repent, repentance

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The Greek, Ge’ez, Latin and Hebrew that is often translated as “repent” or “repentance” is (back-) translated in various ways (click or tap here to see the rest of this insight):

  • Western Kanjobal: “think in the soul”
  • Kekchí: “pain in the heart”
  • Northwestern Dinka: “turn the heart”
  • Pedi: “become untwisted”
  • Baoulé: “it hurts to make you quit it” (source for this and above: Nida 1952, p. 137)
  • Balinese: “putting on a new mind”
  • Chicahuaxtla Triqui: “be sorry on account of one’s sins”
  • Uab Meto: “turn the heart upside down” (source for this and the two above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Central Mazahua / Chichimeca-Jonaz: “turn back the heart” (source: Nida 1952, p. 40)
  • Suki: biaekwatrudap gjaeraesae: “turn with sorrow” (source: L. and E. Twyman in The Bible Translator 1953, p. 91ff. )
  • Yamba and Bulu: “turn over the heart” (source: W. Reyburn in The Bible Translator 1959, p. 1ff. )
  • Chichewa: kutembenuka mtima (“to be turned around in one’s heart”) (source: Ernst Wendland in The Bible Translator 2002, p. 319ff. )
  • Caribbean Javanese: mertobat (“tired of old life”)
  • Saramaccan: bia libi ko a Massa Gadu (“turn your life to the Lord God”)
  • Sranan Tongo: drai yu libi (“turn your life”) or kenki libi (“change life”)
  • Eastern Maroon Creole: dai yu libi (“turn your life”) (source for this and 3 above: Jabini 2015)
  • Eggon: “bow in the dust” (source: Kilgour, p. 80)
  • Embu: “change heart” (“2 Cor. 7:10 says ‘For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief produces death.’ In ordinary speech the terms ‘repent’ and ‘regret’ are used interchangeably in Embu, so that this verse comes out as: ‘godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no repentance,’ which is contradictory. The problem was solved by using ‘changing heart’ in the first, and ‘sadness’ in the second.”) (source: Jan Sterk)
  • Anuak: “liver falls down”
  • Kafa: “return from way of sin to God” (source for this and the one above: Loren Bliese)
  • Latvian: atgriezties (verb) / atgriešanās (noun) (“turn around / return” — see turn around / convert) (source: Katie Roth)
  • Obolo: igwugwu ikom: “turn back (from evil)” (source: Enene Enene)
  • Mairasi: make an end (of wrongdoing) (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Luchazi: ku aluluka mutima: “turn in heart” (source: E. Pearson in The Bible Translator 1954, p. 160ff. )
  • Chokwe: kulinkonyeka: “fold back over” or “go back on oneself” (source D.B. Long in The Bible Translator 1953, p. 135ff. ).
  • Muna: dofetompa’ao dhosa bhe dodoli ne Lahata’ala: “radically-end sin and to turn to God” (source: René van den Berg)
  • Bacama: por-njiya: “fetch sand” (“Before the coming of Christianity 100 years ago, when the elders went to pray to the gods, they would take sand and throw it over each shoulder and down their backs while confessing their sins. Covering themselves with sand was a ritual to show that they were sorry for what they had done wrong, sort of like covering oneself with sackcloth and ashes. Now idol worship for the most part is abandoned in Bacama culture, but the Christian church has retained the phrase por-njiya to mean ‘repent, doing something to show sorrow for one’s sins’” — source: David Frank in this blog post .)
  • Enlhet “exchange innermosts.” “Innermost” or valhoc is a term that is frequently used in Enlhet to describe a large variety of emotions or states of mind (for other examples see here). (Source: Jacob Loewen in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 24ff. )
  • San Blas Kuna: “sorry for wrong done in the heart” (source: Claudio and Marvel Iglesias in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 85ff. )
  • Desano: “change your bad deeds for good ones”
  • Isthmus Mixe: “put your hearts and minds on the good road”
  • Eastern Highland Otomi: “change your thinking about evil and walk in the way of God”
  • San Mateo del Mar Huave: “just remember that you have done wicked, in order that you might do good”
  • Coatlán Mixe: “heart-return to God” (source for this and four above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
  • Sierra de Juárez Zapotec: “get on the right road”
  • Isthmus Zapotec: “heart becomes soft” (source for this and above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • Sabaot: “give one’s neck” — relating to traditional legal proceedings where someone who is convicted of a crime kneels before the aggrieved person who can either behead the accused or completely forgive (source Danny Foster in this recording )
  • Kâte: maŋ bârisiezo or “turn the insides around” (source: Renck 1990, p. 108)
  • Tibetan: ‘gyod tshangs byed (འགྱོད་​ཚངས་​བྱེད།), lit. “regret + pure” (source: gSungrab website )
  • Merina Malagasy: fifonana, deriving from mifona “meaning ‘to completely uproot so that something new can grow’ (a term also used for the loss of a baby tooth)” (source: Brigitte Rabarijaona)

