Translation commentary on Mark 2:23

Text:

Instead of paraporeuesthai ‘go along’ of most modern editions of the Greek text, Textus Receptus, Souter, and Westcott and Hort prefer diaporeuesthai ‘go through.’

Exegesis:

kai egeneto … paraporeuesthai ‘and it happened … (that he) went along’: for this Semitic construction see 1.9.

en tois sabbasin ‘on the sabbath day’ (on the use of the plural cf. 1.21).

paraporeuesthai dia tōn sporimōn ‘to go along through the grain fields’: the subject, of course, is auton ‘he’ (it is understood that the disciples were accompanying him).

paraporeuomai (9.30; 11.20; 15.29) ‘go by,’ ‘pass by’: plus dia ‘through,’ it means ‘go through.’

sporimos (only here in Mark) is an adjective ‘sown,’ ‘fit for sowing’; as a plural substantive ta sporima means here ‘grain fields,’ ‘standing grain’ . It is to be noticed that ‘cornfield’ of King James Version, Revised Version and Translator’s New Testament is not what American ‘corn’ (i.e. maize) is: the grain referred to is wheat or barley.

ērxanto hodon poiein tillontes ‘they began to make way plucking’: it is agreed that hodon poiein means what in classical Greek would be hodon poieisthai ‘journey,’ ‘go along’ (cf. Latin iter facere), and does not mean ‘make a road’ (for the same use of this idiom see Septuagint Judges 17.8). The words hodon poiein, therefore, are to be translated ‘as they went’ (American Standard Version, Translator’s New Testament, Manson, The Modern Speech New Testament). The disciples were going along a regular path through the wheat fields (cf. Rawlinson).

ērxanto … tillontes ‘they began … plucking’: according to rules of grammar ērxanto ‘they began’ should go with hodon poiein ‘to make (their) way’; it is generally agreed, however, that here the meaning is rather ‘they began plucking’ (cf. Lagrange, Taylor). As Gould says, there is not actually much difference between ‘they began to go along, plucking the ears’ and ‘they began, going along, to pluck.’ tillō ‘pluck,’ ‘pull off’ is found only here in Mark.

tous stachuas (4.28) ‘the ears (or, heads) of grain’ (i.e. wheat).

Translation:

Since the last specific previous reference to Jesus is in verse 19, and there are several intervening third person singular referents, it is often necessary to employ ‘Jesus’ as the subject of the first clause.

For sabbath see 1.21.

It is quite evident that Jesus was going along with his disciples, and that they were not walking out through a grainfield, but along a path. However, in order that the reader may properly understand the obvious intent of the Greek text, it is sometimes necessary to regroup the subject constituents, e.g. ‘Jesus and his disciples were going along a path through the grainfields’ (Amganad Ifugao).

The grainfields refer to fields of wheat. In some parts of the world there is practically no equivalent, and hence ‘corn’ (in the meaning of ‘Indian corn’ or ‘maize’) is used, even though the particular activities are in such instances not accurately represented. In some languages the wheat is described as ‘ricelike grain’ (Yaka) or ‘millet-like grain’ (Farefare), and in other languages it may have some special designation, e.g. ‘Mexican grain’ vs. ‘Indian grain,’ that is to say, wheat vs. maize (Tzeltal), and ‘field for grain for flour’ (Barrow Eskimo, in which there is a perfectly good word for wheat ‘flour,’ but no knowledge of wheat as a grain).

Ears of grain must in some languages be variously rendered as ‘stalks of seeds,’ ‘heads of grain,’ ‘clusters of seeds,’ or ‘fruit of seeds.’

Note that though Jesus and the disciples were walking together, only the disciples are described as plucking off the heads of grain. The question of the Pharisees, however, is directed only to Jesus.

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 2:23

Section 2:23–28

Jesus and religious leaders disagreed about the rest day

In the Old Testament God commanded the Jewish people to rest on the seventh day of each week. They called this day the “Sabbath.” The Pharisees made many strict rules about what people were not allowed to do on the Sabbath.

In this section, Jesus allowed his disciples to pick and eat grain on the Sabbath. Some Pharisees saw the disciples doing that and rebuked Jesus. Jesus told the Pharisees a story about King David to show them that the way they thought about the Sabbath was wrong. He told them that he had the authority to decide what was right or wrong to do on the Sabbath.

Here are some other possible section headings:

Jesus taught that he had authority over what is done on the rest day
-or-
Jesus taught the true meaning of the Sabbath day

This story also occurs in Matthew 12:1–8 and Luke 6:1–5.

Paragraph 2:23–28

2:23a

One Sabbath: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as One Sabbath is literally “and it happened that on a Sabbath (rest day)….” This phrase introduces a new story or incident that happened one Sabbath day.

Sabbath: The word Sabbath is the name of the seventh and last day of the week for the Jews. This was the special day in the week when they rested and worshipped God.

Here are some other ways to translate Sabbath:

the Jewish rest day
-or-
the day for resting
-or-
the day to rest and worship God

If the word Sabbath is already known in your area, you may write it according to the sounds of your language. You may also want to include a phrase to explain the meaning. For example:

the Sabat, the Jews’ day for resting

See how you translated Sabbath at 1:21b.

Jesus was passing: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Jesus was passing is literally “he was going.” Since 2:23 begins a new section, it is more natural in English to refer to Jesus by his name here. Use a natural way in your language to refer to him here.

In this verse Jesus was walking with his disciples. In some languages it may also be necessary to make explicit that Jesus’ disciples were with him. For example:

Jesus and his disciples were going

through the grainfields: There were public paths through the grainfields where people could walk without damaging the grain. Jesus and the disciples did not walk in a place where they were not allowed to go.

grainfields: The grainfields were fields, farms, or gardens where the people grew grain crops. This grain could have been wheat, barley, or a similar type of grain. (Notice that some English versions (King James Version, New Jerusalem Bible, Revised English Bible), following British English, call these “cornfields.” In these versions, “corn” has the general sense of “grain.” It does not refer to “maize” (which Americans call “corn”).)

Here are some ways to translate grainfields:

• Use an expression that includes your term for “grain.” For example:

wheat fields
-or-
barley farms
-or-
fields where people grew something like millet

• Use a general expression for a field where people grow crops for food. For example:

cultivated field
-or-
fields/land for growing food
-or-
farms

2:23b

and His disciples began to pick the heads of grain as they walked along: Jesus’ disciples were plucking some of the grain to eat as they walked along. In the Old Testament, God allowed the Jewish people to do this in fields owned by fellow Jews. They were not allowed to harvest the grain in large amounts. See Deuteronomy 23:25.

disciples: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as disciples means “learners” who are in a relationship with a teacher. The learners commit themselves to their teacher in order to learn from him and live according to his teaching and example. In the New Testament disciples often lived with their teacher and followed him wherever he went.

Use the same term you used in 2:15b. See the note there and see also disciple in the Glossary.

pick the heads of grain: The phrase pick the heads of grain means “pluck clusters of seed off the stalks of the grain plants.” See also the following notes on “heads of grain” and “grain.”

heads of grain: Grains like wheat and barley have a stalk. On top of the stalk there are clusters of seeds. These clusters are the heads of grain. These grains could be eaten raw.

grain: The text does not say what sort of grain this was. If you must be specific, you could say “wheat” or “barley” since these were common in Israel. If wheat or barley are not known in your area, here are other options for translation:

• Use a general word for grain.

• Use a phrase that describes the grain as similar to a grain which is known in your area and which can be eaten raw. For example:

something like rice/millet

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