Paragraph 9:20–22
9:20a
Suddenly: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Suddenly indicates that something extraordinary will happen. Here, what is unexpected is that while they were going to the ruler’s house, a woman came and touched Jesus’ robe.
Here are some other ways to translate this word:
And behold (English Standard Version)
-or-
unexpectedly
-or-
Just then (New International Version)
a woman: In some languages, it is necessary to introduce a new main participant in a certain way. In that case the woman should be introduced in a way that is natural in the language. For example:
⌊There was⌋ a ⌊certain⌋ woman. She had a bleeding sickness for twelve years. ⌊While Jesus was on his way⌋, she suddenly…
who had suffered from bleeding for twelve years: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as suffered from bleeding is more literally “bleeding.” The word suffered is not in Greek.
The Greek does not indicate where the woman was bleeding from. She was probably bleeding from the womb at times that were not normal. For politeness sake, the Greek term is general. She had started bleeding twelve years prior to this time and probably bled most of the twelve years.
In some languages, there is a term for this kind of bleeding. In other languages, it is more natural to use a polite form (euphemism). Here is an example of each:
who had been bleeding for twelve years (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
who had continual menstrual bleeding for twelve years
General Comment on 9:20a
The clause “who had suffered from bleeding for twelve years” is information about the woman. In English, such information is often put in a relative clause, as it is here. In some languages, it may be more natural to give this information in a separate sentence. Notice how the following examples give the information about the woman:
Then a woman came up behind Jesus and touched the edge of his clothes. She had been suffering from chronic bleeding for twelve years. (God’s Word)
-or-
There was a certain woman. She had been bleeding for twelve years. She approached Jesus from behind and touched the edge of his clothes.
9:20b
came up behind Him: This expression indicates that the woman approached Jesus from behind. She had probably been following Jesus, and she walked quickly so she could get close enough to him to touch his clothes.
Here are some other ways to translate these words:
came close to him from the rear
-or-
approached him from behind (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
Tassels on a Jewish man’s prayer shawl
touched the fringe of His cloak: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as fringe probably refers to one of the “tassels” that were attached to Jesus’ clothes. The Jews made these tassels by tying strings together, and they attached these tassels to the four corners of their outer clothes. When they saw these tassels, they were supposed to remember to follow God’s commandments. (Num. 15:37–38; Deut. 22:12).
Like any male Jew, Jesus probably wore tassels. The woman probably touched this part of Jesus’ clothing so he would not feel the touch.
Here are some other ways to translate this word:
• Translate it with a word or phrase that refers specifically to tassels. For example:
touched the strings/threads on the hem of his clothes
• Translate it with a word or phrase that refers generally to the hem or edge of his clothes. For example:
touched the edge of his clothes (God’s Word)
-or-
touched the hem/border of his robe
cloak: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as cloak is a general word that means clothing. In this context, this word refers to the outer layer of clothing.
Here are some other ways to translate this word:
garment (English Standard Version)
-or-
clothes (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
robe (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
coat (New Century Version)
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