Mark 3:13-19 in Russian Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 3:13-19 into Russian Sign Language with a back-translation underneath:


Source: Russian Bible Society / Российское Библейское Общество

Jesus called his disciples to him to climb a mountain. The disciples followed him. They came to a place. Jesus began to choose for himself the closest disciples — he chose one, another, a third, choosing a total of 12 men.

The first one was Simon. Jesus gave him the middle name Peter. The second was James. The third was John. James and John are brothers. Their father’s name was Zebedee. Jesus called them “Sons of Thunder.” Why did He give them that name? That was their character, like thunder and lightning. The fourth was Andrew, the fifth was Philip, the sixth was Bartholomew, the seventh was Matthew, the eighth was Thomas, the ninth was James (his father’s name was Alphaeus), the tenth was Thaddeus, the eleventh was Simon the Cananite, and the twelfth was Judas Iscariot. He then betrayed Jesus. There were twelve men in all. They were called apostles by Jesus.

What were they to do?

One. They should always follow Jesus.

Second. Jesus send them out to tell all the people about Jesus.

Third. Jesus gave them authority. If there was a demon in a person, the apostles had authority to cast the demon out of the person.

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

Иисус призвал к себе учеников, чтобы забраться на гору. Ученики последовали за ним. Они пришли на место. Иисус стал выбирать для себя самых близких учеников — одного выбрал, другого, третьего, всего выбрал 12 человек.

Первый — Симон. Иисус дал ему второе имя Петр. Второй — Иаков. Третий — Иоанн. Иаков и Иоанн — братья. Отца их звали Зеведей. Иисус назвал из «Сыновья Грома». Почему Он дал им такое имя? Такой у них был характер, как гром и молния. Четвертый — Андрей, пятый — Филипп, шестой — Варфоломей, седьмой — Матфей, восьмой — Фома, девятый — Иаков (отца его звали Алфей), десятый — Фаддей, одиннадцатый — Симон Кананит, двенадцатый — Иуда Искариот. Он потом предал Иисуса. Всего их было 12 человек. Их Иисус назвал апостолами.

Что они должны были делать?

Первое. Они всегда должны следовать за Иисусом.

Второе. Иисус отправляем их, чтобы они рассказывали всем людям об Иисусе.

Третье. Иисус дал им власть. Если в каком-нибудь человеке был бес, апостолы имели власть изгнать беса из человека.

Back-translation by Luka Manevich

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Mark 3:13-19 in Mexican Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 3:13-19 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 caminó a una montaña y miró (y dijo): “Ven” y un grupo de personas se acercó a él. Jesús eligió doce apóstoles para acompañarlo juntos.

Después en el futuro los iba a entregar la autoridad para ir y predicar y para que pudieran expulsar demonios.

El primero era Simón, y cambió su apodo a Petro. El segundo era Jacobo y el tercero era Juan. Ellos eran hermanos, y su carácter era irascible entonces los apodó: ruido de relámpago fuerte (Boanerges).

El cuarto era Andrés, el quinto Felipe, el sexto Bartolomé, el séptimo Mateo, el octavo Tomás, el noveno Jacobo, y el decimo Tadeo.

El número once era Simón, que era caracterizado por su deseo de expulsar los romanos, y el número doce era Judás que en el futuro traicionaría a Jesús.


Jesus walked to a mountain and looked around (and said): “Come” and a group of people came to him. Jesus chose twelve apostles to accompany him together.

Afterwards, in the future, he would hand over to them the authority to go and preach and to be able to throw out demons.

The first was Simon and he changed his nickname to Peter, the second was James and the third was John. They were brothers with hot-tempered characters, so he gave them the nickname: strong sound of lightning (Boanerges).

The fourth was Andrew, the fifth Philip, the sixth Bartholomew, the seventh Matthew, the eighth Thomas, the ninth James and the tenth Thaddaeus.

The eleventh was Simon; they characterized Simon as someone who wanted very much to throw out the Romans, and the twelfth was Judas who would later betray Jesus.

Source: La Biblia en LSM / La Palabra de Dios

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Mark 3:20-35 in Mexican Sign Language >>

complete verse (Mark 3:15)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 3:15:

  • Uma: “And I give you power to expel demons.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “You will have power to cast-out demons.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “He gave them power to drive away the demons who were afflicting people.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “I also will give you authority to cause-evil-spirits -to-leave.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “And he would give them ability to drive out evil spirits.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

demon

The Greek that is typically translated/transliterated in English as “demon” is translated by other languages in the following ways:

  • Central Mazahua: “the evil spirit(s) of the devil” (source: Ellis Deibler in Notes on Translation July, 1967, p. 5ff.)
  • Kupsabiny: “bad spirit(s)” (source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Bariai: “bad bush-spirit(s)” (source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • Hausa: “unclean spirit” (see note below) (source: Hausa Common Language Back Translation)
  • Mandarin Chinese: “dirty spirit” (污灵 / wūlíng) (Protestant); “evil spirit/demon” （邪鬼 / xiéguǐ) (Catholic) (source: Zetzsche)
  • Sissala: kaŋtɔŋ, which traditionally referred to “either a spirit of natural phenomena such as trees, rivers, stones, etc., or the spirit of a deceased person that has not been taken into the realm of the dead. Kaŋtɔŋ can be good or evil. Evil kaŋtɔŋ can bring much harm to people and are feared accordingly. A kaŋtɔŋ can also dwell in a person living on this earth. A person possessed by kaŋtɔŋ does not behave normally.” (Source: Regina Blass in Holzhausen 1991, p. 48f.)
  • Umiray Dumaget Agta: hayup or “creature, animal, general term for any non-human creature, whether natural or supernatural.” Thomas Headland (in: Notes on Translation, September 1971, p. 17ff.) explains some more: “There are several types of supernatural creatures, or spirit beings which are designated by the generic term hayup. Just as we have several terms in English for various spirit beings (elves, fairies, goblins, demons, imps, pixies) so have the Dumagats. And just as you will find vast disagreement and vagueness among English informants as to the differences between pixies and imps, etc., so you will find that no two Dumagats will agree as to the form and function of their different spirit beings.” This term can also be used in a verb form: hayupen: “creatured” or “to be killed, made sick, or crazy by a spirit.”
  • Yala: yapri̍ija ɔdwɔ̄bi̍ or “bad Yaprija.” Yaprijas are traditional spirits that have a range presumed activities including giving or withholding gifts, giving and protecting children, causing death and disease and rewarding good behavior. (Source: Eugene Bunkowske in Notes on Translation 78/1980, p. 36ff.)
  • Lamnso’: aànyùyi jívirì: “lesser gods who disturb, bother, pester, or confuse a person.” (Source: Fanwong 2013, p. 93)
  • Paasaal: gyɩŋbɔmɔ, “beings that are in the wild and can only be seen when they choose to reveal themselves to certain people. They can ‘capture’ humans and keep them in hiding while they train the person in herbalism and divination. After the training period, which can range from a week to many years, the ‘captured’ individual is released to go back into society as a healer and a diviner. The gyɩŋbɔmɔ can also be evil, striking humans with mental diseases and causing individuals to get lost in the wild. The Pasaale worldview about demons is like that of others of the language groups in the area, including the Northern Dagara [who use kɔ̃tɔmɛ with a similar meaning].” (Source: Fabian N. Dapila in The Bible Translator 2024, p. 415ff.)

In the still widely-used 1908 Tswana (also: Setswana) translation (by Robert Moffat, revised by Alfred Wookey), the term badino or “ancestor spirit” is used for “demon,” even though in the traditional understanding there is nothing inherently negative associated with that term. Musa Dube (in: Journal of Society of New Testament 73, 1999, p. 33ff. ) describes this as an example of “engaging in the colonization of the minds of natives and for advancing European imperial spaces. The death and burial of Setswana culture here was primarily championed through the colonization of their language such that it no longer served the interests of the original speakers. Instead the written form of language had equated their cultural beliefs with evil spirits, demons and wizardry. This colonization of Setswana was in itself the planting of a colonial cultural bomb, meant to clear the ground for the implantation of a worldwide Christian commonwealth and European consciousness. It was a minefield that marked Setswana cultural spaces as dangerous death zones, to be avoided by every intelligent Motswana reader or hearer of the translated text.”

In Kachin, the term Nat (or nat) us used for “demon” (as well as “devil” and “unclean/evil spirit“). Like in Tswana, the meaning of Nat is not inherently negative but can be positive in the traditional Nat worship as well. Naw Din Dumdaw (in The Bible Translator 2024, p. 94ff.) argues that “the demonization of Nat created a social conflict between Kachin Christians and Kachin non-Christians. Kachin converts began to perceive their fellow Kachins who were still worshipping Nats as demonic and they wanted to distance themselves from them. Likewise, the Nat-worshiping Kachin community perceived the Kachin converts as betrayers and enemies of their own cultural heritage. (…) The demonization of the word Nat was not only the demonization of the pre-Christian religion but also the demonization of the cultural heritage of the Kachin people. When the word Nat is perceived as demonic, it creates an existential dilemma for Kachin Christians. It distances them from their cultural traditions.”

Note that often the words for “demon” and “unclean spirit / evil spirit” are being used interchangeably.

See also devil and formal pronoun: demons or Satan addressing Jesus.

Translation commentary on Mark 3:14 – 3:15

Text:

After dōdeka ‘twelve’ Westcott and Hort add hous kai apostolous ōnomasen ‘whom he also called apostles’: the great majority of the modern editions of the Greek text reject this clause (cf. Swete’s arguments, however, for its inclusion).

