Mark 14:27 – TIPs

I will strike the shepherd

The Greek in Mark 14:27 that is translated as “I will strike the shepherd” or similar in English is translated in San Mateo Del Mar Huave as “I will give room for the shepherd to be killed” and in Chichimeca-Jonaz as “It is written that which God said was going to happen to me: I am going to allow them to kill the shepherd.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

sheep

“Sheep are known throughout most of the world, even though, as in Central Africa, they are a far cry from the fleecy wool-producing animals of colder climates. Where such animals are known, even by seemingly strange names, e.g. ‘cotton deer’ (Yucateco) or ‘woolly goat’ (Inupiaq), such names should be used. In some instances, one may wish to borrow a name and use a classifier, e.g. ‘an animal called sheep.’ In still other instances translators have used ‘animal which produces wool’, for though people are not acquainted with the animals they are familiar with wool.” (Source: Bratcher / Nida)

In Dëne Súline, it is usually translated as “an evil little caribou.” To avoid the negative connotation, a loan word from the neighboring South Slavey was used. (Source: NCEM, p. 70)

Note that the often-alleged Inuktitut translation of “sheep” with “seal” is an urban myth (source Nida 1947, p. 136).

Mark 14:27 - 31 in Mexican Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 14:27-31 into Mexican Sign Language with back-translations into Spanish and English underneath:

© La Biblia en LSM / La Palabra de Dios

Retrotraducciones en español (haga clic o pulse aquí)

Jesús dijo: “Hace mucho un profeta escribió en el rollo lo que Dios dijo: ‘En el futuro matarán al pastor y las ovejas se dispersarán’ y lo que fue escrito y dicho (pasará) exactamente.

Uds me dejarán pero cuando Dios me levante y yo me resucite a la vida yo iré a Galilea y uds igual vayan a Galilea.”

Pedro dijo: “Quizá todas las personas te dejarán pero yo jamás te dejaré.”

Jesús (dijo): “Yo digo la verdad, hoy en la noche me negarás tres veces y después el gallo gritará por segunda vez.”

Pedro dijo: “Auque si ambos nosotros murieramos jamás te negaría.”

Los discípulos todos lo copiaron y todos hablaron en la misma manera.

Then they sang hymns and psalms and when they finished singing Jesus and the disciples left and went to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus said: “Long ago a prophet wrote in the scroll that God said: ‘In the future they will kill the shepherd and the sheep will be dispersed’ and what was written and said (will come to pass) exactly.

“You will leave me but when God raises me and I come back to life I will go to Galilee and you must also go to Galilee.”

Peter said: “Maybe all the people will leave you but I will never leave you.”

Jesus (said): “I tell the truth, tonight you will deny me three times and afterwards the rooster will crow for the second time.”

Peter said: “Even if both died, I would never deny you.”

The disciples all copied him and they all talked in the same way.

Source: La Biblia en LSM / La Palabra de Dios

<< Mark 14:22-26 in Mexican Sign Language
Mark 14:32-42 in Mexican Sign Language >>

Mark 14:27-31 in Russian Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 14:27-31 into Russian Sign Language with a back-translation underneath:

Source: Russian Bible Society / Российское Библейское Общество

Here is the Mount of Olives. Jesus and the disciples are up there. It is already evening.

— You will soon betray me, scatter in different directions, and I will be left alone. I will tell you that in the Scriptures it was written in ancient times:

“If God kills the shepherd, the sheep will scatter in different directions.”

It is written in the scriptures. I will die, but then I will rise again and go to the region of Galilee. There I will wait for you.

The disciple Peter began to say to Jesus:

— Even if everyone disowns you, I will always have you with me, I will follow you.

Jesus answered:

— This night, before the morning, before the rooster crows twice, you will refuse me three times.

Peter began to speak:

— I will never reject you! I will follow you until death, and will always be with you.

And the other disciples said:

— We will be with you, we will follow you, we will not reject you.

