complete verse (1 Peter 1:20)

Following are a number of back-translations of 1 Peter 1:20:

  • Uma: “Before the world was created, God determined ahead of time that Yesus would be the Redeemer. But he just appeared in the world to redeem you in these days that are approaching the Kiama Day.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Before this world was created, Almasi was already chosen by God to be killed to cause our (incl.) sin to go away, but only now in these last days he is shown/revealed so that he can help us (dual).” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Before the world was created Christ was already appointed by God to be our Saviour. And in this time now, He was revealed so that we might be redeemed.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Before the creation of the world, God chose him to redeem collective-people, but he was not revealed (lit. caused-to-be-seen) for your benefit until these last days.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Really from when he hadn’t yet created the world, he was secured/dedicated already by God for this work of his which was saving/freeing. But only now in our time he was sent here to the world for our salvation.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “Before the world was made it was decided that Christ was to die. And the day arrived that he lived here on earth and he died for us.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (Japanese)

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Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Japanese benefactives (arawarete)

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a benefactive construction as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. Here, arawarete (現れて) or “appear” is used in combination with kudasaru (くださる), a respectful form of the benefactive kureru (くれる). A benefactive reflects the good will of the giver or the gratitude of a recipient of the favor. To convey this connotation, English translation needs to employ a phrase such as “for me (my sake)” or “for you (your sake).”

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on 1 Peter 1:20

In this verse, it is made clear that God’s way of securing the freedom of people is part of God’s eternal plan and purpose.

He has been chosen by God is literally “foreordained,” with God as the implicit agent. As in 1.2, “foreordination” includes the idea of not only knowing beforehand, but doing something in order to insure that such an event will really take place. The Good News Translation rendering chosen is therefore justified (so also New American Bible, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch; some other translations have “destined” or “predestined”). The creation of the world is literally “the foundation of the world,” a New Testament way of speaking of creation (Matt 13.35; 25.34; Heb 4.3; Rev 13.18; etc.). It is of course God who is the agent of creation, and this information can be made explicit in the translation (as in Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “So he [God] offered him before he created the world”).

In rendering He had been chosen by God before the creation of the world it may be relevant to place the temporal expression first, for example, “before God created the world, he had chosen Christ.” In some languages it may be useful to translate the Greek term often rendered “foreordained” as “arranged ahead of time with respect to Christ” or even “arranged ahead of time with respect to what would happen to Christ.”

Although Christ was chosen ahead of time, it was only in these last days that he was revealed. In these last days is literally “at the end of times” and refers to the period beginning with the incarnation and extending to his second coming. A similar expression appears in Hebrews 1.2. It was the conviction of early Christians that the coming of Jesus Christ on earth signalled the beginning of a new stage in history, marked by a new way of God dealing with his people. This new stage in history will come to a conclusion at the second coming of Christ, during which time all the plans of God for the whole world will be realized. The first letter of Peter itself contains many allusions to the idea that the second coming of Christ was imminent and that the end of the world was near at hand (1.7; 4.7; etc.). In these last days gives the unmistakable impression that for Peter, as well as for his readers, this much-awaited end is about to happen. This impact is captured by many modern translations, for example, New English Bible “in this last period of time”; Barclay “as time comes to an end”; Jerusalem Bible “in our time, the end of the ages.”

In these last days includes two related temporal concepts: (1) the end of a particular period and (2) the imminent character of that end. Therefore, one is justified in translating “now in these final days” or “now at the end of this age” or “now when this age is coming to an end,” or even “now when this age will not last much longer.”

He was revealed in the Greek is a passive participle, with God as the implicit agent, hence “God made Jesus known,” or “he was made known by God.” Many translators, however, take this as reflexive; for example, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy “he appeared”; Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “he has then come,” Barclay “he came.”

The purpose of Christ’s coming is made very personal: for your sake, that is, for the benefit of the readers. In this way the readers are made a part of the divine plan and of the whole drama of human history. A common equivalent for the phrase for your sake is “in order to help you” or “in order to cause good for you.”

Quoted with permission from Arichea, Daniel C. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The First Letter from Peter. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1980. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 1:20

1:20

Even before God created the world, he had already appointed his Son, Christ, to save mankind. Finally, after many ages had passed, Christ came into the world as a human being. God sent him to be the perfect sacrifice and save people from their sins.

1:20a

He was known: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as He was known is passive. If it is more natural in your language to use an active verb, you could say:

⌊God⌋ knew ⌊Jesus⌋

God “knew” Jesus in the sense that he decided that Jesus would do a certain task. The expression does not mean that God selected Jesus from a group. Other ways to translate this include:

⌊God⌋ appointed/designated him
-or-
he was predestined/destined (Revised English Bible)

before the foundation of the world: The words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the foundation of the world refer to God’s creating the world and everything in it. In some languages it may be natural to translate the abstract noun foundation as a verb. For example:

before the world was created (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
before the world existed (God’s Word)
-or-
before ⌊God⌋ created/made the world

1:20b

but: There are two ways of understanding the relationship between 1:20a and 1:20b:

(1) The relationship is one of contrast. For example:

but (Revised Standard Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, NET Bible, God’s Word, New Living Translation (2004), New Century Version, Contemporary English Version, New International Version, Revised Standard Version)

(2) The relationship is one of continuation. For example:

and (Good News Translation)

(New Jerusalem Bible, Good News Translation)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) and the majority of English versions.

was revealed: The verb phrase was revealed is referring to Christ’s life and ministry on earth during Peter’s lifetime. Christ came from heaven to earth for everyone to see him. The verb is passive. If it is more natural in your language to use an active verb, you may say:

⌊God⌋ revealed him
-or-

⌊God sent him to earth⌋ for all to see
-or-
he appeared

in the last times: The period of the last times began when Jesus Christ “was revealed” in Peter’s time (see note above), and they will end when the world comes to an end.

There is a textual issue here. The Greek manuscripts do not all say the same thing:

(1) Some Greek manuscripts speak of a period of time, literally “the ends of the times.” For example:

in this last period of time (Revised English Bible)

(Berean Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, New Century Version, NET Bible, New International Version, Good News Translation, New Living Translation (2004), God’s Word, Revised English Bible, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

(2) Some Greek manuscripts speak of a point of time, literally “the end of the times.” For example:

at the final point of time (New Jerusalem Bible)

(Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible)

It is recommended that you follow option (1) and the majority of English versions. You may be able to translate this phrase as:

in this final ⌊period of⌋ time
-or-
in these final times ⌊before the world ends⌋

for your sake: In this context, the phrase for your sake means “for your benefit.” God sent Jesus Christ into the world for the benefit of all who trust him. He planned to do good to them by saving them from sin and giving them eternal life. Here is another way to translate this phrase:

for your good (God’s Word)

In some languages it may be necessary to use a verb form. For example:

to help you

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