20:2a
So: The connector So introduces what Mary did next because she saw that the stone had been removed.
she came running to Simon Peter: The verbs came and running describe the same action. However, it may be natural to use two verbs like the Greek text. For example:
Mary Magdalene came to the tomb (New Revised Standard Version)
and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved: The phrase the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved probably refers to John himself, the author of this gospel. The expression the one whom Jesus loved indicates that this disciple was Jesus’ good friend. Jesus loved all of his disciples. See how you translated this expression in 13:23 and 19:26. For example:
and to Jesus’ dear friend and disciple/follower
disciple: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as disciple refers to a “learner” who was in a special relationship with a teacher. The learner committed himself to his teacher in order to learn from him and follow his teaching and example. In the New Testament a disciple referred specifically to a person who was learning from a religious teacher. A disciple often lived with his teacher and followed him wherever he went. See how you translated this word in, for example, 2:2 and 18:15.
loved: The Greek verb is different from that in the same English expression in 13:23, but the meaning is the same. This disciple knew that Jesus had a strong affection for him.
20:2b
They have taken the Lord out of the tomb: Mary did not understand that Jesus had risen from the dead. She thought that someone had opened the tomb and removed Jesus’ dead body.
They: This pronoun is indefinite and does not refer to a specific group of people. Mary did not know who might have moved Jesus’ body. Here are some ways of translating this clause:
• Use a general subject, either singular or plural. For example:
Someone has taken the Lord
• Use a passive verb. For example:
⌊The body of⌋ the Lord has been carried away
have taken the Lord: This phrase refers to someone removing the dead body of Jesus. Use an expression that one might use for moving a dead body.
the Lord: The word Lord is a term of respect and here refers to Jesus. See how you translated this word in 6:23 and 11:2. In some languages it may be natural to add a possessive pronoun, indicating whose Lord it is. For example:
our (incl.) Lord/Master
-or-
the one we (incl.) obey
In some languages you may need to indicate that it was the body of the Lord that was removed. That will make it clear that Mary thought that he was still dead. For example:
They have removed the body of our Lord from the cave (Kankanaey Back Translation)
out of the tomb: This phrase implies that the body was no longer in the tomb. Mary thought that someone had removed it from the tomb and taken it somewhere else.
she said: This phrase indicates that Mary Magdalene spoke to Peter and the disciple whom Jesus loved.
20:2c
and we do not know: The pronoun we here probably refers to Mary and some other women. Although the Gospel of John does not mention any other women, the other gospels do. (See Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:1, and Luke 24:1.) If you have different pronouns to indicate feminine and masculine, you should use a feminine plural pronoun here.
where they have put Him: This clause means “where they have placed Jesus’ dead body.” Mary assumed that some unknown person or persons had moved Jesus’ body to a different place. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
where they have laid him (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-
where his body has been taken/placed
© 2020 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.
