Translation commentary on Mark 7:29 – 7:30

Exegesis:

dia touton ton logon ‘on account of this saying (of yours),’ ‘because of your reply’: a word of praise.

exelēluthen ‘it has (already) gone out’: the verb exerchomai ‘go out’ is used in connection with unclean spirits (or demons) in 1.25, 26; 5.8, 13; 7.29, 30; 9.25, 26, 29.

beblēmenon ‘lying’: either in repose, as an indication of normal health, or exhausted as a result of a final paroxysm caused by the demon’s withdrawal (cf. 9.20).

epi tēn klinēn (cf. 4.21) ‘on the bed.’

Translation:

Go your way may need to be shifted to ‘return’ or ‘go to your home,’ since a literal translation may imply setting out for a further destination.

Demon has left must be translated in conformity to regular idiomatic ways of describing this type of event (see 1.26).

In some languages one must be careful to avoid making the child lying in bed parallel with the demon gone. The first is a very logical object of the verb ‘to find,’ for she actually found the child in this state. However, she did not ‘find the demon,’ but simply discovered that he had left. This difference in the nature of the objects of the verb may be rendered as ‘saw the child lying in bed and realized (or, ‘learned’) that the demon had gone.’

One must make certain that the entire clause does not seem to be a rebuke, e.g. ‘because you said this, get out,’ an interpretation which has been implied in a number of translations.

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 7:29

7:29a

Then Jesus told her: Jesus replied to the woman.

Because of this answer: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Because of this answer means “on account of” or “for the sake of” your answer.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

And because you have answered so well (New Living Translation, 1996 edition)
-or-
Because of your answer (New Century Version)
-or-
That’s true! (Contemporary English Version)

you may go: The words you may go indicate that Jesus was giving the woman permission to leave. He was implying that he was giving her what she was asking for. He was not rebuking her. In some languages it may be necessary to make this more explicit. For example:

you may go in peace
-or-
you may go home satisfied/relieved

7:29b

The demon: The words The demon refer to the evil spirit that controlled the woman’s daughter. See how you translated the word demon in 7:26c. See also evil spirit in the Glossary.

has left: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as has left indicates that the demon had already stopped controlling the woman’s daughter. Here it implies that Jesus caused the demon to leave her, and she was no longer troubled by the demon. This is the same Greek word as the word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as “came out” in 1:26b.

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