The Greek in Romans 11:24 that is translated as “contrary to nature” or similar in English is translated as “where you didn’t spring up” in Isthmus Zapotec, as “contrary to what you belong to” in Highland Totonac, and as “which is contrary to your normal way in that you are not the good branches of the good tree” in North Alaskan Inupiatun. (Source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
easy
In Gbaya, the notion of something done easily in these verses is emphasized with yɛ́kɛ́ɗɛ, an ideophone that expresses an easy action, something that can be accomplished easily.
Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. (Source: Philip Noss)
save
The Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as a form of “save” in English is translated in Shipibo-Conibo with a phrase that means literally “make to live,” which combines the meaning of “to rescue” and “to deliver from danger,” but also the concept of “to heal” or “restore to health.”
Other translations include:
- San Blas Kuna: “help the heart”
- Laka: “take by the hand” in the meaning of “rescue” or “deliver”
- Huautla Mazatec: “lift out on behalf of”
- Anuak: “have life because of”
- Central Mazahua: “be healed in the heart”
- Baoulé: “save one’s head”
- Guerrero Amuzgo: “come out well”
- Northwestern Dinka: “be helped as to his breath” (or “life”) (source for all above: Bratcher / Nida),
- Matumbi: “rescue (from danger)” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
- Noongar: barrang-ngandabat or “hold life” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
- South Bolivian Quechua: “make to escape”
- Highland Puebla Nahuatl: “cause people to come out with the aid of the hand” (source for this and one above: Nida 1947, p. 222)
- Bariai: “retrieve one back” (source: Bariai Back Translation)
See also salvation and save (Japanese honorifics).
complete verse (Romans 11:24)
Following are a number of back-translations of Romans 11:24:
- Uma: “For you are compared to branches from a tree that is not tended, but even so you were stuck onto the trunk of the tended tree. So if a branch from an untended tree can be stuck onto the trunk of a tended tree, how much more a branch from the tended tree can be stuck back on to the place it was broken off from to-start-with.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
- Yakan: “You, the not Yahudi, you are figuratively the branches of a forest-tree that were cut off and then joined to the cared-for tree even though such a thing isn’t done very much. The Yahudi hep are figuratively that cared-for tree and the branches that were cut off can easily be/are easily joined again by God to the tree where they had been cut off from.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
- Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And as for you who are not Jews, you are not true branches in the tree because you came from the tree which was not planted, and He made you to be branches there in the tree that He is taking care of. And if this is possible for you who came from the tree that wasn’t planted, how much more it will be possible for Him to return the true branches to their former place.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
- Kankanaey: “Because you who are like branches of an olive that merely grew, if God was able to graft you into the planted olive which is not your proper origin, surely it will be even-easier for him to return the removed branches of that tree to their proper place-of-origin.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
- Tenango Otomi: “Because it is more not harder to replace that which was taken from the good tree than you who are from another tree.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
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.
Source: Each According to its Kind: Plants and Trees in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)
Translation commentary on Romans 11:24
Since verse 24 consists essentially of a summary statement of what has preceded, it may be important in some languages to identify this fact by a particle meaning “in conclusion” or “finally.”
In this verse also pronominal references have been made explicit: You Gentiles is literally “you” (singular) and the Jews is literally “these ones.” Throughout this entire section (vv. 13-24) there is a problem of singular and plural, since Paul is addressing his argument, as it were, to one Gentile. Therefore he speaks of the Gentiles as being “a branch.” In contrast, the Jews are referred to as “these ones” and in the analogy they are “branches.” It may seem quite anomalous for several branches to be broken out in order for “one Gentile” (me in v. 19) to be inserted. If a plural form of second person is employed (“you” plural) throughout, then quite naturally the reference to Gentiles will be “branches,” to parallel the plural branches used in speaking of the Jews.
The branch of a wild olive tree that is broken off is more literally “have been cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree” (Revised Standard Version). The Greek phrase “by nature” (kata phusin) is also used in the second part of this verse where it appears with the equivalent of an adjective “natural” in the phrase “the natural ones.” In English it is unnatural to speak of any tree as being “an X tree by nature”; we simply say “an X tree.” That is why the Good News Translation renders wild olive tree instead of “by nature a wild olive tree” (Revised Standard Version) or “natural wild olive” (Jerusalem Bible). The New English Bible is ambiguous and sounds odd: “your native wild olive tree.”
Contrary to nature (Greek para phusin) is used in formal contrast to the phrase “by nature” (kata phusin). The meaning is obvious: it is contrary to nature for a branch of one kind of olive tree to grow from the trunk of another kind of olive tree.
For God to join these broken-off branches back to their own tree is literally “the natural ones will be joined back to their own olive tree.” Once again, God is the understood agent of the passive verb, and “the natural ones” is a reference to the branches that have been broken off the original olive tree. It is unnecessary in English structure to identify these branches as “natural branches,” because this is carried by the last part of the verse, to their own tree. Finally, in order that Paul’s analogy may be quickly and easily seen, Gentiles and Jews are modified by the phrase are like the branch and are like this cultivated tree.
Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Romans. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1973. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
SIL Translator’s Notes on Romans 11:24
11:24a
For: Here this word introduces a second reason or basis for Jews being grafted in, once they believe in Jesus.
if: Here the word if introduces a situation that is true. If this first part is true, that supports the second part (God will graft in Jews, if they believe in Jesus (11:24c)) to also be true.
In some languages, translating literally here would have a different meaning. If that is true in your language, translate the correct meaning. For example:
if ⌊it is true that⌋
-or-
you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, ⌊therefore⌋ how much more…
you were cut from: The clause you were cut is passive. Some languages must use an active clause. For example:
⌊God⌋ cut you from
you: This word is emphatic in the Greek. For example:
you yourself
-or-
as for you, if you…
a wild olive tree: The phrase indicates that the tree from which the person was cut was by nature a wild olive tree, as opposed to a cultivated one. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
the wild olive tree to which you belonged
-or-
your parent/own wild olive tree
11:24b
and contrary to nature were grafted into one that is cultivated: The phrase contrary to nature indicates that grafting of a branch from the wild olive tree into the cultivated olive is contrary to nature. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
grafted to a cultivated tree to which you did not belong
-or-
grafted to a cultivated olive tree that was not your own tree
were grafted: The word “you” is implied from 11:24a. This clause is passive. Some languages must use an active clause. For example:
⌊God⌋ grafted ⌊you⌋
one that is cultivated: The word cultivated indicates that people planted this olive tree and took care of it. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
a domestic olive tree
-or-
the planted olive
-or-
the cared-for tree
11:24c–d
how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!: The phrase how much more indicates that it is more fitting for God to graft the natural branches back to the cultivated olive tree, than to graft wild olive branches to it. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
it is much more fitting/proper that these, the natural branches, will be grafted back into their own olive tree
-or-
it is right indeed for God to graft these, the natural branches, back into their own tree
will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree: This clause is passive. Some languages must use an active clause. For example:
⌊God⌋ will graft these, the natural branches, into their own olive tree
these, the natural branches: The Greek is more literally “these (ones), the (ones) according-to nature.” The last part (“according-to nature”) here refers to the branches of the cultivated tree. The word these emphasizes that Paul was talking here about the branches of the cultivated olive tree. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
these branches, to the tree to which they belong
-or-
these ones, the branches of their parent/own ⌊cultivated⌋ tree
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Commentaire sur la traduction de la lettre aux Romains 11.24
Ce verset, qui commence comme beaucoup d’autres par εἰ γὰρ ei gar, « si car », offre une sorte de résumé de ce passage. Certains proposent en début de phrase, « En résumé », « Pour conclure », « Finalement ».
