11:43a

Woe to you Pharisees!: In Greek, this verse does not begin with a conjunction. Otherwise, this clause is the same as in 11:42a.

11:43b

This verse part begins with the same Greek conjunction as 11:42b. It introduces another reason why God was going to punish the Pharisees. Many English versions translate this conjunction as “for” or “because.” The Berean Standard Bible and some other English versions do not translate this conjunction. In some languages it may be natural to introduce this reason without using an explicit conjunction.

You love the chief seats: The clause You love the chief seats implies “you love ⌊to sit in⌋ the chief seats.”

love: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as love here means “strongly desire” or “want” or “value.” The Pharisees strongly desired and valued the privilege of sitting in a place that made them look important.

the chief seats: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the chief seats is literally “the-first-seat.” This word refers to a bench in the front of the synagogue that faced the congregation. The places on this bench were reserved for important people. They were the seats of honor.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

the seat of honor (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-
the front seats (God’s Word)
-or-
the reserved seats (Good News Translation)
-or-
the best seats (NET Bible)

in the synagogues: Buildings known as synagogues were places where Jews gathered to pray, read Scripture, teach their beliefs, and worship God. The Jews also gathered there for cultural activities. Some ways to translate synagogues are:

prayer-houses ⌊of the Jews⌋
-or-
meeting-places ⌊of the Jews⌋
-or-
worship buildings
-or-
houses for gathering together

If you make explicit a phrase such as “of the Jews,” be sure that it does not imply that Jesus was not a Jew.

You will need a different term to translate synagogue than you use for temple. There was only one temple (in Jerusalem), but each Jewish community had a synagogue.

If the word synagogue is already known in your area, you may write it according to the sounds of your language. You may want to include a word or phrase to explain the meaning. For example:

sinagog house/building

The word synagogue also occurs in 4:15a. See synagogue in the Glossary.

11:43c

and the greetings in the marketplaces: The phrase greetings in the marketplaces implies respectful greetings. In some languages, it may be more natural to start a new sentence here. For example:

⌊You also like people⌋ to greet you ⌊respectfully⌋ in the marketplaces.

The word greetings indicates that people were speaking greetings to each other. In some languages it may be more natural to use a direct quote here. For example:

⌊you also enjoy it⌋ when people honor/greet you in public ⌊by saying, “Sir.”⌋

the marketplaces: The phrase the marketplaces refers to public, outdoor areas where people bought and sold various things, such as food. The people who gathered there commonly showed their respect for the Pharisees by giving them long greetings.

If religious leaders in your area do not normally go to marketplaces, you may use a more general expression. For example:

in public places
-or-
when you appear in public

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