24:37

This verse tells the reactions of Jesus’ followers when he suddenly appeared to them. They did not rejoice immediately, because they were afraid. The reason for their fear was that they thought they were seeing Jesus’ ghost (24:37b). In some languages it is more natural to change the order of 24:37a and 24:37b so that the reason for the fear comes first. For example:

37bbut they thought he was a ghost, 37aso they were terrified

See the General Comment on 24:37a–b at the end of 24:37b for another example.

24:37a

But: In Greek this verse begins with a conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as But. It introduces how the disciples felt when Jesus appeared to them. Many English versions do not have a conjunction here. Do what is natural in your language. In some languages it may be natural to introduce the verse with a clause. For example:

When they saw him

they were startled and frightened: The Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as they were startled and frightened are very similar in meaning. The Greek word for startled probably indicates that the disciples felt shocked when they saw Jesus so suddenly. The word for frightened refers to the fear that they felt because they thought that they were seeing a ghost. They did not realize that they were seeing the living Jesus himself.

Luke used these two words together to emphasize the disciples’ surprise and fear when Jesus suddenly appeared to them. In some languages it may be more natural to express their reaction in a different way. Some other ways to describe their reaction are:

And they were very much afraid
-or-
But they were startled and their fear was excessive
-or-
They were terrified

24:37b

thinking they had seen a spirit: The phrase thinking they had seen a spirit in the reason that the disciples were afraid. Another way to translate it is:

because they thought they were seeing a ghost (Contemporary English Version)

Translate this reason in a natural way in your language.

thinking: The disciples were wrong in what they were thinking. Jesus was not a ghost, as they feared. In some languages it is good to use a word or phrase that implies a wrong thought or belief. For example:

assuming
-or-

⌊wrongly⌋ thinking

a spirit: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as a spirit refers to the spirit of a dead person. It does not refer here to an evil spirit. Use the appropriate word to refer to it in your language.

General Comment on 24:37a–b

In this verse 24:37b is the reason for the result in 24:37a. In some languages it may be more natural to change the order of these clauses. For example:

37bBecause they thought he was a spirit, 37athey were startled and afraid.

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