Text:

Instead of pros heautous ‘to one another’ of the majority of modern editions of the Greek text, Westcott and Hort, and Taylor (and Revised Standard Version) have pros auton ‘to him.’

Exegesis:

perissōs (15.14) ‘beyond measure,’ ‘exceedingly’ (cf. perissoteron 7.36).

exeplēssonto (cf. 1.22) ‘they were astonished,’ ‘they were amazed.’

kai tis ‘and who’: in this context kai has the meaning of ara ‘therefore.’ Lagrange translates Mais alors? classifying this use of kai as classical and giving further examples from the N.T.

sōthēnai (cf. 3.4) ‘to be saved’: in the theological sense. In the context of this incident all these theological terms have an eschatological reference.

Translation:

For astonished see 1.22, 27.

In general there are three types of expressions used in translating save: (1) those meaning ‘to help, assist, aid, care for,’ (2) those signifying ‘to rescue,’ or ‘to deliver (from danger, or from confinement, e.g. a jail),’ and (3) those which imply ‘healing’ or ‘restoration to health.’ The Greek term involves essentially the latter two meaning, since the same word may be translated either as ‘to heal’ or ‘to save’ depending upon the context. For the most part, words which mean only ‘to help’ have been regarded as inadequate, but as in the case of the Conob, the word which means essentially ‘to help’ may also be used in contexts involving the rescuing of a person from danger. Accordingly, not only be its indigenous association, but by biblical context, the word has acquired certain significant qualities which make it acceptable. In Shipibo-Conibo the term rendering save means literally ‘to make to live,’ which is in many regards very good for it combines not only the meaning of ‘to rescue’ and ‘to deliver from danger,’ but also the concept of ‘to heal’ or ‘restore to health’ – precisely what is involved in the Greek term. In some languages certain metaphorical expressions have been used: ‘to help the heart’ (San Blas Kuna), ‘to take by the hand’ in the meaning of ‘rescue’ or ‘deliver’ (Laka), ‘to lift out on behalf of’ (Huautla Mazatec), ‘to have life because of’ (Anuak), ‘to be healed in the heart’ (Central Mazahua), ‘to save his head,’ meaning to rescue a person in the fullest sense (Baoulé), ‘to come out well’ (Guerrero Amuzgo), and ‘to be helped as to his breath’ (or ‘life’) (Northwestern Dinka).

Though the construction be saved is passive in form, one must not automatically change this to an active in languages which have no passive, for if this is done and God is made the subject, e.g. ‘Whom can God save,’ this would imply a doubt as to God’s capacity rather than the unlikelihood of any person attaining salvation. In such instances one must adjust the rendering so that ‘saved’ will denote a state, rather than the passive of the process.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .