SIL Translator’s Notes on Luke 20:22

20:22

After the spies praised Jesus insincerely in 20:21, they asked him a question. Their praise implied that because he was honest and fair, he would give them a true answer. In some languages, it may be necessary to introduce this question with a phrase or clause to connect it with 20:21. For example:

⌊So we ask you,⌋ is it lawful…

Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?: This question contains an ellipsis. The full form of the question has a positive part and a negative part:

Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or is it not lawful for us to pay taxes to him?

In some languages it may be more natural to translate only the positive part or only the negative part. The other part is already implied. For example:

Is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar?
-or-
Is it against our law to pay taxes to Caesar?

The spies wanted Jesus to answer their question clearly. They expected him to say either that it was right for Jews to pay taxes to Caesar, or that it was not right to pay those taxes. The question expresses a request for information. Some ways to translate it are:

• As a question:

Does the law permit us to pay taxes to Caesar or does it not permit us?
-or-
Is it right or wrong for us to pay taxes to Caesar?

• As a request:

Tell us whether it is lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar.

Is it lawful for us: In this context the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Is it lawful implies the meaning “Is it right ⌊according to God’s Law⌋” or “Does the ⌊Law of God⌋ permit.” The spies were not asking what the Roman law required. In some languages it may be necessary to indicate which law the spies asked about. For example:

Does the law ⌊of Moses⌋ allow us…?
-or-
Does ⌊our⌋ law permit us…?
-or-
…is it against our Law…? (Good News Translation)

The pronoun us refers to all Jews including Jesus. It does not refer only to the spies.

pay taxes to Caesar: The phrase pay taxes to Caesar refers to paying tax to the Roman government, of which Caesar was the leader. The Romans had conquered the Jews and were governing them. The taxes mentioned here refer to the money that the Roman government required each Jewish man to pay to them.

Caesar: The word Caesar was a title for the great king of the city of Rome and of the Roman empire. He ruled many countries and kings that the people of Rome had conquered. The title Caesar means “Emperor.” Some ways to translate the title Caesar here are:

• Use an equivalent title. For example:

the High King in Rome
-or-
the Roman Emperor (Good News Translation)
-or-
the high/paramount chief

• Use a more general term. For example:

the government of the Romans that rules us
-or-
the ruler of the city of Rome

You may also want to add a footnote. For example:

“Emperor” was the title for the ruler of the people in the city of Rome. He also ruled over all the countries that Rome had conquered, including the country of the Jews.

The word Caesar also occurred in 2:1. See how you translated it there.

© 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 21:7

Paragraph 21:7–11

21:7a

“Teacher,” they asked: In the Greek text, the phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as they asked is literally “and they asked him, saying.” This phrase comes before the word Teacher. Use a natural order in your language, and introduce the quotation in a natural way. Other ways to do this in English are:

So they asked him, “Teacher…” (NET Bible)
-or-
Then they questioned him ⌊about that⌋, saying, “Teacher…”
-or-
And they put to him this question, “Master,” they said (New Jerusalem Bible)

Teacher: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Teacher was a polite title for a Jewish religious leader. In this context the disciples addressed Jesus with respect as their teacher and master. Use a natural title in your language for this context. This title was also used in 18:18. For more information, see the note on 18:18a.

they: The pronoun they refers to the disciples who had been talking about the temple in 21:5. Refer back to them here in a natural way in your language.

when will these things happen?: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as these things refers primarily to the temple being destroyed. It probably also includes the other events that would happen before and after the destruction of the temple. Some ways to translate the disciples’ question are:

when will these events happen/occur?
-or-
when will this be? (Good News Translation)
-or-
when will all this happen? (New Living Translation (2004))

In Greek, the question begins with a conjunction that the New American Standard Bible translates as “therefore.” The Berean Standard Bible and other English versions do not translate this conjunction. Do what is natural here in your language.

21:7b

what will be the sign that they are about to take place?: Here the disciples asked Jesus what sign would indicate that the events are about to happen. The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as sign refers here to a signal or indication. In this context the sign refers to an event or other indication that will show that the statement in 21:6 will soon happen. Other ways to translate the question are:

…what will happen in order to show that the time has come for it to take place? (Good News Translation)
-or-
…what will we see, so that we may know that these things will soon happen?

