Language-specific Insights

let the marriage bed be kept undefiled

The Greek in Hebrews 13:4 that is translated in English “let the marriage bed be kept undefiled” or similar is translated in Alekano as “do not spoil the marriage” (source: Deibler / Taylor 1977, p. 1077) and in Makonde as “trust marriage.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)

untie sandals

The Greek that is translated as “(not worthy to) untie sandals” or similar in English is translated in various ways:

  • Awa: “because he is an important one, when he speaks I will be silent”
  • Yatzachi Zapotec: “I am not worthy to be his servant”
  • Alekano: “if unworthy I should even carry his burden, it would not be right”
  • Tenango Otomi: “I don’t compare with him” (source for this and above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
  • Ayutla Mixtec: “I am too unworthy to perform even the lowliest of tasks for him” (“to avoid the wrong meaning of playing a trick by tying the sandals”)
  • Choapan Zapotec “I am not even important to carry his pack” (source for this and one above: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • Mairasi: “loosening the strap of His foot thing as His slave would do” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Bariai: “untie the string of his shoe, because he surpasses me very much” (source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “He is greater than I. I don’t compare with him.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
  • German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999): auf Knien die Riemen seiner Sandalen zu lösen or “to loosen the straps of his sandals on my knees.”

See also sandal (illustration)

the light

The Greek that is translated in English as “the light” is translated in John 1:8 in Alekano as “the father of light,” in Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac as “the true light,” and in Tenango Otomi as “that one who opens the hearts of the people.”

Matt Taylor (in The PNG Experience ) describes the process of finding the correct term for the presently prepared Nukna translation of John:

“We’ve been working on the Nukna translation of the book of John, and recently came to Jesus’ famous statement in John 8:12, ‘I am the light of the world.’ As we discussed how to best translate this metaphor, we realized that there was a problem. There is a Nukna word for light — yam — but it’s not possible to say just yam by itself. Light always has a source, and grammatically that source must be included, either by mentioning the actual source or by using a possessive pronoun — ‘its light,’ ‘their light,’ etc. It would be ungrammatical to just say ‘light.’ ( This grammatical feature is known as ‘inalienable possession.’) To literally translate ‘I am the light of the world’ into Nukna would lead to an unacceptable Nukna sentence.

“One idea we’ve had is to use a common source of light that the Nukna people are familiar with: the bamboo torch. The Nukna people live in a remote area without electricity. To see at night, they often light up a species of bamboo named kup. Kup burns with a blazing brightness, and a long piece can be held as a torch, enabling a person to walk at night around the otherwise pitch black village. So in Nukna, Jesus’ words would read, ‘I am like a bamboo torch [kup] that shines its light to the world.’

“Our translation team needs to do further testing to see if this figure of speech is communicating accurately and powerfully. Please pray for us, that God would guide us as we seek to communicate this concept, as well as many others, into the Nukna language in a dynamic and life-changing way. ‘It’s like the light of a bamboo torch shining in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’ (John 1:5).”

Likewise, Mungaka also uses “torch” (source: Nama 1990).

See also torch and the light (John 3:19).

humble, lowly

The Greek that is usually translated as “humble” or “lowly” in English is translated as

  • Eastern Highland Otomi: “one who doesn’t elevate himself”
  • Yatzachi Zapotec: “those who think they aren’t worth much”
  • Alekano: “those who stay low” (source for this and above: Ellis Deibler in Notes on Translation July, 1967, p. 5ff.)
  • Mezquital Otomi: “poor brothers”
  • Isthmus Zapotec: “ones who little-honored”
  • Highland Totonac: “just ordinary people”
  • Yatzachi Zapotec: “poor people who have nothing” (source for this and three above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.).
  • Low German: “those who don’t account to anything in other people’s eyes” (source: translation by Johannes Jessen, publ. 1933, republ. 2006)
  • Kako: “those who lower the heart” (source: Reyburn 2002, p. 190)

See also humble (mind).

an eye for an eye

The now commonly-used English idiom “eye for an eye” (meaning revenge or retribution) was first coined in 1526 in the English New Testament translation of William Tyndale. (Source: Crystal 2010, p. 285)

Likewise in Mandarin Chinese, the phrasing that was coined to translate “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” — yǐyǎn huányǎn, yǐyá huányá (以眼还眼，以牙还牙 / 以眼還眼，以牙還牙) — has also become a Chinese proverb (see here ).

Other languages that have idioms based on the Hebrew that is translated “an eye for an eye” in English include:

In Alekano it is translated as “if someone gouges out your eye, gouge out his eye,” since in that language body parts need to have an obligatory possessive designator attached. (Source: Larson 1998, p. 42)

chaste behavior, pure, pure conduct

The Greek in 1 Peter 3:2 that is translated in English as “pure conduct” (or “chaste behavior”) is translated in Balanta-Kentohe as “good walk.” (Source: Rob Koops)

The standalone term that is translated as “pure” is translated in Mezquital Otomi as “that which cleanses one’s thoughts,” and in Alekano as “making our insides white.” (Source: Ellis Deibler in Notes on Translation July, 1967, p. 5ff.).

See also snow (color).

die in your sin

The Greek that is translated as “die in your sin” or similar in translated as

See also die to sin.

seal with the promised Holy Spirit

The Greek in Ephesians 1:13 that is translated as “sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” in English is translated in Northwestern Dinka as “You were branded in the heart by the Holy Spirit who was promised.”

Nida (1952, p. 54) tells this story: “The Northwestern Dinkas do not employ seals to indicate ownership nor do they confirm an agreement by using sealing wax and a signet ring, but they do mark ownership of their cattle by branding them. When speaking of the Christian’s relationship to God, it is not enough to use the words ‘to brand,’ but this phrase has been expanded and enriched by the words ‘in the heart’.”

In Alekano it is translated as “(God) having bestowed his spirit on you, you have become accompanied with God’s ownership-mark.” (Source: Larson 1998, p. 134)

In Gumatj, the concept of a “seal” (or “letter”) is unknown so the translation team used an expression that relates to a traditional custom. When a man is planning to build a dugout canoe, he goes into the forest and looks for a tree that is particularly well suited for that task. He then marks the tree with his knife to claim it for his use. That term for marking the tree was used in the translation for “seal.” (Source: Holzhausen 1991, p. 44f.)

The passive construct that is translated in English with “were marked with the seal” is translated in Mokole as “God has put his mark on you.” Mokole grammar doesn’t know a passive voice and the translation has to therefore render anything that is passive in the Hebrew or Greek text with a grammatical subject. (Source: Hilary Deneufchâtel in Le Sycomore 17/1, 2024, p. 21ff. )

See also with which you were marked with a seal.