5:26

In Greek, the conjunction that is often translated as “and” occurs three times in 5:26:

And everyone was amazed

and gave praise to God

and they were filled with awe

Each time, it introduces a different aspect of the people’s reaction to what had just happened. The Berean Standard Bible only translates this conjunction the second time. Use a natural way in your language to introduce each reaction.

5:26a

Everyone was taken with amazement: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Everyone was taken with amazement is literally, “And wonder/terror took/seized everyone.” It implies fear mixed with astonishment. This is the first reaction. The phrase is active is Greek, but some English versions, like the Berean Standard Bible, translate it as passive. Some other ways to translate this are:

Everyone was gripped with great wonder and awe (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
They were all completely amazed! (Good News Translation)

and glorified God: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as glorified means to speak about how wonderful and excellent someone or something is. It is the same word that was used in 5:25b. The people spoke in honor of God and glorified him. What they said showed that they believed that God had done a wonderful thing for this man. This is the second reaction.

5:26b

They were filled with awe: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as awe is literally “fear.” The people were afraid because of what they had seen. This word also means “respect” and “awe.” This is the third reaction.

Some ways to translate this are:

Full of fear (Good News Translation)
-or-
They were filled with much respect (New Century Version)

General Comment on 5:26a–b

The people’s reactions in 5:26a and 5:26c are similar. The reaction of awe in 5:26c adds intensity to the amazement in 5:26a. So in some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of the parts of 5:26. For example:

26aAnd all who were there were extremely amazed 26cand afraid, 26band they praised God
-or-

26aEveryone was gripped with great wonder 26cand awe, 26band they praised God (New Living Translation (2004))

5:26c

We have seen remarkable things today: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as remarkable things also means “strange things,” “wonderful things,” “unusual events,” or “incredible events.” The people were amazed at what they had just witnessed. They had seen Jesus heal a paralyzed man. They had also seen Jesus confront the religious leaders.

In some languages, it may be more natural to refer to these things as one event rather than using a plural word such as things. For example:

Today we have seen an incredible event!
-or-
We have seen a great miracle today! (Contemporary English Version)

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