Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 2:14:
Noongar: “‘Great, great thanks to God, high in his Holy Country, and peace on our Earth. Peace to all good people. God is happy with them.'” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Uma: “‘Come let us worship God who is in heaven! and on earth, people whom he likes receive goodness of life.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “‘God is worthy to be praised in heaven and on earth may the people who please God be in peace/have peace.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “they said, ‘Let us (inc.) praise God who is in Heaven. And here on the earth may the situation become peaceful of all those people with whom God is pleased.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “‘God in heaven is honored/praised. The people on earth who make-him-happy will-be-at-peace.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “‘Praise God who is in the high-part of the sky/heaven. And here under the heavens, peace/protection of mind/inner-being is what he will give to people who are pleasing to him.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Kupsabiny: “God is big/great in heaven/up | peace is coming | to people who please/love God.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Bariai: “Let’s lift up Deo’s name who is living very high up! | And the people on earth whom Deo is happy with, his action of peace (lit. “of a smooth interior”) remains with them.” (Source: Bariai Back Translation)
Mairasi: “‘We who are in the Heaven, we must honor Great Above One [God]! And then you guys, you who live in the world, you who are in Above-One’s vision [who are pleasing to Him], good peace is intended to be yours!’ said they.” (Source: Enggavoter 2004)
HausaCommon Language Bible: “’Glory to God over there in heaven! | On earth let peace it remain | together with those whom God he feels pleasure of them!’” (Source: Hausa Common Language Back Translation)
Pfälzisch translation by Walter Sauer (publ. 2012): “Honor belongs to God in heaven | and peace shall reign on earth | among the people | because he loves them.”
Low German translation by Johannes Jessen, publ. 1933, republ. 2006: “Praise and honor for God the Lord above | and peace down here on earth for people who mean it with all their heart and have the favor.”
Hawai’i Creole English: “Up in heaven where God lives, | may he continue to be awesome! | And here on earth | If God likes what people are doing | He’ll make their hearts rest within them.” (Source for this and two above: Zetzsche)
English: “‘God is great! He lives in the highest place above. | He will bless the people on earth who please him. | They will have peace in their minds.’” (Source: EasyEnglish Bible)
English: “‘May all the angels in the highest heaven praise God! And on the earth may the people to whom God has shown his favor have peace with him!’” (Source: Translation for Translators)
Following are a number of back-translations of Romans 10:6:
Uma: “But there are other words of Musa that say we can become straight in God’s sight because of our faith. They sound like this: ‘Don’t say in your (sing.) heart: ‘Who is able to climb up to heaven? Who can go down to the dwelling of the dead?’ ‘ Its meaning: it is not necessary for us to climb up to heaven to search for goodness [i.e., salvation], because Kristus has already come down here to us. Nor is it necessary for us to go down to the dwelling of the dead to search for goodness, because Kristus, has risen from the dead to give us goodness.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “But just one thing must/ought be done by us (dual) so that we (dual) are considered straight by God, we (dual) must trust Isa Almasi. And about this there is also (something) written in the holy-book, it says, ‘Don’t say (pl.), ‘There should be first someone going to heaven,’ ‘ (that means to get Almasi to bring him here to earth.)” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “However, concerning the regarding people that can be means of faith, there’s also a written word which says, ‘You must not suppose that we (incl.) can only be considered righteous by God if someone goes to Heaven to get Christ.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “But there is also that which God caused-to-be-written which makes-known to us that the righteousness based on faith is not difficult to gain/enjoy. It/He says, ‘Don’t say to yourselves (lit. with your minds) that someone needs to go to heaven to go call Cristo to come-down here.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “But there is the word about how God clears our sins. He clears our sins because we believe in Jesus Christ. Because it is written ‘Therefore let no one say that is necessary to go to heaven to bring back Christ to save him. Because he has already come.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Huehuetla Tepehua: “But this is what the word of God says about those who have put their confidence in Christ and because of that they are seen as if their life was straight before God. He said: Don’t say in your heart, Who can go up to heaven so that he could bring Christ here to this world to help us?”
