complete verse (John 11:10)

Following are a number of back-translations of John 11:10:

  • Uma: “But people who walk in the darkness will certainly trip, because there is nothing that enlightens them.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “But if we (dual) walk at night, we (dual) stumble because we (dual) are in the dark.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “But if there is someone walking at night, he will stub his foot because it is no longer light.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “But if the night is when-he-walks, he will stumble, because it is dark and he has no light/a light is not with/in him (ambiguous).'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “But the one walking in the night time stumbles because there’s no longer any light.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “But when he walks in the night, he will stumble because there isn’t light where he goes.'” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on John 11:10

Evidently the people of Jesus’ day believed that it was necessary for a person to “have light in himself” in order for him to see. Accordingly the two parts of this verse supplement each other. A person stumbles at night not only because of the lack of external light, but also because he has no light.

He has no light can be misleading, since it may suggest that “he has no torch.” It is important to understand the passage as referring to an internal source of light or capacity to see in the darkness.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1980. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on John 11:10

11:10a

But: This word introduces the opposite situation, that of walking in the dark. It indicates a contrast between the situation in 11:9b–c and the one in this verse.

if anyone walks at night: This phrase refers in general to anyone and everyone who walks at night, in the dark. See the General Comment on 11:9–10 for an example of a singular subject. In Jesus’ time, in a world without electricity, walking at night meant walking in the dark. It may be natural to say this more clearly. For example:

those who walk in the dark of night
-or-
those who walk in the hours of darkness

walks at night: This phrase continues the illustration. Jesus compared living life without him to walking in the world without light. Here are some ways that they are similar:

• People who walk in the dark are not able to see/know the way

• People who walk in the dark can be in danger.

Try to translate this in a way that helps your readers understand that Jesus was using figurative language. For example:

those who try to walk in the hours of darkness

he will stumble: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as stumble refers to someone who falls because they walk into something. It can also be translated as “trip.”

As in 11:9b, the word stumble is a metaphor and refers to sinning or facing unnecessary danger. In some languages, you may want to make the meaning of the metaphor clearer. For example:

stumble ⌊into difficulty/danger⌋

11:10b

because: This word introduces the reason why those who walk at night stumble.

he has no light: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates literally as he has no light continues the metaphor. It means that the person stumbles because Jesus, the light, is not in him. Here are other ways to translate this clause:

he does not have the light inside him
-or-
they have no light in themselves (God’s Word)

General Comment on 11:9–10

In some languages it may be natural to follow the Greek and use a singular rather than a plural subject. It is good to use a general subject that can refer to anyone, male or female. For example:

9 If anyone walks around in the daytime…. 10 But if anyone walks around at night…. (NET Bible Bible)

In some languages it may be natural to use the second-person pronoun as the subject. For example:

9 If you walk during the day, you will have light from the sun, and you won’t stumble. 10 But if you walk during the night, you will stumble, because you don’t have any light. (Contemporary English Version)

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