complete verse (Matthew 11:15)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 11:15:

  • Uma: “Whoever has ears, listen well!” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Amey-amey (this expression intensifies an instruction or warning.) listen when you are told something.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “This which you have heard, you must understand.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “You who are hearing, think about what you heard.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Well since what ears are for is for listening with, it’s necessary that you listen well to this which I am saying.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “So now, have ears to listen to the word I speak.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

he who, whoever

The Greek that is typically translated with a generic expressions such as “he who,” “whoever,” or “if anyone” in English is translated with the plural form (“they”) in Daga. “A literal translation of these conveys the idea that one specific unnamed individual is being discussed. Thus, for instance, in John 5:24 ‘he who hears my word and believes in him who sent me has eternal life’ meant in Daga that there was one fortunate individual to whom it applied.”

See also love your neighbor as yourself.

Translation commentary on Matthew 11:15

Most translations of this verse are fairly literal, as are Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation. The same saying is used twice again by Matthew (13.9, 43); similar exhortations are found in Mark 4.9, 23; Luke 8.8; 14.35; and Revelation 2.7, 11, 17, 29; 3.6, 13, 22; 13.9. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “Whoever can hear, should listen well!” and New American Bible “Heed carefully what you hear!”

This sentence is not questioning whether or not the people have ears. No translation should give that impression. Rather its purpose is to make people pay attention to what was said. The New American Bible model cited above does that well. Other examples are “You have ears, don’t you? Then pay attention to what I am saying” or “You can hear, can’t you? Then listen to these things.”

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 .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Matthew 11:15

11:15

The saying in this verse also occurs in Mark 4:9, Mark 4:23, Luke 8:8, Luke 14:35. You should translate all these passages in the same way.

He who has ears, let him hear: These words are a saying that Jesus used to command or urge the crowd to carefully think about the words that they had just heard. This saying assumes that everyone in the crowd had ears and were able to hear. So it is addressed to all the people who were listening to Jesus.

Here are some other ways to translate this saying:

• Use “they” or “you” instead of he. For example:

⌊All⌋ those who have ears to hear, let them hear.
-or-

⌊All of⌋ you who have ears to hear, hear/listen.

• Use a different type of clause. In some languages it may be more natural to use an “if” clause or a reason clause. For example:

If/Since you have ears that can hear, then pay attention.

• Translate the saying without including the word ears. For example:

You people who can hear me, listen! (New Century Version)

let him hear: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as let him hear is a command in the third person. It does not express permission.

Here is one way to make this more clear:

Anyone who has ears should listen! (New Jerusalem Bible)

In some languages, it may be necessary to say what the listener should be listening to. For example:

let him listen ⌊to me⌋

-or-

let him listen ⌊to what I say⌋

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