And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20 ESV)
Recently, I came across an Instagram Reel with a concept I hadn’t heard before. I know my Greek, have read through commentaries ad nauseam, and traced interpretations across church history, but this one was new to me. Here’s the transcript of the video:
I heard this from a pastor and a while back he told me that the Great Commission, “go and make disciples of all nations,” is more closely translated to “in your going, make disciples of all nations.” Basically, like as you live your life, as you live in whatever context God put you in, make disciples, tell people about his love, talk to people about Jesus, share about what Jesus done in your life.
That to me is the coolest concept because a lot of us aren’t called to go somewhere else, you know, a lot of us are just called to the life that we’re leading right now. So encouraging to me because like John Mark Comer says instead of saying, “What would Jesus do,” think of, “What would Jesus do if He were me?” Cause you know I’m not a first-century Jewish rabbi. I am a mom of two in Northern California.
What did God intend for my life and who did God intend for me to share about Jesus with? Isn’t that so profound to me? It makes me feel emotional every time I think about it or talk about it because it makes like the people who are checking me out at the grocery store, the mom that I pass by on my walk that I go on every day, like so precious because like those are the people that God has called me to share about his love with, you know? It’s literally your neighbors.
I also feel like it’s just an invitation like you don’t have to be weird about it. As it happens, as God puts opportunities in your path, doesn’t have to be unnatural, you know? Just an invitation into like a very natural rhythm. As you live your life, make disciples of all nations.
It brought up the question, “Why haven’t I heard this before? Did I miss that section in my New Testament work?”
Before we proceed, let me offer this caution: don’t get your theology from social media. If you take everything you hear from your feeds at face value, you will have a severely malformed and arguably heretical understanding of your faith. It’s in the pattern of the Berean Christians in Acts 17:11 that I share this transcript and the following thoughts: “[T]hey received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”
Additionally, we must understand that the English we read in our Bibles, physical or digital, is not the original form in which the Scriptures we have were written. The text we have today originated in Hebrew, Greek, or Aramaic; were translated into Latin (the Vulgate), or Greek first if the source was Hebrew (the Septuagint); and has had its meaning debated over the years before arriving in one of the various translations from which we can choose to read.
Thus, understanding what the original language in all its semantics and semiotics is crucial. Yet, you don’t have to go to seminary, get a Bible degree, or become a linguistics expert in order to understand what you’re reading. This is my aim and hope in this and following articles where I unpack contested Greek words in well-known verses so that you and I both can have a better grasp on the Biblical text.
What Does πορευθέντες Really Mean?
In Matthew 28:19—the famous “Great Commission”—Jesus says, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.” The little word often translated as “go” is the Greek πορευθέντες (pronounced po-rew-THEN-tes). The reel in question explains this word as and argues for it meaning “in your going,” as if the command is simply “while you go about your normal life, make disciples.” That sounds convenient, but it isn’t actually what the Greek grammar says.
I’m no expert in Koine Greek, the language of the New Testament, but one of the few things I’ve learned is we must remember that Greek words are built like Lego blocks, with different pieces that each carry meaning. Πορευθέντες is made of three parts:
πορευ-: the root of the word, which simply means “to go” or “to travel.”
-θ-: a marker that shows this is in the “aorist passive” form—a particular way of talking about action as a whole, not as something ongoing.
-έντες: an ending that tells us this is a participle (like the “-ing” form of a verb in English) and that it’s plural, matching the disciples Jesus is speaking to.
Thus, when you look at a Greek lexicon, you’ll see that this word is parsed out, or classified as, VAPP-PNM:
Verb – This simply means the word comes from a verb, an action word. In this case, the action is “to go.”
Aorist – Greek verbs don’t just tell you when something happened (past, present, future), but also how the action is viewed. The “aorist” tense views the action as a whole, almost like a snapshot rather than an ongoing video. So instead of “while going,” it’s more like “having gone.”
Passive – Voice tells you how the subject relates to the action. In English, active is “I throw the ball,” passive is “I am thrown.” Here, it’s “passive” in form, but the verb πορεύομαι is what’s called “deponent.” That means it looks passive but has an active meaning. So we translate it simply as “go,” not “be gone.”
