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| PentecostalTheology.com
Most translations of Matthew 28:19 begin with:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them …
What "of" means here is ambiguous:
- All people from all nations should be baptized. (Proselytize)
- A few people from each nation should be baptized. (Evangelize)
It is often (e.g. the recent How do non-Catholics understand the Catholics fulfillment of the Great Commission? – Christianity Stack Exchange) assumed to have the first meaning, a mission to convert the entire world.
But it could instead mean to spread the word as far as possible, baptizing those few converts that God calls, to provide Christian examples throughout the world, even though the vast majority of each nation will remain unconverted.
Does the original Greek help resolve this ambiguity?
(Just to confuse things, I notice that the Greek word for "them" is masculine, even though "all" and "nations" are neuter.)
