the wind blows where it wills

The Greek that is translated as “the wind blows where it wills” or similar in English is translated in Umiray Dumaget Agta as “the wind goes where it naturally goes.” (Source: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125)

Religious leaders sought him out to find answers to life's deepest questions (image)

“It is unusual for anyone to seek out another at night unless it is desired to be kept secret. Betel nut and condiments are laid out to welcome the guest even at the late hour. Nicodemus’s robe and bared shoulder show he is a religious devotee.”

Drawing by Sawai Chinnawong who employs northern and central Thailand’s popular distinctive artistic style originally used to depict Buddhist moral principles and other religious themes; explanation by Paul DeNeui. From That Man Who Came to Save Us by Sawai Chinnawong and Paul H. DeNeui, William Carey Library, 2010.

For more images by Sawai Chinnawong in TIPs see here.

complete verse (John 3:8)

Following are a number of back-translations of John 3:8:

  • Lalana Chinantec: “‘The wind blows just wherever it wants to. We hear the sound but we do not know where it comes from. We do not know where it is going. And that is what the person whom the great Spirit of God has caused to be alive is like. It is evident that he is alive, even though we do not know how it is that that has happened.’ That’s what Jesus said to Nicodemus.” (Source: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
  • Uma: “For example wind, it blows wherever it goes. We just hear its rustling, we do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So also with a person who is born from/by the power of the Spirit of God.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “‘An example/a figure is the wind. The wind blows wherever it wants to. It is not known where the wind comes from or where it goes to but you hear it’s sound. Like that is also a person when he is born from the Spirit of God, it is not known as to how (it happens) but (that it is) true.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “As for the wind, it goes just any old where, and we can tell because we can hear its noise. But we cannot tell where it comes from or where it’s going. It is the same way also with the power of the Holy Spirit in a person who is born by means of his power because this cannot be understood by a mere person.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Because even though the way it happens can not be understood, it happens nonetheless. It’s like the wind. We don’t know where-it-comes-from and where-it-goes, because what it does is up-to-it, but we feel-it nevertheless. It’s the same with all who are born by the Holy Spirit.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Consider this. The wind blows wherever it wishes. We can hear the rustle and see the movement of things it is blowing, like a sign of its strength. But we can’t see this wind. We don’t know where it is going and where it came from. Well, it’s like that indeed when someone is given birth to by the Espiritu Santo. For the work/activity of the Espiritu Santo, it’s just like the activity of the wind. We can’t control him and we can’t see him. We can only see natures/ways he has made new in people who have been given birth to again.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “You know that the wind goes anywhere it wants to go. You hear it blowing but you don’t know where it comes from or where it goes. In like manner the Holy Spirit who gives new life to people, you do not see.'” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Spirit (of God) (Japanese honorifics)

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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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-tama (御霊) or “Spirit (of God)” in the referenced verses.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also Holy Spirit

Translation commentary on John 3:8

In this verse there is a play on words which comes through in Greek or in Hebrew but is difficult to bring out in English. In Greek, as in Hebrew, the same word may mean either wind or “spirit.” In this context wind is the primary comparison, and so Good News Translation and most other translations render it in that way. Some translations add a footnote, indicating that the word for wind may also mean “spirit” (Bible de Jérusalem, Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible, New American Bible, Zürcher Bibel).

Here, as in verse 6, Jesus is speaking in parables. He is drawing an analogy between something that happens in this world (the freedom of the wind to blow where it will), and what happens in the realm where God’s Spirit operates (the freedom of the Spirit to give spiritual birth to whomever he will).

In some languages it may be impossible to speak of an inanimate force (“wind”) as “wishing.” The closest equivalent may be “The wind blows in any and all directions” or “The wind blows now in one direction and then in another direction.” In some receptor languages an equivalent phrase would be “You never know from what direction the wind will be blowing.”

Some languages have no noun for “wind” but only a verb “to blow,” which refers to the movement of air through the atmosphere. The equivalent expression in such instances would be “There is blowing in any and all directions.”

It is not even possible in some languages to speak of “the wind making a sound.” The wind moves objects or comes in contact with objects and the objects make a noise. Note also that it is the wind that “comes” and “blows” and not the sound; but it may not be possible to speak of a wind coming or going, if such verbs are restricted to the movement of animate objects. An equivalent may be “You do not know from where it is blowing or to where it is blowing.”

It is like that with everyone who is born of the Spirit may be rendered “This is just what happens with everyone to whom the Spirit gives birth,” but it may be important to use a verb meaning “rebirth” or “gives new life to.” Otherwise, the reference might be understood to be to some malevolent spirit giving supernatural birth to a person. The use of the fuller phrase “Holy Spirit” may remove this possible misinterpretation.

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 .