angel

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The Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic that is translated as “angel” in English versions is translated in many ways:

  • Pintupi-Luritja: ngaṉka ngurrara: “one who belongs in the sky” (source: Ken Hansen quoted in Steven 1984a, p. 116.)
  • Tetela, Kpelle, Balinese, and Mandarin Chinese: “heavenly messenger”
  • Shilluk / Igede: “spirit messenger”
  • Mashco Piro: “messenger of God”
  • Batak Toba: “envoy, messenger”
  • Navajo: “holy servant” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida 1961; Igede: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
  • Central Mazahua: “God’s worker” (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.)
  • Saramaccan: basia u Masa Gaangadu köndë or “messenger from God’s country” (source: Jabini 2015, p. 86)
  • Mairasi: atatnyev nyaa or “sent-one” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Shipibo-Conibo: “word bringer” (source: James Lauriault in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 32ff. )
  • Apali: “God’s one with talk from the head” (“basically God’s messenger since head refers to any leader’s talk”) (source: Martha Wade)
  • Michoacán Nahuatl: “clean helper of God” (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • Noongar: Hdjin-djin-kwabba or “spirit good” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Wè Northern (Wɛɛ): Kea ‘a “sooa or “the Lord’s soldier” (also: “God’s soldier” or “his soldier”) (source: Drew Maust)
  • Iwaidja: “a man sent with a message” (Sam Freney explains the genesis of this term [in this article): “For example, in Darwin last year, as we were working on a new translation of Luke 2:6–12 in Iwaidja, a Northern Territory language, the translators had written ‘angel’ as ‘a man with eagle wings’. Even before getting to the question of whether this was an accurate term (or one that imported some other information in), the word for ‘eagle’ started getting discussed. One of the translators had her teenage granddaughter with her, and this word didn’t mean anything to her at all. She’d never heard of it, as it was an archaic term that younger people didn’t use anymore. They ended up changing the translation of ‘angel’ to something like ‘a man sent with a message’, which is both more accurate and clear.”)

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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) is used as in mi-tsukai (御使い) or “messenger (of God).” (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also angel (Acts 12:15) and this devotion on YouVersion .

complete verse (Matthew 1:24)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 1:24:

  • Uma: “When Yusuf woke up, he did follow what that angel of the Lord had said to him. He went ahead and married Maria.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “When Yusup woke up he did what the angel had commanded him. He married Mariyam.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Then Joseph woke up. He did what the messenger told him to do, and he married Mary.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “When Jose got-up/woke-up, he obeyed what the angel had said, and took- Mary -home-as-his-wife,” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “When Jose woke up, he did indeed obey that which the angel of God had said. He went ahead with marrying Maria.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “Upon waking up Joseph did according to what the angel had said, that one who was a messenger of God. He took Mary to live with him.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Matthew 1:24

When can also be translated “after”: “After Joseph woke up….”

Woke translates a Greek verb which is also found with this same meaning in the Septuagint (Gen 28.16; Judges 16.14). Here it is followed by the phrase from sleep. In the structure of Good News Translation, however, it is not explicitly mentioned, since this information is clearly implicit in the text and more natural in English without it. The same is true in many other languages. Translators must ask themselves whether they would say “Wake up” or “Wake up from sleep,” and then use the appropriate phrase.

He took his wife (Good News Translation “he married Mary”) represents the same expression discussed in verse 20, and translators should translate the phrase here in a way similar to what they did there: “He married Mary,” or “He took Mary to be his wife,” or “He received her as his wife.”

For the angel of the Lord, see comments on verse 20.

Notice that Good News Translation has reversed the order of the last two phrases in this verse. This is perhaps more natural in English, and other translators should do what is natural in their languages. A further problem is that in some translations it sounds as if he married Mary immediately after waking up. So it may be necessary to have sentences such as these: “When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do when he said he should marry Mary” or “Joseph woke up. After that, he married Mary, because that was what the angel of the Lord had commanded him to do.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .