Paul

The term that is transliterated as “Paul” in English means “little.” (Source: Cornwall / Smith 1997 )

In American Sign Language it is translated with a sign that signifies the many letters he wrote. (Source: Ruth Anna Spooner, Ron Lawer)


“Paul” in American Sign Language, source: Deaf Harbor

In Spanish Sign Language it is translated with a sign depicting putting away a sword, referring to his conversion from a persecutor of Christians to a Christian leader. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)


“Paul (and Saul)” in Spanish Sign Language, source: Sociedad Bíblica de España

In Hungarian Sign Language it is translated with a sign that is based on contemporary depictions and refers to the presumed baldness of the top of his head. The description originates from the 2nd-century apocryphal text titled Acts of Paul and Thecla , which represents the earliest and most detailed physical characterization of the apostle in Christian tradition (see also the icon below). (Source: Jenjelvi Biblia and HSL Bible Translation Group)


“Paul” in Hungarian Sign Language — note that only the first part refers to “Paul,” the second part refers to “apostle” (source )

For more information on translations of proper names with sign language see Sign Language Bible Translations Have Something to Say to Hearing Christians .

Following is a Georgian Orthodox icon of Paul the Apostle from the 14th century (located in the Art Museum of Georgia, Tbilisi).

Orthodox Icons are not drawings or creations of imagination. They are in fact writings of things not of this world. Icons can represent our Lord Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the Saints. They can also represent the Holy Trinity, Angels, the Heavenly hosts, and even events. Orthodox icons, unlike Western pictures, change the perspective and form of the image so that it is not naturalistic. This is done so that we can look beyond appearances of the world, and instead look to the spiritual truth of the holy person or event. (Source )

The following is a contemporary stained glass window from the Messiah Episcopal Church in St. Paul, Minnesota by Peter Dohmen. Individual glass pieces were made in Germany in accordance with Dohmen’s design, using a technique first developed by Irish monks in the 9th and 10th centuries.

Source for the image and description below: The Stained Glass Windows of Messiah Episcopal Church

“This window is dedicated to St. Paul, the great apostle and missionary, for whom our city is named. At the top of the window is a ship which symbolizes the many missionary journeys of Paul — the Church is our ship, which carries us over the way of life. In the lower section we see Paul on the road to Damascus when he saw a great light and heard our Lord’s voice, which called him to discipleship.”

Stained glass is not just highly decorative, it’s a medium which has been used to express important religious messages for centuries. Literacy was not widespread in the medieval and Renaissance periods and the Church used stained glass and other artworks to teach the central beliefs of Christianity. In Gothic churches, the windows were filled with extensive narrative scenes in stained glass — like huge and colorful picture storybooks — in which worshipers could ‘read’ the stories of Christ and the saints and learn what was required for their religious salvation. (Source: Victoria and Albert Museum )

Click or tap here to see a short video clip about Paul (source: Bible Lands 2012)

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Paul .

complete verse (Acts 20:11)

Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 20:11:

  • Uma: “After that, he went back up going to the top, broke bread [into small pieces], and we (excl.) ate together. Paulus spoke further until it got light. After that he departed.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Then he went up into the house again to break the bread (into pieces) and he ate. He still spoke to them until early morning and then he left with his companions.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Paul went up again into the house and he got some food and ate. He talked with them for a long time and when it was morning he left.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Then Pablo again climbed-up and we (excl.) ate. After-we (excl.) -had-eaten then, he continued conversing until daylight, then we (excl.) left.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Well, we (excl.) went upstairs again and then just had something to eat. After eating, Pablo continued relating things to them. His talking reached sun-rise. And then he set out.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Morelos Nahuatl: “Then Paul went up again. He ate. Then he continued talking with the believers until it dawned. Then he went.”
  • Isthmus Mixe: “Then Paul went up again. Then he celebrated Holy Communion, they thus ate. Then he talked more until morning. When it became morning he left.”
  • San Mateo del Mar Huave: “Then Paul went upstairs again. There they ate. When they were done eating, then they continued talking until morning. Then he left there.” (Note: this verse is taken either to refer to the Lord’s Supper, or to ordinary eating, or to both, or to a fellowship meal plus communion. Also can be Paul alone, or whole group.) (Source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)

Translation commentary on Acts 20:11

He of verse 11 is, of course, a reference to Paul. Naturally Paul did not eat by himself, but he is the central figure in the narrative and therefore is the one mentioned. Some commentators take broke bread as a reference to Paul’s participation in the Lord’s Supper, while they understand ate to refer to a meal beyond this. Others take the two verbs together to refer either to Paul’s participation in the Lord’s Supper or in the fellowship meal, or simply to the fact that Paul ate for the sake of nourishment before leaving. In light of the way that Luke uses the phrase “broke bread,” it seems likely that the reference is either to the Lord’s Supper or to the fellowship meal which was eaten in conjunction with it.

In order to avoid the implication that Paul ate by himself, it may be necessary to introduce some reference to those who evidently participated with him in this meal, “broke bread and ate with the believers.”

Until sunrise is taken by a number of commentators to mean the sunlight that comes a little before sunrise, that is, daybreak.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Acts 20:11

20:11a–b

Then Paul went back upstairs, broke bread, and ate. And after speaking until daybreak, he departed: Luke wrote about Paul’s actions here, because Paul was the main character in Luke’s story here. But the context implies that the other believers also went back upstairs, broke bread, and ate. They also talked with Paul until daybreak.

In some languages the context clearly implies those things. But in other languages the implied information must be included in the translation. For example:

Then he went back upstairs, broke bread, and ate. ⌊The others did too.⌋ After talking ⌊with them⌋ until daybreak, he left.
-or-
Then he, ⌊along with the other believers,⌋ went back upstairs, broke bread, and ate. After talking ⌊with them⌋ until daylight, he left.

20:11a

Then Paul went back upstairs: Paul went back to where everyone was earlier. The believers who had gone downstairs probably also returned there. See the examples above.

broke bread, and ate: See how you translated similar words in 20:7.

20:11b

speaking: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as speaking indicates that Paul and the believers talked with each another. For example:

continued to converse with them (New Revised Standard Version)

daybreak: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as daybreak refers to the time when the sun rises. For example:

dawn (New Revised Standard Version)

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