the swineherds saw what had happened

The Greek in Luke 8:34 that is translated as “the swineherds saw what had happened” or similar in English is translated in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) with die Schweinhirte mussten alles mitansehen or “the swineherds had to watch it all.”

He gave freedom to those in bondage of evil (image)

“In Thai society, those who are possessed by evil spirits are usually the weak or mentally unstable. This man is shown as freed from his spiritual and physical chains. Even though he is naked Jesus is not ashamed to be close to him.”

Drawing by Sawai Chinnawong who employs northern and central Thailand’s popular distinctive artistic style originally used to depict Buddhist moral principles and other religious themes; explanation by Paul DeNeui. From That Man Who Came to Save Us by Sawai Chinnawong and Paul H. DeNeui, William Carey Library, 2010.

For more images by Sawai Chinnawong in TIPs see here.

complete verse (Luke 8:34)

Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 8:34:

  • Noongar: “The people working with the pigs, they saw what happened, so they went to the houses and villages of the country and told the news.” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Uma: “When those caring for the pigs saw that happening, they ran going to the town and close-by gardens to announce that happening.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “When the people who took care of the pigs saw what happened there they ran and told there in the town and in the other places inland.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And the men who took care of those pigs, when they saw what happened, they ran like a feather being blown away and they told in the towns and the fields what had happened.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “When those who were watching the many-pigs saw the-aforementioned which happened, they up-and-ran to their town and to the adjoining places to go report it to the inhabitants there.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “When the herders of those pigs observed, they ran and told there in the town and at the neighboring houses.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Luke 8:34

Exegesis:

idontes de hoi boskontes to gegonos ‘when the herdsmen saw what had happened.’ hoi boskontes is participle of boskō (cf. on v. 32) and used here as a substantive.

apēggeilan ‘they told (it),’ here used without object.

eis tēn polin kai eis tous agrous ‘in the town and in the (surrounding) fields, or, hamlets,’ preferably the latter. agros denotes very small groups of farms out in the country.

Translation:

The “when”-clause may better be co-ordinated: ‘the herdsmen saw what had happened (see on 2.15); so they came….’

Herdsmen, i.e. those who were tending the swine.

In the city and in the country. The reference is to people in the biggest and the smallest local units. For the latter one may use ‘villages,’ or, preferably, a term that also fits 9.12, e.g. ‘hamlets,’ ‘places-of-huts’ (Balinese, using a word referring to a small cluster of huts or sheds, close to the fields and originally inhabited only in the periods of heavy work there), ‘places of houses’ (Toraja-Sa’dan, a term referring both to a small settlement containing houses of various owners, and to the premises of one owner containing several buildings), ‘houses outside (it, i.e. the city),’ ‘farms’ (cf. Sranan Tongo, with a word originally meaning ‘plantation’).

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 8:34

Paragraph 8:34–39

8:34a

those tending the pigs: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as those tending the pigs is more literally “those who were herding” or “the herdsmen.” It refers to the men who took care of the pigs as their job. Some languages will have a specific word for “pig herders.”

This is the first time that the pig herders are mentioned in this story. Introduce them in a natural way in your language. Some ways to do this in English are:

Some men were there taking care of the pigs. They…
-or-
The men who had been tending the pigs…

saw what had happened: The text does not indicate exactly what the phrase what had happened refers to. At least these men saw that the pigs drowned. It is probably good to use a general expression here, as the Berean Standard Bible does.

8:34b

ran off: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as ran off means “they ran away” or “they fled.” The herdsmen ran away because they were frightened by what had happened. This becomes clear in 8:35e and 8:37a–b. They did not run off because they were excited and happy that Jesus had healed the man with the demons.

reported this: The phrase reported this indicates that the herdsmen told people about what had happened. In some languages it may be necessary to make explicit what the herdsmen told or whom they told. For example:

reported everything that had happened
-or-
telling everyone about this

town and countryside: The town is not identified by name, but was probably Gerasa. See the note on “the region of the Gerasenes” at 8:26a. The countryside refers to the farms and small villages surrounding the town.

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