22:26a

But you shall not be like them: In Greek this clause is more literally, “But you, not so.” This is an ellipsis. Some information is left out of the clause. It introduces an emphatic contrast between Jesus’ disciples and the rulers of the Gentiles. Jesus’ disciples will be different from those rulers. They must not be like the rulers who do not serve God. Some other ways to translate this ellipsis are:

But among you it will be different (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
Not so with you (NET Bible)
-or-
But it is not this way with you (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
But you must not be like that (New Century Version)

Translate the ellipsis in a natural way in your language.

22:26b–c

In 22:26b–c Jesus described the humble attitude that he wanted his apostles and other leaders to have. He made two parallel statements that have almost the same meaning. He used these parallel statements to emphasize the meaning.

These statements contrast with the two parallel statements in 22:25 about the attitude of Gentile leaders. Consider how to emphasize this contrast in a natural way in your language.

Instead: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Instead introduces a statement that contrasts with 22:25. In that statement Jesus told his apostles to have a totally different attitude from the rulers in 22:25. In 22:26a Jesus already indicated that his apostles must not be like those rulers, so in some languages a conjunction may not be needed here. Some other ways to introduce this statement are:

But (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
Rather (God’s Word)
-or-
Not so with you: on the contrary… (Revised English Bible)

Begin 22:26b in a natural way in your language.

the greatest among you should be like the youngest: This clause indicates that the apostle who is greater than all the others should behave very humbly. He should treat the others as humbly as if he had the lowest status among them. In Jewish culture the youngest people in a group had the lowest status. Some other ways to translate this are:

The greatest person among you must be like the lowliest
-or-
The most important one of you should be like the least important (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Your greatest person must ⌊behave as humbly⌋ as the youngest person

the greatest…the youngest: The Greek text uses singular forms for the greatest and the youngest. However, in this context Jesus referred to any and all of the leaders among his followers. In many languages it may be more natural to use plural forms. For example:

Those who are the greatest among you should take the lowest rank (New Living Translation (2004))

the greatest: The phrase the greatest occurred in 22:24b. You should translate in a similar way here.

should be like the youngest: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as youngest usually refers to being young in age. But in this context, it refers to having low status. In Jewish culture, the youngest people in the group should serve all the others. They should do the hard work that the others did not want to do, and they should not expect others to honor them.

In this context Jesus compared this attitude to the humble attitude that he wants his apostles and other followers to have. In some languages you may need to make the meaning more explicit. Some ways to translate it are:

must regard himself as the least of all.
-or-
he must consider himself as if he is the youngest

22:26c

and: In most English versions, the parallel clauses in 22:26b and 22:26c are joined with the word and. In some languages a word like and may not be appropriate to join two statements with very similar meanings. Some other ways to connect them in English are:

yes
-or-
indeed

Connect these statements in a natural way in your language. In some languages a connecting word or phrase may not be needed.

the one who leads like the one who serves: This statement is an ellipsis. The full form is:

the one who leads ⌊should be⌋ like the one who serves

This statement has a similar meaning as the one in 22:26b. The phrase the one who leads refers to the same person as “the greatest among you” in 22:26b. Other ways to make this clear in English are:

⌊Yes,⌋ as he rules ⌊them⌋, he should behave like a person who serves.
-or-
when he leads ⌊others⌋, he must consider himself ⌊their⌋ servant

As in 22:26b, Jesus referred here to every disciple of his who rules or leads other disciples. Each leader should have the humble attitude of a servant. He should look for ways to help and serve others. In some languages it may be more natural to use plural forms. For example:

people who rule ⌊others⌋ should serve ⌊them⌋

the one who serves: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the one who serves refers to someone who helps, serves, or works for another person. Another way to translate it is:

a servant (Contemporary English Version)

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