pronoun for "God"

God transcends gender, but most languages are limited to grammatical gender expressed in pronouns. In the case of English, this is traditionally confined to “he” (or in the forms “his,” “him,” and “himself”), “she” (and “her,” “hers,” and “herself”), and “it” (and “its” and “itself”).

Modern Mandarin Chinese, however, offers another possibility. Here, the third-person singular pronoun is always pronounced the same (tā), but it is written differently according to its gender (他 is “he,” 她 is “she,” and 它/牠 is “it” and their respective derivative forms). In each of these characters, the first (or upper) part defines the gender (man, woman, or thing/animal), while the second element gives the clue to its pronunciation.

In 1930, after a full century with dozens of Chinese translations, Bible translator Wang Yuande (王元德) coined a new “godly” pronoun: 祂. Chinese readers immediately knew how to pronounce it: tā. But they also recognized that the first part of that character, signifying something spiritual, clarified that each person of the Trinity has no gender aside from being God.

While the most important Protestant and Catholic Chinese versions respectively have opted not to use 祂, some Bible translations do and it is widely used in hymnals and other Christian materials. Among the translations that use 祂 to refer to “God” were early versions of Lü Zhenzhong’s (呂振中) version (New Testament: 1946, complete Bible: 1970). R.P. Kramers (in The Bible Translator 1956, p. 152ff. ) explains why later versions of Lü’s translation did not continue with this practice: “This new way of writing ‘He,’ however, has created a minor problem of its own: must this polite form be used whenever Jesus is referred to? Lü follows the rule that, wherever Jesus is referred to as a human being, the normal tā (他) is written; where he is referred to as divine, especially after the ascension, the reverential tā (祂) is used.”

In Kouya, Godié, Northern Grebo, Eastern Krahn, Western Krahn, and Guiberoua Béte, all languages of the Kru family in Western Africa, a different kind of system of pronouns is used (click or tap here to read more):

In that system, one kind of pronoun is used for humans (male and female alike) and others for natural elements, non-liquid masses, and some spiritual entities (one other is used for large animals and another one for miscellaneous items). While in these languages the pronoun for spiritual entities used to be employed when referring to God, this has changed into the use of the human pronoun.

Lynell Zogbo (in The Bible Translator 1989, p. 401ff. ) explains: “From informal discussions with young Christians especially, it would appear that, at least for some people, the experience and/or concepts of Christianity are affecting the choice of pronoun for God. Some people explain that God is no longer ‘far away,’ but is somehow tangible and personal. For these speakers God has shifted over into the human category.”

In Kouya, God (the Father) and Jesus are referred to with the human pronoun ɔ, whereas the Holy Spirit is referred to with a non-human pronoun. (Northern Grebo and Western Krahn make a similar distinction.)

Eddie Arthur, a former Kouya Bible translation consultant, says the following: “We tried to insist that this shouldn’t happen, but the Kouya team members were insistent that the human pronoun for the Spirit would not work.”

In Burmese, the pronoun ko taw (ကိုယ်တော်) is used either as 2nd person (you) or 3rd person (he, him, his) reference. “This term clearly has its root in the religious language in Burmese. No ordinary persons are addressed or known by this pronoun because it is reserved for Buddhist monks, famous religious teachers, and in the case of Christianity, the Trinity.” (Source: Gam Seng Shae in The Bible Translator 2002, p. 202ff. )

In Thai, the pronoun phra`ong (พระองค์) is used, a gender-neutral pronoun which must refer to a previously introduced royal or divine being. Similarly, in Northern Khmer, which is spoken in Thailand, “an honorific divine pronoun” is used for the pronoun referring to the persons of the Trinity (source: David Thomas in The Bible Translator 1993, p. 445 ). In Urak Lawoi’, another language spoken in Thailand, the translation often uses tuhat (ตูฮัด) — “God” — ”as a divine pronoun where Thai has phra’ong even though it’s actually a noun.” (Source for Thai and Urak Lawoi’: Stephen Pattemore)

The English “Contemporary Torah” addresses the question of God and gendered pronouns by mostly avoiding pronouns in the first five books of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament (unless God is referred to as “lord,” “father,” “king,” or “warrior”). It does that by either using passive constructs (“He gave us” vs. “we were given”), by using the adjective “divine” or by using “God” rather than a pronoun.

