Translation commentary on John 6:10

In this verse people and men represent two different Greek words. The first word is generic, which explains Good News Translation and Revised Standard Version translations, but the second word refers specifically to male persons. Both Revised Standard Version and New English Bible have “so the men sat down,” which follows the Greek. Good News Translation assumes that all the people whom Jesus told to sit down actually did so, although only the men, that is, male persons, were numbered (compare Matt 14.21). The word sit down technically means “to lie down” (Moffatt “get the people to lie down”) or “recline” (New American Bible “get the people to recline”). However, it was the word normally used to describe the position taken in eating a meal. For English readers sit down sounds more natural than “lie down” or “recline,” which suggest positions for rest or sleep.

Make the people sit down may be translated “cause the people to sit down.” It may be expressed appropriately in some languages as “tell the people to sit down.” It may be necessary to indicate clearly that Jesus was here speaking to his disciples and that they in turn were to communicate this information to the people. Therefore one may translate “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Tell the people to sit down.’ ”

In selecting a term for grass, it is important to distinguish between grass which has been cut (for example, hay) and grass which is growing. Here, obviously, the reference is to grass growing on the hill-side.

In order to indicate that five thousand men applied only to the men and not to all the people, one may translate the last clause of verse 10 “in the crowd there were about five thousand men.”

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 6:10

Paragraph 6:10–13

This paragraph records Jesus’ response to the problem. He did a miracle to provide enough food for everyone.

6:10a

Have the people sit down: Jesus wanted the disciples to ask or tell the people to sit down. He did not mean that they should force the people to sit, but just ask or tell them.

Here are other ways to translate this clause:

Please tell the people to sit down
-or-
Tell everyone to sit down (New Living Translation (2004))

6:10b

Now: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Now is not a time word. It introduces some parenthetical background information that explains why the people could sit on the ground. Many English translations do not translate this word explicitly. A couple of translations put the background information in parentheses. You should introduce or indicate the following background information in a way that is natural in your language.

there was plenty of grass in that place: This is background information. It describes the place where the crowd was gathered. The ground was covered with grass, so it was a good area for sitting down.

Here are other ways to translate this clause:

This was a very grassy place. (New Century Version)
-or-
The ground was covered with grass. (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
(There was a lot of grass there.) (Good News Translation)

grass: In some languages there may not be a common word for grass. If your language is like that, use a general word for groundcover (plants that naturally covers the ground). The grass was still growing and no one had cut it. In other languages, there may be several different words referring to different kinds of grass. In that case, use a word referring to wild grass that covers the ground and which people can sit on and be comfortable.

6:10c

so: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as so means “therefore.” Here it indicates that the disciples did in fact ask the people to sit down. Some translations leave this conjunction implicit.

the men sat down, about five thousand of them: The Greek text more literally says that about five thousand (5000) men sat down. The Greek word for men is normally used for males only. See Matthew 14:21, where women and children are explicitly excluded.

General Comment on 6:10a–c

In some languages it may be natural to reorder or combine the information in these clauses. For example:

“Tell everyone to sit down,” Jesus said. So they all sat down on the grassy slopes. (The men alone numbered about 5,000.) (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
The ground was covered with grass, and Jesus told his disciples to have everyone sit down. About five thousand men were in the crowd. (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” The people had plenty of grass to sit on. (There were about 5,000 men in the crowd.) (God’s Word)

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