Jesus

The Greek Iēsous is “only” a proper name but one with great importance. The following quote by John Ellington (in The Bible Translator 1993, p. 401ff. ) illustrates this:

“In Matthew’s account of the birth of Jesus Christ, Joseph is told that when Mary gives birth to a son ‘you will name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins’ (1:21). This name is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name [Yeshua (יֵשׁוּעַ) which is a short form of a name meaning] ‘the Lord [Yahweh] saves.’ The name is very significant and is in itself especially dear to Christians around the world. (…) Unquestionably great importance is attached to the name of Jesus by Christians of all persuasions and backgrounds.”

While Iēsous (pronounced: /i.ɛː.suːs/) is transliterated as “Jesus” (pronounced /ˈdʒiːzəs/) in English (but was translated as “Hælend” [the “healing one”] in Old English — see Swain 2019) it is transliterated and pronounced in a large variety of other ways as well, following the different rules of different languages’ orthographies, writing systems and rules of pronunciation. The following is a (partial) list of forms of Jesus in Latin characters: aYeso, Azezi, Boiyesuq, Cecoc, Chesús, Chi̍i̍sū, Chisɔsi, Ciisahs, Ciise, Ciisusu, Djesu, Ɛisa, Ƹisa, Eyesu, Gesù, Gesû, Gesü, Ġesù, Ghjesù, Giêsu, ꞌGiê‑ꞌsu, Giê-xu, Gyisɛse, Hesu, Hesús, Hisus, Hisuw, Ià-sŭ, Iesen, Ié:sos, Iesu, Iesui, Iesusɨn, Iesusiva, Ié:sos, Ihu, Īhu, Iisus, Iisussa, Ijeesu, iJisọsị, Iji̍sɔ̄ɔsi, Iosa, Íosa, Ìosa, İsa, I’sa, Isiso, Isõs, Ísu, Isus, Isusa, Iisussa, Isuthi, Itota, Îtu, Isuva, Izesu, Izesuq, Jasus, Jeeju, Jeesus, Jeesuse, Jeezas, Jehu, Jeisu, Jeju, Jejus, Jesesi, Jeshu, Jeso, Jesoe, Jesosa, Jesoshi, Jesosi, Jesosy, Jesu, Jesû, Jesua, Jesuh, Jesuhs, Jesuo, Jesús, Jésus, Jesúsu, Jethu, Jezed, Jezi, Jézi, Ježiš, Jezu, Jezus, Jézus, Jėzus, Jēzus, Jezusi, Jėzus, Jezuz, Jiijajju, Jíísas, Jiisusi, Jiizas, Jíìzọ̀s, Jisas, Jisase, Jisasi, Jisasɨ, Jisaso, Jisesi, Jisɛ̀, Jisos, Jisọs, Jisɔs, Jisu, Jiszs, Jizọs, Jizɔs, Jizọsi, Jizọsu, Jòso, Jusu, Jweesus, Ketsutsi, Njises, Sesi, Sisa, Sísa, Sisas, Sises, Sīsū, Sizi, Txesusu, uJesu, Ujísɔ̄si, ŵaYesu, Xesosi, ´Xesús, Xesús, Yasu, Ya:su, Yasuuⓐ, Ɣaysa, Yecu, Yeeb Sub, Yeeh Suh, Yeesey, Yeeso, Yeesso, Yēēsu, Yehsu, Yëësu, Yeiqsul, Yeisu, Yeisuw, Yeshu, Yē shú, Yeso, Yéso, Yesò, Yëso, Yɛso, ye-su, Yésu, Yêsu, Yẹ́sụ̃, Yěsù, Yésʉs, Yeswa, Yet Sut, Yetut, Yexus, Yezo, Yezu, Yiesu, Yiisa, Yiisu, Yiitju, Yis, Yisɔs, Yisufa, Yitati, Yusu, ‑Yusu, :Yusu’, Zeezi, Zezi, Zezì, Zezuz, Zezwii, Ziizɛ, Zisas, Zîsɛ, Zjezus, Zozi, Zozii, and this (much more incomplete) list with other writings systems: ᔩᓱᓯ, ᒋᓴᔅ, Հիսուս, ᏥᏌ, ኢየሱስ, ያሱስ, ܝܫܘܥ, Ісус, Їисъ, 耶稣, იესო, ईसा, イエス, イイスス, イエスス, 예수, येशू, येशो, ਈਸਾ, ພຣະເຢຊູ, ජේසුස්, যীশু, ଯୀଶୁ, ཡེ་ཤུ་, ‘ঈছা, இயேசு, ಯೇಸು, ພຣະເຢຊູ, ယေရှု, ઇસુ, जेजू, येसु, เยซู, យេស៊ូ, ᱡᱤᱥᱩ, ယေသှု, యేసు, ᤕᤧᤛᤢ᤺ᤴ, އީސާގެފާނު, ਯਿਸੂ, ꕉꖷ ꔤꕢ ꕞ, ⵏ⵿ⵗⵢⵙⴰ, ଜୀସୁ, يَسُوعَ,ㄧㄝㄙㄨ, YE-SU, ꓬꓰ꓿ꓢꓴ, 𖽃𖽡𖾐𖼺𖽹𖾏𖼽𖽔𖾏, ꑳꌠ, ᠶᠡᠰᠦᠰ (note that some of these might not display correctly if your device does not have the correct fonts installed).

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In some languages the different confessions have selected different transliterations, such as in Belarusian with Isus (Ісус) by the Orthodox and Protestant churches and Yezus (Езус) by the Catholic church, Bulgarian with Iisus (Иисус) by the Orthodox and Isus (Исус) by the Protestant church, Japanese with Iesu (イエス) (Protestant and Catholic) and Iisusu (イイスス) (Orthodox), or Lingala with Yesu (Protestant) or Yezu (Catholic). These differences have come to the forefront especially during the work on interconfessional translations such as one in Lingala where “many hours were spent on a single letter difference” (source: Ellington, p. 401).

In Literary and Mandarin Chinese where transliterations of proper names between the Catholic and Protestant versions typically differ vastly, the Chinese name of Jesus (Yēsū 耶稣) remarkably was never brought into question between and by those two confessions, likely due to its ingenious choice. (Click or tap here to see more).

The proper name of God in the Old Testament, Yahweh (YHWH), is rendered in most Chinese Bible translations as Yēhéhuá 耶和華 — Jehovah. According to Chinese naming conventions, Yēhéhuá could be interpreted as Yē Héhuá, in which Yē would be the family name and Héhuá — “harmonic and radiant” — the given name. In the same manner, Yē 耶 would be the family name of Jesus and Sū 稣 would be his given name. Because in China the children inherit the family name from the father, the sonship of Jesus to God the Father, Jehovah, would be illustrated through this. Though this line of argumentation sounds theologically unsound, it is indeed used effectively in the Chinese church (see Wright 1953, p. 298).

Moreover, the “given name” of Sū 稣 carries the meaning ‘to revive, to rise again’ and seems to point to the resurrected Jesus. (Source: J. Zetzsche in Malek 2002, p. 141ff., see also tetragrammaton (YHWH))

There are different ways that Bible translators have chosen historically and today in how to translate the name of Jesus in predominantly Muslim areas: with a form of the Arabic Isa (عيسى) (which is used for “Jesus” in the Qur’an), the Greek Iēsous, or, like major 20th century Bible translations into Standard Arabic, the Aramaic Yēšūaʿ: Yasua (يَسُوعَ). (Click or tap here to see more.)

