20:26a
There is a contrast here. The contrast is between how the kings of the earth act (20:25b–c) and how the followers of Christ should act (20:26b–27). Some English versions indicate this contrast with the conjunction “But.” For example:
But it should not be that way among you. (New Century Version)
It shall not be this way among you: The pronoun It refers to the way leaders use their power and authority. The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates this way means “like that.”
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
Do not behave/act like that
-or-
You must not do/be like that
-or-
You must act differently
shall not be this way: The tense of the Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as shall not be is future. In this context, the future tense has the force of a command.
Here are some other ways to translate this verb:
must not be (NET Bible)
-or-
should not be (New Century Version)
-or-
do not (Contemporary English Version)
among you: The pronoun you refers to the disciples. Jesus spoke with the disciples as people who would become leaders of the church.
20:26b–27
As in 20:25b–c, verses 20:26b–c and 20:27 are a parallelism. This means that they are two ways of saying the same thing. (However, the statement in 20:27 is more intense.) Notice the parallel parts in these two statements:
26b
whoever wants to be great among you 26cmust be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave.
Jesus repeated this idea in order to emphasize it. You should show this emphasis in a way that is natural in your language. Some languages can repeat the idea. In other languages, it may be more natural to combine the two parts and translate them together. For example:
The person among you who wants to be an important person or the most important person, he must become like a slave and serve everyone.
Notice that this idea contrasts with the one in 20:25b–c.
20:26b
Instead: There is a contrast here. The contrast is between a negative clause (in 20:26a) and a positive clause here in 20:26b. The negative clause is “It shall not be this way among you.” The positive clause is “whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.” Languages have different ways to indicate this negative-positive type of contrast. Here are some of the ways:
• With the conjunction Instead, as in the Berean Standard Bible.
• With a conjunction other than Instead. This is a common way in English to show this type of contrast. For example:
Rather
-or-
on the contrary
-or-
But (English Standard Version)
• With no conjunction. For example:
it should not be that way among you. Whoever wants to become great among you must serve the rest of you like a servant. (New Century Version)
You should do what is natural in your language.
whoever wants to become great: The Greek verb phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as wants to become is more literally “might want to become.” The word great refers to having high status/rank in God’s kingdom.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
whoever would be great (English Standard Version)
-or-
Whoever wants to be a leader (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
If you desire/wish to be a big/important person ⌊in God’s kingdom⌋
among you: The pronoun you refers primarily to the twelve disciples Jesus addressed. But it also applies to the whole community of believers.
20:26c
must be your servant: In Greek, the tense of must be is future. But it functions as a command. Here the command is a bit unusual in that it is a third person command.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
he must become the servant of the rest of you
-or-
it is necessary that he become your servant
your servant: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as servant refers to someone who was responsible for household duties. It was a very low-status role. It is a different Greek word than the normal word for servant/slave (in 20:27).
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
servant of all the others (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
servant of his companions
-or-
serve the rest/others of you
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