Ἐγένετο δὲ ἐν ἑτέρῳ σαββάτῳ εἰσελθεῖν αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν συναγωγὴν καὶ διδάσκειν. καὶ ἦν ἄνθρωπος ἐκεῖ καὶ ἡ χεὶρ αὐτοῦ ἡ δεξιὰ ἦν ξηρά.
The Man with a Withered Hand
6On another Sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered.
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “Sabbath” in English is rendered as “day we rest” in Tzotzil, in Mairasi as “Jew’s Rest Day,” in Quiotepec Chinantec as “day when people of Israel rested,” in Shilluk as “day of God,” in Obolo as Usen Mbuban or “Holy Day,” and in Mandarin Chinese as ānxírì (安息日) or “rest day” (literally: “peace – rest – day”). (Sources: Tzotzil: Marion Cowan in Notes on Translation with Drill, p. 169ff; Mairasi: Enggavoter 2004; Quiotepec Chinantec: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.; Shilluk: Nida 1964, p. 237; Obolo: Enene Enene; Chinese: Jost Zetzsche)
In Matumbi it is translated as Sabato ya Ayahudi or “Sabbath of the Jews,” to distinguish it from the Islamic Sabbath (which is Friday) or the Christian Sabbath (which is Sunday). (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
In the old Khmer version as well as in the first new translation this term was rendered as “day of rest” (Thngai Chhup Somrak / ថ្ងៃឈប់សំរាក). Considered inadequate to convey its religious meaning (not only about cessation of work, but also in honor of Yahweh as the Creator), the committee for the Today’s Khmer Version (publ. 2005) decided to keep the Hebrew word and use its transliterated form Thgnai Sabath (ថ្ងៃសប្ប័ទ). “The Buddhist word Thngai Seil ‘day of merits’ used by some Catholics was once under consideration but was rejected because it did not receive unanimous support.” (Source: Joseph Hong in The Bible Translator 1996, p. 233ff. )
In Spanish, the translation is either día de reposo (“day of rest”) or sábado (usually: “Saturday,” derived from the Greek and Hebrew original). Nida (1947, p. 239f.) explains that problem for Spanish and other languages in its sphere of influence: “In translation ‘Sabbath’ into various aboriginal languages of Latin America, a considerable number of translators have used the Spanish sábado, ‘Saturday,’ because it is derived from the Hebrew sabbath and seems to correspond to English usage as well. The difficulty is that sábado means only ‘Saturday’ for most people. There is no religious significance about this word as the is with ‘Sabbath’ in English. Accordingly the [readers] cannot understand the significance of the persecution of Jesus because he worked on ‘Saturday.’ It has been found quite advantageous to use the translation ‘day of rest,’ for this accurately translated the Hebrew meaning of the term and resolves the problem in connection with the prohibitions placed upon some types of activities.”
In French Sign Language it is translated with a sign that depicts closing of the blinds of a store:
“Sabbath” in French Sign Language (source: La Bible en langue des signes française )
Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Sabbath .
Other languages make a distinction: (Click or tap here to see more)
Languages that, like English, German, Dutch, Danish, or Afrikaans, don’t make that distinction include:
Another distinction that tends to be overlooked in translations is that between hieron (“temple” in English) and sunagógé (“synagogue” in English). Euan Fry (in The Bible Translator 1987, p. 213ff. ) reports on this:
“Many older translations have simply used transliterations of ‘temple’ and ‘synagogue’ rather than trying to find equivalent terms or meaningful expressions in their own languages. This approach does keep the two terms separate; but it makes the readers depend on explanations given by pastors or teachers for their understanding of the text.
“Translators who have tried to find meaningful equivalents, for the two terms ‘temple’ and ‘synagogue’ have usually made a distinction between them in one of two ways (which focus on the contrasting components of meaning). One way takes the size and importance of the Temple to make a contrast, so that expressions such as ‘sacred meeting/ worship house of the Jews’ and ‘big sacred meeting/worship house of the Jews’ are used. The other way focuses on the different nature of the religious activity at each of the places, so that expressions such as ‘meeting/worship house of the Jews’ and ‘sacrifice/ceremony place of the Jews’ are used.
“It is not my purpose in this article to discuss how to arrive at the most precise equivalent to cover all the components of meaning of ‘temple’. That is something that each translator really has to work through for himself in the light of the present usage and possibilities in his own language. My chief concern here is that the basic term or terms chosen for ‘temple’ should give the reader of a translation a clear and correct picture of the location referred to in each passage. And I am afraid that in many cases where an equivalent like ‘house of God’ or ‘worship house’ has been chosen, the readers have quite the wrong picture of what going to the Temple or being in the Temple means. (This may be the case for the word ‘temple’ in English too, for many readers.)”