Teutila Cuicatec: “As for God justifying those who believe, perhaps there are those who scoff and say as follows: ‘Just who has ever gone to heaven and seen if Jesus Christ came from there?'” (Source for this and above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
Mukulu (Guerguiko): sooru ki diine or “walk in the middle” (source: Barnabas Al-Nadif Nidjei)
Bokoto (Bhogoto): dɛɛmɔ nɛ riwarɛɛ or “behavior on the path (of life)” (source: Adam Huntley)
Budu-Nita translation by CITBA (Centre Interconfessionnel de la Traduction de la Bible et Alphabétisation): mʉkyananakɨa wɔta uɗo or “good character” (source: François Anzabati)
Ngiemboon : mà wembóŋo or “good habit,” i.e. something that is recognized as the right way to do things (source: Moise Yonta)
The Greek that is typically translated as “Peace be with you” in English is translated in Ojitlán Chinantec as “Have peaceful happy hearts,” in Huehuetla Tepehua as “Don’t be sad in your hearts,” in Aguaruna as “Be content,” in Shipibo-Conibo as “Think very good,” in Isthmus Mixe as “Don’t worry,” and in Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac as “May it go well with you.” (Source: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
In Uma it is “Goodness come to you,” in Yakan it is “May there be peace in your liver,” in Tagbanwa “Protection of your inner-being will now be yours” (source: Uma, Yakan, and Tagbanwa Back Translation respectively), and in Mairasi “Good Peace be to you guys!” (source: Enggavoter 2004).
The Greek in Matthew 9:23 that is translated in English as “flute players” (who were hired to express grief) is translated in Muna as “flute players” as well but has an explanatory note in brackets following the translation “[as-a-sign of grief].”
René van den Berg explains: “Music in Muna is always associated with joyous occasions, and to indicate that the presence of the flute players was perfectly normal then (such people were often hired musicians) the explanatory note in brackets was added.”
in Kankanaey it is translated as “nose-fluters” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation), in Tagbanwa as “players of stringed-instruments” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation), and in Tenango Otomi as “musicians” (source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation).
The Greek in Matthew 23:5 that is translated as “phylacteries” or “tefillin” in many English translations is translated in Uma as “prayer headbands” (source: Uma Back Translation), in Yakan as “containers for the writing copied from the holy-book which are tied to foreheads and arms” (source: Yakan Back Translation), in Kankanaey as “storage-place of verses that are part of the law, that they tie around foreheads and arm/hands” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation), in Tagbanwa as “that which is bound round the head and arm which containing a few words of the written word of God” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation) , and in Cherokee as “headband” (source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 16).
In Lokạạ it is translated as yakubẹẹn bạ yafọngi kaa likạ or “boxes where words are written,” therefore “describing the appearance of the item rather than its function.” (Source: J.A. Naudé, C.L. Miller Naudé, J.O. Obono in Acta Theologica 43/2, 2023, p. 129ff. )
The now commonly-used German term Denkzettel (literally “contemplation note”), which today is primarily used with the meaning of a penalty or an experience that’s supposed to change a person’s behavior, goes back to Martin Luther’s 1522 New Testament translation for “phylacteries.” It was kept through and including the revision of 1912. (Source: Redewendungen aus der Bibel )
Click or tap here to see a short video clip about phylacteries (source: Bible Lands 2012)
Following are a number of back-translations of Romans 8:13:
Uma: “For if we follow the evil desires of our hearts, the end will be we will die and be separated from God. But if we release/give-up our evil behavior by the power of the Holy Spirit, we will receive good life with God.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Because if we (dual) really obey/follow the will/wish of our (dual) greedy-desire, our (dual) destiny is to die and go to hell. But if we (dual) really now abandon our (dual) deeds which are evil by the help of God’s Spirit to us (dual), we (dual) will live forever.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “For if what we obey are the desires of our body, we will be punished with death which is forever. But if by the help of the Holy Spirit, we abandon the evil actions of our bodies, we will be given life forever.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Because if we are obeying our human minds, it is unavoidable (lit. forced) that we be separated from God forever. But if we accept the help of the Holy Spirit in order to turn-our-backs on the evil that we are doing, we will have the life that has no end.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Because should we continue along with the evil we committed before, then we will go to punishment. But if we do what we are taught by the Holy Spirit to do, that we separate from evil, then we will be given the new life which is forever.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 10:34:
Uma: “‘Don’t say like this, that I have come to make-in-harmony people. No! I have come to cause-differences among people / make people disagree.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “‘Is it that you mistakenly-think I come to bring peace to the world? I did not come to bring peace but I came to bring a reason for opposition/resistance.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Don’t you think that I came here to the world so that there would be no trouble for mankind. I didn’t come here so that there would be peace, for because of my coming here, people will be against each other.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Jesus also said, ‘Don’t say that I came to bring peace to this earth, because the truth of it is that I came to bring quarreling/fighting and separating of people.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “It’s necessary that you don’t think that I came here to bring peace so that people here in the world will be harmonious. Because some will believe in me, others not. Therefore it’s like a bladed-weapon is what I have brought when I came here, because the outcome will be conflict.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Do not think that I came to earth so that you would not suffer anything at all. That is not right. Rather there will be wars (all kinds of enmity between people).” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Martu Wangka: “I came to the ground to tell you all the Father’s talk. Some people will hear that talk and rejoice and live for the Father, and others will hear that talk and will dislike the Father. Those ones will also dislike the Father’s relatives.” (Source: Carl Gross)
