The word And again indicates the beginning of a new unit. For this reason many translators will use “Jesus” instead of he. Good News Translation is an example. Further, in few languages is “And” a natural way to open a discourse unit, so it is usually either dropped or replaced by a phrase such as “Later” or “One day after that.”
Called to him (so also An American Translation, New English Bible) is translated “called … together” by Good News Translation. New Jerusalem Bible, Barclay, and New American Bible use the rather high level “summoned.” Another way to render it is “told his twelve disciples to come to him.” Direct speech can also be used: “said to his twelve disciples, ‘Come here.’ ”
In Matthew the group of disciples is frequently spoken of as “the twelve disciples” (11.1; 20.17; 26.14, 20, 47). According to 19.28 they will sit on twelve thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel, which suggests that they are somehow symbolic of the “new Israel.”
For comments on disciples, see 5.1.
In 7.29 Matthew indicates that Jesus himself taught with authority; here it is said that Jesus gave them authority. Authority can be translated “power” as long as readers do not understand it to mean physical power. In this context the Greek word means primarily that he gave them the “right” to exercise “power” over unclean spirits. Words like “ability” or “skill” should be avoided. In this context “authority to command” has been used by some translators.
Revised Standard Version indicates what the authority involves by adding to cast them out after the unclean spirits. Good News Translation has rendered this more naturally in English, “gave them authority to drive out evil spirits.” For cast … out, see comments on 7.22 and 8.16. This phrase can also be rendered “Jesus gave them the authority so that when they told evil spirits to leave people, the spirits had to obey them.”
Unclean spirits are mentioned again in 12.43 but nowhere else in the Gospel. The terminology reflects the cultural viewpoint of the Jewish people; anyone possessed by evil spirits was considered unclean and was then excluded from the social and religious life of the community. In many cultures, especially where religious concepts of “clean” and “unclean” do not play a major role, the nearest equivalent is “evil spirits” (Good News Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, Bible en français courant). Translators can also say “evil spirits that made people ceremonially unclean,” but only if this does not result in a very awkward sentence. For unclean see the discussion of ritual cleanliness in 8.2, “clean.” Perhaps the phrase can be “spirits that make people unfit for worshiping God.”
Disease and infirmity are the same terms used in 4.23 and 9.35.
And to heal: note that the authority Jesus gives his disciples was also for healing. Some languages will have to repeat “authority,” as in “and (he gave them) power to heal people of all kinds of diseases and sicknesses.” Again, the idea of “skill” should be avoided.
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 .
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