Following are languages and language groups that use a form of Isa include the following (note that this list is not complete):

  • Indo-Iranian languages: Persian, Dari, Central Pashto, Southern Pashto all use Eysa (عيسی or عيسىٰ for Southern Pashto), Sindhi uses Eysey (عيسيٰ), Southern Balochi Issa (ایسّا), Central Kurdish (Sorani) and Northern Kurdish (Kurmanji) use Îsa (عیسای and Иса respectively), Turkmen has Isa, and Tajik Isoi (Исои — compare Iso/Исо in the Tajik Qur’an)
  • Turkic languages: Turkish uses İsa, Kazakh, Kumyk, Nogai, Crimean Tatar all have Isa (Иса), Kirghiz has Iysa (Ыйса), Uzbek has Iso (Исо — compare Iiso/Ийсо in the Uzbek Qur’an), Bashkir uses Aaisa (Ғайса), North Azerbaijani İsa, Uighur uses Eysa (ئەيسا), and Kara-Kalpak İysa (Ийса)
  • Caucasian languages: Bezhta and Lezghian use Isa (Иса), Avaric has Aisa (ГІиса), and Chechen Iza (Иза)
  • Various African languages: Somali, a Cushitic language, has Ciise, Kabyle has Ɛisa and Tahaggart Tamahaq has Yeswa (both Berber languages), the Saharan languages Central Kanuri, Manga Kanuri have Isa, the Atlantic-Congo languages Dagbani, Mampruli, and Bimoba use Yisa, and the Chadian Arabic Bible has Isa (عِيسَى)
  • In Indonesian, while most Bible translations had already used Yesus Kristus rather than Isa al Masih, three public holidays used to be described using the term Isa Al Masih. From 2024 on the government is using Yesus Kristus in those holiday names instead (see this article in Christianity Today ).
  • Some languages have additional “TAZI” editions (TAZI stands for “Tawrat, Anbiya, Zabur, and Injil” the “Torah, Prophets, Psalms and Gospel”) of the New Testament that are geared towards Muslim readers where there is also a translation in the same language for non-Muslims. In those editions, Isa is typically used as well (for example, the Khmer TAZI edition uses Isa (អ៊ីសា) rather than the commonly used Yesaou (យេស៊ូ), the Thai edition uses Isa (อีซา) rather than Yesu (เยซู), the Chinese edition uses Ěrsā (尔撒) vs. Yēsū (耶稣), and the English edition also has Isa rather than Jesus.)

In German the name Jesus (pronounced: /ˈjeːzʊs/) is distinguished by its grammatical forms. Into the 20th century the grammatical rules prescribed a unique Greek-Latin declination: Jesus (nominative), Jesu (genitive, dative, vocative), Jesum (accusative), from which today only the genitive case “Jesu” is still in active use. Likewise, in Seediq (Taroko), the morphological treatment of “Jesus” also occupies a special category by not falling under the normal rule of experiencing a vowel reduction when the object-specific suffix an is added “since it was felt that the readers might resent that the name has been changed that drastically.” (Compare Msian for “Moses” (Mosi) as an object, but Yisuan for “Jesus” (Yisu).) (Source: Covell 1998. p. 249)

In Lamba the name ŵaYesu consists of a transliteration Yesu and the prefix ŵa, a plural form for “proper names when addressing and referring to persons in any position of seniority or honor.” While this was avoided in early translations to avoid possible misunderstandings of more than one Jesus, once the church was established it was felt that it was both “safe” and respectful to use the honorific (pl.) prefix. (Source C. M. Doke in The Bible Translator 1958, p. 57ff. )

In virtually all sign languages, “Jesus” is signed with the middle finger of each hand pointing to the palm (or wrist) of the other in succession (signing the nails of the cross). In the context of Bible translation this has been pointed out as theologically problematic since the “semantic connections of the original name Jesus do point towards ‘salvation,’ they do not naturally lead to crucifixion.” (Source: Phil King in Journal of Translation 1 (2020), p. 33ff.)


“Jesus” in German Sign Language (source )

Following is the oldest remaining Ethiopian Orthodox icon of Jesus from the 14th or possibly 13th century (found in the Church of the Saviour of the World in Gurji, Ethiopia). As in many Orthodox icons, Jesus’ right hand forms the Greek letters I-C-X-C for IHCOYC XPICTOC or “Jesus Christ.” Another interpretation of the right hand is that it shows three fingers pointing to the Trinity, while the two other fingers point to Jesus’ two natures.

source (c) Jacques Mercier and Alain Mathieu

Orthodox icons are not drawings or creations of imagination. They are in fact writings of things not of this world. Icons can represent our Lord Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the Saints. They can also represent the Holy Trinity, Angels, the Heavenly hosts, and even events. Orthodox icons, unlike Western pictures, change the perspective and form of the image so that it is not naturalistic. This is done so that we can look beyond appearances of the world, and instead look to the spiritual truth of the holy person or event. (Source )

The following is the so-called “Wales Window for Alabama.” It is a stained-glass window by the artist John Petts from Carmarthenshire, Wales, created in response to the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing which took place in 1963:

Stained glass is not just highly decorative, it’s a medium which has been used to express important religious messages for centuries. Literacy was not widespread in the medieval and Renaissance periods and the Church used stained glass and other artworks to teach the central beliefs of Christianity. In Gothic churches, the windows were filled with extensive narrative scenes in stained glass — like huge and colorful picture storybooks — in which worshipers could ‘read’ the stories of Christ and the saints and learn what was required for their religious salvation. (Source: Victoria and Albert Museum )

The style of the following drawing of Jesus by Annie Vallotton is described by the artist as this: “By using few lines the readers fill in the outlines with their imagination and freedom. That is when the drawings begin to communicate.” (see here ; see also We All are One in Christ)

Illustration by Annie Vallotton, copyright by Donald and Patricia Griggs of Griggs Educational Service.

Other visual representation of Jesus in TIPs include several non-Western styles of art: traditional Korean art, traditional Chinese art, modern Chinese abstract art, northern and central Thailand’s popular art, Indian Hamzanama style, traditional Vietnamese art, or Japanese prints.

See also this devotion on YouVersion .

Translation commentary on Mark 10:21

Text:

At the end of the verse Textus Receptus, Soden, Vogels, and Merk add aras ton stauron ‘taking up the cross,’ which is omitted by the majority of modern editions of the Greek text.

Exegesis:

emblepsas autō ēgapēsen auton ‘looking on him he loved him.’

emblepō (cf. 8.25) ‘see,’ ‘look at,’ ‘look on.’

agapaō (12.30, 31, 33) ‘love’: here Field suggests that perhaps it means ‘he caressed him,’ and gives examples of the verb used with this meaning.

hen se husterei literally ‘one thing lacks you’: the verb hustereō means ‘fail,’ ‘lack’ and is here used impersonally; the numeral hen ‘one thing’ is the subject, and the personal pronoun se ‘you’ is the object.

hosa echeis pōlēson ‘whatever you have sell.’

hosa (cf. 3.8) ‘everything that,’ ‘as many things as.’

pōleō (11.15) ‘sell.’

kai dos tois ptōchois ‘and give (the proceeds from the sale) to the poor’ (cf. The Modern Speech New Testament).

thēsauron en ouranō ‘treasure in heaven’: Arndt & Gingrich comment, “which is, as it were, deposited there and becomes available to men after death.” Or, as Taylor comments, ‘treasure in heaven’ means ‘treasure with God.’

ouranos (cf. 1.10) ‘heaven’ where God dwells.

deuro (only here in Mark; cf. deute 1.17) is an adverb ‘hither’ used as an imperative ‘come!’

akolouthei (cf. 1.18) ‘you follow,’ ‘become my disciple.’

Translation:

Loved should be translated in such a way as to indicate Jesus’ profound admiration and regard for this young man, but one must carefully avoid any suggestion of emotional attitude which would imply amorous instincts of homosexuality. In speaking of love, whether divine or human, there are a number of idiomatic expressions used in various languages, e.g. ‘his heart burned for’ (Guerrero Amuzgo), ‘he hurt in his heart’ (Tzeltal), ‘his heart went away with’ (Mitla Zapotec), ‘his abdomen died for him’ (Conob), ‘his thoughts were toward him’ (Cashibo-Cacataibo), and ‘put him in his heart’ (Toro So Dogon).

A literal rendering of you lack one thing may be quite misleading, if it refers essentially to the lack of possessions. The meaning here is that there is still one thing which he should do, e.g. ‘you still fail in one thing’ (in the sense of ‘action’ or ‘activity’).

Give to the poor must be understood in the sense of ‘distribute the proceeds (i.e. ‘the money’) to the poor people.’

And come must be rendered in some languages as involving some transitional element, since the last two imperative verbs are not completely coordinate with the first three. That is to say, the commands to go, sell and give represent one stage, followed by the commands, come, follow. Accordingly, one must sometimes translate as ‘then come, follow me.’

For follow see 1.17.

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 10:21

10:21a

Jesus looked at him, loved him: Jesus looked at this man and felt love for him. The word loved indicates that Jesus felt strong affection and concern for the man. Use a natural expression in your language for this word.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

Jesus looked straight at him with love (Good News Bible)
-or-
Jesus felt genuine love for this man as he looked at him. (New Living Translation, 1996 edition)

In some languages there may be an idiom to express this. For example, the Revised English Bible says:

As Jesus looked at him, his heart warmed to him.

looked: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as looked means “looked intently” or “fixed his gaze upon.” It indicates that Jesus was considering the man carefully. Use an expression with that meaning.

The verb does not mean “stare.” It does not imply anger or any bad feeling. If “look intently” implies anger or bad feeling in your culture, you should use a different expression.

10:21b

There is one thing you lack: The phrase There is one thing you lack means “There is one more thing that you need to do.” This refers back to the young man’s original question in 10:17c.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

You need only one thing. (Good News Bible)
-or-
There is one deed you still need to do to inherit/have eternal life.

The phrase one thing is emphasized in the Greek text. If you have a natural way to emphasize this phrase, you may want to do so. Here is an example:

There is only one thing you need to do.

10:21c

Go, sell: The word Go introduces the command sell. It implies that the man should return to his home or property so that he can sell it. The New Century Version says:

Go and sell

sell everything you own and give to the poor: These words imply that the man should sell everything he owned and give the money that he received to the poor. In some languages it may be necessary to make that explicit. For example:

sell everything you own and give the money/proceeds to poor people

the poor: The phrase the poor refers to people who have little money and few material possessions.

10:21d

and: 10:21d is the result of 10:21c. If the man did as Jesus told him in 10:21c, he would have treasure in heaven.

Here are some other ways to translate this connection:

Then you will have…
-or-
If you do that, you will have…

you will have treasure in heaven: When a believer serves God, God gives him a reward. That reward is called here treasure in heaven. Your translation should not imply that God simply takes the same money that was given to the poor and puts it in heaven. One way to avoid that wrong meaning is to indicate that the reward is a result of giving to the poor. For example:

As a result, God will reward you with treasure in heaven.

treasure: The word treasure usually refers to valuable things such as money, jewels, and precious items. But in this context, it refers to true spiritual riches. It also implies that these riches are stored safely. The term you use should not only indicate money.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

what is truly valuable
-or-
true wealth/riches that are stored away

heaven: Here the word heaven refers to the place where God lives. This is also the place where believers will live with God after they die. See how you translated this word in 1:11a or 7:34a. See heaven, Meaning 2, in the Glossary.

10:21e

Then:

There is a textual issue in 10:21e. Some Greek manuscripts have a phrase that means “take up the cross.” (1) Some Greek manuscripts do not have this phrase. For example, the Good News Bible says: “then come and follow me” (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Good News Bible, Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, English Standard Version, NET Bible, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, God’s Word, New Living Translation, Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, New Century Version). (2) Some later Greek manuscripts have the phrase “take up the cross.” For example, the King James Version says: “and come, take up the cross, and follow me” (King James Version). It is recommended that you follow option (1). However, if the major language version in your area has this phrase, you can put it in a footnote.
The word Then indicates that after the man sold his things and gave the money to the poor, then he was to follow Jesus.

follow Me: The expression follow Me is meant both literally and figuratively. It is a metaphor for learning from Jesus and being his disciple. Disciples usually followed their teachers wherever they went and lived with them. The Greek form indicates an ongoing action. Use a form that is natural in your language.

If people in your area will not understand the figurative language, you may want to use nonfigurative language.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

learn from me
-or-
be learning from me to do God’s will
-or-
be my disciple

See how you translated this expression in 1:17a.

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