17If that person refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church, and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a gentile and a tax collector.
The Greek that is translated as “tax collector” in English is translated in Tagbanwa as “money-grabbing official receivers of payment” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation) and in Noongar as mammarapa boya-barranginy or “people taking money” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation). Likewise, in Cashibo-Cacataibo, it is the “ones who take the money” (source: Bratcher / Nida 1961).
In Mairasi it is translated as “the people who collect money pertaining to head payment.” (Source: Enggavoter 2004)
Click or tap here to see a short video clip about tax collectors in biblical times (source: Bible Lands 2012)
The Greek that is often translated as “church” in English is translated into Avaric as imanl’urazul ahlu: “the community of believers” or “the believing people.”
Magomed-Kamil Gimbatov and Yakov Testelets (in The Bible Translator 1996, p. 434ff. ) talk about the genesis of this term (click or tap here to read more):
“The word ‘Church’ presents particular difficulties, as we might expect when we think that even many Christians do not understand it correctly. When people today say ‘church,’ they often mean a particular building, or an organization consisting chiefly of clergy (priests and monks). It is even harder to find a word or combination of words which adequately translates the meaning for people unfamiliar with Christianity. Surprisingly, the Greek word ekklesia, indicating in the classical language ‘an assembly of the people,’ ‘a gathering of citizens,’ has come into Avar and other Dagestani languages in the form kilisa. This, like the word qanch (‘cross’), is an ancient borrowing, presumably from the time before the arrival of Islam, when Dagestan came under the influence of neighboring Christian states. In modern usage, however, this word indicates a place of Christian worship. Thus it is completely inappropriate as a translation of its New Testament ancestor ekklesia.
“We were obliged to look at various words which are closer to the meaning of the Greek. Some of these words are dandel’i (‘meeting’), danderussin (‘assembly’), the Arabic-derived mazhlis (‘meeting, conference’), zhama’at (‘society, community’), ahlu (‘race, people, family, group of people united by a common goal or interest’, as in the Arabic phrase ahlu-l-kitab ‘people of the Book’ or ‘people of the Scriptures’), which describes both Jews and Christians, and ummat (‘people, tribe’). In Islamic theology the phrase ‘Mohammed’s ummat’ means the universal community of Muslims, the Muslim world, in the same way as the Christian world is known as ‘Isa’s ummat.’ None of these descriptions on their own, without explanation, can be used to translate the word ‘Church’ in the New Testament. Thus, after long consideration, we adopted the phrase imanl’urazul ahlu, meaning ‘the community of believers,’ ‘the believing people,’ This translation corresponds closely to New Testament teaching about the Church.
“It is interesting that the same word ahlu with the meaning ‘tribe, community’ has been used by translators for different reasons in the introduction to the Gospel of Luke in order to translate the expression in the original Greek pepleroforemenon en hemin pragmaton (πεπληροφορημένων ἐν ἡμῖν πραγμάτων), which the Russian Synodal translation renders ‘about the events well-known amongst us’ (Luke 1:1). The expression ‘amongst us’ cannot be translated literally into Avar, but has to be rendered ‘among our people’; and here the same term was used as for the word ‘church’, literally ‘among our tribe, community (ahlu).'”
In Kamo “church” is fang-balla (“owners of writing-people”) when referring to the church community and “house of writing-people” when referring to a church building. David Frank explains: “In Kamo culture, Christianity was associated with writing, so Christianity is called balla, which they say means ‘people who write.’ Christianity is balla, and Christians are called fang-balla, which means ‘owners of Christianity.’ That is the term that is used for the church, in the sense of people, rather than a building. In Philemon 1:1b-2a, Paul says he is writing ‘To our friend and fellow worker Philemon, and to the church (fang-balla ‘owners of Christianity) that meet in your house.’ The word fang “owner’ is very productive in the Kamo language. A disciple is an ‘owner of learning,’ an apostle is an ‘owner of sending,’ a believer is an ‘owner of truth,’ a hypocrite is an ‘owner of seeing eyes.’ The expression ‘house of writing-people’ is used in Matthew 16:18, which reads in Kamo, ‘And so I tell you Peter, you are a rock, and on top of this rock foundation I will build my house of writing-people, and never even death will not be able to overcome it.” (See also Peter – rock)
In Bacama there also is a differentiation between the building (vɨnə hiutə: “house of prayer”) and the community (ji-kottə: “followers”) (source: David Frank in this blog post ).
