Translation commentary on Luke 23:25

Exegesis:

hon ētounto ‘whom they kept demanding,’ iterative imperfect.

ton de Iēsoun paredōken tō thelēmati autōn lit. ‘but Jesus he delivered up to their will,’ i.e. as they wished, but in fact the execution of Jesus is not performed by the high priests or, for that matter, the people, but by Roman soldiers.

Translation:

Whom they asked for, or, where a second relative clause would be undesirable, ‘because they kept asking for him,’ ‘as they had demanded.’

Jesus he delivered up to their will. If one wishes to avoid the suggestion that Jesus was handed over to the Jews (see Exegesis), one may specify the meaning of verb and preposition, e.g. ‘Jesus he abandoned/gave-up, in accordance with their desire’ (Leyden, similarly Bahasa Indonesia), or more explicitly, ‘Jesus he gave up to his death (or, as to Jesus, he had him put to death), since they wished so,’ ‘he ordered his men to execute Jesus, in accordance with the wishes of the Jews.’

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 23:25

23:25a–d

he released the one imprisoned for insurrection and murder: This statement indicates that Pilate released the man that the people asked him to release in 23:18. This man was named Barabbas. As 23:19 said, he was in prison for insurrection and murder.

In some languages it may be helpful to supply the name Barabbas here. For example:

He freed Barabbas, who had been put in prison for rioting and murdering, because that’s what they wanted. (God’s Word)

23:25e

and handed Jesus: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and introduces a contrast between what Pilate did for Barabbas in this verse and what he did to Jesus. The word Jesus is emphasized in Greek. One way to translate this contrast is:

But as for Jesus

Translate the contrast in a way that is natural in your language.

over to their will: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as over to their will indicates that Pilate gave Jesus into the control of other people. He allowed them to do what they wanted with Jesus. The word their refers to the Jewish people and their leaders. They wanted Jesus to be executed/killed.

The context implies that Pilate ordered his soldiers to take Jesus and execute him, as the Jewish people wanted. It does not imply that the Jewish people were in charge of the execution.

Some other ways to translate this part of the verse are:

Then Pilate allowed Jesus to be taken away so that he would be ⌊killed⌋ as they wanted.
-or-
But Isa was handed over to the soldiers so that the will of the people would be done.

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