Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 20:41:
Noongar: “Jesus asked them, ‘The Scriptures say the Messiah, he will be a descendant of David. How can this happen?” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Uma: “From there, Yesus also asked, saying to those religion teachers: ‘Why do they say that the Redeemer King is a descendant of King Daud?” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Then Isa said to them, ‘Why do the people say that the Almasi is a descendant of King Da’ud, they say?” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And Jesus said to them, he said, ‘How can it be that the teachers of the Law teach that the king who is expected is just a descendant of King David?” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Then Jesus said to them, ‘Why do they say that the Messiah is David’s descendant?” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Jesus spoke, saying to them, ‘How can it be said by the explainers of law that the one referred to as Cristo is only the descendant of king David of the past?” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
The Greek Christos (Χρηστός) is typically transliterated when it appears together with Iésous (Ἰησοῦς) (Jesus). In English the transliteration is the Anglicized “Christ,” whereas in many other languages it is based on the Greek or Latin as “Kristus,” “Cristo,” or similar.
When used as a descriptive term in the New Testament — as it’s typically done in the gospels (with the possible exceptions of for instance John 1:17 and 17:3) — Christos is seen as the Greek translation of the Hebrew mashiaḥ (המשיח) (“anointed”). Accordingly, a transliteration of mashiaḥ is used, either as “Messiah” or based on the Greek or Latin as a form of “Messias.”
This transliteration is also used in the two instances where the Greek term Μεσσίας (Messias) is used in John 1:41 and 4:25.
In some languages and some translations, the term “Messiah” is supplemented with an explanation. Such as in the GermanGute Nachricht with “the Messiah, the promised savior” (Wir haben den Messias gefunden, den versprochenen Retter) or in Muna with “Messiah, the Saving King” (Mesias, Omputo Fosalamatino) (source: René van den Berg).
In predominantly Muslim areas or for Bible translations for a Muslim target group, Christos is usually transliterated from the Arabic al-Masih (ٱلْمَسِيحِ) — “Messiah.” In most cases, this practice corresponds with languages that also use a form of the Arabic Isa (عيسى) for Jesus (see Jesus). There are some exceptions, though, including modern translations in Arabic which use Yasua (يَسُوعَ) (coming from the Aramaic Yēšūa’) alongside a transliteration of al-Masih, Hausa which uses Yesu but Almahisu, and some Fula languages (Adamawa Fulfulde, Nigerian Fulfulde, and Central-Eastern Niger Fulfulde) which also use a form of Iésous (Yeesu) but Almasiihu (or Almasiifu) for Christos.
In Indonesian, while most Bible translations had already used Yesus Kristus rather than Isa al Masih, three public holidays used to be described using the term Isa Al Masih. From 2024 on, the government is using Yesus Kristus in those holiday names instead (see this article in Christianity Today ).
Other solutions that are used by a number of languages include these:
Dobel: “The important one that God had appointed to come” (source: Jock Hughes)
Noongar: Keny Mammarap or “The One Man” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Mairasi: “King of not dying for life all mashed out infinitely” (for “mashed out,” see salvation; source: Lloyd Peckham)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “One chosen by God to rule mankind” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Bacama: Ma Pwa a Ngɨltən: “The one God has chosen” (source: David Frank in this blog post )
Binumarien: Anutuna: originally a term that was used for a man that was blessed by elders for a task by the laying on of hands (source: Desmond Oatridges, Holzhausen 1991, p. 49f.)
Noongar: Keny Boolanga-Yira Waangki-Koorliny: “One God is Sending” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Uab Meto: Neno Anan: “Son of heaven” P. Middelkoop explains: “The idea of heavenly power bestowed on a Timorese king is rendered in the title Neno Anan. It is based on the historical fact that chiefs in general came from overseas and they who come thence are believed to have come down from heaven, from the land beyond the sea, that means the sphere of God and the ghosts of the dead. The symbolical act of anointing has been made subservient to the revelation of an eternal truth and when the term Neno Anan is used as a translation thereof, it also is made subservient to a new revelation of God in Jesus Christ. The very fact that Jesus came from heaven makes this translation hit the mark.” (Source: P. Middelkoop in The Bible Translator 1953, p. 183ff. )
In Finnish Sign Language both “Christ” and “Messiah” are translated with a sign signifying “king.” (Source: Tarja Sandholm)
“Christ / Messiah” in Finnish Sign Language (source )
Law (2013, p. 97) writes about how the Ancient GreekSeptuagint‘s translation of the Hebrew mashiah was used by the New Testament writers as a bridge between the Old and New Testaments (click or tap here to read more):
“Another important word in the New Testament that comes from the Septuagint is christos, ‘Christ.’ Christ is not part of the name of the man from Nazareth, as if ‘the Christs’ were written above the door of his family home. Rather, ‘Christ’ is an explicitly messianic title used by the writers of the New Testament who have learned this word from the Septuagint’s translation of the Hebrew mashiach, ‘anointed,’ which itself is often rendered in English as ‘Messiah.’ To be sure, one detects a messianic intent on the part of the Septuagint translator in some places. Amos 4:13 may have been one of these. In the Hebrew Bible, God ‘reveals his thoughts to mortals,’ but the Septuagint has ‘announcing his anointed to humans.’ A fine distinction must be made, however, between theology that was intended by the Septuagint translators and that developed by later Christian writers. In Amos 4:13 it is merely possible we have a messianic reading, but it is unquestionably the case that the New Testament writers exploit the Septuagint’s use of christos, in Amos and elsewhere, to messianic ends.”