“In Tzotzil two reflexive verbs to communicate the biblical concept of repentance are used. Xca’i jba means to know or to reflect inwardly on one’s self. This self inquiry or self examination is similar to the attitude of the prodigal son where Luke 15:17 records that ‘he came to his senses.’ Broke, starving, and slopping hogs, the prodigal admitted to himself that he was in the wrong place. The second reflexive verb ‘jsutes jba’ means turning away from what one is and turning to something else. In a sense, it is deciding against one’s self and toward someone else. It is similar to the attitude of the prodigal son when he said, ‘I will get up and go to my father’ (Luke 15:18).” (source: Aeilts 2009, p. 118)

In Hungarian Sign Language it is translated with a sign that expresses the turning of one’s attention toward God (see 1 Thessalonians 1:9 and Acts 3:19). (Source: Jenjelvi Biblia and HSL Bible Translation Group)


“Repent” in Hungarian Sign Language (source )

See also: convert / conversion / turn back and see Seat of the Mind for traditional views of “ways of knowing, thinking, and feeling.”

complete verse (Revelation 3:3)

Following are a number of back-translations of Revelation 3:3:

  • Uma: “That is why I say to you: remember the teaching you heard and received long ago. Follow what was taught to you, repent from your laxness. If you continue to not wake up/get up, I will go meet you. And my coming will be like the coming of a thief, because you will not know when that my coming/when I will come.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Therefore think-hard/remember the true teachings that you heard and believed-obeyed in the beginning. Really follow those teachings and regret your sins and leave them. If you don’t watch out, I will suddenly come to you like a thief. You will not even know at what time I will come.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Don’t forget what was taught to you which you accepted long ago, but rather hold tight to it, and take out of your breath your unbelief. Because if you do not forsake your bad custom, I will come to you at a time you do not expect Me because of My coming is like a thief.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Remember therefore what was taught to you previously which you received. You must believe/obey that while at-the-same-time you repent-of your sins. Because if you don’t wake-up, I will arrive like a thief at night to punish you, and you will be taken-by-surprise, because you will not be-expecting the time (lit. hour) at which I will come.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Remember the teaching you heard which was taught to you there. That’s what you must follow/obey. Repent and let go of your evil. For if you don’t wake up, I will come there like a thief, there being no knowing when. You really don’t know when my coming will be.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “Concerning all the word taught to you, don’t let it be that you forget this word which you heard. Do this word I order you, no longer be resting away. If you do not earnestly do what I tell you, unexpectedly will I come to where you are. Like when a thief arrives, you will not know what hour I will come.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

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”.

