8:23a

As they sailed, He fell asleep: This part of the verse indicates that Jesus began to sleep in the boat while they were crossing the lake. The words fell asleep are an idiom in English to say “began to sleep.” Use a natural verb in your language.

they: The pronoun they refers to Jesus and his disciples.

sailed: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as sailed refers to traveling in a boat on water. They could have used a sail or oars.

8:23b

a windstorm came down on the lake: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as windstorm refers to a very strong wind. This wind came down from the hills surrounding the lake and blew violently across the lake. This caused large waves to form. Other ways that English versions have translated this are:

A violent storm came across the lake (God’s Word)
-or-
Then a very strong wind started blowing on the lake
-or-
Suddenly a windstorm struck the lake (Contemporary English Version)

8:23c

so that: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as so that is most often translated in English as “and” (Revised Standard Version). Here it introduces the result that came from the strong wind. That is why some English versions (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version) translate it as “so that.” Connect 8:23c to 8:23b in a way that is natural in your language.

the boat was being swamped: The Greek expression that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the boat was being swamped is literally “they were being filled with water.” It means that water was getting into the boat where Jesus and his disciples were. Other ways to say this are:

The boat was filling with water (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
causing much water to come into the boat

8:23d

and: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and is the same conjunction that was used in 8:23c. Here also, some English versions translate it as “so that” to indicate that being “in danger” was the result of the boat filling with water. For example:

…a strong wind blew down on the lake, and the boat began to fill with water, so that they were all in great danger. (Good News Translation)

Connect 8:23d to the context in a natural way in your language. In some languages it may be natural to use a result conjunction only once, either in 8:23c or 8:23d.

they were in great danger: The men were in danger of drowning. The boat was getting so much water in it that it seemed about to sink. If the boat sank in the storm, it was likely that the people in it would die.

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