breathed his last

The Greek that is often translated in English as “he breathed his last” is translated with idioms that include “his life-force broke-off” (Indonesian, Balinese), “his breath stopped (or: was-exhausted” (Ekari, Sranan Tongo), or “his breath (and body) parted-with-each-other” (Toraja-Sa’dan). (Source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)

In Anindilyakwa it is translated as nu-werrikarrnga or “his chest-cut/broke.” (Source: Julie Waddy in The Bible Translator 2004, p. 452ff. )

In the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) it is idiomatically translated with er hauchte sein Leben aus or “he breathed out his life.”

Mark 15:33 - 41 in Mexican Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 15:33-41 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)

A las doce de la tarde el cielo se transformó en oscuro y negro hasta las tres de la tarde. Jesús gritó en voz fuerte “¡Eloi Eloi lama sabactani!” que significa: ‘Dios mio, Dios mio, ¿porqué me has dejado?’

Las personas lo oyeron mal y dijeron: “Jesús está hablando y llamando a que venga Elías.”

Un hombre corrió y agarró una esponja y la mojó en vino corriente y la puso en un tubo y subió el tubo, y Jesús colgado en la cruz chupó.

Dijeron: “Dejalo, a ver si venga Elías a ayudar a Jesús y a bajarlo”, y todos estaban viendo. Jesús, colgado en la cruz, gritó en voz fuerte y bajó la cabeza y murió.

Allá en Jerusalén adentro del templo la cortina gruesa se rompió en dos partes al mismo tiempo.

Frente a la cruz un capitán de los soldados romanos vio todo con sus propios ojos, cuando el soldado vio que Jesús ya estaba muerto, (dijo): “Este hombre verdaderamente era el hijo de Dios.”

Allá había algunas mujeres que vieron Jesús en la cruz desde lejos, ellos recien antes habían acompañado a Jesús cuando fue a Jerusalén.

Las mismas mujeres que había allá eran: 1. María Magdalena, 2. Maria, 3. Salome. Los tres eran sus compañeras y juntas habían tratado a Jesús en Galilea.


At twelve o’clock in the afternoon the sky was transformed, it became dark and black until three o’clock in the afternoon. Jesus shouted loudly: “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which means ‘My God, my God why have you left me?’

The people heard it wrong and said: “Jesus is talking and calling Elijah to come.”

A man ran and grabbed a sponge and dipped it in common wine and put it on a stick and held up the stick, and Jesus, hanging on the cross, sucked it up.

They said: “Leave him, let’s see if Elijah comes to help Jesus and carry him down”, and they were all watching. Jesus, hanging on the cross, shouted loudly and lowered his head and died.

Over there in Jerusalem, inside the temple, the thick curtain was torn in two at the same time.

Opposite the cross a captain of the Roman soldiers saw it all with his own eyes, when the soldier saw that Jesus was already dead (he said): “This man was really the son of God.”

Over there were some women who were watching Jesus on the cross from afar, they had recently accompanied Jesus when he went to Jerusalem.

The women who were there were: 1. Mary Magdalene, 2. Mary, 3. Salome. The three were his companions and together they had cared for Jesus in Galilee.

Source: La Biblia en LSM / La Palabra de Dios

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Mark 15:42-47 in Mexican Sign Language >>

Mark 15:33-47 in Russian Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 15:33-47 into Russian Sign Language with a back-translation underneath:


Source: Russian Bible Society / Российское Библейское Общество

At noon it became as dark as night over the whole land. The darkness lasted until three o’clock in the afternoon. Jesus on the cross cried out loudly:

— My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

There were people near the cross. Some people began to say that Jesus was probably calling the prophet Elijah to come. One man came up, took a sponge, soaked it in vinegar. He pierced it with a stick and brought it to Jesus’ face for Jesus to drink. This man said,

— Now let’s see if the prophet will come and take Jesus down from the cross.

Jesus on the cross cried out loudly and died. His head drooped. Inside the temple there is a curtain. And this curtain, at the moment Jesus died, was torn in two. Near the cross stood a Roman general, a commander over a hundred soldiers. He saw Jesus die. And this general said,

— Truly, Jesus was the son of God!

There were also many women standing there, looking at the cross and Jesus from afar. Among them were three women: Mary Magdalene, another Mary, who was the mother of James and Joses, and Salome. They had always followed Jesus before, served him, helped him when he was in Galilee. There were many other women. They had followed Jesus to Jerusalem before.

The evening was approaching. It was Friday. It was ending, and soon after that the Sabbath would begin. There was a man named Joseph, he lived in the city of Arimathea. And he was not an ordinary man, he was a member of the Supreme Court, and he himself was waiting for the imminent coming of the Kingdom of God. He gathered his courage and went to Pilate. Joseph decided to ask Pilate for permission to take the body of Jesus, wrap it in clothes, and bury it right now, before the Sabbath. Joseph came to Pilate and turned to him:

— Let me take the body of Jesus and bury it.

Pilate was very surprised:

— How? Jesus has already died?

Pilate called the Roman commander and asked:

— Has Jesus already died? When was that?

The commander answered:

— Yes, Jesus has already died.

