patience / patient

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The Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Greek terms that are translated as “patient” or “patience” are translated in a variety of ways.

Eugene Nida (1952, p. 130) gives some examples:

“Peace is the quality of the soul; patience is the behavior of the soul. The Aymara of Bolivia have described patience well by the phrase ‘a waiting heart.’

“The Ngäbere of Panama describe patience in more vivid terms. They say that it is ‘chasing down your temper.’ The impatient person lets his temper run away with him. Patience requires one to “chase down his temper” and get it under control [see also Mairasi down below].

“The Yucateco describe patience as ‘strength not to fall.’ This seems to include almost more than patience, but it is important to note that this Yucateco translation recognizes that impatience means ‘falling.’ For some of us, who tend to take a certain secret pride in our impatience—describing it as energetic drive—it might be well to recognize that impatience is failure, while patience is strength.

“The San Blas Kuna in Panama use a rather strange phrase to depict patience. They say ‘not caring what happens.’ But this is not meant as condoning foolhardy indifference to life and danger. It reflects a kind of reckless confidence in God, a confidence not bred of desperation but of utter reliance. The patient person is not concerned about what happens; he is willing to wait in confidence.”

Following are some other translations:

See also Seat of the Mind / Seat of Emotions and slow to anger.

complete verse (2 Timothy 4:2)

Following are a number of back-translations of 2 Timothy 4:2:

  • Uma: “Announce the Word of God. You must be ready to announce his Word in good times or in evil times. Oppose those who carry wrong teaching, forbid/rebuke those whose behavior is evil, fire-up their hearts so that their behavior is good. Continually be patient teaching them.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “I instruct you, amey-amey (strong command) proclaim the message of God to the people. No matter what time, whether they want to listen or not, just the same you ought to teach/preach to them. Persuade them to follow/obey Isa. If they have errors/mistakes, teach/instruct/point-it-out-to them. If there is someone whose trust in God is weak, encourage his liver. Make clear your teaching/preaching so that they believe and don’t you tire of teaching/preaching.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And because of this, my charge to you is: preach the word of God. You must always be ready to preach the word of God always at all time whether people want to listen or not. Correct people, advise them that they should stop doing evil. Plead with them. You must always be patient as you teach them.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “you (sing.) be continually prepared to preach the word of God. Go-ahead-and preach-it whether people want to hear or not, whether the time is appropriate or not. Make-known to them if they have errors and sins and admonish them that they ought to repent. Encourage (lit. strengthen) also their minds to do good. See-to-it that you (sing.) persevere in showing patience in your (sing.) teaching of them.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “I am instructing you that, no matter what the time, you will always teach this word which is truth. Expose/bring-to-the-surface the errors of those you are teaching, rebuke them and encourage them to do what is straight/righteous. Do all of this with big meekness/patience and gentle teaching.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “You must do this word I tell you. Earnestly speak the good news. Always tell the people the word, even though they should not want to listen. Search as to how to win their hearts. Those who do not walk in the correct word, reproach. Encourage that they do what God approves of. Endure what people say against you. Do not rest from teaching God’s word.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

word / command (of God) (Japanese honorifics)

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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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-kotoba (みことば) or “word (of God)” in the referenced verses.

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

Translation commentary on 2 Timothy 4:2

What follows is a series of nine imperatives, five of them occurring in the present verse, and all related to Timothy’s preaching and teaching ministry. The first and the most important is preach the word. For preach see 1 Tim 3.16. Word translates the Greek word logos and here refers to the Christian message in general, or the gospel. (See further on 1 Tim 4.5.) Timothy is therefore urged to “preach the message” (Good News Translation; compare New Revised Standard Version “proclaim the message”); this is his most important task.

Secondly, Timothy is to be urgent in season and out of season. Be urgent translates a verb that means “to stand by, to be at hand.” Some translations have taken this meaning; for example, New International Version “be prepared.” But the verb can also have the meaning “to continue in an activity in spite of presumed opposition,” hence “to be persistent” (New Revised Standard Version). The reference of course is to the proclamation of the message, which means that Timothy is being urged to keep on with his preaching ministry (so Good News Translation “insist upon telling it”). In many languages it will be helpful to begin a new sentence with the phrase be urgent; for example, “… to preach the message. You should be persistent in doing this….”

