SIL Translator’s Notes on John 2020

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 8:27

8:27

They did not understand that He was telling them about the Father: This is a background or parenthetical note by the author John. He informed his readers about something they might not understand—that the religious leaders did not realize that Jesus was referring to God the Father. In your translation, it may be necessary to indicate that the Father refers to God, not to any earthly father. For example:

They did not realize/know that he was talking about ⌊his heavenly⌋ Father.

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SIL Translator’s Notes on John 8:59

8:59a

At this: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as At this here introduces what Jesus’ opponents did as a result of what Jesus had just said. They understood that Jesus said that he was God and reacted strongly to it.

they: This word refers to the people Jesus was talking with, the Jewish leaders who opposed him.

picked up stones to throw at Him: This phrase indicates that these people wanted to kill Jesus. They started to pick up stones from the ground so that they could throw them at him and kill him. This was the traditional penalty for blasphemy. See Leviticus 24:16. These people understood that Jesus said that he was God. They thought that this was not true, and that Jesus therefore blasphemed, speaking evil about God. In some languages it may be good to write a footnote here, and tell why the people wanted to throw stones at Jesus. For example:

The people wanted to kill Jesus because he said that he was God. They believed that this was blasphemy, speech against God.

8:59b

But: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as But here introduces a surprising result of their action in the previous clause. The people picked up stones to stone Jesus, but they did not stone him. He hid so they could not do it.

Jesus was hidden: Jesus in some way hid himself from the angry crowd. The text does not say how this happened. It is best to translate this literally.

8:59c

and went out of the temple area:
This phrase indicates that Jesus left the temple area safely. The people did not stone him.

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 9:32

9:32

Never before has anyone heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind: The man who had been healed continued his argument that Jesus was from God. He emphasized that Jesus had done a great miracle. He said that no one had ever heard of such a miracle happening before. (The phrase opening the eyes here means “healed the eyes.”) His point was not that no one had heard about such a miracle, but that such a miracle had never happened. No one had heard of it because it had not happened before. For example:

And this is the first time in history that anyone has ever given sight to someone born blind. (Contemporary English Version)

Never before: The phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Never before is more literally “from the age,” meaning “from ancient times.” Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

Since the beginning of the world (Good News Translation)
-or-
Since ⌊God⌋ created the world
-or-
through all of history

has anyone heard of: The verb phrase has anyone heard of is passive in Greek. It means that no one had heard that such a miracle happened. No one had heard about such a miracle because no one had reported that such a miracle happened. There are two ways to translate this expression:

• Use a passive verb. For example:

it has never been heard (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
no person has ever been reported

• Use an active verb like the Berean Standard Bible. For example:

Nobody has ever heard of…. (New International Version)

General Comment on 9:32

In some languages it may be natural to reorder the information in this verse. For example:

To open the eyes of a man born blind—that is unheard of since time began. (Revised English Bible)

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 10:23

10:23

Jesus was walking in the temple courts in Solomon’s Colonnade: At the time of this event, Jesus was walking around in the temple area in Jerusalem. The words Solomon’s Colonnade describe the exact part of the temple where he was walking. For example:

Jesus was walking in the temple area, in Solomon’s Portico (English Standard Version)
-or-
Jesus was walking on Solomon’s porch in the temple courtyard (God’s Word)

in Solomon’s Colonnade: Solomon’s Colonnade was a covered area or porch on the east side of the temple. A Colonnade is a porch, a roof supported by pillars or poles often attached to a house or building. See how you translated the plural “colonnades” in 5:2. This Colonnade was named after the king of Israel who built the temple almost a thousand years before. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

in Solomon’s Porch (New Century Version)
-or-
in the area called Solomon’s Shelter

General Comment on 10:22–23

In some languages it may be natural to reorder some of the information and mention Jesus earlier. For example:

22 That winter, Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Temple Festival. 23 One day he was walking in that part of the temple known as Solomon’s Porch… (Contemporary English Version)

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 11:13

11:13a

They thought that Jesus was talking about actual sleep: This expression indicates that the disciples had understood Jesus literally. They thought he spoke about normal sleep, not death. The disciples wrongly understood Jesus. Here are other ways to translate this expression:

they thought he meant natural sleep (Good News Translation)
-or-
the disciples thought Jesus meant Lazarus was only sleeping (God’s Word)

11:13b

but: The word but here introduces a contrast between what Jesus meant (11:13a) and what the disciples thought he meant (11:13b).