Some Protestant and Orthodox English Bibles use a referential capitalized spelling when referring to the persons of the Trinity with “He,” “His,” “Him,” or “Himself.” This includes for instance the New American Standard Bible or The Orthodox New Testament, but most translations do not. Other languages where this is also done (in most Bible translations) are Twents as well as Indonesian and Malay. In the latter two languages this follows the language usage according to the Qur’an, which in turn predicts that usage (see Soesilo in The Bible Translator 1991, p. 442ff. and The Bible Translator 1997, p. 433ff. ).

See also first person pronoun referring to God.

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Gender of God .

Translation: Chinese

在现代汉语中，第三人称单数代词的读音都是一样的（tā），但是写法并不一样，取决于性别以及是否有生命，即男性为“他”，女性为“她”，动物、植物和无生命事物为“它”（在香港和台湾的汉语使用，动物则为“牠”）。这些字的部首偏旁表明了性别（男人、女人、动物、无生命事物），而另一偏旁通常旁提示发音。

到1930年为止，基督教新教《圣经》经过整整一百年的翻译已经拥有了十几个译本，当时的一位圣经翻译者王元德新造了一个“神圣的”代词“祂”，偏旁“礻”表示神明。一般汉语读者会立即知道这字的发音是tā，而这个偏旁表示属灵的事物，因此他们明白这个字指出，三位一体的所有位格都没有性别之分，而单单是上帝。

然而，最重要的新教圣经译本（1919年的《和合本》）和天主教圣经译本（1968年的《思高圣经》）都没有采用“祂”；虽然如此，许多其他的圣经译本采用了这个字，另外还广泛出现在赞美诗和其他基督信仰的书刊中。（资料来源：Zetzsche）

《吕振中译本》的几个早期版本也使用“祂”来指称“上帝”；这个译本的《新约》于1946年译成，整部《圣经》于1970年完成。克拉默斯（Kramers）指出：“‘他’的这种新写法（即‘祂’）产生了一个小问题，就是在指称耶稣的时候，是否一律使用这个敬语代词？《吕振中译本》遵循的原则是，在称呼耶稣这个人的时候，用一般的‘他’，而在称呼耶稣神性的时候，特别是升天之后的耶稣，则用尊称‘祂’。”

Translator: Simon Wong

3rd person pronoun with high register (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 third person singular and plural pronoun (“he,” “she,” “it” and their various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. While it’s not uncommon to avoid pronouns altogether in Japanese, there are is a range of third person pronouns that can be used. In these verses a number of them are used that pay particularly much respect to the referred person (or, in fact, God, as in Exodus 15:2), including kono kata (この方), sono kata (その方), and ano kata (あの方), meaning “this person,” “that person,” and “that person over there.”

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

See also third person pronoun with exalted register.

Translation commentary on Mark 4:40 – 4:41

Text:

In v. 40 after este ‘you are’ Textus Receptus, Nestle, Tischendorf, Soden, Vogels, Taylor and Kilpatrick add houtōs ‘thus’ which is omitted by Westcott and Hort, Lagrange, Souter, Merk and Revised Standard Version.

In v. 40 instead of pōs ouch echete ‘how (is it that) you do not have’ read by Textus Receptus, Tischendorf, Merk and Nestle; oupō echete ‘do you not (yet) have’ is preferred by Westcott and Hort, Souter, Soden, Vogels, Lagrange, Revised Standard Version, Kilpatrick.