The word sign also occurs in 2:12, 2:34, 11:16, 11:29–30. See how you translated it there. Consider whether you should translate it in the same way here. You may need to translate it differently to fit this context.

that they are about to take place?: The phrase they are about to take place is literally “they will very-soon be accomplished.” It indicates that these events would soon happen.

© 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 22:1

22:1a–b

Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread…was approaching: This clause is background information for the events that will happen in this section. It indicates that people would soon celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. In Greek the clause is introduced by a common conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Now. This conjunction does not function as a time word here, and many English versions do not translate it.

Translate the background information in a natural way in your language. Some other ways to translate it in English are:

As the Feast of Unleavened Bread came near
-or-
It was almost time for the feast of unleavened bread
-or-
At that time, it was not long before the Feast of Unleavened Bread would happen

the Feast of Unleavened Bread: The phrase the Feast of Unleavened Bread refers to a festival that the Jewish people celebrated each year for seven days. During those days they did not eat any bread made with yeast.

The purpose of the festival was to remind them of the time when God had delivered their ancestors from slavery in Egypt. At that time they ate unleavened bread because they needed to eat quickly before they left on their journey out of Egypt. They did not have time to wait for their bread dough to rise before they baked it.

Feast: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Feast means “festival, celebration.” It refers to a special time when people celebrate and follow special customs or rituals. During the festival of Unleavened Bread, people ate a special meal, so some versions, such as the New International Version, translate the word as “feast.” Use a natural way in your language to refer to it.

Unleavened Bread: The phrase Unleavened Bread refers to bread cooked without yeast. This bread was thin and flat because it contained nothing to “leaven” it (make it rise). In some areas people do not use yeast and there is no word for it. If this is true in your language, you may be able to use a descriptive phrase for this type of bread. For example:

Thin Bread (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
bread without the thing that makes it rise/swell
-or-
bread that ⌊people⌋ ⌊make⌋ without any rising/swelling substance

called the Passover: The word Passover refers to a festival that the Jews celebrated each year on the day before the Feast of Unleavened Bread began. The word Passover was often used to refer to the whole eight days that included the day of Passover and the seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. People ate only unleavened bread on the day of Passover, as well as during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

In some languages it may be helpful to translate the phrase called the Passover as a separate sentence. For example:

This was the feast that people also call the Passover.

You may want to include a footnote and cross reference about the feasts/festivals of Unleavened Bread and Passover. For example:

During the time period that Luke wrote about, the festivals of Unleavened Bread and Passover were often considered to be one festival. These festivals reminded the Jews of the time when God freed their ancestors from slavery in Egypt. See Exodus 12:1–27.

Passover: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Passover means “pass by” or “pass over.” During the Passover festival the people of Israel remember how the angel of the Lord “passed over” the houses of their ancestors. (This account is found in Exodus 12:1–27.) The term “pass over” implies that he showed mercy to them and did not kill them.

However, the angel killed the firstborn sons of the Egyptians. He did this to force the Egyptian king to free the Jews from slavery and allow them to leave Egypt. The angel passed over the Jewish houses because they did what the Lord told them to do. Each family sacrificed a lamb and put some of its blood over their doors. When the angel saw the blood, he passed by their houses without harming them.

Some ways to translate Passover are:

• Translate the meaning of the phrase “pass over.” For example:

“⌊Death⌋ passed us by” Festival
-or-
“⌊Death⌋ did not harm us” Feast
-or-
Passed-by/Mercy Feast

• Focus on the result of the angel “passing over”: the Jews were delivered from slavery and became free. For example:

the Festival of Freedom
-or-
Deliverance Day/Feast

The term Passover also occurred in 2:41. See how you translated it there.

© 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 22:33

22:33

In the Greek, 22:33a begins with a conjunction that several versions, such as the New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, and New International Version, translate as “but.” It is a common conjunction that can also be translated as “and.” The same conjunction was used in 22:32, and the Berean Standard Bible and many other English versions do not translate it here. Introduce Peter’s reply in a natural way in your language.

