Scriptures Plain & Simple (Luke 15:1-7)

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 15:1-7:

A mixed crowd — some politically incorrect
and others simply street scum —
       were hanging around, listening to Jesus teach.
A group of religious snobs came up and started griping,
“This guy goes around with the wrong crowd,
       and he even eats with them.”

Then Jesus told them this story:

       What would you do, if you had a hundred sheep,
              and one of them wandered off?
       Wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine out in the field
              and look for the lost sheep, until you found it?
       Sure you would, and you’d be so glad when it was found
              that you’d throw it on your shoulder and carry it home.
       Then you’d say to your friends, “Let’s celebrate!
              I’ve found my lost sheep.”

“That’s how it is with God,” declared Jesus.
“God gets more excited over one person
who has a change of heart
       than over ninety-nine self-righteous bigots.”

Translation commentary on Luke 15:4

Exegesis:

tis anthrōpos ex humōn … ou kataleipei ‘what man of you … does not leave?,’ rhetorical question, the obvious answer being: everyone. anthrōpos is virtually redundant.

echōn hekaton probata kai apolesas ex autōn hen lit. ‘having a hundred sheep and having lost one of them.’ echōn denotes a prevailing situation (present tense) and apolesas a punctiliar event (aorist tense). The latter does not suggest want of care.

en tē erēmō ‘in the pasture land.’

poreuetai epi to apolōlos ‘(does not) go in search of the lost (sheep),’ modified by interrogative ou, as kataleipei (see above).

heōs heurē auto ‘till he finds it,’ denoting the tenacity of the seeker.

Translation:

For possibly necessary changes of structure cf. 14.5.

A hundred sheep … the ninety-nine. Exact arithmetical equivalence may be undesirable, as may be clear from the following remarks. In the Greek the first numeral, a basic unit in the numerical system, functions as a round number for a considerable quantity; hence in Ekari (where the highest basic unit is ‘sixty,’ and the arithmetical equivalent of “hundred” would be ‘forty of the second sixty’) the closest natural equivalent of the phrase is ‘sixty sheep … fifty-nine’ (to which this version adds a footnote giving the exact number). In some African languages “ninety-nine” has to be rendered as ‘five (tens) and four tens and five and four,’ a rather cumbersome phrase which moreover does not go too well with the term used to translate “hundred”. In such a case a more generic rendering is probably preferable, e.g. ‘many sheep … the others,’ ‘a flock (cf. 2.8) of sheep … the rest (of the flock).’

He has lost one of them, i.e. he finds that one sheep is missing from his flock, referring to inadvertent loss. In several receptor languages the corresponding verb, if used in a transitive-active form, suggests a deliberate act, which is acceptable e.g. in “loses his life for his sake” (9.24) but not here; or it implies wastefulness (e.g. in Zarma, which therefore uses such a form for “squandered” in v. 13). In such languages intransitive-passive forms are often to be used here and in v. 8, cf. e.g. ‘he suffered-the-loss of one…’ (Bahasa Indonesia, similarly Shona 1963), or, changing the subject, ‘one … gets-lost (with regard) to him’ (East Nyanja, Zarma). Elsewhere ‘to lose/get-lost’ can be said only of lifeless objects, but animals and/or human beings are said ‘to go-astray,’ cf. also Batak Toba, which in v. 4b says ‘the one not to-be-seen’; the same two renderings are used (in expositions, not in the Bible translation) in East Nyanja, Lomwe, Yao. Similar adjustments may be required in v. 6 and/or vv. 24, 32. If that is the case demands of idiom will interfere with demands of style, since the differentiation required for an idiomatic translation does not allow the preservation of the repeated occurrence of forms of ‘to lose,’ which is a characteristic stylistic feature of this chapter.

Leave, or ‘go-away-from’ (Balinese, Tae’).

Wilderness. In seeking an appropriate rendering one should remember that the term refers here to a place fit for pasturage (cf. New English Bible‘s “open pasture”).

Until, i.e. seeking until, or, not stopping before.

For to find see 2.12.

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.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Luke 15:4

15:4

In Greek, 15:4 is a single rhetorical question. For example:

If one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does he not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is missing until he finds it? (Revised English Bible)

Jesus used this question to illustrate what he wanted to teach the people about God’s attitude toward sinners. The question emphasizes that any of them would surely search for one of their sheep that got lost. In some languages it is not natural to use a long rhetorical question to express this. Other ways to translate it are:

• As a combination of a statement or command with a rhetorical question. For example:

Suppose you have a hundred sheep and one gets lost. What will you do? You will leave ninety-nine that are safe and go to look for the one that is lost until you find it.

• As two or more rhetorical questions. For example:

If any of you has a hundred sheep, and one of them gets lost, what will you do? Won’t you leave the ninety-nine in the field and go look for the lost sheep until you find it? (Contemporary English Version)

• As two or more statements. For example:

Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep but loses one of them. You will certainly leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the open field and go out and look for the lost sheep until you find it.

Translate this rhetorical question in a way that will emphasize that any person among them would search for his lost sheep.

What man among you, if he: Notice that the Berean Standard Bible uses “among you” and “he” to refer to the listeners. The Contemporary English Version uses “one of you,” and “you.” Another option is to use forms like “someone” and “he” throughout. For example:

If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others… (New Living Translation (2004))

Use a natural way in your language to refer to the person in this illustration.

15:4a

if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them: In this context the owner of the sheep loses a sheep when the sheep wanders off by itself and becomes lost. The phrase does not imply here that the sheep is stolen or dies. For example:

one of them gets lost (Contemporary English Version)

sheep: The word sheep refers to domestic animals that are raised for meat and for wool. In some languages there may not be a word for “sheep.” If that is true in your language, you may borrow the word for “sheep” and indicate its meaning with a general word such as “herd/flock” or “animals.” For example:

a hundred ⌊animals called⌋ sheep
-or-

⌊herd/flock of⌋ one hundred sheep

If people are not familiar with sheep in your area, it is suggested that you insert a picture in your translation.

15:4b

does not leave the ninety-nine in the pasture: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the pasture is sometimes translated as “wilderness.” Some English versions, such as the Revised Standard Version, translate it that way. In this context it probably refers specifically to a pasture area where the sheep could eat grass and other plants. This was a normal place for sheep to stay.

It was common for shepherds to have enclosures in such pasture areas where the sheep could be safe at night. The shepherd was not being cruel or foolish to leave the ninety-nine sheep in such a place. Use a term in your language that describes a good place for sheep to eat and rest. It is best to avoid a word that implies a dangerous place. For example:

grazing in the pasture (God’s Word)

15:4c

go after the one that is lost, until he finds it: The phrase go after means here “go to look/search for.” The shepherd would keep looking for the sheep until he found it. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

look for (God’s Word)
-or-
go to search for (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
go out and look for (New Century Version)

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