The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “remember” in English is translated in Mairasi as “it is (or: place it) in your liver’s crack” (source: Enggavoter 2004) and in Noongar as barrang-dwangka, literally “ear-hold” (source: Portions of the Holy Bible in the Nyunga language of Australia, 2018).
Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.
As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator2002, p. 210ff. ), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.
Here, Jesus is addressing his disciples, individuals and/or crowds with the formal pronoun, showing respect.
In Nepali translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and other people with the medium honorific pronoun timīlē (तिमीले) or timīlēharū (तिमीलेहरू). His disciples respond with a high honorific pronoun. (Source: Chitra Chhetri in The Bible Translator 2009, p. 73ff. )
In most Dutch translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and common people with the informal pronoun, whereas they address him with the formal form.
Following are a number of back-translations of John 16:4:
Uma: “I say this to you, so that when it happens, you will remember that I have already told you. ‘I did not tell you all these teachings from the beginning, because I was still here with you.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “But I am telling you this in order that when this persecution comes to you, you will remember that I have told you beforehand of it. ‘I did not tell you this in the beginning, because I was still here with you.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “I have told you this before so that when this you are going to have to endure happens, you will remember that I warned you already. I didn’t tell you this long go when we were first companions because I was still with you then.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “I tell-you -in-advance now so that in a future day when (lit. and) this happens to you, you will remember that that’s what I told you. ‘I didn’t tell you this at first, because I was still with you.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “I am telling you this already so that when the time comes when they will do it now, you will remember that I already told you. All of this time, I have not yet been telling you these things, because I am still in your company.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “I tell you this now so that when it comes time for this to happen you will remember what I told you. Before I didn’t tell you this because we were together.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
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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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
But I have told you this is the same expression used in 16.1, except for the addition of the conjunction “but.”
When the time comes for them to do these things is literally “when their hour comes” (see 16.2). New English Bible translates “when the time comes for it to happen”; Jerusalem Bible has “when the time for it comes.”
Remember what I told you is more literally “remember that I told you of them” (Revised Standard Version). New English Bible translates “remember my warning” and Jerusalem Bible “remember that I told you.” As in many similar contexts, remember must be understood in the sense of “pay attention to” or “think about.” It does not suggest that the disciples will, in the meantime, forget all that Jesus has said.
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 .
These things is emphatic in the Greek sentence structure. It refers to the inevitability of persecution discussed in 15.18–16.4a.
At the beginning, though not the precise phrase used in 15.27, has the same meaning as the earlier phrase; that is, it refers to the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Jesus did not tell his disciples about future persecution at the beginning of his ministry, because he was then present to protect them, and because at that time the persecution was directed against him rather than against them. In some languages at the beginning may be rendered “when you began to follow me” or “when you first became my disciples” or “when I first began to teach you.”
But now of this verse contrasts with at the beginning in 4b.
I am going to him who sent me (as always, a reference to the Father) repeats the words of 7.33. The same theme is repeated again in 16.10,17,28 (see also 14.12). In some languages there is a subtle obscurity involved in rendering to him who sent me. This phrase might appear to be a kind of indefinite reference, and thus not the equivalent of “to my Father who sent me.” If a close correspondence to the Greek text is likely to lead to misunderstanding, it may be necessary to render this expression “to my Father who sent me.”
Although the Greek text has direct discourse (“Where are you going?”), it is often better to translate by indirect discourse, as in Good News Translation (note also Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “And none of you asked me where I am going”). Of course, here and in other such contexts, the translator should follow what is most natural in the receptor language.
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 .
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