You shall not murder / kill

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “You shall not kill/murder” or similar in English is translated in Una as “Don’t kill people” because in Una an object needed to be added. (Source: Kroneman 2004, p. 407)

complete verse (Matthew 5:21)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 5:21:

  • Uma: “‘You know the command that was said to our (incl.) ancestors long ago that says: ‘Don’t kill, and whoever kills must have his case sat/heard and be punished.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “‘You have heard about the teaching of the people of old saying, ‘Do not kill. Whoever kills shall be judged.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “You know that which was taught long ago to our ancestors which forbad murdering, because one who murders will be sentenced to punishment.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Jesus continued saying, ‘You have heard what was commanded to our ancestors in the distant-past, that they not kill, and if they kill a life (idiom for murder), they will be judged and sentenced to be punished.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Jesus said next, ‘You have heard what was commanded the people of long ago, ‘Do not kill, for whoever takes (lit. severs) the life of his fellow man, he will have to answer for it to the judge.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “You have heard the word taught to the old-time people long ago, that they were told: ‘Do not murder. Concerning the people who murder, they must be judged and punished,’ they were told.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

formal pronoun: Jesus addressing his disciples and common people

Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.

As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator 2002, p. 210ff. ), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.

Here, Jesus is addressing his disciples, individuals and/or crowds with the formal pronoun, showing respect.

In most Dutch translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and common people with the informal pronoun, whereas they address him with the formal form.

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (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 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. )

Scriptures Plain & Simple (Matthew 5:21-26)

Barclay Newman, a translator on the teams for both the Good News Bible and the Contemporary English Version, translated passages of the New Testament into English and published them in 2014, “in a publication brief enough to be non-threatening, yet long enough to be taken seriously, and interesting enough to appeal to believers and un-believers alike.” The following is the translation of Matthew 5:21-26:

y´The Bible says, “Don’t murder!” and “Condemn a murderer!”
But I condemn you for being angry and hating someone
       or for calling anyone a worthless nobody —
Do this, and you will be doomed and in danger of hell!

When you kneel to worship God, try to remember —
       Is someone angry with you?
If so, forget about worship, until you run and make peace!

Has someone accused you of doing wrong?
Hurry and settle the matter
       before you are thrown into prison and impoverished.

Translation commentary on Matthew 5:21

You have heard that it was said to the men of old is restructured by Good News Translation as “You have heard that people were told in the past.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates “You know that it has been said to our ancestors” (Jerusalem Bible “You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors”; New American Bible “You have heard the commandment imposed on your forefathers”). The impersonal passive form of it was said can possibly mean “people of the past said”; however, in the New Testament such a passive always introduces a divine utterance or a scriptural quotation. One may therefore translate “You know that God said….” Many translations will therefore use a sentence such as “You know God said to your ancestors” or “People have told you what God said to your fathers of long ago.”

The men of old refers primarily to the “Sinai generation.” However, all subsequent generations are also included. The same construction occurs in verse 33. The phrase is usually translated as “your ancestors” or “your fathers of long ago.” Note that it refers to all those people, not just to the males.

You shall not kill comes from Exodus 20.13, while whoever kills shall be liable to judgment echoes Deuteronomy 17.8. Good News Translation correctly translates “murder” as the meaning of kill. Both the Hebrew and the Greek verbs mean murder or assassination, not just any form of taking life.

The distinction between “murder” and “kill” has often proved a problem for translators. “Murder” specifically means killing that is not legal or sanctioned by the community, nor is it accidental. Thus killing in battle or sanctioned executions are not included in the commandment You shall not kill. Usually a language will have a way of referring to murder, either with a specific word or with a phrase such as “killing from anger” or “killing of one’s own volition.” Such expressions should also exclude killing accidentally.

The shall, of course, is not a simple future reference but an imperative: “you must not” or “I forbid you.” You is in the singular in the text.

Whoever means “anyone who,” “any person who,” or “that person who.”

Liable to judgment (Good News Translation “brought to trial”) is translated “answer for it before the court” by New Jerusalem Bible and “stand his trial” by Phillips. The verb may, however, mean “guilty,” as it does in 26.66. One commentator, accepting the meaning “guilty” (that is, “condemned by the properly constituted authority”), is convinced that it is here equivalent to “be put to death.” In this case the properly constituted authority would be the twenty-three members of the local Sanhedrin. See comments at verse 22 for coordinating the translation of this term with its use there.

Translators who follow the first interpretation, the one in Good News Translation, will use the normal expression in their language for being brought to trial: “accused before the judge,” “will be taken to court to be tried (or, judged),” and so forth.

Other translations will follow the second interpretation, whereby judgment implies “guilt.” They might say “found guilty by the judge” or “the judge will declare him guilty.” A common West African expression is “the judge will cut the case against him.”

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 .