Original Russian back-translation (click or tap here):

Вот Масличная гора. Там, наверху, Иисус и ученики. Уже наступил вечер. Вы скоро предадите меня, разбежитесь в стороны, и я останусь один. Я скажу вам, что в Писании еще в древние времена было написано:

«Если Бог убьет пастуха, то овцы разбегутся в разные стороны».

Так написано в писании. Я умру, но потом воскресну и отправлюсь в местность Галилея. Там я буду ждать вас.

Ученик Петр стал говорить Иисусу:

— Даже если все отрекутся от тебя, я всегда буду с собой, буду следовать за тобой.

Иисус ответил:

— Этой ночью, еще до утра, прежде чем петух прокричит два раза, ты трижды откажешься от меня.

Петр стал говорить:

— Я никогда не отвергну тебя! Я последую за тобой до самой смерти, и всегда буду с тобой.

И другие ученики говорили:

— Мы будем с тобой, мы последуем за тобой, не отвергнем тебя.

Back-translation by Luka Manevich

<< Mark 14:12-26 in Russian Sign Language
Mark 14:32-42 in Russian Sign Language >>

shepherd

The Greek, Latin, Ge’ez, and Hebrew that is translated as “shepherd” in English is translated in Kouya as Bhlabhlɛɛ ‘yliyɔzʋnyɔ — ” tender of sheep.”

Philip Saunders (p. 231) explains:

“Then one day they tackled the thorny problem of ‘shepherd’. It was problematic because Kouyas don’t have herdsmen who stay with the sheep all the time. Sheep wander freely round the village and its outskirts, and often a young lad will be detailed to drive sheep to another feeding spot. So the usual Kouya expression meant a ‘driver of sheep’, which would miss the idea of a ‘nurturing’ shepherd. ‘A sheep nurturer’ was possible to say, but it was unnatural in most contexts. The group came up with Bhlabhlɛɛ ‘yliyɔzʋnyɔ which meant ‘a tender of sheep’, that is one who keeps an eye on the sheep to make sure they are all right. All, including the translators, agreed that this was a most satisfactory solution.”

Other translations include:

Chuj: “carer” (there was no single word for “shepherd”) (source: Ronald Ross)
Muna: “sheep guard” (dhagano dhumba) (there was no immediate lexical equivalent) (source: René van den Berg),
Mairasi: “people who took care of domesticated animals” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
Noongar: “sheep worker” (kookendjeriyang-yakina) (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Kwakum: “those-who-monitor-the-livestock” (source: Stacey Hare in this post )

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Shepherds in the Bible .

complete verse (Mark 14:27)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 14:27:

Uma: “Yesus said to his disciples: ‘All of you, your faith in me will be shaken, for there are written the Word(s) of God that say like this: ‘I [will] kill the shepherd, with the result that his sheep will be scattered.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Isa said to them, ‘All of you, you will leave me. For this is written in the holy-book, saying, ‘I tell the one watching the sheep to be killed, then the sheep scatter.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Jesus said to those disciples of his, he said, ‘As for all of you, your trust in me will become weak, for there is a written word of God which says, ‘I will kill the one taking care of the sheep, and they will all scatter.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “When they were on the way (lit. path), Jesus said to them, ‘In-the-future indeed (prophetic formula) you will all leave me and run-away, because there is something God caused-to-be-written that says, ‘Later I will kill the one-who-takes-care of the sheep and they will be separated.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Included in what Jesus said that night was his warning, saying, ‘This night, as for all of you, your believing-in/obeying-of me will be lacking. You will desert me. For it’s like what was said in the written word of God, which says, ‘I will kill the shepherd. Therefore what will happen to the sheep is that they will be scattered.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Cofán: “Then Jesus said, all of you being fearful you will leave me this night. Like that God’s paper said: I the sheep-caring one being killed, the sheep being scattered they shall go.”
Tewa: “Jesus said to them, It says in God’s book, God will kill the shepherd and the sheep will scatter. It’s going to happen like that to you. I’m going to be killed, and you will be ashamed of me and will scatter.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

1st person pronoun referring to God (Japanese)

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 choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.

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

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (Japanese)