mourn

The Hebrew, Latin, and Greek that is translated as “mourn” or similar in English is translated in Newari as “have one’s heart broken” or “have a bursting heart” (source: Newari Back Translation).

In Cherokee it is translated as “going around feeling badly” (source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 16).

get nothing / no possession

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “get nothing,” “no possession” or similar in English is translated in the Catholic Mandarin Chinese Sigao version and the Protestant Union Version with a historical Chinese idiom: yīwú suǒdé (一無所得 / 一无所得) or “nothing to show for.” (Source: Toshikazu S. Foley in Hong Kong Journal of Catholic Studies, 2011, p. 45ff.)

See also in need / none / have nothing / lacking.

complete verse (1 Corinthians 7:30)

Following are a number of back-translations of 1 Corinthians 7:30:

  • Uma: “People who weep, don’t keep thinking about their sorrow. People who are happy, don’t keep thinking about their happiness. People who buy anything, don’t keep thinking about their stuff.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Likewise also the ones grieving, they should not continually think of their grief. The glad ones, they should not continually think about their happiness. The ones buying also they should not consider what they have bought as if it was theirs.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And in the same way also, that person is sorrowful, he should act as if he had nothing to be sorry about. And the same way also, that person who has a reason for happiness, he should act as if he had no reason for happiness. And also, those people who are engaged in buying, they must not set their hearts on what they buy, but rather they must think of those things as not theirs.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “The ones who are sad and happy, they should not be-distracted by their sadness and happiness. The one also who buys, he should consider what he buys to not belong to him.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Like that also, don’t make grief, happiness, or livelihood a hindrance to your serving the Lord.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “The people who are living in sadness do not now have time to cry. The people who live happily, do not now have time to laugh. The people who have things they want to buy, now do not have time to buy what they need.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on 1 Corinthians 7:30

The words mourn and rejoice suggest the noisy expression of inner feelings. Therefore mourning refers to “weeping and wailing,” not to silently shedding tears; rejoice probably means “making a joyful noise.” Paul is possibly thinking that there is so little time left that such things as being married, mourning for someone who has died, or celebrating the birth of a child are simply unimportant. Thus he could tell his readers who have reason to weep that they should behave as though they were not sad.

The constructions in Good News Bible, “… weep, as though,” “… laugh, as though,” are too abrupt in many languages. One may render these as “… weep, let them act (or, behave) as though,” and so on.

The clause as though they had no goods can be translated as “as though they did not possess goods” or “as though the things that they have bought do not belong to them.”

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, 2nd edition. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1985/1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Corinthians 7:30

7:30a those who weep, as if they did not;

Likewise, believers who are mourning/grieving ⌊over some sadness/loss⌋ should not be ⌊too/overly⌋ concerned about it.
-or-
If you are weeping now, remember that your sadness/grief is not the most important thing in your life ⌊and soon it will be gone⌋.
-or-
And even if you are weeping/crying and being sad, you should go on serving the Lord, ⌊since you know that soon you will no longer be sad⌋.

7:30b those who are joyful, as if they were not;

Likewise, believers who are happy should not think only about being happy.
-or-
If you are happy, remember that your happiness/joy is not the most important thing in your life, ⌊and what is making you happy will soon be gone⌋.
-or-
And even if you are laughing and feeling happy, you should not let your happiness make you forget about serving the Lord.

7:30c those who make a purchase, as if they had nothing;

Likewise believers who buy things should not be too/overly concerned with the things they own.
-or-
If you buy things, remember that having/owning things is not the most important thing in your life, ⌊and some day you will no longer own those things⌋.
-or-
And when you buy things, you should consider that they are not yours to possess/enjoy for ever.

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