Pilate gave permission to take the body. Joseph bought and prepared a large cloth for wrapping, came to the cross, took down the body of Jesus, wrapped it and carried it to the rock, inside which a tomb had been made. There he laid the body, and blocked the entrance with a large stone. Nearby were two women, Mary Magdalene and Mary, who was the mother of Joses. And they looked at everything and saw how they buried Jesus and where.

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

В полдень по всей земле стало темно, как ночью. Тьма продолжалась до трех часов дня. Иисус на кресте громко воскликнул: «Бог мой, Бог мой, почему ты меня оставил?» Возле креста были люди. Некоторые люди стали говорить, что, наверное, Иисус зовёт пророка Илию, чтобы он пришел. Один человек подошел, взял губку, намочил её в уксусе. Палкой проткнул ее и поднёс к лицу Иисусу, чтобы Иисус выпил. Этот человек сказал:

— Сейчас посмотрим, придет ли пророк и снимет ли Иисуса с креста?

Иисус на кресте громко вскрикнул и умер. Голова его поникла. В храме внутри есть завеса. И эта завеса, в тот момент, когда Иисус умер, разорвался на две части. Возле креста стоял один римский военачальник, командир над ста воинами. Он видел, как Иисус умер. И этот военачальник сказал:

— Воистину, Иисус он был сыном Божьим!

Также там стояло много женщин, которые издали смотрели на крест и Иисуса. Среди них были три женщины: Мария Магдалина, еще одна Мария, которая была мать Иакова и Иосета, а также Саломея. Они раньше всегда следовали за Иисусом, служили, помогали ему, когда он был в Галилее. Ещё были многие другие женщины. Они раньше последовали за Иисусом в Иерусалим.

Приближался вечер. Это была пятница. Она кончалась, скоро после этого начиналась суббота. Был один человек именем Иосиф, он жил в городе Аримафея. И он был непростым человеком, он был членом Верховного суда, и он сам ждал скорого наступления Царства Бога. Он набрался смелости пришел к Пилату. Иосиф решил попросить у Пилата разрешение забрать тело Иисуса, запеленать его, чтобы похоронить прямо сейчас, до наступления субботы. Иосиф пришел к Пилату и обратился к нему:

— Разреши мне забрать тело Иисуса и похоронить его.

Пилат очень удивился:

— Как? Иисус уже умер?

Пилат позвал римского военачальника и спросил:

— Что, Иисус уже умер? Когда это было?

Военачальник ответил:

— Да, Иисус уже умер.

Пилат разрешил забрать тело. Иосиф купил и приготовил большую ткань для пеленания, пришел к кресту, снял тело Иисуса, запеленал и отнес его к скале, внутри которой была сделана гробница. Там оно положил тело, а вход загородил большим камнем. Недалеко были две женщины, это Мария Магдалина и Мария, которая мать Иосета. И они на все смотрели и видели, как похоронили Иисуса и где.

Back-translation by Luka Manevich

<< Mark 15:16-32 in Russian Sign Language
Mark 16:1-8 in Russian Sign Language >>

complete verse (Mark 15:37)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 15:37:

  • Uma: “From there, he cried-out again, and his breath snapped [idiom meaning he stopped breathing, died].” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “So-then Isa shouted loudly once and then his breath was broken/snapped.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Then Jesus cried out with a loud voice, became unconscious, and died.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Then Jesus shouted and died.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Jesus again shouted out, going right on to release (lit. cause to spring away) his spirit.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

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, Cecoc, Chesús, Chi̍i̍sū, 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, 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, Jeso, Jesoe, Jesosa, Jesoshi, 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, 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, Sīsū, Sizi, Txesusu, uJesu, Ujísɔ̄si, ŵaYesu, Xesosi, ´Xesús, Xesús, Yasu, Ya:su, Ɣaysa, Yecu, Yeeb Sub, Yeeh Suh, Yeesey, Yeeso, Yeesso, Yēēsu, Yēēsu, Yehsu, Yëësu, Yeisu, Yeisuw, Yeshu, Yeso, Yesò, Yëso, Yɛso, ye-su, Yésu, Yêsu, Yẹ́sụ̃, Yésʉs, Yeswa, Yet Sut, Yetut, Yexus, Yezo, Yezu, Yiesu, Yiisa, Yiisu, Yiitju, Yis, Yisɔs, Yisufa, Yitati, Yusu, ‑Yusu, :Yusu’, Zeezi, Zezi, Zezì, 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 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 )

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, Japanese prints.

See also this devotion on YouVersion .

Honorary "rare" construct denoting God (“take”)

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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme rare (られ) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, to-rare-ru (取られる) or “take” is used.

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

Translation commentary on Mark 15:37

Exegesis:

apheis (cf. 2.5) ‘letting out,’ ‘letting loose.’

phōnēn megalēn (cf. v. 34) ‘a loud cry.’

exepneusen (15.39) ‘he expired,’ ‘he died.’

Translation:

Uttered a loud cry may be translated ‘shouted loud’ or ‘cried out hard.’

Breathed his last is a good idiomatic equivalent of the Greek, but it is not literally translatable into many languages. ‘He died’ is a more frequent parallel.

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 .