pronoun for "God"

God transcends gender, but most languages are limited to grammatical gender expressed in pronouns. In the case of English, this is traditionally confined to “he” (or in the forms “his,” “him,” and “himself”), “she” (and “her,” “hers,” and “herself”), and “it” (and “its” and “itself”).

Modern Mandarin Chinese, however, offers another possibility. Here, the third-person singular pronoun is always pronounced the same (tā), but it is written differently according to its gender (他 is “he,” 她 is “she,” and 它/牠 is “it” and their respective derivative forms). In each of these characters, the first (or upper) part defines the gender (man, woman, or thing/animal), while the second element gives the clue to its pronunciation.

In 1930, after a full century with dozens of Chinese translations, Bible translator Wang Yuande (王元德) coined a new “godly” pronoun: 祂. Chinese readers immediately knew how to pronounce it: tā. But they also recognized that the first part of that character, signifying something spiritual, clarified that each person of the Trinity has no gender aside from being God.

While the most important Protestant and Catholic Chinese versions respectively have opted not to use 祂, some Bible translations do and it is widely used in hymnals and other Christian materials. Among the translations that use 祂 to refer to “God” were early versions of Lü Zhenzhong’s (呂振中) version (New Testament: 1946, complete Bible: 1970). R.P. Kramers (in The Bible Translator 1956, p. 152ff. ) explains why later versions of Lü’s translation did not continue with this practice: “This new way of writing ‘He,’ however, has created a minor problem of its own: must this polite form be used whenever Jesus is referred to? Lü follows the rule that, wherever Jesus is referred to as a human being, the normal tā (他) is written; where he is referred to as divine, especially after the ascension, the reverential tā (祂) is used.”

In Kouya, Godié, Northern Grebo, Eastern Krahn, Western Krahn, and Guiberoua Béte, all languages of the Kru family in Western Africa, a different kind of system of pronouns is used (click or tap here to read more):

In that system, one kind of pronoun is used for humans (male and female alike) and others for natural elements, non-liquid masses, and some spiritual entities (one other is used for large animals and another one for miscellaneous items). While in these languages the pronoun for spiritual entities used to be employed when referring to God, this has changed into the use of the human pronoun.

Lynell Zogbo (in The Bible Translator 1989, p. 401ff. ) explains: “From informal discussions with young Christians especially, it would appear that, at least for some people, the experience and/or concepts of Christianity are affecting the choice of pronoun for God. Some people explain that God is no longer ‘far away,’ but is somehow tangible and personal. For these speakers God has shifted over into the human category.”

In Kouya, God (the Father) and Jesus are referred to with the human pronoun ɔ, whereas the Holy Spirit is referred to with a non-human pronoun. (Northern Grebo and Western Krahn make a similar distinction.)

Eddie Arthur, a former Kouya Bible translation consultant, says the following: “We tried to insist that this shouldn’t happen, but the Kouya team members were insistent that the human pronoun for the Spirit would not work.”

In Burmese, the pronoun ko taw (ကိုယ်တော်) is used either as 2nd person (you) or 3rd person (he, him, his) reference. “This term clearly has its root in the religious language in Burmese. No ordinary persons are addressed or known by this pronoun because it is reserved for Buddhist monks, famous religious teachers, and in the case of Christianity, the Trinity.” (Source: Gam Seng Shae in The Bible Translator 2002, p. 202ff. )

In Thai, the pronoun phra`ong (พระองค์) is used, a gender-neutral pronoun which must refer to a previously introduced royal or divine being. Similarly, in Northern Khmer, which is spoken in Thailand, “an honorific divine pronoun” is used for the pronoun referring to the persons of the Trinity (source: David Thomas in The Bible Translator 1993, p. 445 ). In Urak Lawoi’, another language spoken in Thailand, the translation often uses tuhat (ตูฮัด) — “God” — ”as a divine pronoun where Thai has phra’ong even though it’s actually a noun.” (Source for Thai and Urak Lawoi’: Stephen Pattemore)

The English “Contemporary Torah” addresses the question of God and gendered pronouns by mostly avoiding pronouns in the first five books of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament (unless God is referred to as “lord,” “father,” “king,” or “warrior”). It does that by either using passive constructs (“He gave us” vs. “we were given”), by using the adjective “divine” or by using “God” rather than a pronoun.

Some Protestant and Orthodox English Bibles use a referential capitalized spelling when referring to the persons of the Trinity with “He,” “His,” “Him,” or “Himself.” This includes for instance the New American Standard Bible or The Orthodox New Testament, but most translations do not. Two other languages where this is also done (in most Bible translations) are Twents as well as Indonesian and Malay. In the latter two languages this follows the language usage according to the Qur’an, which in turn predicts that usage (see Soesilo in The Bible Translator 1991, p. 442ff. and The Bible Translator 1997, p. 433ff. ).

See also first person pronoun referring to God.

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Gender of God .

Translation: Chinese

在现代汉语中，第三人称单数代词的读音都是一样的（tā），但是写法并不一样，取决于性别以及是否有生命，即男性为“他”，女性为“她”，动物、植物和无生命事物为“它”（在香港和台湾的汉语使用，动物则为“牠”）。这些字的部首偏旁表明了性别（男人、女人、动物、无生命事物），而另一偏旁通常旁提示发音。

到1930年为止，基督教新教《圣经》经过整整一百年的翻译已经拥有了十几个译本，当时的一位圣经翻译者王元德新造了一个“神圣的”代词“祂”，偏旁“礻”表示神明。一般汉语读者会立即知道这字的发音是tā，而这个偏旁表示属灵的事物，因此他们明白这个字指出，三位一体的所有位格都没有性别之分，而单单是上帝。

然而，最重要的新教圣经译本（1919年的《和合本》）和天主教圣经译本（1968年的《思高圣经》）都没有采用“祂”；虽然如此，许多其他的圣经译本采用了这个字，另外还广泛出现在赞美诗和其他基督信仰的书刊中。（资料来源：Zetzsche）

《吕振中译本》的几个早期版本也使用“祂”来指称“上帝”；这个译本的《新约》于1946年译成，整部《圣经》于1970年完成。克拉默斯（Kramers）指出：“‘他’的这种新写法（即‘祂’）产生了一个小问题，就是在指称耶稣的时候，是否一律使用这个敬语代词？《吕振中译本》遵循的原则是，在称呼耶稣这个人的时候，用一般的‘他’，而在称呼耶稣神性的时候，特别是升天之后的耶稣，则用尊称‘祂’。”

Translator: Simon Wong

before / in the sight of / presence of (God) (Japanese honorifics)

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-mae (御前) or “before (God)” in the referenced verses. In some cases in can also be used in reference to being before a king, such as in 1 Samuel 16:16.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also presence (Japanese honorifics) and before you / to you.

Honorary "are" construct denoting God ("go")

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

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 are (され) 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, ik-are-ru (行かれる) or “go” is used.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on Mark 10:17

Exegesis:

ekporeuomenou autou eis hodon ‘as he was setting out on the journey,’ ‘as he was leaving for the trip.’

ekporeuomai (cf. 1.5) ‘go out,’ ‘proceed.’

eis hodon (cf. 6.8) ‘in the road,’ ‘on the way.’

prosdramōn heis kai gonupetēsas auton ‘a man running up and kneeling before him.’

prostrechō (cf. 9.15) ‘run to.’

heis ‘one’: here is the same as the indefinite pronoun tis ‘a certain one,’ ‘someone.’

gonupeteō (cf. 1.40) ‘kneel.’

didaskale agathe ‘good teacher’: the word ‘good’ here means ‘kind,’ ‘beneficent,’ ‘generous,’ not ‘efficient’ or ‘capable,’ as though the man were complimenting Jesus on his ability as a teacher; neither does it refer to the moral character of Jesus in the sense of ‘holy’ or something similar (cf. Lagrange).

hina zōēn aiōnion klēronomēsō ‘in order that I inherit eternal life?’

klēronomeō ‘inherit’: although the word may mean simply ‘obtain,’ ‘acquire,’ ‘possess,’ the literal meaning ‘to receive by lot,’ ‘to come into the inheritance of,’ better fits in with the Jewish concept of the people of Israel as God’s lot and eternal life as a gift, an inheritance, that man receives from God (cf. Ps. 37.11; Lagrange refers to Ps. Sol. 14.5, 10, which speak of Israel as the lot and inheritance of God, and of the just inheriting life).

zōē aiōnion (10.30) ‘eternal life’ (cf. 3.29 for aiōnion ‘age-long,’ ‘eternal’). It should be observed that the question is eschatological, from the point of view of Jewish theology of that time: “What must I do that in the resurrection from the dead eternal life be my lot?” The earliest expression of this eschatological concept is to be found in Dan. 12.2.

Translation:

Since this verse often begins an entirely new section, the use of ‘Jesus’ in place of ‘he’ may be required.

Where required by the cultural patterns, knelt before him may be expressed as ‘stooped down before’ or ‘bowed down before’ leaving implicit the exact position of the knees.

For teacher see 2.13.

Good Teacher as a phrase of direct address may not be permitted, since – though nouns as titles may be so used – they are often restricted in such a way that attributive adjectives cannot be used with them as modifiers. However, an expanded, attributive clause can often be employed, ‘Teacher, you who are good.’

Inherit cannot be translated literally in many languages since it would imply that someone has died and that the life which is inherited is the one which has just been given up, which has given some readers the impression that the Bible is talking about metempsychosis. In such instances one must use a verb meaning ‘receive,’ ‘come to possess,’ or ‘have.’

For certain problems related to eternal see 3.29, but in this context the difficulties are somewhat different because eternal is combined with life. Often eternal is translated as ‘lasting’ or ‘continuing,’ or by some idiomatic equivalent which indicates some type of continuity, e.g. ‘day with day’ (Laka) or ‘of all the years’ (Yaka). However, there are certain problems in this usage. For example, in Navajo the expression ‘continuous life,’ which had seemed for some time to be satisfactory, proved entirely erroneous, for the Navajos believe that all people possess ‘continuing life,’ in the sense that each succeeding generation is a demonstration of this continuing stream of life within the family unit. Accordingly, in Navajo it was necessary to translate ‘life without end.’ The same type of expression is used in Barrow Eskimo, Highland Puebla Nahuatl, Yucateco, Guerrero Amuzgo, and Pamona.

Inherit eternal life must undergo certain changes in languages in which life must be translated as a verb, e.g. ‘do in order to be able to live without end.’

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator's Notes on Mark 10:17

Section 10:17–31

Jesus taught about entering the kingdom of God

A young man asked Jesus how he could obtain eternal life. Jesus gave an answer that was well known to Jews. He told the man to obey God’s commands. The man said that he had been obeying God’s commands since he was a child.

Jesus then told the young man that he still needed to do one thing (10:21). He needed to give away his riches and follow Jesus. But the young man did not follow Jesus’ advice. The man was rich (10:22). He valued his riches too highly to give them up to follow Jesus.

Jesus used the young man as an example to explain that it is hard for rich people to devote themselves to God and his kingdom (10:23–25). He said that unless God makes it possible, neither a rich person nor anyone else is able to enter heaven (10:27).

Jesus promised that those who had left their possessions and family behind to serve him would receive great rewards (10:29–31).

It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

Jesus taught that riches make it difficult to obtain eternal life
-or-
A Rich Young Man’s Question (New Century Version)
-or-
The rich young man (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
Riches hinder rather than help in seeking to enter the kingdom of God

There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 19:16–30 and Luke 18:18–30.

Paragraph 10:17–22

10:17a

The events in the story in 10:17–31 happened sometime after the events in 10:13–16. The Greek text does not indicate how much time passed between these two stories. In some languages, it is natural to begin a story with a time word or phrase. If this is true in your language, use an expression here that is not too specific. For example:

Then
-or-
After that

In other languages, a time word or phrase is not necessary. Introduce this story in a natural way in your language.

As Jesus started on His way: The expression As Jesus started on His way indicates that Jesus began a journey. Soon after he started, the events in 10:17b occurred.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

As Jesus started to leave (New Century Version)
-or-
He was beginning a journey when

Jesus: Here the Greek text is literally the pronoun “he” (as in the Revised Standard Version). The pronoun “he” refers to Jesus. Since this is the beginning of a new section, it may be natural in your language to use the name Jesus here.

It is clear from 10:23 that Jesus’ disciples were with him. In some languages it may be clearer to make this information explicit here at the beginning of the story. For example:

Jesus and his disciples

10:17b

a man: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as a man is literally “one.” It refers to a man who is mentioned here for the first time in this story. Introduce him in a natural way in your language.

ran up: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as ran up is literally “ran.” It indicates that the man ran to Jesus. The Berean Standard Bible has supplied the word up to make the clause sound more natural in English.

knelt before Him: The expression knelt before Him means to kneel or bow down in front of someone to show respect. It often indicates also that a person wanted to make an earnest request.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

knelt before him to show humility
-or-
bowed low before him

A similar expression occurs in 5:22b and 5:33b.

10:17c

Good Teacher: The phrase Good Teacher means “teacher who is morally good, upright, or holy.” It does not refer to a teacher who teaches well.

In some languages it may not be natural to use a description like “good” as part of a person’s title when you are addressing that person. If that is true in your language, you may want to put the word “good” in a different phrase. For example:

Sir teacher, you are a good person.

Teacher: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Teacher was a polite title for a Jewish religious leader. It was a title of respect for a Jewish man who had authority to teach the things about God. In some languages the appropriate way to address a religious teacher may be:

Sir Teacher
-or-
Sir
-or-
Master

Be careful not to use a term that can refer only to a school teacher. See how you translated this word in 4:38c or 9:17b.

he asked: The Berean Standard Bible places the words he asked in the middle of the man’s words. In Greek, he asked occurs before the man’s words. Put the words he asked in a place that is natural in your language.

what must I do to inherit eternal life?: This is a real question. The man was asking what religious duty or deed he should perform in order to receive eternal life.

Here are some other ways to translate this question:

…what can I do to have eternal life? (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
…what deed should I do so that I may live eternally?

to inherit: In this context, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as inherit means “acquire, obtain.” The man wanted to know what deed would cause God to give him eternal life in heaven.

Here i another way to translate this:

so that I may receive

In some languages, it may be necessary to say from whom the man expected to obtain eternal life. If that is true in your language, you may need to supply the information that it is God who gives that life. For example:

so that God will give me eternal life

eternal life: The word eternal refers to something that does not end. The phrase eternal life refers to life in heaven with God.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

unending life
-or-
life that never ends

In some languages, a literal translation of eternal life would wrongly mean that the man hoped to live forever without dying. If that is true in your language, it may be necessary to supply some implied information. For example:

unending life in heaven
-or-
to live forever with God after I die

In some languages, it may be best to translate life as a verb. For example:

to live eternally/forever
-or-
so that God will cause me to live forever in heaven

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