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme are (され) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, iw-are-ru (言われる) or “say” is used.
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®).
pros autous ‘to them,’ without indication to whom it refers. In the light of the preceding section the reference is to the Sadducees, or to the scribes, preferably the latter.
pōs legousin ton Christon einai Dauid huion ‘how (is it possible that) they say that the Messiah is David’s son?.’ The subject of legousin is either ‘people’ in general, or the teachers, preferably the former. For pōs cf. on 1.34; for christos on 2.11 and 26; for Dauid huios on 18.38.
Translation:
No further comments.
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.
Jesus asked people a difficult question about the Messiah
In this section Jesus was still teaching in the courtyard of the temple. Many people listened to him there. As he taught, he asked them about the Christ (Messiah) and his ancestor King David. Jesus asked them about this because he wanted the people to think about two things that the Scriptures say about the Messiah:
(a) The Scriptures predicted that the Messiah would be a descendant of King David.
(b) David called the Messiah “Lord,” showing that the Messiah was much greater than David.
To Jewish people, it was difficult to explain how both these facts could be true. They thought that an ancestor must be greater than his descendant. Jesus wanted them to know that the Messiah would be much greater than the earthly ruler that they expected him to be. He would be a descendant of David, but he would be greater than David. He would share the throne of God.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it. Examples of other headings for this section are:
The Question about the Messiah (Good News Translation) -or-
Whose Son Is the Christ? (English Standard Version)
There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 22:41–46 and Mark 12:35–37.
Paragraph 20:41–44
20:41a
Then Jesus declared: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Then introduces a new topic. Introduce this new topic in a way that is natural in your language.
The Greek is literally “And he said to them.” The words “to them” refer to the people who had been listening to Jesus in 20:27–40. They probably included ordinary people as well as some of the Sadducees, Pharisees, and scribes. The Berean Standard Bible does not translate these words.
20:41b
How can it be said that the Christ is the Son of David?: Jesus asked this question in order to encourage the people who were listening to him to think carefully about who the Messiah was. Jesus did not disagree with what the scribes said about the Christ/Messiah. He agreed that the Messiah is a descendant of David. However, Jesus wanted them to realize that the Messiah was even greater than they thought. Some ways to translate this are:
What do the ⌊scribes⌋ mean when they say that the Christ/Messiah is a descendant of David? -or-
The ⌊scribes⌋ say that the Messiah is the Son of David. How do you understand/interpret that?
How can it be said: The words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as How can it be said are more literally “How can they say.” The word “they” refers to the scribes, some of whom are mentioned in 20:39. This is explicit in the parallel passage in Mark 12:35. Another way to translate this phrase is:
How is it that they say… (New International Version)
Christ: In Luke the word Christ is used as a title. The Jews used this title to refer to the person whom God had appointed and promised to send as king and savior. The title Christ is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “Messiah,” and the two words have the same meaning.
Some ways to translate Christ are:
• Use a title or a descriptive phrase in your language that has the same meaning as Christ. For example:
Messiah -or-
Promised Deliverer -or-
the Rescuer-King whom God appointed
• Transliterate Christ and include a phrase that explains the meaning. For example:
Christ, the appointed one -or-
Cristo, the Savior whom God promised to send -or-
the Christ who comes from God
• Transliterate Christ and indicate in some way that it is a title. For example:
the Christ -or-
the Kirisita
If you do not indicate the meaning of Christ in the text, you may want to include a footnote to explain it. Or you may want to explain the meaning in a glossary. For example:
The word/title “Christ” refers to the king and savior whom God had promised to send.
See also Christ, in the Glossary.
Son of David: The title Son of David refers to the Messiah as a descendant of King David. David was the king of Israel a thousand years before Christ.
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