He was speaking about the death of Lazarus: This clause is an explanation by the author of the true situation. Translate this in a way that is natural for explanations given by an author or storyteller. For example:

Jesus really meant that Lazarus was dead (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Actually Jesus had spoken about his death (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

General Comment on 11:13a–b

In some languages it may be natural to reorder 11:13a–b. For example:

13b Jesus was speaking about the death of Lazarus, 13a but they thought that Jesus was talking about actual sleep.

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 11:45

Section 11:45–57

The Jewish leaders plotted to kill Jesus

This section tells that many Jews who saw Jesus raise Lazarus believed in him. But others reported him to the Pharisees. The council met to discuss what to do with Jesus. They were afraid that if everyone believed in Jesus, the Roman government would destroy the Jewish temple and nation. The high priest Caiaphas said that it was better for Jesus to die than the whole nation be destroyed. That was true, but not in the way that Caiaphas meant. Jesus’ death would bring salvation to all people.

Jesus no longer walked around in public and stayed in Ephraim. When people went to Jerusalem for the Passover feast, they looked for Jesus, thinking that he would not go there. That was because the chief priests and Pharisees had ordered people to tell them if they knew where Jesus was. Then they could arrest him.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

The Jewish council decided to kill Jesus
-or-
The plot to kill Jesus

Paragraph 11:45–48

The Jews from Judea responded in different ways to the miracle that they just saw. Some believed, and others reported it to the Jewish authorities. The authorities discussed the matter in their council.

11:45a

Therefore: This word introduces what many people did as a result of the miracle that they saw.

many of the Jews: This phrase refers to many of the people who had come from Judea (possibly Jerusalem). Here is another way to translate this phrase:

Many of the people (Contemporary English Version)

who had come to Mary: There are two ways to interpret the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as who had come to Mary :

(1) it means “to Mary,” or “to visit Mary.” For example:

who had come to visit Mary (Good News Translation)

(Berean Standard Bible, Good News Translation, New Century Version, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, English Standard Version, New International Version, Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, God’s Word, Contemporary English Version)

(2) it means “together with Mary.” For example:

who had come with Mary (Revised Standard Version)

(Revised Standard Version, New Revised Standard Version, English Standard Version, NET Bible Bible, New Living Translation (2004))

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), together with most English translations. The author probably referred to what he wrote in 11:19, that people came from Jerusalem (or other parts of Judea) to comfort the sisters. Here, however, he just mentions Mary.

11:45b

and: This word here introduces another description of these Jewish people. These people saw the miracle.

had seen what Jesus did: This phrase indicates that these people saw Jesus bring Lazarus back to life again. They were at the tomb and saw what happened.

what Jesus did: There is a textual problem here. The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as what is plural in some manuscripts and singular in others. It is recommended that you use a word that can be understood in either way, as most English translations do. The original text probably had the plural form, but the main reference is to the specific act of raising Lazarus.

believed in Him: This phrase includes the idea of believing the facts about who Jesus was and what he did. But it also includes the idea of trusting Jesus instead of trusting oneself or someone else. Both ideas are very closely related. If someone believes the facts about Jesus, it should result in trusting him. See how you translated similar phrases in 1:12b, 2:11c, and 3:16b. Here are other ways to translate this idea:

put their faith in him (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
became believers

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 12:20

Section 12:20–26

Some Greeks wanted to meet Jesus

Some Greek people went to Philip to ask to meet Jesus. Jesus responded to the Greeks’ request by giving the illustration of a seed that must die to produce fruit.

