10:38a
In the Greek text, 10:38a begins with a conjunction that connects the request in 10:37 with Jesus’ answer in this verse. Connect the verses in the way that is most natural in your language.
You do not know what you are asking: Jesus indicated here that James and John did not know the meaning or significance of their request. They did not realize that the people who receive the places of honor in Jesus’ kingdom are people who suffer for Jesus. You may need to make explicit what James and John did not understand. For example:
You do not understand what your request means.
-or-
You do not realize what you are asking me for.
Jesus replied: The Berean Standard Bible places the phrase Jesus replied at the end of this part of the verse. In the Greek text the phrase occurs at the beginning of the verse. Place this information where it is natural in your language.
10:38b–c
Notice that 10:38b–c is one long question. In some languages it may be more natural to translate it as two questions. For example, the God’s Word says:
Can you drink the cup that I’m going to drink? Can you be baptized with the baptism that I’m going to receive?
In the Greek text, there is no connector between Jesus’ statement in 10:38a and his question in 10:38b–c. However, in some languages it may be necessary to indicate the connection in some way. For example:
For…
-or-
Indeed…
Can you drink the cup I will drink, or be baptized with the baptism I will undergo?: In this question Jesus used two figures of speech to refer to suffering:
(a) drinking from the cup (of suffering),
(b) being baptized with a baptism (of suffering).
Jesus’ question helped James and John to consider whether they could endure suffering like his as well as share his glory. The question does not mean that if people take communion and are baptized, they will share in Jesus’ glory.
10:38b
Can you drink the cup I will drink: The expression drink the cup is a complex figure of speech. The cup represents the contents of the cup. The expression drink the cup compares undergoing an experience with drinking the contents of a cup. In this context, Jesus used this figure of speech to refer to the suffering that he would undergo. (In the Bible, the Greek and Hebrew words that some English versions translate as cup sometimes refer to something that people had to experience. It could be something good (Psalm 116:13) or something bad (Isaiah 51:17).) If a figure of speech like this is not clearly understood in your language, some other ways to translate it are:
• Retain the metaphor but make explicit the meaning of cup. For example, the Good News Bible says:
Can you drink the cup of suffering that I must drink?
• Change the metaphor to a simile and make the meaning of cup explicit. For example:
Can you suffer with me, as though we drank suffering from the same cup?
• State the meaning directly. For example:
Can you endure the suffering that I will experience?
The word “cup” is used as a figure of speech in various places in both the Old and New Testaments. If it is not possible to use this figure of speech in your language, you may want to add a footnote that gives the literal meaning.
Here is a sample footnote:
What Jesus literally said was, “Can you drink the cup that I drink?” In the Bible, “drinking the cup” was an illustration/comparison of undergoing an experience.
I will drink: Jesus referred here to sufferings that he would endure in the near future. In some languages it may be necessary to make that clear. For example, the Contemporary English Version says:
that I must soon drink from
10:38c
or: The word or introduces another way to express the same meaning as in 10:38b. Jesus was not using or to give James and John a choice between alternatives. You may need to use a different connection to make this clear. For example:
that is…
be baptized with the baptism I will undergo: The expression be baptized with the baptism I will undergo has a figurative meaning of being immersed or overwhelmed by something. It refers to Jesus’ suffering and death. It does not refer to a literal baptism with water.
Here are some other ways to translate this question:
Can you be baptized with suffering as I will be baptized?
-or-
Can you go through suffering with me, as though we were being baptized in suffering?
-or-
Can you receive/accept the baptism of suffering that I must receive/accept?
See the next note on baptism. See also the General Comment on 10:38b–c below.
baptism: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as baptism is sometimes used figuratively to describe an experience that is overwhelming. In this context it refers to the terrible suffering that Jesus would endure. In some languages it may not be possible to use the same term that you used for baptism in water. Here are some other ways to translate in this context:
• Use an expression that is similar to the one for baptism but does not necessarily require water. For example:
Can you endure the purifying initiation that I must endure?
• Use an expression that is similar to the one you used for baptism but make the meaning explicit. For example:
Can you endure the purifying bath of suffering that I must endure?
• Translate the meaning without the figure of baptism. For example:
Can you endure the overwhelming agony that I must endure?
See how you translated this word in 1:4c. Also see baptism, Meaning 2, in the Glossary.
General Comment on 10:38b–c
In 10:38b–c there are two different metaphors that express the same meaning. In some languages it may be clearer to state the meaning directly once and then give the two metaphors. For example:
Can you(dual) suffer the way I am going to suffer? For I must suffer as though I am drinking suffering from a cup or being baptized in suffering.
-or-
Are you(dual) willing to suffer as I am going to suffer? That is, can you drink from the same cup with me and experience the same baptism with me?
Another possibility is to use both a question and a statement to express the meaning directly. For example:
Can you(dual) pass through the bitter experience that I must pass through? For I must suffer greatly.
© 2008 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.