Translation commentary on Revelation 3:3

Remember then what you received and heard: the two verbs received and heard do not necessarily refer to two separate actions but to the one action of their having been taught the lessons of the Christian faith. “Remember the truths (or, lessons) you were taught.” New Jerusalem Bible translates “remember how you first heard the message.” Barclay has two separate events: “keep remembering the faith you have received, and the instructions you were given.” Another possible way of translating is provided by Bible en français courant: “Remember then the teaching you have received, and remember how you heard it.” In languages that do not use the passive, one may say “Remember, then, the Christian truths that they taught you,” where “they” is an unknown agent.

Keep that, and repent: the verb keep here means not only to preserve but to put into practice, to obey, to follow. So another way of expressing this clause is “You must follow (or, obey) these truths.” For repent see comments at 2.5. In some cases it may be better to reverse the order of the two verbs: “turn from your sins and obey their teachings.”

If you will not awake: this points back to the command in verse 2.

I will come like a thief: this is a coming to punish them, not the final coming. This coming will be unexpected, without any warning, as explained in the following and you will not know at what hour I will come upon you. These words recall Jesus’ warning in Matt 24.43-44; Luke 12.29-30 (see also 1 Thes 5.2, 4). One may also translate this final clause as “I will come unexpectedly as a thief comes, and you will not even know….”

Alternative translation models for this verse are the following:

• Call to mind (or, Remember) the Christian truths that they taught you and which you heard; you must stop sinning and obey these truths. If you do not wake up, I will come unexpectedly, just as a thief comes (at night), and you will not even know the time when I will come to punish you.

Or:

• … If you are not awake, you will not know the time when I will come to punish you, because I will come unexpectedly like….

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 3:3

3:3a

what you have received and heard: This phrase refers to the gospel. It includes the teaching of the apostles, both spoken and written teaching. The English verb received implies that someone else gave what they received. God gave the gospel to the apostles and believers.

In some languages the words “take” and “receive” are translated by the same verb. In some languages this verb does not imply that someone else gave something. Your translation should imply or indicate that God gave the gospel. For example:

the teaching that you were given and that you heard (Contemporary English Version)

Hearing the gospel comes before accepting it. In some languages it is more natural to place the word “hearing” first. For example:

what you heard and received/accepted

3:3b

Keep it: Here the phrase Keep it refers to following the gospel (what the believers had received) and valuing it. See how you translated this Greek word (Berean Standard Bible: “obey”) in 1:3.

repent: This word refers to changing one’s mind and actions. Jesus wanted the people in the church at Sardis to stop sinning and begin obeying God. Other ways to translate this are:

turn to me again (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
change your hearts ⌊and lives⌋
-or-
leave the ways of sin ⌊and follow the ways of God⌋

See how you translated this word in 2:5.

3:3c

I will come like a thief: This phrase refers to approaching someone in a way that this person does not notice him. The way Jesus will come like a thief is explained in 3:3d. Jesus will come unexpectedly, like thieves do. The phrase like a thief does not mean he will come to steal.

In some languages a literal translation would wrongly indicate that Jesus will come to steal. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Use the example that people in your language use for someone or something unexpected and unwelcome. For example, there might be a saying for someone who conducts surprise inspections or examinations. You may then want to explain the Greek word in a footnote. An example footnote is:

Literally: “thief.” Here the words “come like a thief” means “come unexpectedly.”

• Clearly indicate that 3:3d explains 3:3c. For example:

I will come like a thief, that is, 3d you will not know at what time I will come to you.

• Translate the meaning without the figure of speech. For example:

I will come unexpectedly

You may then want a footnote to explain the literal words. An example footnote is:

Literally: “I will come like a thief.” Here these words indicates that Jesus will come unexpectedly.

3:3d

you will not know: The Greek clause has two words that mean “not.” This emphasizes the meaning of not. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

you will not know in any way
-or-
you will have no clue

hour: Here this word refers generally to the moment when Jesus would come to them.

I will come upon you: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible literally translates as upon probably means “against” here. Jesus will come against those at Sardis who do not repent. He will come to punish them. Use the way that is natural in your language to indicate this. For example:

I will come against you (English Standard Version)

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