Following are a number of back-translations of John 3:18:
Chol: “He who believes will not have to pay for his sins. He who does not believe, he is already beginning to pay for his sins because he does not believe on the name of the only Son of God.”
Yatzachi Zapotec: “The person who trusts in the Son of God, it is already determined about him that he does not have guilt, but the person who does not trust in him it is determined about him that he does have guilt. . .” (Source for this and above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
Uma: “People who believe in the Child of God, they are not punished/condemned. But people who do not believe, it is clear that they will be punished/condemned by God, because they do not want to believe in that Only Child of God.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Whoever trusts in the Son of God will not be hit by the judgment of God. Those who do not trust, have already been hit by the judgment of God because they do not trust in Isa, the only Son of God.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Anyone who believes in me, he will not be punished by God, but those who do not believe in me, it is known beforehand that they will be punished. Because as for me, the only child of God, they have not believed in me.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Therefore those who believe in him, they will emphatically not be punished. But those who don’t believe, they have already been sentenced/condemned to be punished, because of-course they didn’t believe in the only Child of God.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “As many as will believe-in/obey and trust-in/rely-on him will really not be sentenced with a sentence of punishment. But those who don’t believe/obey, they have already been sentenced to be given punishment, because they are not believing-in/obeying this one-and-only Son of God.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “He who believes the Son of God will not be sentenced. But he who does not believe, already is sentenced because he does not believe in the only Son of God.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 5:29:
Uma: “Petrus answered with the other apostles of the Lord Yesus, they said: ‘We(excl.) still follow the command of God, not the command of man.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Petros and the other commissioned ones answered, they said, ‘What we (excl.) must obey is the command of God, not the command of man/humans.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And then Peter and the other apostles answered saying, ‘It is necessary that we obey the commands of God, not the commands which are made by people.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Pedro and his fellow apostles answered and they said, ‘It-is-emphatically -necessary that God is the one we (excl.) obey, not people.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “But Pedro and his fellow apostles replied. They said, ‘It’s essential that the will of God is what we (excl.) obey, not the will of men which is contrary to what he instructed us (excl.) to do.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
San Mateo del Mar Huave: “So Peter said, together with the other apostles, they say, ‘It is more necessary that we believe that which Father God has commanded us to do, rather than that which the people command us.'”
Isthmus Mixe: “Then Peter and Jesus’ sent ones answered: ‘By all means we are going to obey what God commands. If people command otherwise, we will not obey.'”
Teutila Cuicatec: “We obey God’s commands for this is more important than the commands of the people of the world.”
Chol: “We (excl.) must obey God even though in doing this we (excl) disobey the commands of men.” (Source for this and four above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
Following are a number of back-translations of John 3:30:
Huehuetla Tepehua: “It is necessary that it be known that he is the great one. But it is necessary that I be thought nothing of.”
Aguaruna: “He will be more surpassing. I will not be great, I will be small.”
Isthmus Mixe: “He must be honored by many people, but I will no longer be honored.”
Chol: “Christ must be the more important one. I must be made less important.”
Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac: “It is necessary that they follow Jesus more and more and that they follow me less and less.” (Source for this and above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
Uma: “He is the one whose life must be made high, and my life must be made low.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “He has to become greater/more honored but I have to become lower/less,’ said Yahiya.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “For example, if there is a man being married, the bride belongs to him. As for the wedding arranger, his breath is very good when he hears that bridegroom talking with the one he has married. It’s like that also because it pleases me very much if many follow Jesus,’ said John. ‘It is necessary that mine should be removed.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “It is necessary that he be-made-greater (lit. high) while-simultaneously I become-lower.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “It’s necessary that he becomes praiseworthy/highly-praised, but as for me, I just become insignificant.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “That one, the people must know better that he surpasses, and I must be second more.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of John 6:2:
Uma: “Very many people followed him, because they saw all the miracles that he did, healing the sick.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “One day when the festival of the Yahudi was near again which they call Festival For-Remembering Isa crossed over to the other side of the lake Jalil which is also called lake Tiberi. Very many people followed him because they had seen his wonder-causing deeds when he healed the sick people. So-then Isa and his disciples went up the mountain and they set down there.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And there were very many people that followed after him because they had seen the miracles which he did in curing sick people.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Extremely-many were the people who were following them, because they saw the amazing things that he was doing to those who were sick.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “He was followed-after by many people because of those signs they were seeing which were amazing things which he was doing, which was healing sick people.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Many people followed because they saw him healing the sick people.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Chol: “Many went following Jesus because they saw the picture of his power which he showed on behalf of the sick ones.” (Source: Larson 1998, p. 107)
Chicahuaxtla Triqui: “cover over” (a figure of speech which is also employed in Hebrew, but which in many languages is not acceptable, because it implies “hiding” or “concealment”)
Warao: “not being concerned with him clean your obonja.” Obonja is a term that “includes the concepts of consciousness, will, attitude, attention and a few other miscellaneous notions” (source: Henry Osborn in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 74ff. See other occurrences of Obojona in the Warao New Testament.)
Martu Wangka: “throw out badness” (source: Carl Gross)
Kyaka: “burn the jaw bones” — This goes back to the pre-Christian custom of hanging the jaw bones of murdered relatives on ones door frame until the time of revenge. Christians symbolically burned those bones to show forgiveness which in turn became the word for “forgiveness” (source: Eugene Nida, according to this blog )
Koonzime: “remove the bad deed-counters” (“The Koonzime lay out the deeds symbolically — usually strips of banana leaf — and rehearse their grievances with the person addressed.”) (Source: Keith and Mary Beavon in Notes on Translation 3/1996, p. 16)
Ngbaka: ele: “forgive and forget” (Margaret Hill [in Holzhausen & Ridere 2010, p. 8f.] recalls that originally there were two different words used in Ngbaka, one for God (ɛlɛ) and one for people (mbɔkɔ — excuse something) since it was felt that people might well forgive but, unlike God, can’t forget. See also this lectionary in The Christian Century.
Amahuaca: “erase” / “smooth over” (“It was an expression the people used for smoothing over dirt when marks or drawings had been made in it. It meant wiping off dust in which marks had been made, or wiping off writing on the blackboard. To wipe off the slate, to erase, to take completely away — it has a very wide meaning and applies very well to God’s wiping away sins, removing them from the record, taking them away.”) (Source: Robert Russel, quoted in Walls / Bennett 1959, p. 193)
Gonja / Dangme: “lend / loan” (in the words of one Dangme scholar: “When you sin and you are forgiven, you forget that you have been forgiven, and continue to sin. But when you see the forgiveness as a debt/loan which you will pay for, you do not continue to sin, else you have more debts to pay” — quoted in Jonathan E.T. Kuwornu-Adjaottor in Ibadan Journal of Religious Studies 17/2 2010, p. 67ff. )
Kwere: kulekelela, meaning literally “to allow for.” Derived from the root leka which means “to leave.” In other words, forgiveness is leaving behind the offense in relationship to the person. It is also used in contexts of setting someone free. (Source: Megan Barton)
Merina Malagasy: mamela or “leave / let go (of sin / mistakes)” (source: Brigitte Rabarijaona)
Mauwake: “take away one’s heaviness” (compare sin as “heavy”) (source: Kwan Poh San in this article )
Following are a number of back-translations of John 6:6:
Uma: “Actually, he already knew what he was going to do. He asked like that to Filipus because he wanted to see his faith.)” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Isa said this to test Pilip if he trusted in his power. As for Isa, he really knew what he was going to do.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “(The reason he said this was because he was testing Philip, because Jesus already knew what he was going to do then).” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Jesus knew of-course what he would do, but he inquired that as a means-of-his -testing Felipe as to what he would answer.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “He spoke like that because he was just testing Felipe, for Jesus already knew what he would do.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “He said this wanting to see what Philip would say. Jesus already knew what he would do.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Chol: “Jesus spoke these words because he wanted to see the heart of Philip how he would answer , because Jesus knew it himself (by himself) what he wanted to do.” (Source: Larson 1998, p. 107)
Following are a number of back-translations of John 6:9:
Uma: “‘Here is a child who has [lit., food-bundled] five pieces of bread and two smoked fish, but what use is that for those many people?'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “He said to Isa, ‘There is a small boy here, he has five units of bread and two fish. But this really isn’t enough to feed all these people.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “‘There is a child here who brought a lunch of five pieces of bread of barley flour and two fishes. But what good would this be since there are so many people?'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “‘Here is a male child who has taken-as-lunch five barley breads and two dried-fish. But this is by-contrast very-few (CVC redup. of how-many) with this many people (lit. manyness of people).'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “‘There’s a child here, a young-boy, with packed-food-for-a-trip, however what is to be done with five units of small-bread and two units of small-fish? It really wouldn’t be enough to go around all that crowd of people.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “‘There is here a boy who has five breads and two fish. But where will they do any good, there are a lot of people.'” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Chol: “‘Here is a boy. He has five unites of food made of cebada (barley) and two fish. Is this enough for so many of us (incl.)?'” (Source: Larson 1998, p. 107)
“beg” or “ask,” (full expression: “ask with one’s heart coming out,” which leaves out selfish praying, for asking with the heart out leaves no place for self to hide) (Tzotzil)
“raise up one’s words to God” (implying an element of worship, as well as communication) (Miskito, Lacandon) (source of this and all above: Bratcher / Nida)
“speak to God” (Shilluk) (source: Nida 1964, p. 237)
“talk together with Great Above One (=God)” (Mairasi) (source: Enggavoter, 2004)
“beg” (waan) (Ik). Terrill Schrock (in Wycliffe Bible Translators 2016, p. 93) explains (click or tap here to read more):
What do begging and praying have to do with each other? Do you beg when you pray? Do I?
“The Ik word for ‘visitor’ is waanam, which means ‘begging person.’ Do you beg when you go visiting? The Ik do. Maybe you don’t beg, but maybe when you visit someone, you are looking for something. Maybe it’s just a listening ear.
When the Ik hear that [my wife] Amber and I are planning trip to this or that place for a certain amount of time, the letters and lists start coming. As the days dwindle before our departure, the little stack of guests grows. ‘Please, sir, remember me for the allowing: shoes, jacket (rainproof), watch, box, trousers, pens, and money for the children. Thank you, sir, for your assistance.’
“A few people come by just to greet us or spend bit of time with us. Another precious few will occasionally confide in us about their problems without asking for anything more than a listening ear. I love that.
“The other day I was in our spare bedroom praying my list of requests to God — a nice list covering most areas of my life, certainly all the points of anxiety. Then it hit me: Does God want my list, or does he want my relationship?
“I decided to try something. Instead of reading off my list of requests to God, I just talk to him about my issues without any expectation of how he should respond. I make it more about our relationship than my list, because if our personhood is like God’s personhood, then maybe God prefers our confidence and time to our lists, letters, and enumerations.”
In Luang it is translated with different shades of meaning (click or tap here to read more):
For Acts 1:14, 20:36, 21:5: kola ttieru-yawur nehla — “hold the waist and hug the neck.” (“This is the more general term for prayer and often refers to worship in prayer as opposed to petition. The Luang people spend the majority of their prayers worshiping rather than petitioning, which explains why this term often is used generically for prayer.”)
For Acts 28:9: sumbiani — “pray.” (“This term is also used generically for ‘prayer’. When praying is referred to several times in close proximity, it serves as a variation for kola ttieru-yawur nehla, in keeping with Luang discourse style. It is also used when a prayer is made up of many requests.”)
For Acts 8:15, 12:5: polu-waka — “call-ask.” (“This is a term for petition that is used especially when the need is very intense.”)
Source: Kathy Taber in Notes on Translation 1/1999, p. 9-16.