Participle – A participle is a verbal adjective. Think of English words ending in “-ing” like “running” or “singing.” In Greek, participles connect actions to the main verb, usually adding time or circumstance. Here, the participle links the going to the main command: “make disciples.”
Plural – This shows that Jesus isn’t addressing one person but all the disciples together. It’s a group command, not a private commission.
Nominative – Greek nouns, pronouns, and adjectives change form depending on their role in the sentence. The “nominative” case usually marks the subject (the one doing the action). So this participle matches the subject of the sentence—the disciples.
Masculine – Greek words also reflect gender (masculine, feminine, neuter). Here it matches the masculine form of “disciples,” though it doesn’t imply only men. It’s simply grammatical agreement.
Put it all together and πορευθέντες means something closer to “having gone” or “after you go.” It’s not a present-tense “as you are going,” but an aorist participle—Greek’s way of describing something as a completed action that sets up the main command.
Why Parse Words?
When looking at phrases like this, isolating verbs like this can certainly provide a deeper understanding and more critical study of the Greek language. However, the main verb in the verse is not “go” at all, but “make disciples.” The “going” is assumed; the command is to disciple. This matters because the difference between “in your going” and “having gone” changes the force of the passage. “In your going” can sound casual—make disciples if and when you happen to have the opportunity. But “having gone” is deliberate—it assumes you are going out, moving beyond where you are, and once you’ve done that, the command is to make disciples.
Modern translations handle this differently. The ESV and NASB both say simply “Go therefore and make disciples,” which captures the push outward without softening the command. The NIV also translates it as “Therefore go and make disciples,” leaning into the same sense. But the “in your going” explanation often used in teaching tries to make the verb less forceful than it actually is.
The Point: Keep It In Context
Here’s what I’m getting at: Jesus wasn’t saying, “If you happen to go, remember to make disciples along the way.” He was saying, “Having gone out into the world, make disciples of all nations.” The grammar itself underlines the mission. The Church is not meant to stay put and disciple if the chance arises—it is sent, and once sent, it must disciple. Craig Blomberg says this in commenting on the verb in question:
The main command of Christ’s commission is “make disciples” (mathēteusate). Too much and too little have often been made of this observation. Too much is made of it when the disciples’ “going” is overly subordinated, so that Jesus’ charge is to proselytize merely where one is. Matthew frequently uses “go” as an introductory circumstantial participle that is rightly translated as coordinate to the main verb—here “Go and make” (cf. 2:8; 9:13; 11:4; 17:27; 28:7).1
Yet, even in my retort against this interpretation, we must still be further careful not to fully ignore the contextual and often localized nature of how God calls us. Many will not go to foreign places or strange lands, but may remain where their family has been for generations; case in point, I’m among the first in my family to leave the East Coast where we’ve been for decades. It is in this vein that Blomberg continues:
Too little is made of it when all attention is centered on the command to “go,” as in countless appeals for missionary candidates, so that foreign missions are elevated to a higher status of Christian service than other forms of spiritual activity. To “make disciples of all nations” does require many people to leave their homelands, but Jesus’ main focus remains on the task of all believers to duplicate themselves wherever they may be.2
Conclusion: Sent and Sustained
Parsing πορευθέντες reminds us that Jesus’ commission is neither casual nor optional. The grammar does not allow us to reduce the Great Commission to a vague encouragement to share our faith if the opportunity arises. Nor does it elevate “going” as if the mere act of traveling were the main thing. Instead, the text places the weight squarely on making disciples, with the going—whether across the street or across the globe—assumed as part of obedience.
This means two things for us. First, every Christian is sent. Some will indeed cross cultures and borders, while others will remain in familiar neighborhoods and family networks. But both are expressions of the same obedience: having gone into the world, we are to make disciples. Second, every Christian is sustained. The Commission ends not with a burden, but with a promise: “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 28:20). The command is great, but so is the presence of the One who gives it.
So, no matter your context—whether you are the mom in Northern California, the pastor in a pulpit, or the student at a campus—you are sent under the authority of Christ and sustained by His presence. The Great Commission is not “in your going” as if discipleship were a side project of daily life. It is “having gone,” the very purpose for which Christ sends His Church into the world.
Craig Blomberg, Matthew, vol. 22, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992), 431.
Ibid.