Retrotraducciones en español (haga clic o pulse aquí)
Jesús les advirtió: “Cuando este sufrimiento se acabe el sol será transformado en oscuridad y también la luna será oscuro, no difundirá luz, habrá un terremoto allá en el universo y las estrellas caerán.
Todas las personas se volverán a ver el hijo de hombre bajando, parado en una nube, con gloria y gran poder, luz brillando de él.
Él que está parado en la nube dirá a los ángeles: ‘Yo ya elegí a las personas que sí creen, uds ángeles vayan, bajen al mundo entero y agarren a las personas y las lleven junto a mi.'”
Jesus warned them: “When this suffering ends, the sun will be transformed into darkness and also the sun will be dark, it will not give light, there will be an earthquake up there in the universe and the stars will fall.
“All people will turn to see the Son of Man coming down on a cloud in glory and great power with light shining out from him.
“The one standing on the cloud will say to the angels: ‘I have already chosen the people who do believe, you angels go down into the whole world and grab the people and bring them to me.'”
— This time of suffering will end, and then throughout the universe the sun will go out, and the moon will go out, and the stars will fall down, and the heavens will tremble. All over the earth people will see the Son of Man descending from heaven, in glory and radiance, and with him a mighty host of angels. I will command the angels: “You, angels, go to earth and gather those whom God has chosen.”
Angels will descend and gather those whom God has chosen from all over the earth.
Original Russian back-translation (click or tap here):
Иисус сказал ученикам:
— Это время страданий кончится, и потом во всей вселенной солнце погаснет, и луна погаснет, и звезды попадают вниз, а небеса содрогнутся. По всей земле люди увидят, как с небес спускается Сын Человеческий, в славе и сиянии, а вместе с ним могучее воинство ангелов. Я прикажу ангелам:
— Вы, ангелы, идите на землю и соберите тех, кого избрал Бог.
Ангелы спустятся и по всей земле соберут тех, кого избрал Бог.
The Greek that is translated as “Son of Man” and is mostly used by Jesus to refer to himself is (back-) translated in the following languages as (click or tap for details):
Tzotzil: “I who am equal with men” or “The Older Brother of Everybody” (“expressing the dignity and authority of the Messiah and the universality of his work”)
Tenango Otomi: “The Man Appointed” (i.e. the man to whom authority has been delegated) (source for this and preceding: Beekman, p. 189-190, see also Ralph Hill in Notes on Translation February 1983, p. 35-50)
Aguaruna: “One who was born becoming a person” (source for this and two above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Older Sibling of Mankind” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Child of a Person” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “One From Heaven Born of Man/human?” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Man who came from heaven” (source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Yatzachi Zapotec: “One who God sent, who was born a human” (a direct translation would have suggested “that the father is unknown due to the indiscretions of the mother” and where “he is the son of people” is used when one wants to disclaim responsibility for or relationship with a child caught in some mischief — source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
Mezquital Otomi: “The son who became a person” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
Alekano: “The true man who descended from heaven” (source: Ellis Deibler in Notes on Translation June 1986, p. 36ff.)
Central Tarahumara: “One who has been stood up to help” (“This suggests that Christ has been given authority to some appointed task. A very generic word, help, was selected to fill in the lexically obligatory purpose required by the word which means to appoint or commission. Usually this word is used of menial tasks but not exclusively. The choice of this generic term retains the veiled reference to the character of Christ’s work which He intended in using the ‘Son of Man’ title.”)
Chicahuaxtla Triqui: “He who is relative of all people.” (“The Triqui word for relative is a rather generic term and in its extended sense sometimes is diluted to neighbor and friend. But the primary meaning is relative.”)
Tepeuxila Cuicatec: “The Person who Accompanies All People” (“The literal equivalents ‘son of man’ and ‘son of people’ were both rejected because of the false inference of natural birth involving a human father. Furthermore, it was necessary to expand any translation of the Bible by the addition of the pronoun ‘I’ so as to clarify the fact that Jesus is using the third person in referring to Himself. A common expression used by the Cuicatecos when difficulties befall someone, is to say to that one, ‘don’t worry, we are accompanying you.’ By this they mean they share that person’s sorrow. When wedding guests arrive at the home of a son who has just been married, they say to the father, ‘We have come to accompany you.’ By this they mean that they have come to share the father’s joy. These expressions do not refer to ordinary physical accompaniment, which is expressed by a set of different verbs. For example, visits are always announced by some such greeting as, “I have come to visit you,’ ‘I have come to see you,’ or ‘I have come to ask you something.’ The desire to accompany a friend on a journey is expressed by saying, ‘I will go with you.’ Translation helpers used the verb ‘accompany’ in constructing the phrase ‘I, the Person who Accompanies All People.'(…) It reflects the fact that Jesus closely identified Himself with all of us, understands our weaknesses, shares our burdens, rejoices with us in times of gladness, etc.”) (source for this and the three preceding: Beekman in Notes on Translation January 1963, p. 1-10)
Guhu-Samane: “Elder-brother-man” (“Since the term denotes an elder brother in every way such as honor, power, leadership, representation of the younger, etc. it is a meaningful and fitting — though not ostentatious — title.” Source: Ernest Richert in The Bible Translator 1965, p. 198ff. )
Navajo: Diné Silíi’ii — “Man he-became-the-one-who” (“This terra presented a difficulty not only in Navajo but also one peculiar to all the Athapaskan languages. It lies in the fact that all these languages, so far as we know, have a word phonetically similar to the Navajo diné which has three meanings: ‘man, people in general,’ ‘a man,’ ‘The People’ which is the name the Navajos use for themselves. (The name Navajo was first used by the Spanish explorers.) Although it seemed natural to say diné biye’ ‘a-man his-son,’ this could also mean ‘The-People their-son’ or ‘a-Navajo his-son,’ in contrast to the son of a white man or of another Indian tribe. Since the concept of the humanity of Christ is so important, we felt that diné biye’ with its three possible meanings should not be used. The term finally decided on was Diné Silíi’ii ‘Man he-became-the-one-who.’ This could be interpreted to mean ‘the one who became a Navajo,’ but since it still would impart the idea of Christ’s becoming man, it was deemed adequate, and it has proven acceptable to the Navajos.”) (Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. )
Toraja-Sa’dan: “Child descended in the world” (“using a poetic verb, often found in songs that [deal with] the contacts between heaven and earth”) (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
Obolo: Gwun̄ Ebilene: “Child of Human” (source: Enene Enene).
Mairasi: Jaanoug Tat: “Person Child” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
Costa Rican Sign Language: “It was impossible to translate the expression ‘Son of Man.’ The son-man sign simply means ‘male child.’ The Costa Rican Sign Language (LESCO) team opted for an interpretation of the term and translated it ‘Jesus.'” (Source: Elsa Tamez (in The Bible Translator 2008, p. 59ff. )
Lokạạ: wẹẹn wạ ọnẹn or “son of a person.” “This translation is symbolic in that it uses indigenous Lokạạ words. However, since the publication of the New Testament in 2006, this phrase has gained popularity within contemporary Lokạạ society as an expression to describe an important person whose career is going well. In the New Testament, the phrase ‘son of man’ is used to describe Jesus as prototypically human, but the Lokạạ phrase is now being used to describe an exceptional person in Lokạạ society.” (Source: J.A. Naudé, C.L. Miller Naudé, J.O. Obono in Acta Theologica 43/2, 2023, p. 129ff. )
In many West African languages, using a third person reference as a first person indicator is common practice with a large range of semantic effects. Languages that use the exact expression “son of man” as a self-reference or reference to another person include Lukpa, Baatonum, Mossi (“son of Adam”), Yoruba (“son of person”), Guiberoua Béte, or Samo. (Source: Lynell Zogbo in: Omanson 2000, p. 167-188.)
In Swahili the expression Mwana wa Mtu or mwana wa mtu or “son/daughter of human person,” which is used by several Bible translations, also has “the idiomatic meaning of ‘a human being’” (source: Jean-Claude Loba-Mkole in An Intercultural Criticism of New Testament Translations 2013, see here). The same is true for the Lingala expression Mwana na Moto — “son/daughter of human person.” (Ibid.)
In Balinese “we are again bordering on theological questions when we inquire as to which vocabulary shall be used to translate the texts where Jesus speaks of himself as ‘the Son of man.’ One of the fixed rules governing the use of these special vocabularies is that one may never use the deferential terms in speaking of oneself. This would be the extreme of arrogance. Now if one considers the expression ‘Son of man’ primarily as a description of ‘I,’ then one must continually indicate the possessions or actions of the Son of man by Low Balinese words. In doing this the mystery of the expression is largely lost. In any case the vocabulary used in most of the contexts would betray that Jesus means the title for himself.
“However, a distinction can actually be made in Balinese between the person and the exalted position he occupies. For example, the chairman of a judicial body may employ deferential terms when referring to this body and its chairman, without this being taken as an expression of arrogance. Considered from this standpoint, one may translate in such a way that Jesus is understood as using such deferential words and phrases in speaking of himself. The danger is, however, that the unity between his person and the figure of “the Son of man” is blurred by such usage.
“On request, the New Testament committee of the Netherlands Bible Society advised that ‘the sublimity of this mysterious term be considered the most important point and thus High Balinese be used.'”
“One of the first things that we did in working through the earlier part of the New Testament was to decide on how we would translate some of the more difficult technical terms. It was immediately obvious that something must be done with the translation of ‘the Son of Man,’ since the literal rendering anak manusia (literally ‘child of a man’) held absolutely no meaning for Malay readers. We felt that the title should emphasize the divine origin and authority of the one who used this title, and at the same time, since it was a title, we decided that it should not be too long a phrase. Finally, a phrase meaning ‘the One whom God has ordained’ was chosen (yang dilantik Allah). It is interesting to note that the newly-begun Common Indonesian (Alkitab Kabar Baik, published in 1985) has followed a similar route by translating ‘the One whom God has chosen’ (yang depilih Allah).”
Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 13:24:
Uma: “‘So, at that time, when that time of suffering has passed, all the powerful things in the sky will be shaken. The sun will turn dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will drop from the sky.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “‘Then in those days,’ said Isa, ‘when those difficulties are finished, the sun will become dark, and the moon will no longer shine.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And after that time of suffering is over, the sun will not shine and the moon also will not glow.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “‘When that time of hardship is finished, right after that the sun will-become-dark and the moon will not shine.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “When that hardship is ended, the sun will darken and the moon won’t shine either.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Amele: “Jisas told them another talk, ‘Look, at that time (when) that big heavy has finished the sun will become dark and the moon will not shine.” (Source: John Roberts in this article )
en ekeinais tais hēmerais (cf. 1.9) ‘in those days’: a vague definition of time (cf. v. 17, where it is more definite).
meta tēn thlipsin ekeinēn ‘after that tribulation’: in the context, this refers to the thlipsis ‘tribulation’ in v. 19. The preposition meta ‘after’ in no way indicates the length of time intervening between the two events, whether great or small: it simply denotes the temporal succession of the events described.
The rest of the verse is patterned after the language of Isa. 13.10.
skotisthēsetai (only here in Mark) ‘shall be darkened’: the verb skotizō ‘to darken,’ ‘to lose (its) light’ appears only in the passive in the N.T.
to pheggos (only here in Mark) ‘the light,’ ‘the radiance.’
Translation:
In those days, as a general reference to time, is translated in some languages as ‘at that time,’ ‘then,’ or ‘then later.’
Tribulation, which is a noun of process, must often be translated as a verb, e.g. ‘after the people have suffered,’ ‘after they have had great troubles,’ or ‘after they have been greatly troubled.’
Will be darkened is in some languages equivalent to ‘will not shine’ or ‘will become dark.’
Give its light is usually translatable by some verb meaning ‘to shine,’ ‘to be brilliant,’ or ‘to glow.’ A literal rendering of ‘give light’ is often quite misleading.
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 .
Jesus told his disciples about his return to earth
In the preceding section Jesus told about some terrible events that would happen. In 13:24–27 he told about other future events which would be even more terrible. Then he said that the Son of Man would come “in clouds with great power and glory.” This phrase is also found in Daniel 7:13, a passage that speaks of the Son of Man coming in glory. Jesus used the title “the Son of Man” here to refer to himself.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
The coming of the Son of Man -or-
The Son of Man will receive great glory
There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 24:29–31 and Luke 21:25–28.
Paragraph 13:24–25
13:24a
But: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as But indicates a contrast. It is not clear exactly what the contrast is. Here are two possibilities:
(a) The contrast is between the distress of the people in Judea (in 13:19–22) and the powerful coming of the Son of man (in 13:24–26).
(b) The contrast is between the false Christs (13:22) and the coming of the true Christ. (13:26)
It is good not to make the contrast too explicit in your translation.
in those days, after that tribulation: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as in those days, after that tribulation refers back to the events that Jesus described in 13:14–22. This was the time when the abomination of desolation would appear and when the people of Judea would have to flee.
after that tribulation:
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
after that time of trouble (Good News Bible) -or-
after that time of suffering (Contemporary English Version) -or-
after the people have suffered
13:24b–25b
Some scholars think that 13:24b–25b refers to future events that will happen before Christ returns. Other scholars think these verses use figurative language to describe the terrible events that happened during the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem around A.D. 70.
In 13:24b–25b Jesus used words from several Old Testament verses, but he did not quote any of these verses exactly. There are different ways to indicate this in your translation:
• Indent these words and use poetry format for them. For example, the New Revised Standard Version has:
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
25and the stars will be falling from heaven,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
• Use a different font. For example, the NET Bible uses italics and the New American Standard Bible uses bold type.
• Use either single quotation marks (New Century Version) or double quotation marks (Contemporary English Version).
Some English versions use a combination of these options. For example, the Berean Standard Bible uses quotation marks and also indents the words. Some versions do not use any of these options, but have a footnote to tell the verses that Jesus quoted from. The words in 13:25b are not found in any particular Old Testament passage. Therefore, the footnote should be placed at the end of the words in 13:25a.
Here is an example footnote:
See Isaiah 13:10 and 34:4, Joel 2:10, and Amos 8:9.
The sun will be darkened: The phrase will be darkened is a passive phrase. However, it does not necessarily imply a subject.
Here are some other ways to translate this:
The sun will become dark -or-
The sun will no longer shine -or-
The sun will stop shining
and the moon will not give its light: The phrase will not give its light has the same meaning as the phrase will be darkened. In some languages it may be more natural to combine the phrases about the sun and the moon. For example:
the sun and the moon will both stop shining -or-
the sun will stop shining in the day; the moon will stop shining at night
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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.
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