15:4

In Greek, 15:4 is a single rhetorical question. For example:

If one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does he not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is missing until he finds it? (Revised English Bible)

Jesus used this question to illustrate what he wanted to teach the people about God’s attitude toward sinners. The question emphasizes that any of them would surely search for one of their sheep that got lost. In some languages it is not natural to use a long rhetorical question to express this. Other ways to translate it are:

• As a combination of a statement or command with a rhetorical question. For example:

Suppose you have a hundred sheep and one gets lost. What will you do? You will leave ninety-nine that are safe and go to look for the one that is lost until you find it.

• As two or more rhetorical questions. For example:

If any of you has a hundred sheep, and one of them gets lost, what will you do? Won’t you leave the ninety-nine in the field and go look for the lost sheep until you find it? (Contemporary English Version)

• As two or more statements. For example:

Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep but loses one of them. You will certainly leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the open field and go out and look for the lost sheep until you find it.

Translate this rhetorical question in a way that will emphasize that any person among them would search for his lost sheep.

What man among you, if he: Notice that the Berean Standard Bible uses “among you” and “he” to refer to the listeners. The Contemporary English Version uses “one of you,” and “you.” Another option is to use forms like “someone” and “he” throughout. For example:

If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others… (New Living Translation (2004))

Use a natural way in your language to refer to the person in this illustration.

15:4a

if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them: In this context the owner of the sheep loses a sheep when the sheep wanders off by itself and becomes lost. The phrase does not imply here that the sheep is stolen or dies. For example:

one of them gets lost (Contemporary English Version)

sheep: The word sheep refers to domestic animals that are raised for meat and for wool. In some languages there may not be a word for “sheep.” If that is true in your language, you may borrow the word for “sheep” and indicate its meaning with a general word such as “herd/flock” or “animals.” For example:

a hundred ⌊animals called⌋ sheep
-or-

⌊herd/flock of⌋ one hundred sheep

If people are not familiar with sheep in your area, it is suggested that you insert a picture in your translation.

15:4b

does not leave the ninety-nine in the pasture: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the pasture is sometimes translated as “wilderness.” Some English versions, such as the Revised Standard Version, translate it that way. In this context it probably refers specifically to a pasture area where the sheep could eat grass and other plants. This was a normal place for sheep to stay.

It was common for shepherds to have enclosures in such pasture areas where the sheep could be safe at night. The shepherd was not being cruel or foolish to leave the ninety-nine sheep in such a place. Use a term in your language that describes a good place for sheep to eat and rest. It is best to avoid a word that implies a dangerous place. For example:

grazing in the pasture (God’s Word)

15:4c

go after the one that is lost, until he finds it: The phrase go after means here “go to look/search for.” The shepherd would keep looking for the sheep until he found it. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

look for (God’s Word)
-or-
go to search for (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
go out and look for (New Century Version)

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