The Greek that is translated into English as “crucify” is translated in various ways:
Naro: xgàu or “to stretch” (as is done with a skin after slaughtering in order to dry it. The word is also widely accepted in the churches.) (Source: Gerrit van Steenbergen)
Yatzachi Zapotec: “fasten him to the cross” (source for this and two above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125)
Noongar: “kill on a tree” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Apali: “nail to a tree piece put cross-wise, lift up to stand upright (for the crucified person) to die (and in some contexts: “to die and rise again”)” (source: Martha Wade)
In British Sign Language it is signed with a sign that signifies “nails hammered into hands” and “arms stretched out.” (Source: Anna Smith)
“Crucify” or “crucifixion” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)
Following is a painting by Wang Suda 王肅達 (1910-1963):
Housed by Société des Auxiliaires des Missions Collection – Whitworth University
(click image to enlarge)
Image taken from Chinese Christian Posters . For more information on the “Ars Sacra Pekinensis” school of art, see this article , for other artworks of that school in TIPs, see here.
Click or tap here to see a short video clip showing how crucifixion was done in biblical times (source: Bible Lands 2012)
Retrotraducciones en español (haga clic o pulse aquí)
Mucho antes un hombre, Barrabás, junto con otras personas, se levantó contra el gobierno romano con violencia y también mató a varias personas.
Los soldados romanos arrestaron a las personas y los metieron en la cárcel y Barrabás igual fue metido en la cárcel.
Después, a continuación, una multitude de personas fue ante Pilato y dijeron: “Tú sabes que es el día de la fiesta de Pascua y siempre, cada año, es el costumbre que liberas a una persona, por favor (hazlo).”
Pilato sabía que los sacerdotes estaban celosos y por eso habían arrestado a Jesús, y preguntó: “‘Él, Jesús, el rey de los Judíos, ¿quieren que lo deje libre?”
Los líderes de los sacerdotes dijeron: “Mejor diganle que libere al hombre Barrabás.” Las personas obedecieron y gritaron: “¡Libera a Barrábas!”
Pilato dijo: “He oido a uds hablando de este Jesús como rey de los judios, y ahora ¿tengo que castigarlo? ¿Cuál es? Diganme.”
Todas las personas gritaron: “¡Crucificalo!” Pilato (preguntó): “¿Porqué, qué tipo de maldad (ha cometido) Jesús?” Todas las personas gritaron más fuerte: “¡Crucificalo, crucificalo!”
Pilate (dijo): “Bien” y mandó que Barrabás fue liberado y mandó a los soldados: “vayan y azoten a Jesús y después crucifiquenlo.”
Long before a man, Barrabas, together with other people revolted against the roman government violently and he also killed several people.
The roman soldiers arrested the people and put them in prison, and Barrabas was put in prison as well.
Then, afterwards, a multitude of people went before Pilate and said: “You know it’s the day of the Passover feast, and it is always, every year, the custom that you set someone free, please (do this).”
Pilate knew inside that the priests were jealous and that’s why they had arrested Jesus, and he asked: “He, Jesus, the king of the Jews, do you want me to let him go free?”
The leaders of the priests said: “Better tell him to set the man Barrabas free.” The people obeyed and shouted: “Set Barrabas free!”
Pilate said: “I have heard you talking about Jesus here as the king of the Jews, and now I should punish him? Which one is it? Tell me.”
All the people shouted: “Crucify him!” Pilate (asked): “Why, what kind of wrong (has) Jesus (done)?” All the people shouted louder: “Crucify him, crucify him!”
Pilate went “OK” and ordered that Barrabas was freed and he ordered the soldiers: “Go and whip Jesus and crucify him afterwards.”
The chief priests, elders, and scribes were judges, and they deliberated. Early in the morning, when it was light, they made a decision. What was it? They had to bring Jesus to Pilate. That was what they decided among themselves. Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea. They took Jesus, tied his hands, and led him to where Pilate was. The chief priests were gathered there. Jesus stood before them. Pilate asked Jesus:
— Are you the king of the Jews?