Verse 15. After exousian ‘authority’ Textus Receptus adds therapeuein tas nosous kai ‘to heal the sicknesses and’: this reading is rejected by all modern editions of the Greek text.

Exegesis:

epoiēsen dōdeka ‘he appointed twelve’: for this use of poieō ‘do,’ ‘make,’ cf. (in the Septuagint) Ex. 18.25, 36.1. and in the N.T. Heb. 3.2. The influence of the Septuagint is seen in this use of the verb (cf. Rawlinson, Lagrange).

The two hina ‘in order that’ clauses indicate purpose and are coordinate: ‘that they be with him and that he send them’ are the two purposes for which Jesus appointed the twelve men.

hina apostellē autous ‘that he should send them out’: it is better to translate the verb as an active form, with Jesus as subject, than to translate it by a passive (as does Revised Standard Version) ‘to be sent out.’

apostellō (cf. 1.2) ‘send out’: from this verb the noun apostolos (6.30) ‘apostle’ is formed (cf. 6.7 for the ‘sending out’).

kērussein kai echein exousian ‘to preach and to have authority’: the two infinitives ‘to preach’ and ‘to have authority’ are coordinate, and are both the object of apostellō ‘send out.’ A translation should preserve this construction if possible rather than make the second infinitive a subordinate clause (as does Translator’s New Testament).

kērussō (cf. 1.4) ‘proclaim,’ ‘announce,’ ‘preach.’

echein exousian (cf. 1.22) ‘to have authority.’

ekballein ta daimonia (cf. 1.34) ‘to cast out the demons’: this infinitive clause is the object of echein exousian ‘to have authority.’

Translation:

Appointed is not always an easy term to translate. In general the cultural background which may provide an adequate equivalent is to be found in many societies in the practice of (1) medicine men who appoint associates or (2) chiefs or kings who designate certain men to offices of responsibility. When this is done the process is often described in more concrete terms, e.g. ‘gave them jobs to do,’ ‘gave then important names,’ or ‘chose them for tasks.’ Such expressions can generally be adapted to this type of context. Cf. Toraja-Sa’dan ‘he exalted (the status of) twelve people’; Pamona and Indonesian ‘he appointed twelve people for good.’

Twelve must usually have some added noun, e.g. ‘twelve men,’ ‘twelve persons,’ or even ‘twelve followers.’ Most languages require some type of classifier with a numeral such as ‘twelve.’

If the full meaning of to be with him is to be understood it must often be elaborated in one of two directions: (1) by some verbal mode or aspect which would indicate that the apostles were to remain with him in some more permanent relationship than the crowds which followed, or (2) by related lexical elements, e.g. ‘to remain with him,’ ‘to be associated with him,’ or ‘to be with him more constantly.’ Note, however, that their appointment was for a double purpose – not only association, but commission to go out. The words used at this point should not be contradictory. On the other hand, their close association with the Master was to precede their being sent out on their own.

For preach see 1.4.

For authority see 2.10, but note that the important aspect of the word exousia ‘authority’ is that of delegated power. Accordingly, in this passage ‘to receive power (or strength) to cast out’ would be quite satisfactory.

For cast out, in speaking of demons, see 1.34.

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 3:15

3:15

and: The conjunction translated as and joins the two things that Jesus sent the twelve apostles to do. They were (a) to preach and (b) have authority to drive out demons.

have authority to drive out demons:

There is a textual issue in 3:15: (1) Some Greek manuscripts have “and have authority to drive out demons.” For example, the NET Bible says: “and to have authority to cast out demons” (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Good News Bible, Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, English Standard Version, NET Bible, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, God’s Word, New Living Translation, Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, New Century Version). (2) Some Greek manuscripts have “and have authority
to heal the sick and to drive out demons.” For example, the King James Version says: “And to have power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils” (King James Version). It is recommended that you follow option (1).) The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as authority refers here to both the right and the power to do something. In this context, Jesus gave his twelve apostles the power to command evil spirits to release people that they controlled.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

the power/right to command evil spirits to leave people
-or-
authority to cast out demons (New Living Translation)

to drive out demons: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as to drive out is literally “to cast/throw out.” To drive out demons means to cause evil spirits to stop controlling a person. The apostles would do this by commanding the evil spirits to leave.

Jewish people often spoke of evil spirits as being in someone. Different cultures have different ways of speaking about people being controlled by demons and being released from the control of demons. Use a natural expression for this in your language.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

send the demons away
-or-
exorcize the evil spirits
-or-
free people who were controlled by evil spirits

See the notes on “and drove out many demons” in 1:34b.

demons: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as demons refers to spirits that are evil and can control people’s actions. This Greek word refers to the same type of spirits as the Greek terms that are often translated as “evil spirits” and “unclean spirits.”

See the note on “unclean spirits” at 3:11a. Also see evil spirit in the Glossary.

Paragraph 3:16–19

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