Paragraph 9:59–60

9:59a

Then: This verse begins with a Greek conjunction. The Berean Standard Bible translates it as Then in order to show that it introduces the next event in the story. Some other versions translate this conjunction as “And” (King James Version, New American Standard Bible). Most English versions do not translate it. Introduce this event in a natural way in your language.

He said to another man: In the previous paragraph, a man asked Jesus if he could follow him all the time as a disciple. This time Jesus himself invited someone else to follow him as a disciple. According to the parallel verse in Matthew 8:21, this person was already a disciple in some sense, but he did not follow Jesus all the time. Jesus was here asking him to join the group of disciples who followed him regularly.

Follow Me: In this context the clause Follow Me means “Come and learn from me” or “Be my disciple.” See the note on 9:57b. In some languages it may be more natural to translate this clause as an indirect quote. For example:

Jesus told someone else to come with him as his disciple.

9:59b

This verse begins with a Greek conjunction. Most English versions translate it as “but” in order to show the contrast between Jesus’ invitation and the man’s response. The Berean Standard Bible has not translated this conjunction, and a few other English versions also do not translate it. Consider whether a connecting word would be natural in your language here.

The man replied: The clause The man replied introduces the man’s response to Jesus. He replied politely, but he did not agree to accept Jesus’ invitation. Introduce the response in a natural way in your language.

Lord:
The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Lord was the respectful term that the disciples often used to address Jesus. Another way to translate this is:

Sir (Good News Translation)

See the note on 9:54b. See also Lord, Context 3, in the Glossary.

first let me go and bury my father: This clause indicates that the man did not want to follow Jesus right away. He felt that it was more important first to fulfill his duty as a son. It is not clear from the man’s words whether his father had already died, was near death, or was an old man who might die in the next few years. If possible, translate this clause in a way that allows for any of these options. For example:

let me wait until I bury my father (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
let me go home first and arrange for my father’s funeral

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