Text:
After hamartōlous ‘sinners’ Textus Receptus adds eis metanoian ‘to repentance’ (assimilated from the parallel passage Lk. 5.32): all modern editions of the Greek text reject eis metanoian.
Exegesis:
autois ‘to them’: that is, to those who asked the question.
chreian (2.25; 11.3; 14.63) ‘need,’ ‘necessity’: echein chreian means ‘be in need,’ ‘lack something’ .
iatrou (5.26) ‘of a physician.’
hoi ischuontes ‘those who are strong,’ ‘those who are healthy’: the verb ischuō ‘be strong,’ ‘be able’ occurs further in 5.4; 9.18; 14.37. In contrast, in this verse, with hoi kakōs echontes (cf. 1.32) ‘those who are ill,’ hoi ischuontes are ‘those who are well,’ ‘those who are in good health.’
ēlthon ‘I came’: the meaning here is more than merely local and temporal (cf. the same use of the verb in 10.45). There is reference here to the whole mission and purpose of Jesus’ ministry (whether or not we understand, with Lagrange, that ‘I came’ means ‘I came into the world’ with a reference to his preexistence).
kalesai ‘call’: the word in this passage carries theological content, and does not mean ‘invite to eat.’
dikaious … hamartōlous ‘righteous … sinners’: the words reflect the attitude of the Pharisees toward themselves (cf. Lk. 16.15) and others (cf. John 7.49). There is, perhaps, a tinge of irony in Jesus’ use of these words (cf. Rawlinson).
Translation:
Heard it may be in some languages best translated as ‘heard what they said,’ in order to make the reference precise.
To them, referring to the scribes, must often be made quite explicit, for there are three other intervening third person plural referents: the sinners, the tax collectors, and the disciples.
Well is often ‘strong,’ ‘healthy’ or just ‘not sick.’
To have no need may be variously rendered: ‘do not go looking for’ (Southern Subanen), ‘do not have to consult’ (Barrow Eskimo), ‘do not go in search of a physician’ (Pamona).
Physician should be translated by a respectful term applied to the medical profession. This may be either the word used for the foreign mission doctor (if there is a special usage applied to this type of person) or the name of the indigenous medicine man, who may not be highly regarded by foreigners but who may enjoy a great deal more prestige among the local people than a translator may suspect.
The extent of ellipsis which may be employed in translating the clause but those who are sick depends upon the syntactic requirements of the receptor language. In some instances the full form must be given, ‘but those who are sick need a doctor.’
In order that came may mean more than simply ‘to come to this banquet,’ it may be useful to employ the most generic expression possible, which would also be used in phrases referring to ‘the coming of the Lord.’ This would then permit this phrase to express more of its theological content.
There is a tendency to translate righteous merely as ‘the good ones.’ This may be all that can be done in some languages, but wherever possible it is advantageous to attempt to find some word which will indicate more of the idea of conformity to standard, so that a differentiation may be made between ‘good’ and ‘righteous.’ On the other hand, it is not advisable to translate righteous as ‘to have no sin,’ for this involves many theological problems which are better not introduced in such a general word as ‘righteous.’
The most common expression for righteous involves the concept of ‘straightness,’ though this may be expressed in a number of ways: ‘to be straight’ (Bambara, Southern Bobo Madaré, Chokwe, Amganad Ifugao, Chol, Maninka, Toraja-Sa’dan, Pamona, Batak Toba), ‘to follow the straight way,’ ‘to straight-straight,’ a reduplicated form (Laka), and ‘to have a straight heart’ (Highland Puebla Nahuatl, Kekchi). Some languages imply conformity to truth, e.g. ‘to do the truth’ (Kipsigis), ‘to do according to the truth’ (Mesquital Otomi), and ‘to have truth’ (Huautla Mazatec). The sense of obligation is highlighted in other instances, e.g. ‘to fulfill what one should do’ (Piro), ‘people who are true’ (Indonesian), ‘to do just so’ (Navajo), and ‘to do as it should be’ (Anuak). In some languages, of course, certain highly figurative expressions are used, e.g. ‘to have a white stomach’ (Mossi ).
In Nuer there is a complex concept of ‘right’ vs. ‘left,’ in which ‘right’ indicates that which is masculine, strong, good, and moral, and ‘left’ denotes what is feminine, weak, and sinful (a strictly masculine viewpoint!) The ‘way of right’ is therefore righteousness, but of course women may also attain this way, for the opposition is more classificatory than descriptive.
But sinners may need expansion into its fuller implied form, i.e. ‘but I came to call sinners.’
If the translation in question must follow a text having to repentance, see 1.4 for comments on the lexical problems involved in repentance. The syntactic problems often require an expansion, e.g. ‘call sinners so that they would change their hearts.’
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 .