15:16a
He longed to fill his belly with: This verse part implies that the younger son was very hungry. He felt hungry enough to eat the pigs’ food. However, probably he did not actually eat it. Other ways to translate the words He longed to fill his belly with are:
The son was so hungry that he wanted to eat… (New Century Version)
-or-
He wished he could fill himself with… (Good News Translation)
-or-
He would have been glad to fill his belly with… (Revised English Bible)
to fill his belly with: There is a textual difference here, but the actual difference in meaning is slight. Both texts mean “to eat until one is satisfied/full.”
the pods the pigs were eating: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as pods refers to the fruit or pods of the carob tree. People normally used these pods only for feeding animals. But in times of famine, people also would sometimes eat them. If carob pods are unknown in your culture, you may use a more general expression, as the Berean Standard Bible has done. Some other examples are:
what the pigs were eating (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
tree fruit/seed-pods that the pigs ate
-or-
the bean pods the pigs ate (Good News Translation)
If you use an expression such as “bean pods,” as in the Good News Translation here, be sure it does not wrongly imply the vegetable “green beans.”
15:16b
but: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as but introduces a statement that contrasts with the young man’s hunger. Some English versions translate the conjunction as “and.” Translate the connection in a natural way in your language.
no one would give him a thing: The Greek text is literally “no one was-giving.” It implies that no one gave him anything to eat, even any of the pods. Another way to translate this is:
no one gave him anything to eat (Good News Translation)
General Comment on 15:16a–b
In some languages it may be more natural to reorder the parts of this verse. For example:
16bNo one in the country would give him any food, 16aand he was so hungry that he would have eaten what the pigs were eating. (God’s Word)
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