edge of the sword

The Greek in Luke 21:24 that is translated as “edge of the sword” or similar in English is translated in the German translation by Fridolin Stier (1989) as “throat of the sword.”

complete verse (Luke 21:24)

Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 21:24:

  • Noongar: “Many people will be killed with the sword; other people will be seized and they will be tied up and taken away to far countries. Foreign people who do not know God, they will trample Jerusalem until the time their day ends.” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Uma: “Some of them will be food of the sword. Some of them will be captured and carried all over the world. And this town of Yerusalem will be stepped-on by people who are not Yahudi people, until the time that the Lord God has set for them is finished.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Some will die being killed by the soldiers and the others will be caught and taken as prisoners to all the countries in the world. And this town Awrusalam will be destroyed by other tribes and they will not move/go away from here as long as the destined (time) of the other tribes for ruling is not complete.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Because as for these Jews, some of them will be killed in fighting, and the rest of them will be arrested and taken into far countries. And at that time this Jerusalem, the town of the jews, it will be trampled over by people who are not Jews until the time when God, by His power, causes them to stop.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Some will die from war and others, they will take them to various-countries far-away so that they will make-them -become slaves there. And as for this town Jerusalem, the Gentiles will defeat it and they will rule here until God causes-them -to-stop.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Many will die by the sharp-edge of a weapon and others will be taken as captives to other nations. And as for this Jerusalem, it will become like a trampling-place of people who are not Judio, for they then will be the ones in control here while it is still their time which God determined.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Jerusalem

The name that is transliterated as “Jerusalem” in English is signed in French Sign Language with a sign that depicts worshiping at the Western Wall in Jerusalem:


“Jerusalem” in French Sign Language (source: La Bible en langue des signes française )

While a similar sign is also used in British Sign Language, another, more neutral sign that combines the sign “J” and the signs for “place” is used as well. (Source: Anna Smith)


“Jerusalem” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Jerusalem .

gentiles / nations

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The Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, and Latin that is often translated as “gentiles” (or “nations”) in English is often translated as a “local equivalent of ‘foreigners,'” such as “the people of other lands” (Guerrero Amuzgo), “people of other towns” (Tzeltal), “people of other languages” (San Miguel El Grande Mixtec), “strange peoples” (Navajo (Dinė)) (this and above, see Bratcher / Nida), “outsiders” (Ekari), “people of foreign lands” (Kannada), “non-Jews” (North Alaskan Inupiatun), “people being-in-darkness” (a figurative expression for people lacking cultural or religious insight) (Toraja-Sa’dan) (source for this and three above Reiling / Swellengrebel), “from different places all people” (Martu Wangka) (source: Carl Gross).

Tzeltal translates it as “people in all different towns,” Chicahuaxtla Triqui as “the people who live all over the world,” Highland Totonac as “all the outsider people,” Sayula Popoluca as “(people) in every land” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), Chichimeca-Jonaz as “foreign people who are not Jews,” Sierra de Juárez Zapotec as “people of other nations” (source of this and one above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.), Highland Totonac as “outsider people” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), Uma as “people who are not the descendants of Israel” (source: Uma Back Translation), “other ethnic groups” (source: Newari Back Translation), and Yakan as “the other tribes” (source: Yakan Back Translation).

In Chichewa, it is translated with mitundu or “races.” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

See also nations.

Translation commentary on Luke 21:24

Exegesis:

pesountai stomati machairēs ‘they will fall by the edge of the sword.’ The subject of pesountai is best interpreted as the members of the Jewish people.

piptō ‘to fall,’ here, ‘to be slain,’ ‘to be killed.’

stoma lit. ‘mouth,’ here, ‘point,’ or, ‘edge.’

aichmalōtisthēsontai eis ta ethnē panta ‘they will be scattered as prisoners over all the peoples,’ ethnē may refer here to ‘nations’ or ‘peoples’ in a neutral sense, or, like in hupo ethnōn in the same verse, to ‘gentile people’ or ‘Gentiles.’ The former appears to be preferable.

aichmalōtizō ‘to take captive,’ here in the passive with eis ta ethnē panta to denote the scattering of the captives over the earth.

Ierousalēm estai patoumenē hupo ethnōn ‘Jerusalem will be trampled over by Gentiles,’ not denoting an event but a situation in the future. For the periphrasis of the future cf. on v. 17. For pateō cf. on 10.19.

achri hou plērōthōsin kairoi ethnōn ‘till the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.’

achri hou ‘till the time when,’ with chronou understood.

kairoi ethnōn ‘the times of the Gentiles,’ probably referring to the time in which the Gentiles exercise judgment, though the exact meaning of the phrase is very uncertain, cf. commentaries.

