complete verse (Luke 19:26)

Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 19:26:

  • Noongar: “The king said, ‘The person with something, he will get much more. But the person with nothing, his smallest thing will be taken.” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Uma: “‘The king said: ‘Truly I say to you: The person who can be trusted with something that is given to him, he will be given yet more. But the person who is not trusted, something small/little that is his, will be taken from him.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “The king said, ‘I tell you that the person who can be trusted will be given still more. But the one who cannot be trusted, even the little that had been entrusted to him will be taken from him.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And that king answered, ‘It’s true what I say to you, that he who can be trusted with what is entrusted to him shall be given more; but he who cannot be trusted, even the little that was entrusted to him will be taken away from him.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “”Well yes indeed,’ said the King in reply, ‘because it is emphatically true that whoever has capability (i.e. talents, wealth, position), what he has will be added-to, but the one who has no capability, even the little that he has will be taken-back.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Replying, he said, ‘This which I will say to you is true, that as for that one who is trustworthy and persevering, he will be rewarded by his means/ability being increased. But that one who is not trustworthy and is lazy, even the little means/ability he already has will really be permanently-lost to him.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

formal pronoun: Jesus addressing his disciples and common people

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 Translator 2002, 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 most Dutch translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and common people with the informal pronoun, whereas they address him with the formal form.

2nd person pronoun with low register (Japanese)

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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 second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used anata (あなた) is typically used when the speaker is humbly addressing another person.

In these verses, however, omae (おまえ) is used, a cruder second person pronoun, that Jesus for instance chooses when chiding his disciples. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also first person pronoun with low register and third person pronoun with low register.

Translation commentary on Luke 19:26

Exegesis:

legō humin ‘I tell you,’ cf. on 3.8. Subject of legō is Jesus (as e.g. in 18.8 in a similar context), or the king of the parable (cf. v. 27). The latter is preferable.

panti tō echonti dothēsetai ‘to every one who has will (more) be given,’ cf. 8.18. The clause brings the application of the parable into the context of the kingdom of God. The object of echonti and the subject of dothēsetai is best understood as the fruit of obedience to God.

apo de tou mē echontos kai ho echei arthēsetai ‘from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away,’ paradoxical statement, describing the opposite of the preceding clause, cf. 8.18, where instead of ho echei it reads ho dokei echein ‘what he thinks he has.’

Translation:

For the two clauses see on the less paradoxically worded passage in 8.18.

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 19:26

19:26

This verse is very similar to 8:18. There are also similar verses in Matthew 13:12 and 25:29 and Mark 4:25. The saying in these verses was a proverb that could be used in different ways in different contexts.

19:26a

He replied: The Berean Standard Bible has supplied the phrase He replied to make it clear that the king was speaking again to the servants standing around him.

I tell you that: The king used the words I tell you to introduce a statement that he wanted to emphasize. It indicates that the statement was important and that people should listen carefully to it. Some other ways to show this emphasis are:

Listen to this
-or-
I can guarantee that (God’s Word)
-or-
I assure you

In some languages it may be more natural to use an emphatic word within Jesus’ statement. For example:

to everyone who has, more will certainly be given

Emphasize this important statement in a natural way in your language.

19:26b

everyone who has will be given more: In the context the phrase everyone who has refers to people who have profit or good results from what they have done. In this context it refers to the servants who had used their coin and fulfilled their responsibility to their master. They were rewarded with more responsibility.

Some other ways to translate this proverb are:

to those who use well what they are given, even more will be given (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
When people have/gain ⌊good results⌋ ⌊with what they receive⌋, they will receive more
-or-
If a person ⌊really⌋ has ⌊something⌋, he will be given more

will be given more: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as will be given more is passive. The Berean Standard Bible supplies the word more because it is implied in this context. It will be given to “everyone who has,” as in the previous clause. Some other ways to translate will be given more are:

• As a passive clause. For example:

more will be given ⌊to them⌋

• As an active clause that uses a different verb. For example:

they will receive/get more

• As an active clause that supplies a subject. This subject should probably be God. For example:

⌊God⌋ will give them more
-or-

⌊God⌋ will cause them to have/get more

19:26c–d

but the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him: This statement is a paradox. It seems impossible to take something from someone who does not have anything. The statement is also a hyperbole. It indicates that the person has very little. In this context, it also indicates that the person has gained no good results from what he received. As in the parable, even what he received will be taken away.

Some other ways to translate this paradox are:

But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
But if people do not have/gain ⌊any good thing/results⌋ ⌊with what they receive⌋, even what they have/receive will be taken away ⌊from them⌋.
-or-
If a person does not ⌊really⌋ have ⌊anything⌋, even what he ⌊seems to⌋ have will be taken away.

even what he has will be taken away from him: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as will be taken away is passive. It is not explicit who will take this away from the person who has nothing.

Some other ways to translate even what he has will be taken away are:

• As a passive clause. For example:

everything will be taken away from those who don’t have much (God’s Word)

• As an active clause that uses a different verb For example:

whoever has nothing will forfeit even what he has (Revised English Bible)

• As an active clause that supplies a subject. For example:

⌊God⌋ will take it away from them

Notice that the Notes have supplied “God” as the subject in the final example. In the parable, the master took the coin away from the servant. However, since this verse is a proverb, it is good to translate it in a way that could also apply to other contexts.

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