7:19a

So In Greek, 7:19a begins with a common conjunction that is often translated as “and.” The Berean Standard Bible and several other English versions translate this conjunction as “so” to indicate that John sent his disciples to Jesus in response to what he had heard about him. Other English versions do not translate this conjunction. Connect 7:18b to 7:18a in a way that is natural in your language.

John called two of his disciples and sent them to ask the Lord: The phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as sent them to ask the Lord is literally “sent them to the Lord, saying.” The Berean Standard Bible is stating the implied purpose for which John sent his disciples to Jesus. Another way to translate this is:

sent them to the Lord to ask him (Good News Translation, New Living Translation (2004))

the Lord:
The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Lord means “master” or “one who has authority over others.” In this context the Lord is a title for Jesus. Some other ways to translate this are:

the Master
-or-
the Chief

In some languages it may be necessary to add his name here. For example:

the Lord Jesus
-or-
Jesus, the Master

In other languages it may be necessary to indicate whose Lord is referred to. If that is true in your language, if you use the pronoun “our,” it should be the inclusive form, if your language uses that form. For example:

our(incl) Lord

See Lord, Context 2, in the Glossary.

7:19b

Are You: The word You is emphatic here. If you have a way in your language to emphasize You, consider using it here.

the One who was to come: The phrase the One who was to come is literally “the coming one.” It is a title that refers to the Messiah. The Old Testament prophets had said that the Messiah would come. John the Baptizer was also a prophet who said that the Messiah would come. But he was not sure at this time that Jesus was the Messiah.

Some other ways to translate this include:

the Coming One
-or-
the Expected One (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
the ⌊person/savior⌋ whom ⌊God⌋ promised ⌊to send⌋ to us
-or-
the Messiah we’ve been expecting (New Living Translation (2004))

If you use a literal translation such as “the Coming One” you may want to include a footnote to explain that this was a title that referred to the Messiah.

7:19c

or should we look for someone else: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as look for means “to wait for or watch for someone or something.” Here John asked whether he and the rest of the Jews should keep on waiting for the Messiah. He suggested that perhaps Jesus was not the Messiah and that they needed to wait for someone else.

we: The pronoun we probably refers to all the Jews, including John and his disciples. Use an appropriate form in your language for this context.

General Comment on 7:19a–c

In some languages it may be natural to use indirect speech for the message that John’s disciples were to give to Jesus. For example:

He sent them to ask the Lord if he was the one who was to come or if they should expect someone else.

© 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.

Section 8:1–3

Some women helped Jesus and his disciples as they traveled

In this section Jesus traveled from town to town, telling people about the kingdom of God. His twelve disciples went with him. Some women who had been healed of various diseases or delivered from demons also traveled with them and provided money for their needs. The text does not specify exactly when Jesus and his followers began to travel, but 8:1 indicates that it was sometime after the events in the preceding section (7:36–50).

It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it. Some other possible headings for this section are:

Jesus and his disciples preach in different towns and women support them
-or-
Women Who Helped Jesus (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Jesus’ Ministry and the Help of Women (NET Bible)

Paragraph 8:1–3

8:1a

Soon afterward: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Soon afterward indicates that the events in the first few verses of chapter 8 happened after the events in chapter 7. The phrase is a general expression and does not necessarily mean “soon afterward.” Other ways to say this are:

Some time afterward (NET Bible)
-or-
After this (New International Version)
-or-
After these events

Jesus: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Jesus is literally “he.” It is natural in English and some other languages to use Jesus’ name here at the beginning of a new section. Refer to him here in a natural way in your language.

traveled from one town and village to another: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as traveled from one town and village to another indicates here that Jesus went to different cities, towns, and villages in the area. These towns or cities probably varied in size and in the number of people who lived in them. He went from one inhabited place to another without going back to any home place. Other ways to say this are:

began a tour of the nearby towns and villages (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
was traveling through some cities and small towns (New Century Version)
-or-
went journeying from town to town and village to village (Revised English Bible)
-or-
went around to many towns, both large and small

8:1b

preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God is more literally “preaching and telling good news of the kingdom of God.” Since the Greek verbs for “preaching” and “telling good news” refer to the same activity, some translations use only the verb “proclaiming.” Other ways to say this are:

proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God (New International Version)
-or-
he was preaching, telling people the Good News about God’s kingdom
-or-
he announced to people the good news about the kingdom of God

proclaiming: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible here translates as proclaiming means to tell people something important publicly.

Some other ways to translate proclaiming are:

announcing
-or-
telling people

the good news of the kingdom of God: The phrase the good news of the kingdom of God means “the good news concerning God’s kingdom/reign.” The phrase the kingdom of God refers to God’s activity of ruling and caring for his people as their king. It does not refer to a land or country that he rules. The term kingdom of God also occurs in 7:28b. Other ways to say this are:

the good news concerning God’s reign/rule
-or-
the sweet message about God’s chieftaincy

In some languages it may be necessary to translate kingdom with a verb and supply an object. If that is true in your language, some ways to translate it are:

the good/sweet news about God ruling ⌊his people⌋
-or-
the message/report that caused joy. This message was about God reigning ⌊over his people⌋

See also the note on 4:43a where the phrase the good news of the kingdom of God also occurs. See also kingdom of God, Context 4, in the Glossary.

8:1c

The Twelve: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates literally as The Twelve refers to the twelve disciples whom Jesus chose to be apostles in 6:13–16. See apostle in the Glossary.

© 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.

8:33a

Then: This verse begins with a Greek conjunction that is often translated as “and.” Some English versions, such as the New American Standard Bible, translate it that way. However, since the action in 8:33a happened after Jesus granted the demons permission in 8:32 and as a result of that, many English versions (Contemporary English Version, English Standard Version, New Living Translation (2004)) connect 8:33a to 8:32c with the conjunction “Then.” Some versions say “When” (New International Version) or “So” (NET Bible). A few versions (Good News Translation, God’s Word) do not use a conjunction. Connect 8:33a to 8:32c in a way that is natural in your language.

demons: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as demons is the same word as in 8:27b and 8:30c.

came out of the man: See the note on “come out” at 8:29a.

8:33b–c

the herd…was drowned: The phrase the herd refers to all the pigs as a group, as in 8:32a. The verb was drowned indicates that all the pigs died in the water. Consider whether you should use a singular or a plural verb here.

was drowned: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as was drowned is a passive form. However, its meaning may be expressed in many languages with an active verb. Other ways to translate it are:

(they) drowned
-or-
(they) died in the water

rushed: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as rushed refers to fast movement. It implies movement that cannot easily be stopped after it has started. It could be translated simply as “run.” However, if your language has a more intense term than “run,” consider using it here.

down the steep bank into the lake: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as steep bank describes a steep hill or cliff right at the edge of the lake. After the pigs started down this slope, it was impossible for them to stop, so they fell into the lake.

© 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.

9:9a

This verse begins with a Greek conjunction that is often translated as “and.” The Berean Standard Bible has not translated this conjunction. The New International Version and Contemporary English Version translate this word as “But” in order to indicate that Herod’s thoughts contrasted with what the other groups of people said. In some languages, it may be appropriate to emphasize that the subject has changed back to Herod. For example:

But as for Herod, he said

I beheaded John: The clause I beheaded John implies here that Herod had ordered one of his soldiers to cut off John’s head. Herod himself did not cut off John’s head. Some other ways to translate this clause are:

I had John’s head cut off (Good News Translation)
-or-
As for John, I myself ordered him to be beheaded

said: Herod probably said these words to himself.

9:9b

but who is this man I hear such things about?: Herod was referring to Jesus when he asked this question. This is a rhetorical question. It expresses uncertainty. Herod probably knew that a man named Jesus had done these miraculous things. However, he was uncertain about what sort of person Jesus really was.

Some ways to translate this expression of uncertainty are:

• As one or more rhetorical questions. For example:

What sort of person is this that I hear such things about?
-or-
How can this person do the ⌊amazing⌋ things that I hear about him? Who is he?

• As one or more statements. For example:

I wonder who this man that I am hearing about really is.

• As both a statement and a question. For example:

So who could this man be? I hear that he is doing some amazing things.
-or-
I am hearing such ⌊strange/wonderful⌋ things about this man. Who could he be?

Use the form that is most natural in your language.

I hear such things about: This clause indicates that Herod heard people say these things about Jesus. In some languages it may be more natural to make this explicit again here. For example:

whom people say such things about

such things: The phrase such things refers to all that Jesus was doing at that time, including healing people and casting out demons. He was doing things that no one else could do. In some languages it may be natural to supply a word that describes the sort of things that Jesus was doing:

such ⌊amazing/powerful/awesome⌋ things

9:9c

he kept trying to see Jesus: The clause he kept trying to see Jesus is literally “was-seeking to see him.” The form of the Greek verb indicates that Herod kept trying to see Jesus. Herod probably wanted to meet Jesus so that he could see him and talk to him personally or see Jesus do a miracle. Your language may have a way to indicate that this was a continual action.

© 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.

Paragraph 9:41–43a

9:41a

O unbelieving and perverse generation!: The words unbelieving and perverse generation are similar to the expressions that Moses used in Deuteronomy 32:5 and Deuteronomy 32:20, when he described the people of Israel. Jesus may have been implying that the people who were listening to him were just like their ancestors. You may want to add a footnote with this information.

The word O indicates here that Jesus was speaking directly to the people. It also indicates that they had frustrated and disappointed him.

In some languages it may not be natural to address people directly with a phrase such as this. If that is true in your language, you may need to make this phrase a separate sentence. For example:

You people have no faith and your lives are all wrong. (New Century Version)

unbelieving: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as unbelieving here describes people who did not believe or trust God as they should have. In this context, they specifically lacked faith in God’s power to heal and do other miraculous things through Jesus. In some languages it may be necessary to make some of this information explicit. For example:

You people have no faith ⌊in God⌋
-or-
You people truly do not trust ⌊God⌋

See believe, Meaning 2, in the Glossary.

perverse: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as perverse sometimes refers to things that are twisted or crooked. Here it refers to people who do not think and act in right ways. Instead, they change the standards of right and wrong in their minds, and they follow ways that are morally wrong. Other ways to translate this include:

How…wrong you people are! (Good News Translation)
-or-
you have strayed from the right path

generation: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as generation probably refers here to the majority of Israelites who were alive at that time. It indicates that they were a group of people who shared the same character.

Other ways to translate the phrase “O unbelieving and perverse generation” are:

What faithless and evil people you are!
-or-
You people are all alike! You lack trust/faith in God. You have turned away from the right path.

Jesus replied: Jesus replied to the man’s statement about the disciples, but he was probably not speaking directly to the boy’s father. So it may be better to translate as the Berean Standard Bible has done and not specify to whom Jesus replied.

The Berean Standard Bible has placed the clause Jesus replied in the middle of what Jesus was saying. In the Greek text the clause comes before the speech begins. Place it where it is most natural in your language.

9:41b

How long must I remain with you and put up with you?: This is a rhetorical question. It expresses the frustration that Jesus felt because these people did not trust God. It is also a rebuke to the people because they did not trust him. In some languages it may be necessary to make this explicit. For example:

How long must I stay with you and endure your ⌊unbelief⌋?

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

• As a rhetorical question or questions. For example:

How much longer must I be with you? Why do I have to put up with you? (Contemporary English Version)

• As an exclamation. For example:

I do not wish to stay with you and endure your ⌊unbelief⌋ for much longer!
-or-

⌊I am weary/frustrated⌋ that you still ⌊do not believe⌋ even after/though I have been with you for so long!

Use whichever form is most natural for expressing this kind of frustration and rebuke in your language.

you and put up with you: The forms of the word you in this part of the verse are plural.

9:41c

Bring your son here: The text uses a singular form of the verb Bring here. This indicates that now Jesus was speaking to the boy’s father instead of to the whole crowd. In some languages it may be necessary to make this explicit, for example:

Then he said to the man (Good News Translation)
-or-
Then Jesus said to the man (Contemporary English 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.

10:11a

Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off as a testimony: Jesus instructed his disciples to say these words to the people. It is implied that they performed the action as they said the words. The disciples said that they were wiping off any dust from the town that was stuck to their feet and sandals. They probably did this by carefully brushing off the dust with their hands.

Wiping the dust from their feet was a cultural gesture that had a symbolic meaning. An almost identical gesture was described in 9:5b. See the note there for more information. It occurred in the same context and had the same meaning. The difference is that in 9:5b the disciples were to “shake” the dust from their feet. Here in 10:11a they were to wipe it from their feet. Some ways to translate this are:

Even the dust from your town that has stuck to our feet, we wipe it off
-or-

⌊We will have nothing more to do with you.⌋ We will brush off even this dust from your town that is clinging to our feet.

Even: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Even implies that dust is a very small and insignificant thing. The disciples were to say that they would not associate with those people in any way.

our feet: Some languages have specific words for the “lower leg and foot” or for the “sole of the foot.” If that is true in your language, consider whether one of these expressions would be more natural in this context.

our…we: The disciples would go out in pairs (see 10:1), so here you should use a form that would be appropriate for two people. See the Display for 10:11a and 10:11b.

10:11b

as a testimony against you: Here the Greek literally says just “against you,” although in the corresponding phrase in 9:5c it says “as a testimony against them.” The Berean Standard Bible adds the phrase “as a testimony” here to indicate the meaning of the action that the disciples would do when a town rejected them. They would remove the dust of that town from their feet. This action would be a testimony, sign, and warning that God would judge the people of that town if they did not repent. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

as a warning to you ⌊that God will judge/punish you⌋
-or-
as a sign to show you ⌊that you are guilty⌋

10:11c

Yet: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Yet can also be translated as “nevertheless,” “however,” or “but.” Although the disciples were leaving the town and did not plan to come back, there was still one thing they wanted the people to know: that God’s kingdom had come near.

be sure of this: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as be sure of this is literally “know this.” The phrase implies that what the disciples would say was true and very important. Other ways to translate this clause include:

be sure you realize this:
-or-
we want you to know this:

The kingdom of God is near: The clause The kingdom of God is near is the same as in 10:9b, except that it does not contain the word “you.” However, “you” is implied. This clause follows a gesture of warning (10:11a–b) for those who would reject the disciples. It occurs before Jesus’ warning in 10:12 that any town that rejected the message would be severely judged. In this context, you should translate The kingdom of God is near in a way that fits with these warnings. You may need to add implied information. For example:

God has already come to rule over you, ⌊but you have rejected his rule⌋.

General Comment on 10:10b–11c

10:11a–c is a quote within a quote. It contains the words that Jesus told his disciples to say to the people in a town. In some languages it may be more natural to translate these lines as indirect speech. For example:

10b…and tell the people that 11ayou are wiping even the dust from their town from your feet 11bto warn them ⌊that you are no longer responsible if God punishes them⌋. 11cThen tell them that although they have rejected God’s rule, you want them to understand that the time for him to rule his people has arrived.

© 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.

Section 11:33–36

Jesus taught about light and darkness

In this section, Jesus used the metaphors of a lamp, light, darkness, eye, and body. The lamp and the light are illustrations of Jesus and his teaching. Both Jesus’ life and teaching revealed God to the people. People whose spiritual eyesight was good were able to understand and accept his message. They were like someone whose mind or body was full of light. People who rejected his message were like a person who was full of darkness.

Jesus used these metaphors to tell the people (in 11:29–32) that their spiritual eyes were diseased. They could not receive the light of his message. If they had been willing to accept his message, then their minds would have been full of light. They would not have asked for another miracle to prove that God had sent him.

Some other possible headings for this section are:

Jesus’ message is like a lamp and like light
-or-
The light of the body (Good News Translation)

There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 5:15 and 6:22–23.

Paragraph 11:33–36

There are two sayings about a lamp in this paragraph: one in 11:33 and another in 11:34–36. In 11:33 Jesus compared himself and his teaching to a lamp. People put a lamp where its light will be seen. In the same way, Jesus taught in public where everyone could hear and see him.

In 11:34 the topic is different. Here a person’s eye (his attitude toward Jesus’ message) is compared to a lamp. This lamp provides him with light (spiritual illumination or understanding).

11:33

In some languages, it may be necessary to make it clear here that Jesus was still speaking. If that is true in your language, you can begin this paragraph with something like:

⌊Then Jesus said⌋…

Here Jesus used a lamp to illustrate what he and his teaching were like. In your translation, you should keep the illustration of the lamp. If the figurative meaning of the lamp is not clear, you may wish to supply the meaning in a footnote. For example:

The lamp and the light are illustrations that represent Jesus and his teaching. Both Jesus’ life and his message revealed God to the people around him. What Jesus did and taught was not hidden from people. It was done where people could see and hear him.

Jesus used the same lamp illustration in Matthew 5:15 and Luke 8:16. However, he was not necessarily using the illustration to teach the same spiritual truth in each of these three passages.

11:33a

lamp: A lamp in Jesus’ time was a small pot that people put oil in. It had a wick that they lit at night to light up their house.

You should use a word in your language for a lamp that burns oil or kerosene. If there is no general word for lamp, you may use a word that refers to a candle, a lantern, or a flaming torch.

This same word occurs in 8:16a.

a cellar: The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as a cellar refers to any hidden or secret place in a house where a person could put a lamp so that its light would be useless.

In some languages it will be necessary to use an active verb here. For example:

a place where no one can see it

Another way to translate this phrase is:

and then hides it (Good News Translation)

under a basket: The phrase under a basket implies that someone first turns a basket upside down and then puts it over a lamp. Another way to say this is:

covers it with a bowl

basket: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as basket probably refers to a large basket that people used to measure grain. Some other ways to translate this are:

bowl (New International Version)
-or-
clay pot (Contemporary English Version)

In your translation, you could use a term for any container that is big enough to put a lamp underneath.

11:33b

Instead: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Instead is literally “but.” Many English versions translate it that way. This conjunction shows the contrast between 11:33a and 11:33b. Show this contrast in a way that is natural in your language.

he sets it on a stand: A stand was a stone or wooden shelf where people normally put a lamp so it would give light inside the house. Some other ways to translate stand are:

a high place
-or-
lamp holder
-or-
lampstand (Good News Translation)

so those who enter can see the light: This clause explains the reason why people put lamps on stands. They put them on stands in order that the people who came into the house could see at night.

In your translation, avoid suggesting that the people came into the house in order to see the light. Rather, the phrase means that when they came in, they could see where things were, because the lamp lit up the house. Some ways to make this clear are:

so the people who come in can see (New Century Version)
-or-
to give light to all who enter the room (New Living Translation (1996))

© 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.