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

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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 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. )

Translation commentary on Matthew 4:7

Again it is written is similar in form to the structure in verse 4; Good News Translation has “But the scripture also says.” Other possibilities are “In another place the scripture says” or “Another passage of scripture says.”

You shall not tempt the Lord your God comes from the Septuagint of Deuteronomy 6.16.

The You in the quotation does not refer to the Devil but to the people of Israel, to whom this statement was originally made. The translator should take care that the reader will not be confused about this. Translators may have “You people,” “None of you,” or the impersonal “One.”

Tempt translates a compound form of the verb made from the same root as the one used in Matthew 4.1; either may mean “put to the test” or “tempt,” depending upon the context. Elsewhere in the New Testament this compound form of the verb appears only in Luke 4.12; 10.25; and 1 Corinthians 10.9, where it is used in parallel with the verb of 4.1. The Deuteronomy passage refers to the time when the Israelites put God to the test at Massah (see Exo 17.1-7). They were thirsty and demanded that God work a miracle, but here Jesus refuses to put God to the test by demanding a miracle of him. The sense of tempt that people first think of is “to try to get someone to do wrong,” an idea that would certainly not fit in this context. Translators will do better to follow Good News Translation, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test,” or to use an expression such as “Don’t try to force God to prove himself,” “Don’t try to test God,” or, as in Barclay, “You must not try to see how far you can go with the Lord your God.”

It is not possible here to give a complete discussion of how to translate Lord. Translators look for a term used for someone to whom others owe allegiance. This is sometimes the same term as “chief” or “elder brother.” In some languages it is “the owner of the people” or even “our owner.” (Translators can discuss this with their translation consultant.)

It is used here with your God. The “your” in the quotation meant the God the people of Israel worshiped. Therefore “you” should not refer to the Devil. But translations can say “the Lord, the God of Israel” or “the Lord who is God.” It can also be in the third person, as in “No one must put the Lord his God to the test.”

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 4:7

4:7a

There is a contrast between 4:6 and 4:7. The contrast is between the devil’s desire and Jesus’ desire. Jesus refused to do what the devil wanted him to do.

In Greek, there is no conjunction at the beginning of this verse. But it may be more natural in your language to have a conjunction here as in 4:4a. For example:

But…

Jesus replied: Here Jesus replied/responded to the devil’s attempt to make him sin. Jesus refused to do what the devil wanted him to do.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

Jesus replied/responded
-or-

⌊But⌋ Jesus ⌊refused. He⌋ said…

It is also written: The phrase It is…written is the same as in 4:4a. See how you translated it in 4:4 and in 4:6.

4:7b

Do not put the Lord your God to the test: The clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Do not put the Lord your God to the test means “Do not test the Lord your God” (as in the New Living Translation (1996)).

Here in 4:7b, Jesus was quoting from Deuteronomy 6:16. God had forbidden people to test him. In this context, Jesus meant that jumping down from the temple would be testing God to rescue him. That would have been a sin. Jesus would have been taking an unnecessary risk in order to prove that God would do a miracle to protect him.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

You must not test the LORD your God. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
Do not force the Lord your God to show/prove his power

These words were a command to each of the people of Israel. In Greek, the verb Do not put and the pronoun your are singular. However, since the command is given to everyone, in some languages it may be more natural to use plural forms. For example:

Do not test the Lord your (plur.) God.
-or-

We must not test the Lord our God.
-or-

People must not test the Lord their God

the Lord your God: The phrase the Lord your God indicates that the Lord is the God with whom people have a relationship. It implies that the Lord guides and cares for them as God, and they worship and serve him.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

the Lord, who is your God
-or-
your Lord/Master God
-or-
God who is your Lord/Master

In some languages, the phrase your God is not natural. If that is true in your language, here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

the Lord God, whom you ⌊worship/serve⌋
-or-
God the Lord, who ⌊cares for⌋ you

-or-

the Lord, the God whom you ⌊worship⌋

General Comment on 4:7a–b

In some languages, it may be more natural to translate the quotation from the Scriptures as indirect speech. For example:

The Scriptures say that no one should test the Lord their God.

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