Paragraph 22:52–53
22:52a–d
Then Jesus said to the chief priests, temple officers, and elders who had come for Him: In this verse Jesus spoke to the three groups of people who had come to arrest him. These groups were chief priests, temple officers, and Jewish elders. This is the first time that these three groups have been mentioned in this section. They came in the “crowd” that was introduced in 22:47a.
In some languages it is necessary to introduce these groups before introducing what Jesus said to them. For example:
And among those also who came to arrest Jesus were the chief priests, the captains of those who guarded in the temple, and the elders of the Jews. Jesus said to them
-or-
The other people who had come to seize Isa were the leading priests and the captains of the temple guard and the elders of the Yahudi. Isa said to them
-or-
In the crowd that came to arrest Jesus there were chief priests, temple police, and elders of the Jews. Jesus said to them
Introduce them in a natural way in your language.
chief priests: The term chief priests occurred in 19:47. See how you translated the term there. For more information, see priest in the Glossary.
temple officers: This phrase refers to the same temple officers or captains of the temple guard who were mentioned in 22:4b. They were in charge of the Levites who guarded the temple area. Translate it as you did in 22:4.
elders: The term elders refers to respected leaders in the community. They were probably members of the Jewish high court (the Sanhedrin) who were not chief priests or scribes. This term also occurred in 20:1. See how you translated it there.
who had come for Him: The clause who had come for Him indicates that the three groups in 22:52a–c had come to arrest Jesus. In your translation, make it clear that all three groups of men had come for Jesus.
Some other ways to translate this clause are:
who had come out to get him (NET Bible)
-or-
who were there to arrest him (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
Those who came to arrest Jesus were (New Century Version)
General Comment on 22:52a–b
In some languages it may be helpful to follow the original order of the Greek text and reverse the order of clauses in 22:52a–d. For example:
52aThen Jesus spoke to 52dthe men who had come for him—52athe chief priests, 52bthe officers of the temple guard, 52cand the elders
Use a natural order in your language.
22:52e
Have you come out with swords and clubs as you would against an outlaw?: This is a rhetorical question. Jesus asked this question to rebuke the men who had come to arrest him. He rebuked them because they came to capture him with swords and clubs as if he were a dangerous criminal. The question implies that they know that he is not a criminal, so there is no good reason for them to come against him like that.
Some ways to translate this rebuke are:
• As a rhetorical question. For example:
Why do you come out with swords and clubs and treat me like a criminal? (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Do you ⌊wrongly⌋ think that I am a bandit/robber? Is that why you have come against me armed with swords and clubs?
• As a statement. For example:
You came out here with swords and clubs as though I were a criminal. (New Century Version)
-or-
It is not right/necessary for you to treat me as a criminal and come with swords and clubs to seize me.
Translate this rebuke in a way that is natural in your language. It may also be helpful to refer to the notes at 22:46a. See how you translated that rebuke.
Have you come out: The clause Have you come out refers to coming to arrest Jesus. In some languages it may be natural to make that more explicit. For example:
that you have come…to arrest me (New Living Translation (2004))
swords: The word “sword” occurred in 21:24 and 22:36. See how you translated it there.
clubs: The word clubs refers to heavy pieces of wood that men used for fighting.
against an outlaw: There are two ways to interpret the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as against an outlaw:
(1) It refers to a robber, bandit, or outlaw. Here is another way to translate this:
Am I some dangerous criminal…? (New Living Translation (1996))
(Berean Standard Bible, New Living Translation (1996), Good News Translation, Revised Standard Version, New American Standard Bible, King James Version, Revised English Bible, NET Bible, God’s Word, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version, New Jerusalem Bible, English Standard Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
(2) It refers to a rebel or revolutionary, someone who fights against the rulers of his country. Here is another way to translate this:
Am I leading a rebellion…? (New International Version)
(New International Version, New Living Translation (2004))
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with many Bible scholars and most English versions.
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