Exegesis:

deiloi (only here in Mark) ‘timid,’ ‘fearful,’ ‘cowardly.’

pōs ‘how?,’ ‘how is it possible that…?’

pistin (cf. 2.5) ‘faith,’ ‘belief,’ ‘trust’: whether in God, or in Jesus himself, the text does not specify.

ephobēthēsan phobon megan ‘they feared a great fear’: a Semitic manner of intensive statement ‘they feared greatly,’ ‘they were very much afraid.’

phobeomai (5.15, 33, 36; 6.20, 50; 9.32; 10.32; 11.18, 32; 12.12; 16.8) ‘to be afraid,’ ‘to be awed.’

pros allēlous (8.16; 9.34; 15.31; en allēlois 9.50) ‘to themselves,’ i.e. ‘to one another’ (not privately, each one to himself, but in the group, one to the other).

ara (11.13) ‘then,’ ‘therefore’: as an inference from all that has preceded; ‘In light of this, who, then, is this man?’

kai ho anemos ‘even the wind’: so the great majority of modern translations (American Standard Version, Revised Standard Version, Goodspeed, Berkeley, Manson, The Modern Speech New Testament, Williams, Montgomery, Zürcher Bibel, O Novo Testamento de Nosso Senhor Jesus Cristo. Revisdo Autorizada); Translator’s New Testament, however, “both wind and….”

hupakouei (cf. 1.27) ‘they obey.’

Translation:

Them must in some languages be clearly indicated as ‘disciples’ because of the immediately preceding reference to the ‘wind and sea.’

The description of fear leads to a number of idioms, e.g. ‘your heart trembles’ (Tzeltal), ‘shiver in your liver’ (Uduk), and ‘to have such little hearts’ (Tzotzil). This fear must be carefully distinguished from the meaning of fear as reverence or respect.

For faith see 1.15. In some languages, however, one cannot speak of faith without indicating the object of the faith. Despite the fact that the Greek does not specify whether this is faith in Jesus or God, it is probably more acceptable to translate as ‘faith in God,’ since it would seem that faith is here spoken of in terms of its widest application to experiences of confidence and trust, rather than with regard to specific reliance on Jesus’ own leadership and provision for their needs.

Filled with awe is equivalent in some instances to ‘completely amazed,’ ‘their thoughts left them,’ ‘their hearts fell.’

Who, introducing the last question is not a simple interrogative pronoun relating to identity. It rather asks ‘what sort of person is this that….’ Or, as in some languages, ‘who is this sort of person that….’ At any rate, there must usually be some type of qualifier to supplement the words as they stand in the English text.

Obey him may be rendered as ‘do what he says’ (or ‘commands’).

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 4:41

4:41a

Overwhelmed with fear: The Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Overwhelmed with fear is literally “they feared with great fear.” The verb “feared” and the noun “fear” can mean both “afraid” and “wonder, amazement.” Probably both meanings are indicated here. If possible use an expression that includes these meanings. For example:

They were filled with fear and amazement
-or-
They were greatly afraid and amazed
-or-
They were astounded

asked: The first sentence in 4:41b is a question, but the second sentence is a statement. You will need to decide whether it is more natural in your language to use the verb “said” or “asked” here.

4:41b

The Greek text of 4:41b includes a word that is translated in different ways by English versions. The Berean Standard Bible leaves this word implied. Some English versions have translated it as “then.” For example, the NET Bible says:

Who then is this?

In this context the word “then” implies a conclusion that people make because of certain evidence. The disciples realized that Jesus had showed amazing authority. They were asking what that evidence showed about who he was.

Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?: In the Greek, 4:41b is one sentence in the form of a question. The New Revised Standard Version follows the Greek structure and translates this literally as:

Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

It may be natural in your language to follow the Berean Standard Bible and the New Revised Standard Version and include the words even the wind and the sea obey Him in the question. However, if this would not be natural, you could follow the New International Version and other English versions that separate the words even the wind and the sea obey Him from the question:

Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him! (New International Version)
-or-
Who then is this? Even the wind and sea obey him! (NET Bible)

Translate this as one sentence or two, whichever is natural in your language.

Who is this: This is a rhetorical question. It strongly indicates surprise, fear, and amazement. The disciples were not asking for Jesus’ name. Instead, they were wondering what kind of man Jesus was and how he could do such powerful miracles.

The Jews believed that only God controlled such things as wind and waves. So the disciples were asking who Jesus could be that he could do the same things God does. Translate this sentence in a way which indicates surprise and awe.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

• As a rhetorical question. For example:

What kind of man/person then is this?