The expression in season and out of season is literally “well-timely or untimely” and means “whether it is convenient or not.” Most translations take this general meaning (for example, New Revised Standard Version “whether the time is favorable or unfavorable,” Good News Translation “whether the time is right or not,” New American Bible, Revised “convenient or inconvenient”). It is possible to interpret this in a more specific sense, in which case one has to decide whether the expression is subjective, referring to Timothy, or objective, referring to his hearers. If the former, then a possible restructuring is “whether you feel inclined to preach or not.” If the latter, one can have the following restructuring: “whether people want to hear it or not” (compare Jerusalem Bible “welcome or unwelcome,” Contemporary English Version “even if it is not the popular thing to do”). There is also a play on words here (Greek eukairos—akairos) that in some sense is captured by the translation in season and out of season. It is sometimes possible and even advisable to recapture this play on words in the receptor language, as long as the resulting translation is natural and appropriate.

The final three imperatives are stated without any additional explanation.

For convince see the same verb translated “rebuke” in 1 Tim 5.20. The word includes the element of telling people that they are wrong or have done something wrong; hence “reproach,” “rebuke,” “refute falsehood” (Jerusalem Bible), “reprove” (Phillips).

Rebuke denotes expressing strong disapproval of someone; hence “to denounce,” “reproach” (Good News Translation), “reproof” (Revised English Bible).

For exhort see comments on 1 Tim 4.13, where the same word is translated “preaching”; and see also 1 Tim 1.3 and 2.1, where in both places it is translated as “urge.” The verb used here has a wide range of meanings, but in the present context it means either to appeal earnestly (hence “urge,” “exhort”) or to encourage or console people, either by means of words or by action (compare Contemporary English Version “cheer them up”). It will be helpful in many languages to have two sentences; for example, “You must show people what they have done wrong and reprove them for their sins. But you should also encourage them as you teach them very patiently.”

The last part of this verse (be unfailing in patience and in teaching) is literally “in all patience and teaching.” For patience see 1 Tim 1.16 and 2 Tim 3.10. Teaching is better taken here as referring to the activity of teaching rather than to its content. It is very likely that what we have here is a hendiadys, that is, two elements connected with “and,” with one element being a quality of the other. If this is so, then teaching is the main action, and patience is a quality that characterizes teaching; so Good News Translation “teaching with all patience,” New English Bible “with all the patience that the work of teaching requires.” It is possible, however, to take patience and teaching separately and connect them with the activities represented by the imperatives. The sense then is “do all these with unfailing patience and as a way of teaching” (compare Jerusalem Bible “but do all with patience and with the intention of teaching,” New Jerusalem Bible “but do all with patience and with care to instruct”).

Alternative translation models for this verse are:
• to preach the message. You should be persistent in doing this, whether you feel inclined to preach or not. You must show people what they have done wrong, and rebuke them for their sins. But you must also encourage people as you teach them very patiently.

Or:
• … You should be persistent in this, whether people want to listen to you or not. You must show people what they have done wrong and rebuke them for their sins; but also encourage them. Do all of this with patience, teaching them carefully.

Quoted with permission from Arichea, Daniel C. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1995. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Commentaire sur la traduction de 2 Timothée 4.2

Ce verset comprend cinq impératifs (sur une série de neuf) qui indiquent à Timothée comment il devrait se comporter à l’égard de la communauté chrétienne et surtout à l’égard des opposants.

proclame la Parole : le même verbe décrit Jean le Baptiste en train de proclamer ou annoncer publiquement l’arrivée du Messie (Marc 1.7). Voir aussi 1 Tim 3.16. Ici la Bible en français courant dit « prêche », un terme souvent utilisé dans les églises de nos jours, mais qui ne figure pas dans le texte grec ici.

