SIL Translator’s Notes on Luke 23:25

23:25a–d

he released the one imprisoned for insurrection and murder: This statement indicates that Pilate released the man that the people asked him to release in 23:18. This man was named Barabbas. As 23:19 said, he was in prison for insurrection and murder.

In some languages it may be helpful to supply the name Barabbas here. For example:

He freed Barabbas, who had been put in prison for rioting and murdering, because that’s what they wanted. (God’s Word)

23:25e

and handed Jesus: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and introduces a contrast between what Pilate did for Barabbas in this verse and what he did to Jesus. The word Jesus is emphasized in Greek. One way to translate this contrast is:

But as for Jesus

Translate the contrast in a way that is natural in your language.

over to their will: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as over to their will indicates that Pilate gave Jesus into the control of other people. He allowed them to do what they wanted with Jesus. The word their refers to the Jewish people and their leaders. They wanted Jesus to be executed/killed.

The context implies that Pilate ordered his soldiers to take Jesus and execute him, as the Jewish people wanted. It does not imply that the Jewish people were in charge of the execution.

Some other ways to translate this part of the verse are:

Then Pilate allowed Jesus to be taken away so that he would be ⌊killed⌋ as they wanted.
-or-
But Isa was handed over to the soldiers so that the will of the people would be done.

© 2009, 2010, 2013 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Luke 24:1

24:1a

In the Greek text, 24:1a begins with a common conjunction that is translated in different ways. Here it introduces what the women did after the Sabbath (23:56c). They had to rest on the Sabbath, but they returned to the tomb very early the next morning. Connect the verses in a way that is natural in your language. In some languages a conjunction is not needed.

On the first day of the week: The Jews consider the day after the Sabbath to be the first day of the week. Since the Sabbath is on Saturday, the first day of the week is called Sunday in English. In some cultures Sunday is not considered the first day of the week. If that is true in your culture, you may need to include a footnote about this. For example:

The Jews considered Sunday to be the first day of the week.

In some languages it may be helpful to include the word Sunday in the translation, as several English versions do. For example:

on Sunday morning (God’s Word)

very early in the morning: The phrase very early in the morning probably refers to the time before the sun rises when there is a little light. The women probably started walking to the tomb as soon as it was light enough for them to see. Use a natural way in your language to refer to this time of day. Another way to translate the phrase in English is:

at early dawn (NET Bible)

24:1b–c

the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared: In Greek this statement is more literally, “to the tomb they came bringing spices that they prepared.” It indicates that the women went to Jesus’ tomb, and they brought spices with them. Some other ways to translate the statement are:

…the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared. (New Century Version)
-or-
…the women went to the tomb. They were carrying the spices that they had prepared. (God’s Word)

the women: The women who went to the tomb had come with Jesus from Galilee. They were mentioned in 23:55a. Some of them are named in 24:10. Refer to them here in a natural way in your language. Another way to refer to them is:

those women

came to the tomb: The women returned to the tomb where Jesus’ body was laid. (See 23:55c.) You should translate the word tomb in the same way as you did there.

This is the first time that the tomb has been mentioned in this section. In some languages it may be natural to refer to it with a more specific phrase. For example:

and they returned to the tomb ⌊where Jesus had been buried⌋
-or-
and went again to that grave/place ⌊where people/they laid Jesus’ body⌋

the spices they had prepared: The phrase the spices they had prepared refers to the fragrant ointments and oils that the women had prepared before the Sabbath. These spices were mentioned in 23:56. See the notes at 23:56b, and translate the phrase in a similar way here.

General Comment on 24:1b–c

The Berean Standard Bible follows the order of the Greek text. However, in some languages, it may be more natural to reverse the order of 24:1b and 24:1c. For example:

1cthe women took the spice they had prepared, 1band went to the tomb (New International Version)

© 2009, 2010, 2013 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Luke 24:33

24:33a

And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem: The Greek sentence that the Berean Standard Bible translates as they got up that very hour and returned is literally “Having arisen the very same hour/moment, they returned.” The phrase “the very same hour/moment” emphasizes that the two disciples got up immediately and returned to Jerusalem. They did not wait even an hour. They felt it was urgent to give this news to the other followers of Jesus.

Some other ways to translate this part of the verse are:

So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem. (New American Bible)
-or-
And they got to their feet without delay and turned back to Jerusalem. (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
So they got right up and returned to Jerusalem. (Contemporary English Version)

24:33b–c

There they found the Eleven and those with them, gathered together: This clause implies that when the two disciples arrived in Jerusalem, they went to the place where they expected Jesus’ apostles and other followers to be. Just as they expected, the eleven apostles and the others were gathered there. Some other ways to translate the clause are:

There they found the eleven apostles and others gathered (New Century Version)
-or-
There they found that the eleven and the rest of the company had assembled (Revised English Bible)
-or-
and met with the eleven disciples of Jesus and his other companions who had/were gathered

the Eleven: The phrase the Eleven refers to the group of Jesus’ apostles. See the note on 24:9b for more information. After Judas died (Matthew 27:1–5), the disciples changed the name of this group from “the Twelve” to the Eleven. The phrase is a way to refer to the group as a whole. It does not necessarily imply that all eleven apostles were in that particular gathering. This gathering may have been the same as the one in John 20:24 when Thomas was not there.

Another way to translate the Eleven is:

the eleven apostles (New Century Version)

those with them: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as those with them refers to the larger group of Jesus’ followers mentioned as “all the others” in 24:9b. The group included both men and women.

© 2009, 2010, 2013 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.