2nd person pronoun with low register (Japanese)

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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 second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used anata (あなた) is typically used when the speaker is humbly addressing another person.

In these verses, however, omae (おまえ) is used, a cruder second person pronoun, that Jesus for instance chooses when chiding his disciples. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also first person pronoun with low register and third person pronoun with low register.

Translation commentary on John 19:15

Kill him! Kill him! (so also Goodspeed) is rendered “Away with him! Away with him!” in most translations; Jerusalem Bible renders “Take him away, take him away!” (so also Phillips). The root meaning of the Greek verb is “lift up” (compare 8.59); here it has the extended meaning of “kill” (by “lifting up” or “taking away”).

Crucify him is the same verb used in verse 6, but here the object him is explicitly expressed in Greek.

The only king we have is the Emperor is more literally “We do not have a king except Caesar.” Good News Translation states positively what the Greek text states negatively; “Caesar” is a title for the Roman Emperor (see verse 12). This response of the chief priests may be expressed in various ways, for example, “The Emperor is our only ruler” or “Only the Emperor rules over us” or “The Emperor is the only one we acknowledge as our ruler” or “… as our king.”

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 19:15

19:15a

At this: The Greek text that the Berean Standard Bible translates as At this is a conjunction that is often translated as “So” or “Therefore.” Here it could have that sense and indicate the result of what Pilate said in 19:14c. Most English translations leave the conjunction implied, but it may be more natural in some languages to include it. For example:

Then (NET Bible)
-or-
So (New American Standard Bible)

they shouted: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates shouted means that the crowd spoke very loudly. For example:

they yelled

Away with Him! Away with Him!: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Away with Him indicates that they strongly rejected Jesus. It means “get rid of him” or “remove him.” It implies the use of force, even destroying something or killing someone. Translate this strong cry in a way that is natural in your language. For example:

Take him away! Take him away! (New Century Version)
-or-
Kill him! Kill him! (Good News Translation)

The clause Away with Him! is repeated for emphasis. In some languages it is more natural to express emphasis by using two different expressions. Also, the commands are singular, meaning that the Jews are talking just to Pilate. For example:

Remove (sing.) him! Destroy (sing.) him!
-or-
Don’t let him live! Kill him! (Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Crucify Him!: The word Crucify means to kill someone by nailing him to a cross. See how you translated Crucify in 19:6. Again, the command is singular, meaning that the Jews are talking just to Pilate. Here is another way to translate this sentence:

Nail him to a cross! (Contemporary English Version)

19:15b

Shall I crucify your King?: The Greek expression that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Shall I crucify…? is asking whether the angry crowd wanted Pilate to crucify Jesus. Pilate wanted to be sure that this was what the crowd wanted. For example:

Should I crucify your king? (God’s Word)
-or-
Do you want me to crucify your king? (New Century Version)
-or-
So you want me to nail your king to a cross? (Contemporary English Version)

19:15c

We have no king but Caesar: The Jewish people had always said that their only king was God himself. Here they ignored that and said the Roman emperor was their only king. In some languages it may be natural to translate this as a positive expression. For example:

The only king we have is the Emperor! (Good News Translation)
-or-
Caesar is our king and no one else (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
Our only king is the emperor!

We: This pronoun is exclusive and refers to the Jewish people.

Caesar: This phrase refers to the ruler of the Roman Empire in Rome. The Berean Standard Bible translates the Greek literally as Caesar, the family name of the Roman emperor. See how you translated this word in 19:12.

replied the chief priests: The phrase the chief priests refers to the most important Jewish priests. See how you translated this phrase in 19:6.

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