Here are some other possible titles for this section:

Some Greek people asked to see Jesus
-or-
Some Greeks sought Jesus

Paragraph 12:20–22

12:20

Now: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Now here introduces a new event in the story. In this context it is not a time word. Many English translations do not translate this word. Introduce this new event in a natural way in your language.

there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the feast: It was not only Jewish people who went to Jerusalem at this time. Some Greeks (Gentiles) went also. Here are other ways to translate this clause:

Some Greeks were among those who came to worship during the Passover festival. (God’s Word)
-or-
Some Greeks had gone to Jerusalem to worship during Passover. (Contemporary English Version)

some Greeks: The word Greeks refers to people who were not Jews by birth. They were Gentiles, speakers of the Greek language. The word Greeks in the New Testament does not refer to people from the country of Greece. (It did not exist yet.) See the notes on Greeks in 7:35. Here is another way to translate this phrase:

some Gentiles (Revised English Bible)

went up: This phrase is a Jewish idiom meaning “went to Jerusalem.” They used this idiom because Jerusalem was built on a hill. You may want to make it explicit that they went up to Jerusalem. For example:

had gone to Jerusalem (Good News Translation)

to worship: The Greeks went to worship God. In some languages it may be necessary to make this explicit. For example:

to worship ⌊God⌋

the feast: This phrase here refers to the Passover festival, when the Jews celebrated their freedom from being slaves to the Egyptians. See the note on 2:13.You may want to make it clear which festival it was. For example:

the Passover Feast (New Century Version)

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 1:16

1:16

Here in 1:16 John the Gospel writer returned to his description of Jesus. It should be clear in your translation that his words begin again here. They are not the words of John the Baptist anymore. It may help to begin a new paragraph here.

1:16a

In the Greek text this verse begins with a word often translated as “because.” The New Jerusalem Bible translates it as “Indeed,” which means “Truly.” Here it introduces the grounds for what both John the Baptist and the writer John said about the Word in the previous verses. The Berean Standard Bible and other English translations do not explicitly translate it. Other English translations translate it as “because” or “for.” You should introduce what John writes about the Word in a way that is natural in your language.

From His fullness: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as From here means “out of.” The word fullness means “completeness” or “plenty.” Out of the great amount of the Word’s grace, mentioned in 1:14d, we have received many blessings.

Here are other ways to translate From His fullness :

From his abundance (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
From the plentiful supply of his grace
-or-
Because he is very kind/gracious

1:16b

we have all received grace upon grace: Verse 1:16b indicates that we have received many blessings from the Word who became human. In some languages it may be natural to translate this with a pronoun referring to the Word as the subject. For example:

he has blessed us all, giving us one blessing after another (Good News Translation)

grace upon grace: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as grace upon grace is more literally “grace in place of grace.” There are two interpretations of this phrase:

(1) It means that we receive many blessings—one after another. For example:

one blessing after another (New International Version)

(Good News Translation, New International Version, New Revised Standard Version, New Century Version, New Living Translation (2004), Contemporary English Version, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, English Standard Version, NET Bible, God’s Word)

(2) It means that one gift is taken away and replaced by another kind of gift. For example:

one gift replacing another (New Jerusalem Bible)

(King James Version, New Jerusalem Bible)

In interpretation (1), the earlier gifts are not removed as other gifts are given. In interpretation (2), there is only one gift at a time. It is implied that the earlier gifts are removed. It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), as do most Bible scholars. This fits the context better.

General Comment on 1:16a–b

In some languages it may be natural to combine 1:16a and 1:16b. For example:

16a–b Each of us has received one gift after another because of all that the Word is. (God’s Word)
-or-

16a–b Now we have all received from his fullness one gracious gift after another. (NET Bible)

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Source: SIL Translator’s Notes on John 2020