complete verse (Matthew 20:23)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 20:23:

  • Uma: “Yesus said: ‘It is very true, you will indeed carry suffering like what I carry. But as for who sits on my right side and my left side, it is not I who determines [lit., make-certain]. It is my Father who determines who gets that portion.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Isa said, ‘You will really be persecuted as I will soon be persecuted. But as to seating (anyone) on my right or left,’ said Isa, ‘I am not the one who rules/has authority over that. But those seats belong to those whom my Father God has prepared.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “‘It is true,’ said Jesus, ‘that you will endure suffering like I will have to endure, however I am not the one who will choose who will be allowed to sit on my right side and on my left. The ones who will be able to sit there are those my Father God has prepared for.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Then Jesus said, ‘It’s admittedly true that you will suffer like my suffering. But the one-to-sit on my right and my left, I have no authority to say, because my Father has already chosen the ones to sit there.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “‘It’s the truth,’ said Jesus, ‘the hardship I will experience, you will also experience it. But the determining of who will sit at my right and at the left doesn’t originate with me. Those seats being referred to are being kept for whom my Father in heaven is keeping them for.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “Jesus said: ‘Truly it will thus be, very much will you suffer, like the suffering I must go through. Overflowingly the people will make you suffer like I will be made to suffer. But concerning this matter you speak of, it isn’t for me to determine who will sit at my right or who will sit at my left. It is my Father who has already determined who will sit at each side of me.'” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

drink

In Telugu different verbs for humans drinking (tāgu / తాగు) and animals drinking (cēḍu / చేడు) are required.

Father (address for God)

The Greek that is translated with the capitalized “Father” in English when referring to God is translated in Highland Totonac with the regular word for (biological) father to which a suffix is added to indicate respect. The same also is used for “Lord” when referring to Jesus. (Source: Hermann Aschmann in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 171ff. )

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. In the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017, God the Father is addressed with mi-chichi (御父). This form has the “divine” honorific prefix mi– preceding the archaic honorific form chichi for “father.”

If, however, Jesus addresses his Father, he is using chichi-o (父を) which is also highly respectful but does not have the “divine” honorific. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also Lord and my / our Father.

1st person pronoun referring to God (Japanese)

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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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also pronoun for “God”.

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (Japanese)

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Honorary "are" construct denoting God ("say")

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme are (され) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, iw-are-ru (言われる) or “say” is used.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )