SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 2020 – Page 16

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 12:18

12:18

This verse appears at 12:17d in the Berean Standard Bible. See the General Comment note there on the placement of this verse.

© 2020 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 Revelation 14:14

Section 14:14–20

The person on the cloud harvested the earth

In this section, John saw one “like a son of man” seated on a white cloud. This person gathered the people of the earth just as someone harvests grain. Then an angel gathered the grapes of the earth, and squeezed the juice out. The juice represents God’s anger.

Other examples for this section heading are:

The harvest of the earth
-or-
The Earth Is Harvested (New Century Version)
-or-
The person on a cloud gathered the people of the earth

Paragraph 14:14–16

14:14a

And I looked: John just finished talking about the future for believers. This clause indicates that he saw a new part of the vision. Other ways to translate this clause are:

Once again I looked (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
Now in my vision I saw (New Jerusalem Bible)

See how you translated this in 14:1. But note that John used this phrase again here just fourteen verses later.

and saw a white cloud: The Greek words are literally “and look.” The word “look” emphasizes or calls attention to the words that follow. It also probably indicates surprise or suddenness. The word “look” is not a command to look at something. Other ways to translate the Greek phrase are:

indeed/hey, a white cloud
-or-
and look, a white cloud
-or-
suddenly/unexpectedly I saw a white cloud

See how you translated this phrase in 14:1.

14:14b

and seated on the cloud was One like the Son of Man: These words are similar to the words in Daniel 7:13. In that verse, Daniel saw in a vision “one like a Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven.” Many people in Jesus’ day understood that to be a vision of the Christ.

In some languages people are not familiar with Daniel 7:13. If that is true in your language, you may want to explain it in a footnote. For example:

These words are similar to the prophecy in Daniel 7:13 about the Christ. The words here were written to remind people of the prophecy in Daniel 7:13.

like the Son of Man: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Man can mean “male,” “person,” or “mankind.” John probably implied that he was referring to Jesus here, but he only did so indirectly. The meaning here is probably the same as in 1:13. See how you translated the same phrase there.

14:14c

with a golden crown: Here the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as crown refers to the headpiece that kings wear. It is a symbol of their authority. See how you translated a similar phrase in 4:4.

golden: The word gold refers to a shiny, yellow metal that is very valuable. In some languages people are not familiar with gold. If that is true in your language, you may want to explain the meaning in your translation:

⌊expensive⌋ gold
-or-

⌊valuable⌋ metal/stones called gold

See how you translated this word in 3:18 or 4:4.

sickle: This word refers to a long, curved knife with a short handle. It is used for harvesting grain crops. People swing the sickle near the ground to cut the stalks of grain. At that time they used both the stalks and the grain.

In some languages people are not familiar with a sickle. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Use the name of a tool that is used in your area for harvesting grain crops.

• Explain the meaning in your translation. For example:

grain-harvesting tool
-or-
tool for harvesting grain/wheat

• Use the major language word. If people are not familiar with this word, you may want to explain it in a footnote. An example footnote is:

A sickle is a long, curved knife with a short handle. It is used for harvesting grain crops.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 16:18

16:18a–b

And there were flashes of lightning, and rumblings, and peals of thunder, and a great earthquake: The Greek clause is literally “lightning, noises, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake occurred.” Here the word “noises” probably refers to the sound of distant thunder. The New Living Translation (2004) translates this as:

the thunder crashed and rolled, and lightning flashed. And a great earthquake struck…

See how you translated this in 11:19.

great earthquake: This word refers to when the ground shakes strongly.

16:18c–d

the likes of which had not occurred since men were upon the earth—so mighty was the great quake: These words compare this earthquake to all other earthquakes. It says that this earthquake was the worst one. Other ways to translate these words are:

such as had not occurred since people were upon the earth, so violent was that earthquake (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-
the worst since people were placed on the earth (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
There has never been such a powerful earthquake since humans have been on earth (God’s Word)

men: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as men refers to people in general. For example:

mankind (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

mighty: This word means “big” or “great.” The earthquake caused the earth to shake a lot.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 18:11

Paragraph 18:11–13

18:11a

merchants: This word refers to those who buy, sell, and trade as their job. See how you translated this word in 18:3.

weep: This word refers to great sadness that causes tears in the eyes. Here the word may also refer to the noise people make when crying. But it probably does not refer to the loud noise of wailing.

mourn: This word refers to being very sad and grieving. See how you translated this word in 18:9, where the Berean Standard Bible translates it as “wail.”

18:11b

because: This conjunction introduces the reason for the merchants’ sorrow.

no one left to buy: This phrase indicates that no one in Babylon will buy what the merchants have to sell.

cargo: This word refers generally to things that merchants sell. Some of the kinds of cargo are listed in 18:12–13. For example:

goods (Good News Translation)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 19:19

Paragraph 19:19–21

19:19a

beast: Here the word beast refers to the first beast, the one from the sea (13:1–2).

19:19b

assembled: The Greek grammar indicates that the beast, leaders, and armies had already assembled together when John saw them.

19:19c

wage war: This phrase refers to fighting in organized groups. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

fight a war
-or-
battle

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 21:15

Paragraph 21:15–21

21:15a

golden measuring rod:
The word golden indicates that the measuring rod was made of gold. For example:

gold measuring stick (Good News Translation)

golden: The word golden refers to a rare metal of a somewhat yellow color. It was the most expensive metal at that time. It is naturally shiny and beautiful. See how you translated this word in 1:12 or 18:12.

measuring rod: This refers to a straight stick that is used for measuring distances. See how you translated this phrase in 11:1.

21:15b

to measure the city: When someone would measure something, he would find out how big it is. Here a person would use a straight stick of a particular length. He would count the number of times he laid the stick on the ground as he moves from one end to the other end.

In some languages the word “count” is used here for the meaning of measure. For example:

to count the distance/size of the city

See how you translated the word measure in 11:1.

its…walls: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as walls is singular, “wall.” It refers to the wall that surrounds the city. In some languages it is more natural to use the singular here. For example:

its wall (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
the wall ⌊that surrounds⌋ it

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 22:20

Paragraph 22:20a

22:20a

He who testifies to these things: The word testifies refers to saying something that is truthful and accurate. Jesus agreed that the prophecies and visions in this book are truthful and accurate. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

He, who is witness to all this (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
Jesus, the One who says these things are true (New Century Version)

these things: This phrase refers to the whole book of Revelation. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

all this (Good News Translation)
-or-
those things
-or-
those prophecies

I am coming soon: This clause refers to Jesus returning to his people on earth. The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as soon can also refer to “without delay” or “quickly.” See how you translated this clause in 22:12.

Paragraph 22:20b–21

22:20b

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!:
The direct address to Jesus occurs after what is said to him. In some languages it is more natural to have the direct address first. For example:

Lord Jesus, amen, come!

Amen: The word Amen is a Hebrew word that means “even so” or “it is true.” It is used to agree with what was said. The Greek borrowed the Hebrew word. English borrowed this word as well. See how you translated this word in 1:6 or 19:4.

Lord: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Lord means “the one who has authority over (something),” or “owner.” God has authority over everyone and everything. See how you translated this word in 22:5.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 2:6

2:6a

But you have this to your credit: The Greek clause is literally “But you have this.” Here it introduces something good that the believers in Ephesus were doing. So the Berean Standard Bible and some English versions add the phrase to your credit or a similar phrase. Other ways to translate this clause are:

Yet this you do have (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
But you have this in your favor: (New International Version)
-or-
But a good thing you have/do is this:

2:6b

hate: The word hate indicates that the believers in Ephesus strongly disliked and avoided the practices of the Nicolaitans. Other ways to translate this word are:

detest (Revised English Bible)
-or-
are angry with

works of the Nicolaitans: The word works refers to deeds that the Nicolaitans did because of the beliefs of their group. Very little is known about the Nicolaitans and what wrong beliefs they had. Perhaps they claimed to follow Jesus but also followed pagan practices and sexual immorality. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

the deeds of the Nicolaitans (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
what the Nicolaitans do (Good News Translation)
-or-
the ⌊evil/immoral⌋ ways of the Nicolaitans

the Nicolaitans: The name Nicolaitans probably means “followers of Nicolaus.” However, it is not certain who this Nicolaus was. The English ending “–ans” means “the people of.” You should spell the name of the group as your language allows. For example:

the people/followers of Nicolaus
-or-
the Nicolait group

2:6c

which I also hate: This clause indicates that Jesus also hated the practices of the Nicolaitans. Other ways to translate these words are:

the way I do too
-or-
as I hate what they do

This clause tells the reader more about the Nicolaitans. In some languages a literal translation would wrongly indicate that there are other groups called Nicolaitans and Jesus only hated this group. If that is true in your language, translate this clause so that it tells more about the Nicolaitans. One way to do that is to start a new sentence here. For example:

I also hate what they’re doing. (God’s Word)

Search

Step into the multitudes of languages of the Bible and join the worldwide conversation!

Source: SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 2020