In 16th-century Classical Nahuatl, a transliteration from Spanish (Santa Yglesia or Santa Iglesia) is typically used rather than a translation, making the concept take on a personified meaning. Ottman (p. 169) explains: “The church building, or more precisely the church complex with its associated patio, has a Nahuatl name in common usage — generally teopan, something like ‘god-place,’ in contradistinction to teocalli, ‘god-house,’ applied to a prehispanic temple — but the abstract sense is always Santa Iglesia, a Spanish proper name like ‘Dios’ or ‘Santa María’, and like ‘Santa María’ often called ‘our mother.’ As a personified ‘mother,’ in the European tradition as well as in Nahuatl, She instructs Her children or chastises them; as Bride of Christ, She both longs for Her heavenly rest and bears witness to it, in the ‘always-already’ of eschatological time; as successor to the Synagogue, the blindfolded, broken-sceptred elder sister who accompanies Her in painting and sculpture, She represents the triumphant rule of truth. ‘The Church’ can mean the clerical hierarchy; it can also, or simultaneously, mean the assembly of the faithful. It dispenses grace to its members, living and dead, yet it is also enriched by them, living and dead, existing not only on earth but in purgatory and in heaven.”
In Lisu the building (“church”) is called “house of prayer” (source: Arrington 2020, p. 196) whereas in Highland Totonac the community is referred as “those who gather together” (source: Hermann Aschmann in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 171ff. ), in Huehuetla Tepehua as “those who gather together who have confidence in Christ” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), in Uma as “Christian people” (source: Uma Back Translation), in Kankanaey as “the congregation of God’s people” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation), and in Tagbanwa as “you whom God separated-out as his people because of your being-united/tied-together with Jesus Christ” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation).
In American Sign Language, “church” (as in the community of believers) is made up of the combination of the signs for “Jesus-into-heart” (signifying a believer), followed by the sign for “group.” (Source: Ruth Anna Spooner, Ron Lawer)
“Church” in American Sign Language, source: Deaf Harbor
While British Sign Language also uses a sign that focuses on a group of people believing in Jesus (see here ), another sign that it uses combines the signs for “ringing the (church) bells” and a “group of people.” (Source: Anna Smith)
“Church” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 18:17:
Uma: “If he does not want to believe/accept the word of those witnesses, bring him up [i.e., present his case] to all the one-faith relatives. If he still does not believe/accept even all the one-faith relatives reprimand him, just leave him alone, we (incl.) just consider him as a person who does not know God, and like people whose behavior/character is evil.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “If he does not listen to them, then tell all the people there in the prayer-house. If he still does not listen even though the whole congregation is a witness, then your customs to him shall be like your customs to the people who do not follow God or to the tax collectors.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And if he doesn’t allow it to be settled, tell it to the gathering of your fellow believers. And if he still doesn’t allow it to be settled then, think of him as not being a believer in God or think of him also like one of those cheating tax collectors.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “If he still refuses to listen to what they say, make-it-known to the congregation, and if he still refuses to listen to what the congregation says, count him as a person who does not know God or one who collects taxes.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “However if he still will not let himself be reconciled because he won’t listen to those you took with you, tell it to the whole-group of believers when assembled. Well if even there, he won’t let himself be reconciled, just regard him now as a person who doesn’t acknowledge God or one whose nature/ways are not good like the money-grabbing official-receivers of payment.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “If he then doesn’t want to listen to them even, put the matter before the church. If he doesn’t want to listen to what is said at the church, make a judgment that he is like those who are not believers or like tax collectors.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
Refuses to listen (Good News Translation “will not listen”) translates a different Greek verb from the one used in verse 16. The verb used here appears elsewhere in the New Testament only in Mark 5.36, and it may mean either “overhear” (intentionally or accidentally) or “refuse to listen to.” Most English translations do not distinguish between the two verbs, though Moffatt has “will not listen … refuses to listen,” and Phillips has “will not listen … won’t pay attention.”
