world (Chinese)

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “world” in English is translated in Mandarin Chinese with shìjiè (世界). While shìjiè is now the commonly used term for “world” in Chinese, it was popularized as such by Chinese Bible translations. (Source: Mak 2017, p. 241ff.)

See also world.

complete verse (Revelation 11:4)

Following are a number of back-translations of Revelation 11:4:

  • Uma: “Those two witnesses are compared to two olive trees and two lampstands [lit., lamp feet] that stand in front of God, the Lord of the whole world.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Those two witnesses, they are called two olive trees and two lamps placed before God, the ruler of the world.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And those two preacher people, they are the two people prophesied long ago who are like trees and two lamps which are placed before the Lord of all the earth.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “These two witnesses, these are the ones who were illustrated long ago by two olive (loan olivo) trees and the two places-for-putting lights which are located before God who is Lord of people on the earth.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “There were two olibo trees mentioned by a prophet in the past. Well, what he was meaning is these two testifiers. And another illustration of them is two lamp stands standing in the presence of God, he who controls the whole world.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “These two persons are represented by the two trees of olives. And they are also represented by the two candle holders which are in the sight of God, he who rules the earth.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
  • German (New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999)): “These two witnesses were announced by the prophet Zechariah with the image of the two olive trees and the two lamp stands placed before God.”

before / in the sight of / presence of (God) (Japanese honorifics)

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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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-mae (御前) or “before (God)” in the referenced verses. In some cases in can also be used in reference to being before a king, such as in 1 Samuel 16:16.

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

See also presence (Japanese honorifics) and before you / to you.

olive

The olive family has over four hundred species in the world. Many of them grow in Africa, India, and Australia, but it is the one in the Bible, the European Olive Olea europaea, that has become famous. It is likely that the olive was domesticated in Egypt or the eastern Mediterranean basin in the third millennium B.C. The botanist Newberry argued that Egypt was its original home. We know from the Bible that olives grew in the hills of Samaria and in the foothills. There is a wild variety, called Olea europaea sylvestris, that is smaller than the domestic one; it produces a smaller fruit with less oil. The Apostle Paul refers to this wild variety in Romans 11:17 and 11:24. Olives are easily propagated by cuttings and by grafting fruitful species into less fruitful ones. They grow best on hillsides where the rain drains off quickly. The fruit forms by August but does not ripen until December or January.

The olive is not a big tree, reaching up to perhaps 10 meters (33 feet), but with pruning it is usually kept to around 5 meters (17 feet) tall. The leaves are grayish green above, and whitish underneath. The bark of young trees is silvery gray but gets darker and rougher as the tree ages. The trunk also gets twisted and hollow and may reach over a meter in thickness. Olives grow for hundreds of years, and some in Israel have possibly reached two thousand years.

The fruit of the olive is about 2 centimeters (1 inch) long and a bit more than a centimeter (1/2 inch) thick. It has a hard stone inside and a soft skin that covers the oily flesh. Today a mature tree may yield 10-20 kilograms (22-44 pounds) of fruit, which, when processed, will yield 1.3-2.6 kilograms (3.6 pounds) of oil.

For the Jews the “big three” trees were the vine, the fig, and the olive. People ate olive fruits, but more importantly, they squeezed the oil from the fruits, and used it for cooking, for lamps, for rubbing on the body, for medicine, and in religion. Jacob poured olive oil on the stone where he saw a vision of angels, declaring it a holy place (Genesis 28:18). Moses, similarly, anointed the Tabernacle and its equipment with olive oil mixed with sweet-smelling resins (Exodus 40:9). Aaron and the priests who served in the Tabernacle were also anointed (Exodus 29:21).

Some types of wild olive grow in Africa, India, and Australia, but are not well-known. The so-called “African olive” produces a black, oil-bearing fruit much like an olive. It is common as a snack in northern Nigeria. The “Chinese olive” is also a species of Canarium and may be a possible cultural substitute, if it produces edible fruit and oil. The “Russian olive” grown in dry regions of the world is a member of the Elaeagnus family and not a true olive. A variety of olive (Olea cuspidate) is used for building in India and Nepal, but it is probably not possible to use it in the Bible except perhaps in a study Bible where you could say that the biblical olive was related to this tree.

