Translation commentary on John 5:18

This verse begins in Greek with the same words rendered so in verse 16; as the clause beginning because in verse 16 explains these words, so the clause beginning not only in this verse explains why the Jews were determined to kill Jesus.

In some languages the motive which made the Jewish authorities more determined to kill Jesus must be expressed as a cause, for example, “because Jesus had said this, the Jewish authorities were all the more determined to kill him” or “… decided definitely to kill him” or “… to cause him to die.”

The final two causes for the decision of the Jewish authorities may be made even more explicit by saying “They not only decided to do so because he had broken the Sabbath law, but also because he had said that God was his own Father.”

The Sabbath law may be rendered “the law about what people could do on the rest day” or “the law about what was permitted on the rest day.”

But he had said that God was his own Father may be translated “but also he said, ‘God is my own Father’ ” or “but he also called God his own Father” or “… spoke of God as his own Father.”

The Jews were quick to see the implications of Jesus’ argument and concluded immediately that he had made himself equal with God. The remainder of the chapter explains the sense in which Jesus claimed equality with God.

Some translators endeavor to render made himself equal with God as “said that there was no difference between himself and God.” This translation introduces theological difficulties, because Jesus does not speak of his Father as being different from himself. The concept of equality may be expressed in some languages: “he measured himself with God” or “he ranked himself with God” or “he put himself right alongside of God.”

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 5:18

5:18a

Because of this, the Jews tried all the harder to kill Him: The phrase Because of this refers back to what Jesus had just said in 5:17b–c. The Jewish leaders were already angry and persecuting Jesus. After they heard him claim that God was his Father, they were even angrier. For example:

So the desire of the Jewish leaders to kill him increased.
-or-
This saying made the Jews all the more determined to kill him. (Good News Translation)

tried all the harder to kill Him: The Jewish leaders were looking for a way to have the government punish him with death. They were not actually attacking Jesus with a knife or physically harming him in another way. In your translation, make sure that it does not sound as though they made harder physical efforts. Instead, they concentrated harder on it, they talked about it more, and they plotted or planned together secretly more. For example:

tried all the harder to find a way to kill him (New Living Translation (2004))

all the harder: This phrase means “even more.” For example:

For this reason the Jewish leaders were trying even harder to kill him (NET Bible)

5:18b–c

The words “Not only…but” connect 5:18b with 5:18c. In some languages it may be natural to make the connection clearer. For example:

18b
In addition to disobeying the Sabbath rules, 18c he had spoken of God as his Father…. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-

18a This made them try still harder to kill him. 18b They said, “First Jesus was breaking the law about the Sabbath day. 18c Now he says that God is his own Father….” (New Century Version)

5:18b

Not only was He breaking the Sabbath: In verse 5:18a, John explained that the Jews wanted to kill Jesus even more because of what Jesus said in 5:17b–c. This clause gives the reason why the Jewish leaders want to kill Jesus before Jesus said the words in 5:17b–c. In some languages it may be natural to start a new sentence here, as the Berean Standard Bible does. For example:

They said, “First Jesus was breaking the law about the Sabbath day….” (New Century Version)

was He breaking the Sabbath: This phrase tells the original reason that the Jewish leaders had for wanting to kill Jesus. It refers to the healing of the lame man. They thought that Jesus had broken (disobeyed) the Sabbath himself, by healing the man. They also thought that he had told the man to break it by carrying his mat. But Jesus did not really disobey God’s law about the Sabbath. He just disobeyed some of the leaders’ rules about the Sabbath.

breaking the Sabbath: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as breaking the Sabbath means “disobeying the law about the Sabbath.” In some languages it may be necessary to make this more explicit. If this is true in your language, here are ways that you can translate this expression:

he had disobeyed the law of the Sabbath (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
he broke the law about the day of worship/rest

5:18c

but He was even: This Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as but connects the negative statement in 5:18b to the positive statement in 5:18c. Here the negative statement (“Not only was He breaking the Sabbath”) is completed by the positive statement (“He was even calling God His own Father”). The words “Not only” in 5:18b indicate that there is an additional reason why the Jews wanted to kill Jesus. John tells the additional reason in 5:18c and emphasizes it. Translate the connection between the two clauses in a way that is natural in your language. Here are some possibilities:

• Do not use a connector. For example:

For he not only broke the Sabbath, he called God his Father, thereby making himself equal with God. (New Living Translation (2004))

• Follow the Berean Standard Bible and use but. For example:

not only had he broken the Sabbath law, but he had said that God was his own Father and in this way had made himself equal with God (Good News Translation)

• Find another way to introduce an additional reason for the Jews to hate Jesus. For example:

They said, “First Jesus was breaking the law about the Sabbath day. Now he says that God is his own Father, making himself equal with God!” (New Century Version)

The additional reason in 5:18c tells why Jesus’ statement made the Jewish leaders want to kill Jesus more. This second reason is more serious. You may want to indicate that in your translation. For example:

but he was even calling God his own Father (New International Version)

calling God His own Father: This refers back to what Jesus said in 5:17b. The Jewish leaders considered that Jesus had committed a great sin by saying that God was his Father. They did not believe that it was true, and so they considered his statement to be blasphemy (speech that insulted God).

5:18d

making Himself equal with God: The phrase making Himself equal with God means “saying/implying that he was equal with God.” To be someone’s son implies that he is equal in some way with that person because they have the same nature. The Jewish leaders understood that Jesus was placing himself above other men, on a level with God himself. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

by doing that he was saying that he was equal with God
-or-
and in this way had made himself equal with God (Good News Translation)

General Comment on 5:18c–d

In some languages it may be natural to reorder 5:18c and 5:18d. For example:

18b Not only did he break the laws about the day of worship, 18d but also he made himself equal to God 18c when he said repeatedly that God was his Father. (God’s Word)

General Comment on 5:18a–d

This verse is a rather complicated result-reason statement. In many languages it is more natural to reorder the verse and put the reason before the result. Here are some ways to do that in English:

So, ⌊according to the Jewish leaders,⌋ not only did Jesus disobey the Sabbath law, but he also was saying that God was his own Father. That meant that he thought that he was equal to God. Therefore, the Jewish ⌊leaders⌋ sought even more for a way to kill him.
-or-
That statement made ⌊the Jewish leaders even angrier⌋ . Before Jesus had disobeyed the Sabbath ⌊by healing the man on that day⌋ . Now he called God his own Father, which was like saying that he was equal with God. Therefore, the Jewish ⌊leaders⌋ tried even harder to find a way to kill him.

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