soldier

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “soldier” in English didn’t have a direct equivalent in Enlhet so it was translated with “those that bind us” (source: Jacob Loewen in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 24ff. ) and in Noongar it is mammarapa-bakadjiny or “men of fighting” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).

Paul

The term that is transliterated as “Paul” in English is translated in American Sign Language 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

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

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 )

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Paul .

complete verse (Acts 23:31)

Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 23:31:

  • Uma: “From there, after he wrote that letter, he ordered his soldiers to take Paulus to the Governor. That night they took him to the town of Antipatris.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Then the soldiers took Paul as they had been commanded. That night they brought him to the place Antipatir.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And then after the captain had finished his letter, the soldiers obeyed his command to them and they got Paul and left. On that night they arrived there in the town of Antipatris.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “When it was night, the soldiers obeyed what their leader had commanded, and they escorted Pablo as-far-as Antipatris.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Without anything further, the soldiers at once obeyed what they had been ordered to do. When night came, they fetched Pablo and then set out. When day came they were in Antipatris.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Acts 23:31

In Greek, verse 31 is one sentence with carried out their orders and got as two participles dependent upon the main verb took. However, most translators tend to make at least one of these participles (usually “took”) into a finite verb; the Good News Translation has made both of them into finite verbs for ease of comprehension.

From Jerusalem to Antipatris would have been a journey of about 40 miles, a difficult distance for foot soldiers to cover during a night’s march. The usual march for a group of soldiers was set at 24 miles, but during the cool of the night they could possibly have covered more distance than they could during the heat of the day on a normal march.

It is important in terms such as got and took to preserve the appropriate geographical point of view. Since in verse 32 the soldiers returned to the fort (that is, to Jerusalem), it would seem that the point of view of the narration was certainly Jerusalem.

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 23:31

Paragraph 23:31–35

23:31a

So: This conjunction indicates that the story resumes from 23:24. The letter ended at 23:30. Consider how to indicate that the story resumes here.

followed their orders: This phrase in Greek is literally “according to the thing commanded them.” It indicates they obeyed the orders of the commander. The Berean Standard Bible here has that meaning. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

as ordered (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
obeyed the commander’s orders (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
did what they were told (New Century Version)

23:31b

brought Paul: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as brought means “take up” or “take along.” It indicates that the soldiers got Paul ready for the journey. They took him out of the room he was in and gave him a horse to ride. Paul got on the horse to go with them. For example:

They got Paul (Good News Translation)
-or-
They led Paul ⌊out to his horse⌋

23:31c

to Antipatris: The journey from Jerusalem to Antipatris is about 68 kilometers (42 miles) in a generally northwest direction. The journey also starts in the Judean hills at 760 meters (2,500 feet) in elevation and ends near sea level. It would take soldiers about sixteen hours to travel this distance on foot. The horsemen and Paul traveled with the soldiers who walked.

Antipatris: Antipatris was a city. For example:

the city of Antipatris (Contemporary English Version)

© 2001, 2021 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.