gave them authority over the unclean spirits

The Greek that is translated in English as “gave them authority over the unclean spirits” or similar is translated in Teutila Cuicatec as “gave them the work that they should take out evil spirits.” In Teutila Cuicatec, “authority” is never spoken of as being “given”. Rather it is considered to be the automatic possession of one who has been given a “work” by a recognized authority. (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

curtain

The Greek that is translated as “curtain” in English is translated in Shuar as “divider” (aource: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.) and in Copainalá Zoque as “cloth closure” (source: Bratcher / Nida).

Son of God

The Greek and Latin that is translated as “Son of God” in English is translated in Shipibo-Conibo as “God’s Child” and in Garifuna as “God’s offspring.” (Source: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)

Nida (1984, p. 113) remarks on this “It was a common expression in Hebrew to say that someone was the ‘Son of…’ something to express that they shared characteristics with that thing etc. E.g. ‘son of peace’ ‘son of thunder.’ Therefore ‘Son of God’ meant that Jesus shared characteristics with God. This wasn’t carried over into Greek and was interpreted more biologically.”

In San Mateo Del Mar Huave it is translated as “Son of Father God,” where “Father” is a term of respect. (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between. One way to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御) is used as in mi-ko (御子) or “son (of God)” in the referenced verses. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also Son of Man and Sons of Thunder.

it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat

The Greek that is translated as ” it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat” or similar in English was translated in Tsafiki with the addition of “and you don’t say that he sinned in doing it.” Bruce Moore (in: Notes on Translation 1/1992, p. 1ff.) explains: “To say ‘David ate the showbread, which was lawful only for the priests to eat’, implied in Tsafiki that Jesus should not be criticized for doing wrong because even good people like David sin at least a little bit. The addition of the clause ‘and you don’t say that he sinned in doing it’ clarified the meaning.”

scripture

The Greek and Ge’ez that is translated “scripture” or “scriptures” in English is translated as “God’s word which people wrote” in Guerrero Amuzgo (source: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125), “paper writings” in Copainalá Zoque (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.), “writing that one believes” in Cherokee (putting the focus on the ones who interact with them rather the scriptures themselves) (source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 101), and Toposa as “carved material” (source: Schröder 2026, p. 104).

For other translations of scripture see all scripture is inspired by God and examined the scriptures.

could not even eat

The Greek in Mark 3:20 that is translated as “could not even eat” or similar in English had to be translated more specifically in Tsafiki as “they could not eat because there was no time” and likewise in Serias “they did not have time even to eat.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s

The Greek that is translated “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things which are God’s” or similar in English is translated in Tzotzil as “Whatever commands king Caesar gives, obey. Whatever commands God gives, also obey.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

See also complete verse (Mark 12:17) and render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s.

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Render unto Caesar .