to take concrete steps to avoid sin. He starts by saying it is better to be drowned than to discourage a little one from following Him (Mark 9:42) and that it's better to chop off your hands than to use them to do wrong (Mark 9:43).

Although Jesus' theological point refers to the literal, eternal hell, He is using the Valley of Hinnom as a visual representation. The term translated "hell" in English here is from the phrase tēn geennan. Also known as "Gehenna," this was the valley outside of Jerusalem which had hosted altars where parents burned their children in sacrifice to the pagan god Molech (2 Chronicles 28:3; 33:6). King Josiah destroyed the altars and turned the area into a rubbish heap where animal remains were burned (2 Kings 23:10). After the time of Malachi, during the four hundred years of silence, Jews started to identify Gehenna with hell.

This round-a-bout way of speaking about sin was common in New Testament times. By speaking vaguely about the act and concrete about the means, Jesus is telling His disciples to take concrete measures to avoid all kinds of sin. While, ultimately, it would be better to go without feet than sin with them, Jesus isn't endorsing self-mutilation. He's saying, for instance, don't allow your heart to tell your feet to walk you into sin.

Even so, the hyperbole and the symbolism Jesus uses show that there is nothing we can do to prevent us from deserving hell. Only His sacrifice can save us from sin.
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