Jesus answered:
— You yourself say that I am the king of the Jews.
The chief priests began to get angry. They began to accuse Jesus of crimes. Pilate, after listening, asked Jesus again:
— Why are you silent, why don’t you say anything? Look how many accusations there are against you.
But Jesus said nothing, he simply remained silent. Pilate was very surprised.
This was the beginning of the Passover holiday. According to tradition, every year at this time the people could ask Pilate to release one prisoner. At this time, there was a man named Bar-Abba in prison, as well as accomplices in his crimes. Earlier, Bar-Abba had rebelled against the Romans and committed murder. Therefore, he was put in prison. The people, according to tradition, came and began to ask Pilate to release Bar-Abba. Pilate realized that this was what the high priests had ordered. They had handed Jesus over to trial out of envy. Pilate realized this and said to the people:
— Here is Jesus, who is the king of the Jews, perhaps you want me to release him?
But the high priests began to incite the people to ask specifically for the release of Bar-Abba. Pilate said:
— And Jesus, whom you call the king of the Jews, what do you want me to do with him? And the people began to shout that Jesus should be crucified.
Pilate said:
— What did Jesus do wrong?
But the people began to shout even louder that Jesus must be crucified. And then Pilate ordered that Bar-Abba be released, and that Jesus be beaten with whips and crucified on the cross.
Original Russian back-translation (click or tap here):
Первосвященники, старейшины, а также книжники были судьями, они совещались. Ранним утром, когда рассвело, они приняли решение. Какое это было решение? Нужно привести Иисуса к Пилату. Так они между собой решили. Пилат был римский правитель Иудеи. Они взяли Иисуса, связали ему руки и повел его туда, где был Пилат. Там же собрались первосвященники. Перед ними стоял Иисус. Пилат спросил Иисуса:
— Ты царь иудеев?
Иисус ответил:
— Это ты сам так говоришь, что я царь иудеев.
Первосвященники начали злиться. Начали обвинять Иисуса в преступлениях. Пилат, выслушав, повторно спросил Иисуса:
— Почему ты молчишь, ничего не говоришь? Посмотри, сколько обвинений против тебя.
Но Иисус ничего не говорил, просто молчал. Пилат был очень сильно удивлён.
Это время было началом праздника Пасхи. По традиции, каждый год в это время народ мог попросить у Пилата, чтобы он отпустил одного заключенного. В это время в тюрьме был человек по имени Бар-Абба, а также соучастники в его преступлениях. Ранее Бар-Абба поднял бунт против римлян и совершил убийство. Поэтому его посадили в тюрьму. Народ по традиции пришел и стал просить Пилата, чтобы он отпустил Бар-Аббу. Пилат понял, что так велели первосвященники. Они из зависти отдали Иисуса на суд. Это понял Пилат и сказал народу:
— Вот Иисус, который царь иудейский, может быть, вы хотите, чтобы я его отпустил?
Но первосвященники начали подговаривать народ, чтобы они просили именно отпустить Бар-Аббу. Пилат сказал:
— А Иисус, которого вы называете царем иудеев, что вы хотите, чтобы я с ним сделал? И люди начали кричать, что Иисуса нужно распять. Пилат сказал:
— Что Иисус сделал плохого?
Но народ ещё сильнее начал кричать, что Иисус должен быть распят. И тогда Пилат приказал, чтобы Бар-Аббу отпустили, а Иисуса избили бичами и распяли на кресте.
Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 15:6:
Uma: “Every Paskah festival [lit., Paskah big day], Pilatus usually released a person who was imprisoned, whomever the crowds requested.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “Na every year, at the time of the Celebration For-Remembering, it was the custom of Pilatus, to release one prisoner, whoever the people requested to be released.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Each year at the Feast of Passing By it was Pilate’s custom to release a prisoner that the people begged for.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “The custom of Pilato at each fiesta called Passed-By, he would release one prisoner that the many-people chose.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “The governor had made it a custom that at each Fiesta of Passed-by there would be one person he would release from imprisonment, whoever the crowd wanted to ask for.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
kata de heortēn ‘now at every (Passover) feast,’ ‘now at each feast (of the Passover)’: the preposition kata is distributive (cf. kath’ hēmeran ‘every day’ 14.49), indicating every feast, and not just this particular one.
heortē (cf. 14.2) ‘feast.’
apeluen (cf. 6.36) ‘he released’: Revised Standard Version correctly gives the force of the imperfect ‘he used to release,’ indicating habitual action (cf. also epoiei in v. 8).
hena desmion ‘one prisoner,’ ‘any prisoner’: the cardinal ‘one’ is here used as an indefinite pronoun, ‘any one’ or ‘some one.’
desmios (only here in Mark; cf. deō 3.27) ‘prisoner.’
parētounto (only here in Mark; cf. aiteō 6.22) ‘they asked (for),’ ‘they requested.’
Translation:
Now is not to be interpreted as a temporal adverb, but as a transitional particle, equivalent in many languages to ‘but’ or ‘however.’
At the feast must not be translated in such a way as to men that Pilate released a person at the place where the people were gathered together eating. It is better to treat this as a temporal reference, e.g. ‘at the time when the people feasted’ or ‘at that time when the people were feasting.’ When, however, feast is translated as a verb, it should agree in aspect (or tense) with the verb ‘used to release,’ for the meaning here is an habitual, repeated action, which occurred each year.
Release … one prisoner is translatable in some languages as ‘to make go free … one person in jail’ or ‘to let go out from jail … a person.’
Whom they asked may require some expansion, e.g. ‘whom they asked Pilate for’ or ‘whom they asked Pilate to set free.’
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 .
Verses 15:6 and 15:7 provide background information that is important for the next part of the story. Verse 15:6 indicates that it was Pilate’s custom to release a prisoner from prison each year during Passover. Verse 15:7 talks about a particular prisoner who was being held by the Romans. Translate this background information in a way that is natural in your language.
15:6a–b
Now it was Pilate’s custom at the feast to release to the people a prisoner of their choosing: Each year during the time of the Passover festival, Pilate released one prisoner. The people told Pilate which prisoner they wanted to be released. After he was released, the prisoner did not receive any more punishment.
Now: Verse 15:6 is background information. The Berean Standard Bible indicates this by translating the Greek conjunction here as Now. If your language has a special word to introduce background information, you could use that word here. The Good News Bible and other English versions do not translate this conjunction.
it was Pilate’s custom at the feast to release: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as it was Pilate’s custom at the feast to release is literally “at every festival he was releasing.” This means that each year during the Passover festival, Pilate released a prisoner. This had become a custom.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
At every Passover Festival Pilate was in the habit of setting free (Good News Bible) -or-
…it was the governor’s custom each year during the Passover celebration to release (New Living Translation) -or-
During Passover, Pilate always freed (Contemporary English Version)
at the feast: The phrase at the feast here refers to the time during the Passover festival or celebration that was held each year. For example, the God’s Word says:
At every Passover festival
The word at does not indicate that Pilate released the prisoner at the place where the people were feasting. Instead, it refers to the period of time during which the feast took place. As such it an be translate as “during.”
Some languages may not have a general word meaning “feast” or “celebration” that can refer to the Passover. If that is true in your language, then use the full expression for Passover that you used in 14:1a.
to release: The word release means “free” or “liberate.” In this context it refers to freeing a prisoner.
a prisoner of their choosing: The words a prisoner of their choosing indicates that the people could ask Pilate to free any one prisoner whom they wanted.
Here are some other ways to translate this:
one prisoner whom the people asked for (God’s Word) -or-
one prisoner whom the people chose (New Century Version)
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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
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