Translation:

Fall by the edge of the sword, or, ‘fall, being cut down by the sword’ (Ekari), or, ‘sharp choppers will cut them down (lit. cut-and-kill them)’ (Sranan Tongo); or simply, “be killed by the sword” (Good News Translation, similarly Tae’), ‘the enemy will kill them with the sword,’ ‘perish in war.’ Some idiomatic phrases used are, ‘die eaten by the sword’ (Malay), ‘be passed along the thread of the sword’ (Bible de Jérusalem). Sword, cf. below on 22.36.

And introduces an alternative future event here; hence ‘or’ may be preferable.

Be led captive among all nations, or, “carried off as prisoners among all nations” (An American Translation), ‘be taken captive and led away among all nations’; if an active construction is required, ‘the enemy’ is best taken as agent. Among all nations, or more explicitly locative, ‘everywhere among the nations,’ “into all countries” (New English Bible), ‘all over the earth.’ For captive see on 4.18.

Trodden down, or non-figuratively, ‘utterly destroyed’ (cf. Bahasa Indonesia RC).

Gentiles, see on 2.32.

Until, or, ‘(and this will go on) up to the moment that,’ ‘and this will not end before.’

Times of the Gentiles. If the connexion between the two nouns must be specified, one may say, ‘the period the Gentiles (or, they) (still) have power,’ ‘the time it is in the hands of people-from-other-places’ (Tzeltal), ‘time-of those governments-of men Gentile’ (Trukese).

Are fulfilled, or, ‘have run their full course,’ ‘has come to an end’ (cf. Balinese), ‘is complete’ (Bahasa Indonesia).

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 21:24

21:24a

They will fall by the edge of the sword: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as They will fall by the edge of the sword is literally “and they will fall by the mouth of the sword.” This is a figure of speech that refers to people being killed in battle. Here it indicates that enemy soldiers would attack and kill many Jewish people. In many languages this figure of speech may not have the right meaning. If that is true in your language, some other ways to translate it are:

• Translate the meaning without the figure of speech. You can translate the verb as either active or passive. For example:

They will be killed by the sword (New Century Version)
-or-

⌊Soldiers⌋ will kill them

• Use a different figure of speech with the same meaning. For example:

Swords will cut them down (God’s Word)

Translate the meaning in a natural way in your language.

They: The pronoun They or “them” (Contemporary English Version) refers here to many, but not all, of the Jewish people. In some languages it is necessary to make this explicit. For example:

Some of them will be killed by swords. (Contemporary English Version)

by the edge of the sword: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as by the edge of the sword is literally “by the mouth of the sword.” This phrase is a figure of speech that refers to the “sharp edge” or “point” of a sword. Enemy soldiers would fight and kill many Jews with swords and other weapons.

sword: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as sword was the main weapon that soldiers used during the first century. Roman swords were large straight metal knives with two sharp edges.

21:24b

and be led captive into all the nations: This clause tells something that will happen to many other Jews, who will not be killed. In some languages it may be helpful to make this explicit. For example:

and ⌊many others⌋ will be taken as prisoners to many foreign countries

Since 21:24a and 21:24b are alternatives, both events could not happen to the same people. It some languages, it is more natural to use a conjunction like “or” instead of and. For example:

or will be led away captive all over the world

be led captive: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as be led captive is literally “they will be led captive.” This verb is passive. It implies that many Jews will be captured and taken from their homeland to other places as prisoners.

In some languages it may be more natural to use an active verb and supply a subject. For example:

and/or ⌊the soldiers⌋ will capture them and lead them to many distant lands

all the nations: The phrase all the nations refers to many other countries. However, it does not literally refer to every country in the world. In some languages it may be helpful to translate this as:

into many different/foreign countries

21:24c

And Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles: In this context the Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as will be trodden down refers to “walking or treading heavily with the feet.” It implies an intent to damage what is walked on. Here the phrase is used in a figurative way. It implies that the Gentiles/nations who conquer Jerusalem will walk the streets of the city, treating it and its people with contempt.

The clause Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles is passive. In many languages it may be necessary to translate it as an active clause. For example:

The Gentiles will trample Jerusalem
-or-
The Gentile nations will tread/tramp abusively through the city

Gentiles: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Gentiles means “nations.” Here it obviously refers to other nations that do not include the Jewish nation (Israel). Other ways to translate it are:

Nations (God’s Word)
-or-
non-Jewish people (New Century Version)

21:24d

until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the times of the Gentiles refers to the period of time that God has allotted/given to the Gentile nations. This context probably implies that it is the period of time when God will allow them to control Jerusalem. Other ways to translate this are:

until their time is over (New Century Version)
-or-
until the times allowed for the nations ⌊to do this⌋ are over (God’s Word)
-or-
until the time that ⌊God⌋ ⌊has given/allotted⌋ to the nations is completed

are fulfilled: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as are fulfilled means “have come to an end” or “have been completed.” This word implies that some purpose has been fulfilled.

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