22:33a–b

“Lord,” said Peter: The clause “Lord,” said Peter is literally “and he said to him, ‘Lord.’” The Berean Standard Bible places the words said Peter in the middle of what Peter said to Jesus. In some languages, it may be necessary to place these words at the beginning of 22:33a, as they are in Greek. For example:

But he replied, “Lord…” (New International Version)

In some languages you may need to use names to indicate who replied to whom. Notice that in 22:34 Jesus addressed Simon Peter as “Peter,” instead of “Simon,” as in 22:31–32. In some languages it may be helpful to use both of his names in the introductory clause. For example:

Simon Peter said to Jesus
-or-
Simon Peter replied

Lord: Peter addressed Jesus as Lord to show great respect for him. See the notes on 17:5 and 17:37a for more information. See also how you translated Lord in 17:37.

I am ready to go with You even to prison and to death: In the Greek, this clause is more literally, “With you I am prepared even to prison and to death to go.” Peter emphasized that he would stay faithful to Jesus, even if he had to go to prison with him or die with him. If Jesus’ enemies put him in jail with Jesus or even killed him, Peter would continue to trust him.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

I am prepared to be imprisoned with you and also to be killed with you.
-or-

⌊I will be faithful to you, whatever happens.⌋ I will go with you even to prison and be killed with you.

and to death: Peter indicated here that he was so faithful to Jesus that he was ready to allow people to kill him rather than to stop following him. In some languages it may be more natural to translate this as a separate clause. For example:

I am ready/willing to die with you.

© 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 22:65

22:65

And they said many other blasphemous things against Him: In Greek this clause is more literally “And they said many other things against him, blaspheming him” (English Standard Version). The form of the verb said shows that the guards continued to insult and mock Jesus for some time. Some other ways to translate the clause are:

They kept on insulting Jesus in many other ways. (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
And they said many other things to mock him and laugh at him.

In some languages there may be idioms to describe this type of ongoing mockery. For example:

And they hurled all sorts of terrible insults at him.
-or-
And so they went on heaping insults upon him. (Revised English Bible)

blasphemous: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible literally translates as blasphemous is the same word that is used for blaspheming God. Luke may have implied that by insulting Jesus in those ways, they were insulting God himself. If you have a word that is used for insulting both God and human beings, it may fit here. Otherwise, you may use a word that refers to insulting human beings. Here is another way to translate this:

And they threw all sorts of terrible insults at him. (New Living Translation (1996))

Section Group

22:66–23:25

Leaders put Jesus on trial and condemned him to die

Luke indicates that Jesus had several trials. These trials can also be considered to be several parts of the same trial. Luke recorded the details of four of these trials. The chart here lists them according to who was leading at each trial:

22:66–71
the Jewish council

23:1–5
Pilate

23:6–12
Herod

23:13–25
Pilate again

In all of Jesus’ trials, there was no one who could prove that Jesus had broken any law of God or man. However, even though he had not done anything wrong, the Roman governor Pilate sentenced him to die on a cross.

The Notes suggest a section heading for each of the trials in the chart. However, you may decide to have one heading for Section Group 22:66–23:25 like the one suggested in the Section Group box above. Another example of a heading for this section group is:

The leaders tried and condemned Jesus

© 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 23:27

23:27a

A great number of people followed Him: This clause indicates that many people went along with Jesus. It does not imply that they were following him as disciples. Many of them may have come to watch the crucifixion because of curiosity or because they wanted to mock Jesus. Some other ways to translate the clause are:

A large crowd followed Jesus. (God’s Word)
-or-
And while they were taking Jesus, there were many people who went along.