la Parole désigne le message venant de la part de Dieu, comme en 1 Tim 4.5. Il ne s’agit pas des Écritures saintes en tant que telles. La Bible en français courant parle explicitement de « la parole de Dieu », mais beaucoup de versions disent Parole tout court. Il s’agit certainement de l’Évangile, le message au sujet de Jésus Christ. La lettre majuscule à Parole retenue dans certaines versions ne correspond à rien dans le texte grec et n’aide pas la compréhension lors d’une lecture à haute voix.

insiste à temps et à contretemps : le verbe ἐφίστημι ephistêmi a plusieurs sens surtout dans les livres de Luc-Actes : « se tenir à côté », « se tenir prêt de » (Luc 2.9 ; 4.39), « aborder » (Act 4.1). Dans ce contexte, le sens est d’« intervenir » (Nouvelle Bible Segond) ou d’insister (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, La Bible du Semeur, Bible de Jérusalem, Parole de Vie). On pourrait aussi dire « persistez ». La Bible en français courant associe ce verbe à ce qui précède : « prêche la parole de Dieu avec insistance », mais il semble mieux de rendre ce verbe comme un impératif à part, comme dans la Traduction œcuménique de la Bible.

à temps et à contretemps rend une expression idiomatique en grec, littéralement « bon-temps, sans-temps », basé sur le mot καιρός kairos. L’association de ces mots créent un certain rythme ou rime en grec : εὐκαίρως ἀκαίρως eukairôs akairôs. Le sens est « si le moment est opportun ou pas », « que l’occasion soit favorable ou non » (Bible en français courant, La Bible du Semeur). La Parole de Vie voit plus le côté négatif, « insiste toujours, même si ce n’est pas le moment », mais il vaudrait mieux exprimer l’idée et l’effet sonore si possible. La Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, avec à temps et à contretemps fournit donc un bon exemple. Dans certaines langues, il vaudrait mieux inverser les propositions, « que le moment soit convenable ou non, insiste toujours ».

reprends veut dire « réprimander », comme lorsque les disciples réprimandent les enfants qui s’approchent de Jésus. Là Jésus s’oppose à cette façon d’agir, mais ici Paul demande à Timothée de reprendre ceux qui s’opposent à la Parole de Dieu. Voir 1 Tim 5.20 ; Tite 1.9.

menace a un sens proche de reprendre, mais semble plus fort. C’est le mot employé dans les Évangiles pour décrire Jésus en train de menacer la tempête ou de parler sévèrement aux esprits mauvais (Matt 17.18). Voir aussi Marc 1.25 ; 3.12 ; 8.30,32,33 et Jude 9.

Pour exhorte, voir 1 Tim 1.3 ; 1 Tim 4.13. Ici la Parole de Vie dit « encourage ». Les deux premiers verbes, reprends et menace, sont plutôt négatifs. Ici Paul montre que, lorsqu’on critique ou réprimande les gens, il faudrait aussi les encourager.

toujours avec patience et souci d’enseigner est littéralement « en toute patience et enseignement ». Ces mots sont sujets à plusieurs interprétations. D’abord il n’est pas clair si les mots « en toute patience » se rapportent aux cinq impératifs de ce verset, à certains d’entre eux (reprends, menace, exhorte) ou seulement au dernier verbe, exhorte. Certaines versions en anglais associent le mot patience à tous les impératifs : « fais tout avec patience, prenant soin d’enseigner ». La Parole de Vie associe l’expression au dernier verbe, disant « encourage avec beaucoup de patience, en cherchant toujours à enseigner ». Mais plusieurs versions lient patience à l’enseignement : « en enseignant avec une patience parfaite » (Bible en français courant), « en te montrant toujours patient dans ton enseignement » (Nouvelle Bible Segond).

Dans certaines langues, il faudrait rendre explicite qui reçoit la proclamation, qui est repris, menacé, etc. On pourrait dire, par exemple, « proclame la parole de Dieu aux gens…. réprimande-les », etc.

Source: Zogbo, Lynell & Ellingworth, Paul La deuxième lettre à Timothée – Manuel de traduction – Commentaire linguistique et exégétique de la Bible. Alliance biblique universelle, 2021.