Si toi, en effet : pour si, voir Rom 11.6. Plusieurs versions (Bible en français courant, Segond Révisée) ne rendent pas la conjonction grecque γάρ gar. Les traducteurs pourront utiliser l’élément d’introduction qui convient. Comme ailleurs ( Rom 11.13) le pronom de deuxième personne renvoie aux croyants non-juifs, et certains optent pour « Vous les non-Juifs ».
retranché de l’olivier sauvage auquel tu appartenais par nature : ces mots décrivent les croyants non-Juifs. Ces gens sont comparés à des branches d’un olivier sauvage que Dieu a coupées pour les insérer dans « le vrai olivier ». Le texte grec est long et un peu compliqué, litt. « si car toi de selon nature retranché de l’olivier sauvage… » L’expression par nature (κατὰ φύσιν kata phusin) fait référence au fait que ces gens appartiennent « à l’origine » à un arbre sauvage. Leur place n’est pas dans le « vrai olivier ». Certains parlent ici de « la branche naturelle ». Dans quelques langues, il sera suffisant de dire « la branche d’un olivier sauvage », sans l’adjectif « naturel ». Le Good News Bible propose « Vous les non-Juifs êtes comme la branche d’un olivier sauvage ». Paul fait cette distinction pour souligner le changement de statut de ces personnes. En effet, le fait d’être « greffé sur un olivier cultivé » implique un changement de nature. Comme Viard le dit (p. 246), « l’admission des Gentils [les non-Juifs] supposait chez eux comme un changement de nature ».
tu as été, contrairement à la nature, greffé sur l’olivier franc est litt. « et contre nature tu as été greffé sur un olivier cultivé ». La Bible de Jérusalem rend la conjonction καί kai, « et greffé, contre nature, sur un olivier franc ». L’expression « contre nature » (para phusin) est ainsi mise en opposition avec « par nature » (κατὰ φύσιν kata phusin). Le sens de cette proposition est clair : il est contraire à l’usage « naturel » de greffer une branche d’olivier sauvage sur un olivier cultivé. Si possible, les traducteurs devraient rendre ces deux expressions à partir du même mot. L’expression « selon la nature » sera répétée dans la proposition qui suit. La Bible en français courant dit « tu es la branche… greffée contrairement à l’usage naturel, sur un olivier cultivé ». L’agent de tu as été… greffé est Dieu, comme le montre la Bible en français courant (« la branche… que Dieu a coupée et greffée »). L’olivier franc est une forme modifiée du mot olivier, avec le sens « olivier cultivé ».
combien plus ceux-ci seront-ils greffés sur leur propre olivier auquel ils appartiennent par nature ! : comme il s’agit de deux groupes dans ce passage, les Juifs et non-Juifs, la Bible en français courant précise au début de la phrase, Quant aux Juifs….
combien plus (πόσῳ μᾶλλον posô mallon), est l’une des expressions préférées de Paul, voir Rom 5.9, Rom 5.10, Rom 5.15, Rom 5.17 ; Rom 8.34 ; Rom 11.24 ; Rom 14.13. Il introduit l’information principale du verset : les Juifs pourront être réintroduits dans la communauté, c’est-à-dire regreffés sur l’olivier. Les traducteurs devront trouver une expression similaire, « à plus forte raison », « ce qui est mieux », etc.
combien plus seront-ils greffés sur leur propre olivier auquel ils appartiennent par nature est litt. « combien plus ceux-ci ceux selon la nature seront greffés à leur propre olivier ». Pour greffes, voir Rom 11.17. L’agent du passif seront-ils greffés est de nouveau Dieu : « Dieu pourrait donc d’autant mieux les greffer de nouveau sur l’arbre… » (Bible en français courant). Pour par nature, voir ci-dessus. La référence à leur propre olivier renvoie au fait que les Juifs sont l’arbre principal. La Bible en français courant propose « l’arbre qui est le leur ». Comme Viard le remarque (p. 246), le texte « met… en relief la possibilité du retour des Juifs qui seraient alors placés de nouveau sur l’olivier dont ils proviennent ».
Source: Margot, Jean-Claude & Zogbo, Lynell. La lettre aux Romains – Manuel de traduction – Commentaire linguistique et exégétique de la Bible. Alliance biblique universelle, 2021.
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