Here are some examples:
Bangandu: “the great house of God” vs. “house of prayer” (Source: Ervais Fotso Noumsi in Le Sycomore, 16/1, 2022 )
See also this devotion on YouVersion .
Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 6:6:
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 rare (られ) 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, oshieteo-rare-ru (教えておられる) or “teaching” is used.
(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Exegesis:
egeneto de … eiselthein auton eis tēn sunagōgēn kai didaskein ‘and it happened that he went into the synagogue (aorist, punctiliar event) and taught (present, linear event).’ Cf. on 6.1 and 1.8.
kai en anthrōpos ekei kai hē cheir autou hē dexia ēn xēra ‘and there was a man there and his right hand was withered.’ Co-ordination of two clauses where subordination would be normal in Greek. The emphasis is on the second clause.
xēros ‘dry,’ of wood in 23.31, ‘withered,’ i.e. incapable of motion. In view of ekteinon tēn cheira sou ‘stretched out your hand’ (v. 10) xēros is best understood as referring to paralysis.
Translation:
The introductory statement about time and place is often better rendered as an independent sentence.
A man was there, or, ‘there happened to be a man there, or, in the congregation’ (cf. New English Bible).
Whose right hand was withered, or, ‘who had a withered right hand, or, a right hand that was withered.’ For withered the rendering should imply the impossibility to stretch out the hand, or arm, and the paralysis meant is a non-congenital ailment (cf. on v. 10).
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.
Paragraph 6:6–11
In this paragraph, Jesus demonstrated his authority over the Sabbath. He had just stated in 6:5 that he had the authority to decide what people could or could not do on the Sabbath day. When he healed the man with the shriveled hand, he confirmed that authority.
The Pharisees’ laws about the Sabbath day stated that it was work to heal a person whose life was not in danger on the Sabbath. So when Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath day, the Pharisees found a reason to accuse him.
6:6a
On another Sabbath: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as On another Sabbath is literally “and it happened on another Sabbath.” This phrase introduces a new story. This new story occurred on another Sabbath day. It may have been the next Sabbath day or several Sabbath days later. The exact time in relation to the previous Sabbath day story is not in focus. The important information is that this story happened on a Sabbath day.
Some other ways to translate this are:
One other Sabbath day
-or-
On another day of worship (God’s Word)
-or-
Once also on the worship day
For Sabbath, see the note on Sabbath at 6:1a.
Jesus entered the synagogue: The clause Jesus entered the synagogue tells where this story occurred. It occurred in the synagogue of some town. The pronoun he refers to Jesus. Make the subject explicit if it is necessary in your language. For example:
Jesus went into a synagogue (Good News Translation)
-or-
he went into the synagogue ⌊of a certain town⌋
synagogue: A synagogue was a building where Jews gathered to pray, read Scripture, teach their beliefs, and worship. The Jews also gathered there for cultural activities. There was only one temple (in Jerusalem), but each Jewish community had a synagogue. The text does not say where this particular synagogue was.
Some ways to translate synagogue are:
prayer-house ⌊of the Jews⌋
-or-
meeting-place ⌊of the Jews⌋
-or-
worship building
-or-
house for gathering together
If you make the meaning explicit with a phrase such as “of the Jews,” be sure that it does not imply that Jesus was not a Jew.
If the word synagogue is already known in your area, you may write it according to the sounds of your language. You may want to include a word or phrase to explain the meaning. For example:
the synagogue house/building
See how you translated synagogue in 4:15a. See also synagogue in the Glossary.
and was teaching: Jesus was teaching people things about God and the Scriptures. In some languages it may be necessary with a verb such as teaching to indicate whom Jesus taught and what he taught. The context indicates that Jesus taught them about religious law. You may need to supply some implied information here. For example:
and was teaching ⌊people⌋ ⌊things about God’s law⌋
6:6b
and a man was there whose right hand was withered: This part of the verse introduces a person who will be important in the story. It also tells information about him. Introduce this person in a way that is natural in your language. For example:
There was a man in that synagogue whose right hand was withered.
-or-
A man whose right hand was paralyzed was there. (God’s Word)
hand: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as hand includes the fingers, palm, wrist, and forearm. The Greek text does not specify how much of the man’s hand was paralyzed. Probably the whole area from the fingers to the elbow was included.
Each language divides the body differently. If you have a term that includes the area from the elbow to the fingers, you could use that term here. Otherwise, you can use a general term for the hand and arm.
withered: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as withered means “dry” or “without moisture.” When the word was used to refer to parts of the body, it implied that that part of the body was “lifeless” or “paralyzed.” This man could not move or use his right hand or arm. Some languages would say that this man’s hand was “dead” or “dried.”
Some other ways to translate this are:
a deformed right hand (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
crippled right hand (Contemporary English Version)
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