2and said to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it.
The phrase that is translated into English as “a colt that has never been ridden” can be translated in Kalmyk much more succinctly than even the original Greek text since Kalmyk as arkhlata (архлата) a specific word for an unbroken colt. (source: David Clark)
In the Arhuaco translation of Luke 19:35 (in the English translation: “after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it.”) the co-translator knew how unruly unbroken colts are so they translated “they held the donkey steady so that Jesus could get on it.” (source: Paul Lundquist in The Bible Translator 1992, p. 246 .)
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “village” or “town” in English is translated in Noongar as karlamaya or “fire (used for “home“) + houses” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).
In Elhomwe it is typically translated as “place.” “Here in Malawi, villages very small, so changed to ‘places,’ since not sure whether biblical reference just to small villages or also to bigger towns. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.
As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator2002, p. 210ff. ), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.
Here, Jesus is addressing his disciples, individuals and/or crowds with the formal pronoun, showing respect.
In Nepali translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and other people with the medium honorific pronoun timīlē (तिमीले) or timīlēharū (तिमीलेहरू). His disciples respond with a high honorific pronoun. (Source: Chitra Chhetri in The Bible Translator 2009, p. 73ff. )
In most Dutch translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and common people with the informal pronoun, whereas they address him with the formal form.
Retrotraducciones en español (haga clic o pulse aquí)
Jesús y los discípulos estaban caminando y vieron enfrente de ellos el Monte de los Olivos.
Allá cerca estaba el pueblo de Betania y más allá Betfagé, cerca de Jerusalén.
Jesús dijo a dos discípulos: Uds dos vayanse al pueblo de Betfagé y verán que hay un burro chico que todavía no ha sido montado por nadie.
El burro está atado, quiten la cuerda y si alguien les dice: “¿porqué toman el burro?” uds dos digan: “espera un poco, Jesús necesita el burro, nosotros dos lo tomamos y después vendremos otra vez aquí y dejaremos el burro.”
Jesús (dijo): “¿entienden?” Y los discipulos lo afirmaron y se fueron a Betfagé y yendo por el camino vieron una casa y a la puerta había un burro atado.
Los dos lo desataron y alguien los vio y dijo: ¿Porqué toman el burro? Los dos discípulos se dieron cuenta de que era exactamente lo que Jesús había dicho antes y dijeron: “Mira” y lo explicaron, y las personas (dijeron): “Sí, tienen permiso, vayanse.”
Los dos discípulos tomaron el burro y lo llevaron, y pusieron sus mantos en la espalda del burro.
Jesús montó el burro y fueron y una multitud de personas vino y caminaba con ellos y punían sus mantos en la calle, y cortaban ramas de los árboles y las ponían en el camino.
Jesús estaba andando el burro y muchas personas caminaban enfrente de él y atrás de él caminaba mucha gente y estaban alegres y gritaban: “alabado sea Dios que ya ha entregado la autoridad a Jesús, Dios bendiga su familia, la descendencia del Rey David de mucho antes, este es el rey bendito, ¡huy! Dios, salvanos ahorita.”
La multitud estaba caminando y Jesús estaba andando en el burro y llegaron al templo de Jerusalén y Jesús miró al templo, y como ya era tarde Jesús regresó al pueblo de Betania.
Jesus and the disciples were walking and they saw in front of them the Mount of Olives.
Over there close by was the village of Bethany and further on Bethphage, near Jerusalem.
Jesus said to two disciples: “You two go off to the village of Bethphage and you will say that there is a little donkey there that nobody has ridden yet.
“The donkey is tied up, take off the rope and if anyone says to you: ‘Why are you taking the donkey?’ tell them: ‘Wait a little, Jesus needs the donkey, we will take it and afterwards we will come here again and leave the donkey.'”
Jesus (said): “understood?” And the disciples affirmed and went to Bethphage, and going on their way they saw a house and at the door there was a donkey tied up.
The two of them untied it and someone saw them and said: “Why are you taking the donkey?” The disciples realized that it was exactly what Jesus had just said and they said: “Look” and they explained it and the people (said): “Yes, you have permission, off you go.”
The two disciples took the donkey and led it away and they put their mantles on the back of the donkey.
Jesus got on the donkey and they went and a multitude of people came and walked with them and they put their mantles on the road and cut branches of the trees and put them on the road.
Jesus was riding on the donkey and many people walked in front of him and behind him came many people and they were happy and shouted: “Praise be to God who has given the authority to Jesus, God bless his family, the descendants of King David of long ago, this is the blessed king, wow. God, save us now.”
The multitude was walking and Jesus was riding on the donkey and they arrived at the temple in Jerusalem and Jesus looked around in the temple, and since it was already late he went back to the village of Bethany.
Jesus and His twelve disciples were approaching the city of Jerusalem. In front of Jerusalem there is a mountain called the Mount of Olives. There are two villages near the mountain, Bethphage and Bethany. Jesus called the two disciples to him and said to them:
— Go to that village over there. There is a young donkey there. None of the people have ever ridden it before. The donkey will be tied up. You will untie him and bring him here. If, when you untie him, people will be displeased and will ask, “What is this for? Why are you untying him? What are you doing?”, answer them, “Our master needs this donkey,” and then people will allow it.
The two disciples went to the village, and there they saw a donkey tied at the gate. The disciples began to untie it. People saw it, started to come up and asked, “Why are you doing this? Why do you untie it?” The disciples answered as Jesus told them to. Then the people allowed it. The disciples brought the young donkey to Jesus. The disciples took off their cloaks and put them on the back of the donkey. Jesus sat on top and rode on top of the donkey. Many people gathered around. Many took off their cloaks and laid them on the road in front of Jesus. Others cut palm branches and laid them on the road. Jesus was riding on a donkey, and the people crowded around him, shouting:
— Jesus! Glory to you! May God bless you! You have come by the will of the Lord God! God bless you! You will reign! You are a descendant of King David. You will also reign! God’s glory is in heaven!
And Jesus continued to ride on the young donkey. Then Jesus entered Jerusalem. He went into the temple and looked around. It was late in the evening. Jesus and the 12 disciples traveled back to the village of Bethany.
Original Russian back-translation (click or tap here):
Иисус с двенадцатью учениками подходили к городу Иерусалим. Перед Иерусалимом есть гора, называемая «Масличная». Возле горы есть две деревни — Вифагия и Вифания. Иисус подозвал к себе двух учеников и сказал им:
— Идите вон в ту деревню. Там есть молодой ослик. Никто из людей еще не ездил на нем верхом. Ослик будет привязан. Вы отвяжите его и приведите его сюда. Если, когда вы будете его отвязывать, люди будут недовольны и будут спрашивать: «Зачем это? Зачем вы его отвязываете? Что вы делаете?», ответьте им: «Нашему хозяину нужен этот осел», и тогда люди разрешат.
Два ученика отправились в деревню, там они увидели осла, привязанного у ворот. Ученики стали отвязывать его. Люди увидели это, стали подходить, стали спрашивать: «Зачем вы это делаете? Зачем отвязываете?» Ученики отвечали так, как велел им Иисус. Тогда люди разрешили. Ученики привели молодого осла к Иисусу. Ученики сняли с себя плащи и положили на спину осла. Иисус сел сверху и поехал верхом на осле. Множество людей собралось вокруг. Многие снимали свои одежды и стлали их по дороге, перед Иисусом. Другие срезали пальмовые ветви и клали их на дорогу. Иисус ехал верхом на осле, а вокруг толпились люди, и они кричали:
— Иисус! Слава тебе! Пусть Бог благословит тебя! Ты пришел по воле Господа Бога! бог благословляет тебя! Ты будешь царствовать! Ты потомок царя Давида. Ты также будешь царствовать! На небесах Божья слава!
А Иисус продолжал ехать верхом на молодом осле. И вот Иисус вступил в Иерусалим. Он вошел в храм, все там обошел и осмотрел. Был уже поздний вечер. Иисус и 12 учеников отправились обратно в деревню Вифания.
Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 11:2:
Uma: “he said to them: ‘You go to that village we are facing over there [in sight, far away]. Just when you enter the village, you will see a young keledai [animal] tied up, that has never been ridden. Undo its ropes and bring it here.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “He said to them, ‘Go to that village ahead of you. When you arrive there, immediately you will see the offspring of an asnu tied (to something), it has not been ridden on. Untie (it) and bring (it) here.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “he said, ‘Go to the village that we are about to arrive in, and when you get there you will see a young asnu tied up there that has never been ridden on. Untie it and bring it here.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “saying, ‘Go to that town across-the-way. Exactly as you are arriving there, you will come-upon a young (lit. child of) donkey that has never been ridden that is tethered. Untie it and bring it here.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “He said to them, ‘Go there to that bario of Betfage. When you get there, you will see a young asno horse tethered, which has not yet been-broken-for-riding. Untie it and bring it here to me.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Most of the words of this verse have already been dealt with: for eisporeuomai ‘enter’ cf. 1.21; deō ‘bind’ cf. 3.27; kathizō ‘sit’ cf. 9.35; luō ‘loose’ cf. 1.7; pherō ‘bring’ cf. 1.32.
tēn kōmēn tēn katenanti humōn ‘the village which is opposite you,’ i.e. ‘the village which lies before you.’ By most of the commentators this is held to refer to Bethphage; Dalman, however, and Gould (who omits the words Bēthphagē kai ‘Bethphage and’ from v. 1 as a later addition) understand it to mean Bethany.
pōlon … eph’ hon oudeis oupō anthrōpōn ekathisen ‘a colt … upon which no man ever sat’: this description of the animal is perhaps suggested by Zech. 9.6.
pōlon (11.4, 5, 7) ‘colt,’ ‘young donkey,’ ‘the foal of an ass.’
Translation:
Go into may need to be ‘go to’ or ‘arrive at,’ since ‘into’ may not be applicable to anything but enclosures such as houses or stockades.
Opposite you has been interpreted by some to refer to a village on the opposite side of a small ravine or valley, a very possible meaning for such a relatively unusual expression.
Colt must be the young of an ass – not of a mule, as was done in one translation, and as a result the people were appalled, not only because mules only very rarely have been known to give birth, but because according to local legend such an event would herald the end of the world. Where donkeys are completely unknown one can employ one of these three alternatives: (1) use a descriptive phrase such as ‘the young of a beast of burden,’ (2) use a classifier, ‘the young of an animal called ass,’ employing a transliteration based on the prestige language from which most borrowings are taken, or (3) use a borrowed term without classifier. One must beware, however, of descriptive phrases. For example, one translator in Latin America, in an area where donkeys were unknown, used ‘a long-eared animal,’ but the people interpreted this in terms of the only long-eared animal they knew, namely, a rabbit. They thought that it must have been a very large rabbit to have carried Jesus.
Sat must be clearly distinguished in some languages between ‘sitting in a chair or on a stool’ and ‘mounted on an animal.’ The latter meaning is, of course, necessary here.
Bring must be used in the sense of ‘lead.’
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 .
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