Section 8:34–9:1
Jesus spoke about what a person must do to be his disciple
In the preceding section Jesus was speaking to his disciples. In this section Jesus called the crowd of people who were there to come and listen to him also. So in these verses Jesus was speaking to the crowd, as well as to his disciples. This meant that most of the people to whom Jesus spoke were not his followers. Many of them may have been part of the people whom Jesus described in 8:38b as “this adulterous and sinful generation.”
The requirements for being/becoming a disciple are given in 8:34. The next verses (8:35–38) each explain why a person who wants to follow Christ must obey the commands given in 8:34. Each reason involves a choice between the present and the future. A person who chooses to avoid death and shame in the present life will be shamed in the future at the final judgment. He will forfeit true life with God. By contrast, a person who chooses to follow Christ may lose his present life but he will gain true life with God.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Jesus told people how to be his true disciples
-or-
What It Means to Follow Jesus (God’s Word)
-or-
Following Jesus (NET Bible)
There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 16:24–28 and Luke 9:23–27. See also Luke 14:27, 17:33; John 12:25.
Paragraph 8:34–9:1
8:34a
Then: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Then and the Revised Standard Version as “And” here introduces the next event in the story. After Jesus spoke to his disciples, he called the crowd to him. Connect 8:34a to 8:33 in a way that is natural in your language.
Jesus called the crowd to Him along with His disciples: Jesus called the crowd of people to come closer to him and join the disciples. He did this so that they could clearly hear what he wanted to tell them. Remember that Jesus’ disciples were already near him in 8:33.
the crowd: This is the first time that the crowd is mentioned in this section. Apparently there was a large group of people nearby who wanted to hear what Jesus said. Introduce the crowd in a natural way for your language.
His disciples: See how you translated disciples in 2:15b and 8:33a. See also disciple in the Glossary.
8:34b–38
In these verses Jesus talked about anyone and everyone who wanted to be his disciple. Indicate this in a natural way in your language. In some languages it may be more natural to use a different subject than the Berean Standard Bible does. Here are examples from 8:34b–c:
If people want to follow me, they must give up the things they want. (New Century Version)
-or-
If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. (Contemporary English Version)
8:34b
If anyone wants to come after Me: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as If anyone wants to come after Me is literally “If anyone desires after me to follow.” It refers to anyone who wanted to follow Jesus as his disciple.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
If any want to become my followers (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-
Anyone who desires/decides to be my disciple
Another form of the word “follow” is used in 8:34d.
wants: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as wants means “desires to,” “wishes to” or “wants to.” In this context, it may imply “truly wants to.”
8:34c–d
he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me: The Greek phrases that the Berean Standard Bible translates as must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me are three indirect commands. A person who desires to be one of Jesus’ disciples must do three things:
(a) He must deny himself,
(b) he must take up his cross, and
(c) he must follow Jesus as a disciple.
Indicate in a natural way in your language that a person must do each of these actions in order to be a follower of Jesus. (There are differences of interpretation here that are not reflected in English versions. For example: 1) The phrase “take up his cross and follow me” can mean “be ready to suffer and follow me to death.” Notice that this view does not interpret the last verb “follow” as an actual action but a readiness for that action. 2) The phrase “and follow me” is a reason for the suffering, e.g. TRT: “willing/ready to suffer and even die for following Me” (page 107)
8:34c
he must deny himself: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates literally as deny himself means “reject oneself.” A disciple must do what his master wants him to do, whether or not it is what the disciple himself wants to do. Disciples of Jesus must give up the right to fulfill their own ambitions.
Here are some other ways to translate deny himself:
forget yourself (Good News Bible)
-or-
put aside your selfish ambition (New Living Translation, 1996 edition)
-or-
renounce self (Revised English Bible)
-or-
refuse his own desires
8:34d
take up his cross: The phrase take up his cross refers to the way that Roman soldiers executed criminals. They forced a condemned criminal to pick up a large wooden cross. He had to carry it to the place where he would be put to death. Then the soldiers nailed him on the cross to die.
When Jesus used this phrase, he knew that the Romans would soon force him to carry a literal cross. But in this context, he used the phrase figuratively. Jesus meant that anyone who wanted to become his disciple had to be willing to suffer and die in order to obey him. (This is the predominant view among the commentators. However, in his comment on Luke 9:23, which has “take up his cross daily,” Marshall (page 373) advances another view, which makes a lot of sense in light of Paul’s concept of dying to self. He says that a person who picked up his cross was already condemned to die. He knew he was as good as dead. So what Jesus means is that a disciple must daily reckon himself to be dead and follow/obey his master’s desires, not his own.)
Here are some other ways to translate the phrase take up his cross:
• Translate the figure of speech literally and add a footnote that explains the meaning. Here is a sample footnote:
In the time of Jesus, a person who was condemned to be nailed to a cross was forced to carry the cross. He carried it to the place where he would be nailed to it. So what Jesus means here is that a person who wants to be his follower must be ready to suffer and die in order to follow Jesus.
• Omit the figure of speech and translate the meaning directly. For example, the TRT says:
be willing/ready to suffer and even die
If you follow this option, consider adding a footnote that gives Jesus’ literal words.
cross: A cross refers to two large wooden boards or beams that were attached to each other. Roman soldiers used crosses to kill criminals. They nailed or tied a criminal to these wooden beams, then set them upright. They did this in order to cause the criminal to die slowly and painfully.
The word cross comes from the fact that the beams were crossed and attached. This made the shape of a or (or sometimes a ).
In many languages there may be no word for cross. If that is true in your language, you may need to use a descriptive phrase. For example:
board/wood of death
-or-
crossed-beam(s) of death
-or-
a tree for killing people
-or-
a stake/plank to which they fasten/nail someone to kill him
follow Me: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as follow Me indicates that a person who wants to become a disciple must actually start following Jesus as a disciple. He must continually obey Jesus as his master.
Refer to the note on 8:34d. See also the note on “follow me” in 1:17a.
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