23:27b

including women who kept mourning and wailing for Him: This part of the verse indicates that some women were also in the crowd walking with Jesus. These women were mourning and wailing because Jesus was going to be killed. Some other ways to translate it are:

among them were some women who were weeping and wailing for him (Good News Translation)
-or-
including many grief-stricken women (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
Some women were also following him. Those women cried and wept/wailed because of ⌊his coming death/execution⌋.

kept mourning and wailing for Him: The word mourning sometimes refers to using a specific action to express sorrow for someone. Here it is used in a general way to mean “mourned for” Jesus. The word wailing refers to expressing sorrow through words, for example, in a song, exclamation, or other lament. Some other ways to translate mourning and wailing for Him are:

• Translate both words in a general way that includes different types of mourning. For example:

mourned and lamented for him (New Jerusalem Bible)

• Translate one or both of the words with a specific action that expresses mourning in your culture. For example:

weeping and wailing for him (Good News Translation)
-or-
cried and sang funeral songs for him (God’s Word)

• Translate the phrase mourning and wailing as one action. For example:

mourning loudly/deeply for him (Translator’s Reference Translation)

Translate the phrase in a natural way in your language.

© 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 24:3

24:3a

but when they entered: This clause introduces the fact that they did not find Jesus’ body (24:3b). That contrasts with what the women expected. Translate the contrast in a natural way in your language.

they entered: The phrase they entered implies that the women entered the tomb. Since the tomb was a cave, several women could probably enter it at the same time.

In some languages it may be necessary to make it explicit that the women entered the tomb. For example:

when they went into ⌊the tomb⌋

24:3b

they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus: This clause indicates that the women did not see Jesus’ corpse there. His body was not where the women had seen it after he died. They could not find his body in the tomb at all. It was gone.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

they saw that the body/corpse of the Lord Jesus was not there
-or-
they looked for the body of the Lord Jesus, but it was not there

the body of the Lord Jesus: There is a textual issue here:

(1) Many Greek manuscripts include the words of the Lord Jesus. Here is another way to translate this:

they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus (Good News Translation)

(2) Some Greek manuscripts do not include the words of the Lord Jesus. For example:

they did not find the body (Revised Standard Version)

It is recommended that you follow option (1), since it has the best manuscript support. Also, nearly every English version follows this option.

© 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 24:35

24:35a–b

Then the two: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Then the two is more literally “and they.” The word “they” is emphatic. It refers to the two followers from Emmaus. The phrase “and they” indicates that the focus has shifted to those two followers. It was their turn to tell their news to the group of apostles and other disciples of Jesus.

English versions refer to the two disciples from Emmaus here in different ways. For example:

Then the disciples from Emmaus (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Then the two followers (New Century Version)
-or-
And those two

told what had happened on the road: The phrase told what had happened indicates that the two disciples informed the group about the events that they had experienced. Here it refers specifically to seeing and talking to Jesus on the road. Use a natural phrase in your language to refer to this. Some other ways to translate it in English are:

began to relate their experiences on the road (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
described what had happened on their journey (Revised English Bible)

on the road: The phrase on the road means “during the journey” or “while they were walking along.” It is the same phrase that was translated as “on the road” in 24:32. See how you translated it there, but use a natural phrase in this context.

24:35c

how they had recognized Jesus: In Greek this clause is literally, “how he-was-made-known to them.” This clause is passive. Some ways to translate it are:

• As a passive clause. For example:

how he was known to them (Revised Standard Version)

• As an active clause, as the Berean Standard Bible does. For example:

how they had recognized him (New Living Translation (2004))

Translate the clause in a natural way in your language.

they had recognized Jesus: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as they had recognized Jesus is more literally “he-was-recognized.” English versions refer to him in different ways in this phrase. For example:

they had recognized the Lord (Good News Translation)
-or-
they had recognized Jesus (God’s Word)
-or-
He was recognized by them (New American Standard Bible)

Refer to him here in a clear and natural way in your language.

24:35d

in the breaking of the bread: The Berean Standard Bible literally represents the Greek of this clause. This phrase tells what caused the two disciples to recognize Jesus. It refers back to the action in 24:30, where Jesus broke some bread and gave it to them. It is good to translate the action in a similar way here, so that readers can recognize it as the same action. Some other ways to translate it are:

as he was breaking the bread (New Living Translation (1996))
-or-
when he tore the bread

Refer back to this action in a natural way in your language.

© 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.