Barclay Newman, a translator on the teams for both the Good News Bible and the Contemporary English Version, translated passages of the New Testament into English and published them in 2014, “in a publication brief enough to be non-threatening, yet long enough to be taken seriously, and interesting enough to appeal to believers and un-believers alike.” The following is the translation of Luke 10:1-12:
Later the Lord chose seventy-two other followers
and sent them out two by two to every town and village
that he intended to visit. He said to them:
“So many crops in the field, and so few workers!
Pray for the Lord of the harvest to send more workers.
Now go, and remember I’m sending you out
like lambs among hungry wolves.
Take only the clothes you absolutely need,
and don’t waste time just hanging loose!
Ask God’s blessing upon every home
where you are welcomed,
but withhold it where you are rejected.
Stay with the first family that invites you,
eating and drinking whatever they provide,
without moving from place to place.
Remember you are worth what you receive,
if you work really hard.
“When a town welcomes you, heal their sick and say,
‘The Ultimate Kingdom will soon be here!’
But when a town rejects you,
stand on the top of a soap box and shout,
‘This is your final warning!
The Ultimate Kingdom will soon be here!’
“My followers, I tell you now
that no town will be judged more harshly
than those that reject you!”
Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 10:8:
Noongar: “When you enter one place and they welcome you, eat and drink what they give you,” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Uma: “‘If you enter into a town and you are received, eat what they offer to you.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Whatever village you come to, if the people treat-you-according-to-custom, eat whatever they place before you.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Now when you arrive in a town and there’s someone there who welcomes you, whatever food they have which they feed you, you eat it.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “So even whatever town you go to, if they give-you-hospitality, eat what they set-before you,” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Well, whichever town you come to, as long as you are received, eat whatever will be served to you, not choosing or avoiding any.” (Source: Tagbanwa 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 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).
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). This 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.
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®).
kai eis hēn polin eiserchēsthe kai dechōntai humas ‘and into whatever town you go and they receive you.’ As in v. 5 the relative hēn is not taken up in the main clause. The second clause expresses a condition which must be met by the people of any town where the messengers come. Subject of dechōntai are the people of the town (cf. Phillips).
esthiete ta paratithemena humin ‘eat what is put before you,’ cf. on 9.16 and on v. 7.
Translation:
Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, or, ‘if you enter a town and the people (there) receive you,’ ‘if on entering a town its people receive you’; and cf. on 9.5.
What is set before you, or, ‘what is offered you,’ ‘what the people there offer you.’
Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.
If you enter a town: The clause If you enter a town is a general principle. It refers to any time when the disciples arrived in a town. For example:
Whenever you go into a town (Good News Translation)
and they welcome you: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and they welcome you is literally “they receive you.” The pronoun they refers to the people of that town who would happily receive the disciples. Some ways to translate this verb are:
• As a passive verb. For example:
and are made welcome (Good News Translation)
• As an active verb. For example:
and the people welcome you (God’s Word) -or-
where the inhabitants receive/accept what you say
Translate this in the way that is most natural in your language.
10:8b
eat whatever is set before you: The clause eat whatever is set before you is a command. It means that the disciples should eat whatever food the people in the house give them. This clause is very similar in meaning to 10:7b.
whatever is set before you: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as is set before you is passive. Some ways to translate this phrase are:
• As a passive phrase. For example:
the food provided for you (Revised English Bible)
• As an active phrase. For example:
whatever they serve you (God’s Word) -or-
whatever food they prepare for you
Translate this in the way that is most natural in your language.
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