we left and came to

The Greek in Acts 21:8 that is translated as “we left and came to” or similar in English is translated in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) with wir wanderten nach or “we hiked to.”

evangelist

The Greek that is transliterated in English as “evangelist” is translated as “[a person who is] accustomed to speak the good news about God” in Eastern Highland Otomi, as “takes God’s word around” in Isthmus Mixe, and as “spoke the good word” Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac. (Source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)

complete verse (Acts 21:8)

Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 21:8:

  • Uma: “The next day we (excl.) left going to the town of Kaisarea. There we (excl.) went to stay at the house of Filipus. Filipus was a person who carried the Good News, and he was one of the seven people chosen in Yerusalem the other day.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “The next day we (excl.) sailed again and we (excl.) arrived at Kesarea. We (excl.) went to the house of Pilip, a man whose work was proclaiming the good news about Isa. We (excl.) stayed there with him. This Pilip was one hep of the seven men chosen there in Awrusalam to apportion/divide the money for expenses in the past.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And when it was morning we left again and we landed in Caesarea. And there we stayed in the house of Philip, the one who preaches the Good News. He was one of the seven men who were chosen long ago in Jerusalem as helpers to the apostles.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “In the morning then, we (excl.) left, and we (excl.) went to Cesarea. When we (excl.) arrived there, we (excl.) went to stay-with in the house of Felipe who was one of the seven whom they had chosen previously in Jerusalem. His work moreover, he preached the good news.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Next day, we (excl.) went on again. Arriving at Cesarea, where we (excl.) went to was the house of Felipe, a teacher of the Good News. He was one of those men chosen in the past in Jerusalem as distributors of aid to the poor. There is where we (excl.) stayed.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Acts 21:8)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, translators typically select the exclusive form (excluding the addressee).

Source: Velma Pickett and Florence Cowan in Notes on Translation January 1962, p. 1ff.

Translation commentary on Acts 21:8

The distance from Ptolemais to Caesarea was 40 miles and would have been difficult to make in a day’s time. The verb translated left is a word which simply means “to leave,” without reference to whether one travels by ship or by land. From the standpoint of translation, it is better to use a general term, rather than a term denoting some specific kind of travel.

Evangelist (see Ephesians 4.11) simply means “a preacher of the Good News,” and it is rendered in this way by the Good News Translation in 2 Timothy 4.5. A verb which comes from this same stem is used to describe Philip’s work in 8.12,35,40. The New Testament itself does not clarify the distinction between this word and the other words used of those who preached the Good News, though it seems rather certain that evangelist did not mean in the New Testament what it means in contemporary English usage. It would seem best in most instances to translate this phrase as “Philip who preached the Good News.”

Luke further characterizes him as “one of the seven,” which means one of the seven men who had been chosen in Jerusalem. Both the New English Bible and the Jerusalem Bible speak of Philip as “one of the Seven,” but to translate even with a capital S is insufficient, for though the man who reads this for himself may immediately understand what is meant, it is quite likely that the person who hears this read will miss its significance. On the other hand, to translate as Phillips has (“one of the seven deacons”), may give a false meaning, since these men are not called deacons in Chapter 6. On the whole, it seems best to render this phrase as the Good News Translation has done, which makes clear the meaning that Luke had in mind, without adding an interpretation to what he said. It is important at this point to have some type of marginal reference to 6.1-6.

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 21:8

21:8a

Leaving the next day, we went on to Caesarea: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as went on to is literally “came to.” It does not indicate whether they traveled by land or by water. They probably traveled by water but it is possible they traveled by land. Therefore, use a general word. For example:

The next day we left and came to Caesarea. (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
On the following day we left and arrived in Caesarea. (Good News Translation)

It is about sixty-four kilometers (forty miles) from Ptolemais to Caesarea. This would be about six hours by ship with good winds or thirteen hours by foot.

Caesarea: This name refers to a city on the Mediterranean coast of the province of Judea. See how you spelled this name in 8:40 or 18:22.

21:8b

stayed at the home of Philip: The Greek words are literally “entering into the house of Philip,…we stayed with him.” For example:

we entered the house of Philip…and stayed with him (Revised Standard Version)

“Entering” implies that Philip invited them in. The clause also implies that Philip invited them to stay. For example:

Philip ⌊invited⌋ us into his house…and to stay with him. And we did.

Philip: This was the same man named Philip in 6:5 and 8:5–40. See how you spelled his name there.

21:8c

evangelist: Here this word means “someone who tells/proclaims the good news about Jesus.” An evangelist tells it mainly to people who do not believe in Jesus yet. He tells it in hope that some will believe. Philip told the good news about Jesus to people in Samaria and to the Ethiopian official (chapter 8). Other ways to translate this word are:

His work was telling the gospel ⌊to people who do not believe⌋ ⌊yet⌋
-or-
a person who carried the Good News
-or-
a man whose work was proclaiming the good news about Jesus

one of the Seven: Here the phrase the Seven refers to seven men that believers chose to help widows (6:1–6). In some languages a literal translation will not be natural or make the meaning clear. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Explain it in your translation. For example:

one of the seven men who had been chosen as helpers in Jerusalem (Good News Translation)
-or-
one of the seven men who helped the apostles (God’s Word)
-or-
one of the seven men who had been chosen to distribute food (New Living Translation (2004))

You may also want to indicate that this phrase refers to 6:1–6 in a footnote. An example footnote is:

See 6:1–6.

• Translate literally and explain it in a footnote. An example footnote is:

The phrase “the Seven” refers to seven men that the apostles chose to help widows (6:1–6).

the Seven: Here the phrase the Seven implies seven “men.” In some languages a word such as “men” must be explicit. For example:

the Seven Men/Helpers

General Comment on 21:8b–c

The order of the Greek words here is:

and entering into the house of Philip, the evangelist, one of the Seven, we stayed/lodged with him

Some languages can follow this order. Other languages must reorder this information. For example:

and entered into the house of the evangelist Philip. He was one of the Seven. We stayed/lodged with him.
-or-
and entering into the house of Philip, we stayed/lodged with him. He was one of the Seven ⌊Helpers⌋, and an evangelist.

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