• As an exclamatory statement. For example:

This man is amazing! No one but God can do what he has done!

that even the wind and the sea obey Him?: Usually the subject of the verb obey is a person or an animal. But here the subject is the wind and the sea. It may be more natural in your language to reword this clause to indicate that the wind and waves did as Jesus commanded. For example:

Even the wind and the sea do as he commands!
-or-
He commanded the wind and the sea to stop, and they stopped!
-or-
He controls even the wind and the sea!

sea: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible literally translates as sea refers to the water of the Sea of Galilee. For this reason, the New International Version translates this word as “waves.” See how you translated this word in 4:39a.

General Comment on 4:41b

The clause even the wind and the sea obey him begins with the word “that” in the Greek text. The word “that” indicates that the clause even the wind and the sea obey him gives the reason for asking Who is this? It may be more natural in your language to have the reason clause first. For example:

Even the wind and the waves obey him, so who is this?

Paragraph 5:1–5

In this paragraph, the action in 5:1–2 is followed by some background information in 5:3–5. In some languages, it may be good to change the order of some of the information in these verses. See the suggestions in the General Comment on 5:2–6 at the end of 5:6b. The action of the story continues in 5:6.

5:1a–b

This story happened immediately after the story about Jesus calming the storm on the lake at the end of Mark 4. The Greek text has a general connector here. You may want to begin this story in a way that shows the connection between the events. For example:

Then they went across…
-or-
Just after the storm, they went across…

On the other side of the sea, they arrived: Here Jesus and disciples continued the boat trip that they began in 4:36. They finished the remaining part of the trip and arrived at the other side of the lake. Your translation should indicate that they were continuing the trip, not that they were beginning it. For example:

They continued across the lake to the other side, where they arrived
-or-
They finished going to the other side of the lake and arrived
-or-
Jesus and his disciples arrived on the other side of Lake Galilee (Good News Bible)

On the other side of the sea: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as On the other side of the sea is literally “to the other side of the lake.” They sailed from the northwest shore of the lake to the northeast shore. If your language requires or prefers that you indicate the direction of travel, indicate that they were sailing east.

the sea: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the sea refers to Lake Galilee. This is the same lake that was mentioned in many other passages, including 1:16a and 2:13. Refer to how you translated it there. Since the phrase the sea indicates a specific lake, in some languages you may need to give its name. For example:

Lake Galilee

they: The word they here refers to Jesus and his disciples. Refer to them at the beginning of this story in a natural way in your language.

the region of the Gerasenes:

There is a textual issue in this verse: (1) Some Greek manuscripts have
Gerasenes, people from the town of Gerasa (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Good News Bible, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, New Century Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Living Translation, New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible). (2) Other Greek manuscripts have Gadarenes, people from the town of Gadara (King James Version). (3) Other Greek manuscripts have Gergesenes, people from the town of Gergesa. It is recommended that you follow option (1). It has the support of some of the best manuscripts, and most English versions. However, commentaries are divided in which option they support. If the major language version in your area uses option (2) or (3), you may choose to follow it. Scholarly opinion is divided due to the geographical problem. Gerasa was more than 30 miles (55 kilometers) southeast of Lake Galilee, while Gadara was only about 6 miles southeast of the lake. The third variant, Gergesenes, may refer to the people from a small village on the northeast shore of the lake known today as Kersa or Kursi. (See the Jerusalem Perspective articles Gergesa: Site of the Demoniac’s Healing by Mendel Nun (no. 50, January/March 1996) and Gergesa, Gerasa, or Gadara? Where Did Jesus’ Miracle Occur? (no. 51, April/June 1996). For arguments in support of option (2), Gadara, see Consultant Notes for this passage in TW 4.)) The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the Gerasenes refers to people who lived in the city called Gerasa and the countryside around it. See the next note for discussion of a textual issue concerning this phrase. The Gerasenes were mostly non-Jewish people.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

region/area of the Gerasa people
-or-
place where people called the Gerasenes lived
-or-
region of the city of Gerasa and around it

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