Teaching of Jesus about little children
Jesus' teachings referring to little children (, "paidíon") and infants/babies appear in several places in the New Testament and in the non-canonical Gospel of Thomas. New Testament. The King James Version of Matthew's gospel (chapter 18) relates that: The word translated as "converted" in the King James Version (, "straphēte") literally means 'turn'. It is translated as "turn" in the English and American Standard Versions and as "change" in the New International Version. Elsewhere in the New Testament, the change of heart demanded by John the Baptist and by Jesus often uses the  word "metanoia" (). German theologian Heinrich Meyer suggests that Jesus' challenge to his disciples is to "turn round upon [the] road, and to acquire a moral disposition similar to the nature of little children". The Kingdom of Heaven is compared to little children at several other places in the New Testament: Gospel of Thomas. Another saying referring to small children can be found in the non-canonical Gospel of Thomas. The two passages (Matthew 18:1-6 and the passage in "Thomas") are different in tone. However, both start by comparing those who enter the Kingdom of Heaven to children, and then  make references to "eyes, hands," and "feet". In Matthew, Jesus suggests that these offending parts should be "cut off," whereas the passage in "Thomas" takes a different tone in describing spiritual cleansing and renewal: From the Gospel of Thomas: