Translation commentary on Mark 13:32

Exegesis:

In such statements as these the translator must consciously refrain from making the saying any more definite or explicit than the original, as it stands in Mark.

peri de tēs hēmeras ekeinēs ē tēs hōras ‘but concerning that day or that hour’: this, of course, refers to the time when that day or hour will come (not, as Moffatt has it, ‘no one knows anything of that day or hour’). No great significance is to be attached to the phrase ‘day or hour’: it is simply a way of saying that no one knows the precise moment when ‘the time will come’ (v. 33).

oudeis … oude … oude … ei mē ‘no one … not even … nor … except only’ (cf. Gould). For ei mē ‘except,’ ‘but only’ cf. 2.7.

hoi aggeloi en ouranō (cf. 12.25) ‘the angels in heaven.’

ho huios ‘the Son’: only here in Mark is the phrase used absolutely: elsewhere it is always defined by a following genitive (cf. 1.1).

ho patēr (cf. 8.38) ‘the Father,’ that is, God.

Translation:

That day and that hour is a difficult phrase to translate for two reasons. First, there is the problem of the indefinite nature of the reference (implied in the use of that), whether, for example, to the days of the tribulation (verse 19) or the time of the coming of the Son of man (verse 26) or the lesson from the fig tree (verse 28); (the one thing we are sure of is that it does not refer to the immediately preceding verse dealing with the passing of heaven and earth). Secondly, a problem arises over the use of day and hour without some further designation as to how they are related to any specific event. In order to make some sense of this passage some translators have rendered the first part of this verse ‘no one will know the day or the hour when these things will happen,’ using a phrase occurring at the end of verse 30.

The phrases introduced by not even … nor … but may require the filling in of the elliptical elements, e.g. ‘the angels in heaven do not know this, the Son does not know this; only the Father knows this.’

In many languages one basic problem in the translation of the Son and the Father is that the corresponding words ‘son’ and ‘father’ must be possessed, for, after all, persons cannot be ‘sons’ or ‘fathers’ without being the sons or fathers of someone. In this passage, for example, one must translate in Copainalá Zoque ‘the Son of God does not know, but only my Father….’ The use of ‘my’ is required because of the fact that Jesus is speaking. In languages in which one cannot speak of himself in the third person, it would be necessary to say ‘I who am the Son.’

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 13:32

Section 13:32–37

Jesus told his disciples to be ready for his coming

In this section Jesus told his disciples that no one knows the day or hour when he will come in glory. He exhorted his disciples that they should be ready at all times for his coming.

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 told his disciples, “Be ready for me to return”
-or-
No one knows when Jesus will return to earth
-or-
Jesus’ disciples must watch for his coming

There is a parallel passage for this section in Luke 21:34–36.

Paragraph 13:32–37

13:32a

There is a contrast between 13:32a and 13:29b:

(a) People can know when it is almost time for Jesus to return, (13:29)

(b) but no one can know the exact day when he will return. (13:32)

In 13:30–31 Jesus said other things before he said the second part of the contrast in (b).

Some English versions have the conjunction “but” at the beginning of 13:32, as in the Revised Standard Version. However in some languages, using only a conjunction may wrongly imply that the contrast is with 13:31. If that is true in your language, here are two options to consider:

• Leave the contrast implied, as the Berean Standard Bible does.

• Indicate the contrast more specifically in some way. For example, the NET Bible puts the contrasting words near the beginning of the sentence:

But as for that day or that hour, no one knows it

You should show the contrast in a natural way in your language.

No one knows about that day or hour: There are three ways to interpret the clause No one knows about that day or hour here:

(1) It means that no one knows the time when Jesus will return in power and glory.

(2) It means that no one knows the time when people will suffer terribly.

(3) It means that no one knows the time when the temple will be destroyed.

English versions are ambiguous. It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) and the majority of Bible scholars. The Old Testament often uses the expression “that day” to refer to the day that the Lord will come in glory to judge his people. (See Isaiah 2:11, 17, 20; Amos 5:18; 8:3, 9, 13; 9:11; Micah 4:6, 5:10.) So the clause No one knows about that day or hour means:

But no one knows the day or hour when the Son of God will return
-or-
However, no one knows the day or hour when I will return

hour: The word hour refers to a time during the day or night. If it is difficult to translate the word hour, you can say:

But no one knows that day or the time of that day
-or-
But no one knows when that day will come/be or exactly when during that day

Jesus may return during the daylight hours or during the night. Do not imply in your translation that Jesus will return during the daytime.

13:32b

not even the angels in heaven: The clause not even the angels in heaven implies information from the previous clause. The meaning is: “not even the angels in heaven know.”

not even: The words not even indicate something unexpected. People might have expected that the angels would know when Jesus would come, but even they do not know the time of his return.

angels: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as angels means “messengers.” It refers here to spirit beings who serve God. Sometimes God sends an angel to tell a message to human beings. He also sends angels to serve him in other ways.

Here are some other ways to translate this term:

• Use a descriptive word or phrase. For example:

messengers from God/heaven
-or-
good/holy spirit-beings

• Use a local term that fits the biblical meaning.

• Use a loan word from a major language. If the meaning of the word is not well-known, you may want to indicate the meaning in some way. For example:

angelos messengers from God
-or-
sacred angelos spirits

See how you translated this word in 1:13c. See also angel, Meaning 1, in the Glossary.

in heaven: The words in heaven refer to the place where God is ruling over his creation. People might expect angels there to know secrets, but even they do not know. See heaven, Meaning 2, in the Glossary.

nor the Son: The phrase nor the Son implies information from the 13:32a. The meaning is “not even the Son knows the day or the hour.” When Jesus was still on earth, even he himself did not know when he would return to earth.

the Son: The phrase the Son refers to Jesus. Here, this phrase could refer to one of two possible titles for Jesus:

(a) the Son of God (God the Father is mentioned in the same sentence, in 13:32c. Mark identifies Jesus as “the Son of God” in 1:1. In addition, God the Father calls him “my Son” in 1:11 and 9:7.)

(b) the Son of Man (Everywhere else in Mark’s Gospel Jesus refers to himself as the Son of Man, so some scholars (e.g., Lane) think that he is doing the same here. )

If you can simply say “the Son” by itself, then do so. In that way it will not be necessary to choose between the two possibilities mentioned above. If you must be specific, then choose (a). The majority of Bible scholars support this possibility.

The Bible uses the title “Son of God” to express the fact that Jesus has the same nature as God and that he comes from God. God does not have a physical body, and he did not create/produce Jesus the way a human father produces a son. Jesus existed eternally as the Son with his Father.

For translation suggestions and some further information, see the note on “my son” in 9:7c.

13:32c

but only the Father: Only God, the heavenly Father of Jesus, has always known when his Son will return in glory.

the Father: It is Jesus who uses the expression the Father, so it may be necessary in some languages to say:

his Father
-or-
my Father
-or-
God my/the Father

You may need to repeat the verb “know” in the last part of this verse. For example:

only the Father knows (Good News Bible)
-or-
only God my/his Father knows

In addition, you could emphasize the subject the Father. For example:

it is only God my/the/his Father who knows

General Comment on 13:32a–c

Another way to arrange verse 13:32 is to start with the fact that only the Father knows. For example:

32aAs for the time of that event 32cGod the/my Father is the only one who knows when it will take place. Other than him, 32ano one knows the day or hour when it will take place. 32bThe angels in heaven do not know, and even I, the Son of God, do not know.

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