Paragraph 21:9–11
Jesus had prepared a breakfast of bread and fish for the disciples. He invited them to bring some of their fish too. Peter brought the fish to land. The disciples saw that their net did not break even though there were 153 large fish caught in it.
21:9
When they landed: This clause is more literally “when they went up onto the land.” It introduces the setting of the next part of the story. That next part happened after the disciples got out of the boat and walked onto the shore. Introduce what happened there in a way that is natural in your language. For example:
When they had gone ashore (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-
When they got there (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
On landing
they landed: The verb phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as landed refers to getting off the boat and walking onto land. In some languages it may be natural to mention these actions separately. For example:
the followers stepped out of the boat and onto the shore (New Century Version)
-or-
the disciples left the boat and walked up on the land
they saw a charcoal fire there with fish on it, and some bread: The disciples saw that Jesus was already cooking breakfast for them. Some fish were cooking over a fire. The Greek text does not clearly say whether the bread was also on the fire. The bread was probably already cooked. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
they saw that there was some bread there and a charcoal fire with fish cooking on it (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
they found breakfast waiting for them—fish cooking over a charcoal fire, and some bread (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
they saw a charcoal fire already laid and fish placed on it, and bread (New American Standard Bible)
they saw a charcoal fire there: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as there is more literally “laid,” which means “prepared” or “ready.” The context implies that the fire was already lit. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
they saw a charcoal fire ready (NET Bible)
-or-
they saw that a charcoal fire was burning (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
they saw a charcoal fire in place (English Standard Version)
In some languages it may not be necessary to translate the word there explicitly. It can be left as implied information. For example:
they saw a fire of hot coals (New Century Version)
a charcoal fire: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as a charcoal fire refers to a fire made with charcoal (coal). The same Greek word was also used in 18:18. See how you translated it there. For example:
a fire of burning coals (New International Version)
-or-
a fire of hot coals (New Century Version)
with fish on it: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as fish is singular. It could refer to one large fish, or to several fish as a group. It is good to leave this ambiguous if possible. The fish was/were lying on the coals, cooking. You may want to make this fact explicit. For example:
fish cooking over a charcoal fire (New Living Translation (2004))
on it: The Greek expression that the Berean Standard Bible translates as on it is more literally “lying upon.” Refer to the fish cooking on the fire in a way that is natural in your language. For example:
lying on the coals (God’s Word)
some bread: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as bread is singular and refers to bread in general. We do not know how many small loaves Jesus prepared for the disciples. It is good to use an expression that refers to an indefinite but large quantity. This bread was probably barley or wheat bread. We do not know which kind, however, so use a general expression. See how you translated bread in 6:5, 31, 35.
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