Since most of the kinds of olive trees in the world do not have edible fruit, it may not be possible to substitute a local variety. If it is done, however, a footnote would be required saying that the Palestinian kind produced edible fruit and oil. If a variety of Canarium is eaten in your area, you could use the local name for it. Otherwise transliterate from a major language.

Olives in the Garden of Gethsemane, Wikimedia Commons

Source: Each According to its Kind: Plants and Trees in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

Translation commentary on Revelation 11:4

The two olive trees: the way in which this is stated makes it clear that it refers to Zech 4.1-14, where the two olive trees, on either side of the lampstand, are the two men chosen and anointed by God to serve him, the Lord of the whole earth. Where olive trees are unknown, some decision must be made about how to represent olive trees, olives, and olive oil, all of which appear frequently in the Bible. Because of the importance of the olive tree in the Palestinian cultures, it will be well for translators in cultures where these trees are unknown to say something like “tree named olive” and introduce a picture, and also have a description in a glossary item.

The two lampstands: see 1.12. Translators should use the same word as was employed in 1.12, and not imitate Good News Translation‘s translation “lamp” in this verse.

Which stand: in the Greek the gender of the participle “standing” is masculine, so that it refers not to the olive trees or the lampstands, but to the two witnesses themselves. So the translation should be “who stand” or “and they stand.” In order to convey this idea in many languages, one must say, for example, “The two witnesses stand before the Lord of the earth, and they are the two olive trees and the two lampstands,” or “The two witnesses are the two olive trees and two lampstands. These two men stand before the Lord of the earth.”

Before the Lord of the earth: this means “in the presence of God, the Lord of the whole world.” The verb stand shows that they are God’s servants, ready to do what God commands. The phrase the Lord of the earth may also be expressed as “the one who rules over the whole world.”

An alternative translation model for this verse is:

• The two men who proclaim God’s message stand in the presence of the Lord who rules over the whole world. They are those two olive trees and the two lampstands.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Revelation 11:4

11:4–10

There are two ways to interpret who spoke these verses:

(1) They are not part of the quotation that began in 11:1. The speaker stopped speaking to John at the end of 11:3. For example:

3 And I will grant my two witnesses power to prophesy for one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”

4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands which stand before the Lord of the earth…. (Revised Standard Version)

(2) They are part of the quotation. The speaker continues speaking until the end of 11:10. For example:

3 But I shall send my two witnesses to prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, wearing sackcloth. 4 These are the two olive trees and the two lamps in attendance on the Lord of the world….10 and the people of the world are glad about it and celebrate the event by giving presents to each other, because these two prophets have been a plague to the people of the world.’ (New Jerusalem Bible)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

Paragraph 11:4–6

11:4a–b

These witnesses are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth: This clause describes the two witnesses using the symbols of two olive trees and two lampstands. It refers back to the prophecy in Zechariah 4:1–14.

In some languages a literal translation would not have the correct meaning. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Translate this as a simile. For example:

These ⌊two witnesses⌋ are like two olive trees and two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth

• Explain that the saying is symbolic. For example:

These ⌊two witnesses⌋ are symbolically the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth

• Translate literally and explain its meaning in a footnote. For example:

This sentence has olive trees and lampstands, like Zechariah 4:1–14 does.

• Explain the reference in your translation. For example:

These ⌊two witnesses⌋ are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth, ⌊as is written in scripture⌋

11:4a

olive trees: Olive trees have small round fruit. People squeeze the fruit and collect the oil. This oil is used in cooking and as fuel for lamps.

the two lampstands: A lampstand is a 1–2 meter (3–6 feet) tall stand. It has a place for a lamp on top. Here it is implied that lamps are on the lampstands. There were many kinds and styles of lampstand. The kind and style of lampstand is not important here.

A lamp in Jesus’ time was a small clay or metal container that people put oil in. The lamp was shaped to hold a wick on one side. The exact kind of lamp is not important here. So you should use a word that refers generally to this kind of lamp or light producing device.

See how you translated the word lampstands in 1:12 or 2:5.

11:4b

that stand before the Lord of the earth: This phrase refers to both the olive trees and the lampstands.

stand: Here the word stand indicates that the trees and lampstands are in the presence of the Lord of the earth.

the Lord of the earth:
This phrase indicates that the Lord God rules over all that happens in the world. For example:

the Lord who rules the earth (Contemporary English Version)

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