The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “neighbor” or “relative” in English is translated in the Contemporary Chichewa translation (2002/2016) and the Buku Lopatulika translation (1922/2018) with just one word: nansi. This word can also be translated as neighbors whom you share a blood relation with because in Chewa context a community is mostly comprised of people of blood relations. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
complete verse (Luke 21:16)
Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 21:16:
- Noongar: “Your fathers and mothers, your brothers and friends, they will give you away and people will kill some of you.” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
- Uma: “At that time, all people will hate you because of your following Me. Even your parents, relatives, family, and friends will give you to your enemies. Some of you will be killed.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
- Yakan: “Even your parents, your siblings, your relatives and your friends will hand you over to your opponents. And some of you they will kill.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
- Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And at that time, even your parents, your own siblings, your relatives and your friends, they will turn you over to the courts. And there will be some of you that they will kill.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
- Kankanaey: “At that time also, even your parents, your siblings, your relatives and your friends, they will betray you to the officials so that they will kill some of you.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
- Tagbanwa: “You really will-be-betrayed-to-death by your parents, siblings, your other relatives and friends, and some of you will be killed.” (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.
formal 2nd person plural pronoun (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 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).
(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Translation commentary on Luke 21:16 – 21:17
Exegesis:
paradothēsesthe de kai hupo goneōn ‘you will also be delivered up by (your) parents,’ i.e. apart from being persecuted by the opponents just mentioned; for paradidōmi cf. on v. 12.
kai thanatōsousin ex humōn ‘and they will put to death (some) of you.’ The subject is either the parents etc. named in the preceding clause (which would require the rendering, ‘they will cause to be put to death’), or those to whom the disciples will be turned over, i.e. the persecuting authorities. The latter is preferable. thanatoō. For ex humōn cf. on ex autōn in 11.49.
(V. 17) kai esesthe misoumenoi ‘and you will be hated,’ periphrasis for the future passive.
dia to onoma mou ‘because of my name,’ ‘on account of my name,’ equivalent to heneken tou onomatos mou, cf. on v. 12.
Translation:
The recipients of delivered up may have to be mentioned, cf. e.g. ‘even parents … will hand you over to the court-of-justice’ (Sranan Tongo).
Parents, see on 2.27.
And (thrice) here indicates alternatives; hence ‘or’ may be better (cf. Balinese).
For brothers and kinsmen see on 14.12.
If some of you they will put to death is translated literally, ‘they’ will be taken as a reference to the ‘parents,’ etc., not to the persecuting authorities (as preferred in Exegesis). To avoid this misunderstanding some versions shift to a passive construction, suggesting indefinite agents that as such must be different from the definitely named ‘parents,’ etc.; where this is apt to be still rather ambiguous one may render “put to death” by a technical term that implies persecuting authorities as its agents, e.g. ‘sentence to death,’ cf. also, “send to their death” (The Four Gospels – a New Translation), or one may explicitly refer to the agents, replacing “they” by ‘the judges/authorities/those-in-power.’
(V. 17) For hated see on 1.71.
All refers to people in general.
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 21:16
21:16a
You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends: This is a passive clause, and the subject is explicit. The disciples’ own family and friends will betray them. The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as betrayed refers to being delivered/put into the power of enemies.
In 21:12 Jesus had already told the disciples that people would deliver them to the synagogue authorities. Now he told them that even their own family and friends would deliver them to authorities. He implied that it would be especially terrible when people who should have lovede them betrayed them.
In some languages, it may be more natural to use an active clause here. For example:
Even parents, brothers, relatives, and friends will betray you… (God’s Word)
-or-
Even those closest to you—your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends—will betray you. (New Living Translation (2004))
See the note on 21:12c for more information. See the General Comment on 21:16a–b below for other examples.
parents: The word parents refers to a person’s father and mother.
brothers: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as brothers refers here to people who have the same father or mother. It is a general word that includes both brothers and sisters. It refers to a close kinship tie, not to brothers in the sense of fellow believers in Jesus. Disciples will be betrayed by their brothers and sisters who do not believe in Jesus.
Your language may have a word like “sibling” that includes male and female. There may be different words for older and younger siblings. Use appropriate words in your language.
relatives: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as relatives refers to people who belong to the same extended family or clan. This includes both males and females. Such relatives include aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, cousins, and others in a person’s extended family. Use a word or phrase that is appropriate in your language for this context.
and friends: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as friends refers to people who like to be with each other. They usually trust and help each other. It refers to a different group of people from the term “relatives” in this list.
In some languages there are different terms for different kinds of friends. If you must use a specific term, choose one that refers to a close friend, because in this context Jesus referred to other close relationships. Consider which term for ‘friend’ in your language will fit best in this context.
21:16b
and some of you will be put to death: In the Greek, this phrase is more literally “and they will kill/execute some of you.” The word “they” refers to the government authorities who had the right to execute people. It does not refer to the disciples’ family and friends. After their family and friends betray them, the authorities will put some of them to death. Other ways to translate this clause are:
• Use a passive clause, as the Berean Standard Bible does.
• Supply a subject that refers to authorities who have the right to execute people. For example:
and ⌊the authorities⌋ will kill/execute you
General Comment on 21:16a–b
One way to translate 21:16 with active verbs is:
Even ⌊your own⌋ mothers and fathers and brothers, relatives, and friends will betray you ⌊to the authorities⌋; and ⌊the authorities⌋ will execute/kill some of you.
One way to translate 21:16 with passive verbs is:
You will be delivered ⌊to the authorities⌋ even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you will be killed/executed.
Translate 21:16 in the way that is most natural in your language.
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