Section 1:12–26

The believers chose Matthias to replace Judas

In this section, the believers were waiting for the Holy Spirit to come. They regularly prayed together. One day Peter said that they needed to choose a replacement for Judas. So they selected two men who had been with Jesus throughout his entire ministry. Then they asked God to help them know which of the two men he would choose. The method they used was to cast lots. (See 1:26 for this.) The lots indicated that God chose Matthias.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas (New International Version)
-or-
Judas’ Successor (Good News Translation)
-or-
Judas is replaced (New Jerusalem Bible)

Paragraph 1:12–14

1:12a

the Mount of Olives: The Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the Mount of Olives are literally “the mountain/hill being-called of-olives.” People called it that because it had olive trees growing on it. It is about 85 meters (280 feet) above the city of Jerusalem, as it was at that time. Use the correct word for that size of a hill. It is next to the east side of the city.

If olive trees are not known in your area, you may want to:

• Use the word that means Olives from the major language. If this word is not well known, you may want to add a descriptive phrase. For example:

Olive Hill ⌊where those fruit trees are⌋
-or-
Hill of ⌊the⌋ olive ⌊trees⌋

• Use the word that means Olives from the major language. Describe the word in a footnote. For example:

The olive tree has a small (about 2.5 centimeters, or one inch), oval fruit with a smooth skin and a hard seed inside. The olive was an essential food in ancient times. It was pressed into oil that was used in cooking and in some rituals. The oil was also used as fuel for lamps and in medicine and cosmetics.

• Use a general word for fruit. For example:

Hill of fruit trees

See how you translated this phrase in Matthew 21:1, Mark 11:1, or Luke 19:29.

Olives: This kind of tree has a small (about 2.5 centimeters, or one inch), oval fruit with a smooth skin and a hard seed inside. The olive was an essential food in ancient times. It was pressed into oil that was used in cooking and in some rituals. The oil was also used as fuel for lamps and in medicine and cosmetics.

1:12b

a Sabbath day’s journey away: The phrase a Sabbath day’s journey refers to a distance of about one kilometer. It is the distance that Jewish laws allowed people to walk on a Sabbath, a Jewish rest day. Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away (English Standard Version)
-or-
a short distance away, no more than a Sabbath walk (New Jerusalem Bible)

The word Sabbath here does not indicate that Jesus went to heaven on the Sabbath. So, you do not need to include Sabbath in your translation here. For example:

a half-hour walk from the city
-or-
a walk of a kilometer from the city
-or-
which is about half a mile away from the city (Good News Translation)

You may then want to explain the literal phrase in a footnote. Here is an example footnote:

Literally “being a Sabbath’s journey.” It is the distance that Jewish laws allowed people to walk on a Sabbath, a Jewish rest day.

Sabbath: The word Sabbath is the name of the seventh and last day of the week for the Jews. The Sabbath was the special day of the week when the Jews rested and worshiped God. The Law of Moses said that the Jews must not do any work on that day (Deuteronomy 5:12–15).

Here are some ways to translate Sabbath:

the ⌊Jewish⌋ day of rest and worship
-or-
the day for resting and worshiping
-or-
the day to rest and worship God

If the word Sabbath is already known in your area, you may write it according to the sounds of your language. You may also want to include a phrase to explain the meaning. For example:

the Sabat, ⌊the Jews’ worship and rest day⌋

The term you choose should not make people think the Sabbath is on Sunday, the day when Christians worship. The Sabbath for the Jews began at sundown on Friday and ended at sundown on Saturday. You may want to include a footnote to give more information. For example:

“Sabbath” is the name for the seventh day of the Jews’ week. God told them to rest from work and worship him every week on that day.

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