Tell it to the church is the third and final step in attempting to reconcile a brother who has gone astray. In Greek the verb tell is not accompanied by a direct object, and so An American Translation translates “tell the congregation,” and Moffatt “tell the church.” Most languages, however, will require the express mention of an object, which is represented by it in a number of English translations (Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New International Version, New American Bible). Some translations are more specific: “report the matter to the congregation” (New English Bible), “tell the matter to the church” (Phillips), and “report the whole trouble…” (Barclay). Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “bring the matter before the church.”
For a discussion of church, see 16.18.
And if … even (so also New English Bible, New International Version) is translated “Finally, if” by Good News Translation in order to indicate that the last and most drastic step is now to be taken with regard to the brother.
Let him be to you as is translated “treat him as though he were” by Good News Translation. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch renders “then deal with him as”; New English Bible is similar to Good News Translation: “you must then treat him as you would.”
Gentile (Good News Translation “pagan”) is found twice elsewhere in this Gospel (5.47; 6.7) and once elsewhere in the New Testament (3 John 7). See comments at 5.47. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “unbeliever.”
For tax collector, see comment at 5.46.
We offered several ways to express these two terms in the discussions at 5.46 and 47. Since they occur together here, “tax collectors and other unbelievers” may be natural.
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 .
If he refuses to listen to them: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as refuses to listen is a stronger word than “will not listen” in 18:16a. This word can also be translated “ignore, disobey.” It indicates that he has rejected what the witnesses say.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
If he ignores these witnesses (God’s Word)
-or-
If he rejects their words
them: This pronoun refers to the one or two witnesses that you take along with you.
tell it to the church: The Greek command that the Berean Standard Bible translates as tell it to the church is more literally “tell the church.” In Greek, there is no pronoun it here. Many English versions are like the Berean Standard Bible and add the word it to make the sentence more natural. In some languages, it will also be natural to add this word, or some similar words.
This command means that you are supposed to tell the whole story to the church. This would include giving them a report about what the brother did to you. It would also include giving them a report about what you have tried to do to resolve this issue.
Here are some other ways to translate this command:
tell the church (New Century Version)
-or-
tell the whole thing to the church (Good News Translation)
-or-
report the matter to the church (Contemporary English Version)
the church: Here the word church refers to the group of Christian believers who worship together in the same place. In the New Testament, the word church does not refer to a building.
Here are some other ways to translate this word:
the group of believers/followers
-or-
the group of people who believe in Jesus
The word church first occurs in 16:18b.
18:17b
And if he refuses to listen: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as refuses to listen is the same one as in 18:17a. Translate it the same way in both places. For example:
If he ignores (God’s Word)
-or-
If he rejects
even to the church: In this context, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as even expresses something that would be surprising. The church is the final authority. We would normally expect the brother to listen and respond appropriately to the church. If he does not, it would be a surprising outcome.
Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:
And if he even refuses to listen to the church
-or-
If he still refuses to listen
-or-
Finally, if he will not listen to the church (Contemporary English Version)
18:17c
regard him as you would: This is a type of command. Jesus commanded you (singular) to think/treat the sinning brother in a certain way. This command is not to the church as a whole.
Here are some other ways to translate this command:
treat him as you would (New International Version)
-or-
consider (sing.) him as
-or-
think (sing.) of him as you would
-or-
act toward him as you (sing.) would act toward
a pagan or a tax collector: Both pagan and tax collector refer to kinds of people whom the Jews thought were bad. They were both outside the Jewish religious community. The Jews did not treat these people as well as they treated their fellow Jews within their community. (See the notes below where each term is explained.)
In some languages, it may be necessary to make some of this information explicit. For example:
⌊an outsider such as⌋ a Gentile and a tax collector
-or-
⌊a bad person such as⌋ a Gentile or a tax collector
Jesus was saying that a “Christian brother” who refuses to repent should no longer be considered a member of the group of believers.
a pagan: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as pagan refers to a person who is not a Jew. Many other English versions translate this word as “Gentile.” The Jews considered a Gentile to be someone who did not know God.
Here are some other ways to translate this word:
unbeliever (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
a person who does not know God (New Century Version)
This word also occurs in 6:7a.
a tax collector: The term tax collector refers to a Jew who collected taxes from his fellow Jews. Jews hated tax collectors. They considered them to be traitors, thieves, and religiously contaminated (“unclean”).
Here are some other ways to translate this term:
a person who collects taxes
-or-
a person who gathers money ⌊from other people⌋ for the government
See the note at 5:46b for more information on the term tax collector.
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