ἀλλ᾽ " ἐὰν πεινᾷ ὁ ἐχθρός σου, ψώμιζε αὐτόν· ἐὰν διψᾷ, πότιζε αὐτόν· τοῦτο γὰρ ποιῶν ἄνθρακας πυρὸς σωρεύσεις ἐπὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ."
20Instead, “if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink, for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.”
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “thirst” or “thirsty” in English is translated in Kituba as “hungry for water” (source: Donald Deer in The Bible Translator 1973, p. 207ff. ) and in Mairasi as “water pain” (source: Enggavoter 2004).
See also thirst (figuratively).
The now commonly-used German idiom feurige Kohlen aufs Haupt sammeln used to express to make someone feel ashamed (literally meaning heap burning coals on someone’s head) was first coined in 1534 in the German Bible translation by Martin Luther. (Source: Günther 2017, p. 68)
For other idioms or terms in German that were coined by Bible translation, see here.
In Telugu different verbs for humans drinking (tāgu / తాగు) and animals drinking (cēḍu / చేడు) are required.
Following are a number of back-translations of Romans 12:20:
For the Old Testament quote, see Proverbs 25:21 and Proverbs 25:22.
The Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, Ge’ez, and Latin that is translated as “enemy” or “foe” in English is translated in the Hausa Common Language Bible as “friends of front,” i.e., the person standing opposite you in a battle. (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
In North Alaskan Inupiatun it is translated with a term that implies that it’s not just someone who hates you, but one who wants to do you harm (Source: Robert Bascom), in Tarok as ukpa ìkum or “companion in war/fighting,” and in Ikwere as nye irno m or “person who hates me” (source for this and one above: Chuck and Karen Tessaro in this newsletter ).
In Cherokee it is either translated as “the one(s) who reprimand(s) you” or “the one(s) feared.” (Source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 47)
The introductory expressions instead, as the scripture says involve considerable ellipsis and these must be filled out in some languages—for example, “do not do that but do as the scripture says” or “instead of taking revenge do what the scripture says.” Since the phrase as the scripture says is added as an introduction to the direct quotation, some translators may not feel it necessary to have this type of introductory expression, particularly if the reference to Proverbs 25.21-22 is made clear in a marginal note.
The scripture reference in this verse comes from Proverbs 25.21-22. The imagery of the last clause in this verse is difficult, though all translations seem to prefer to retain the imagery rather than to change the metaphor into a non-metaphor. For by doing this you will heap burning coals on his head is perhaps best taken in the sense of “for by doing this you will make him ashamed.”
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 .
12:20a
On the contrary:
Some scholars believe these words indicate contrast to allowing God to take vengeance. Instead of just allowing God to take vengeance, a believer is supposed to help his enemy with food or something to drink. The English versions that indicate contrast do not say what they are contrasting to. For example:
No (Revised Standard Version)
-or-
Instead (Good News Translation)
Other scholars see this as indicating contrast to a believer taking vengeance. But in 12:19 Paul told the believers to not take vengeance. Some languages would not see that as contrasting. For example:
And more: (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
And
The Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation omits this word.
“If your enemy is hungry…”: This quote is from Proverbs 25:21–22. Some languages always introduce quotes from Scripture in a clear way. For example:
⌊as the Scripture says,⌋ “if your enemy is hungry…”
feed him;: The semi-colon (;) after the word him indicates in English that there is a connection to the words that follow but does not say what that connection is. Some languages can use a semi-colon here. For example, the Kankanaey Back Translation says:
feed him; if…
In some languages a comma and a connecting word are most natural here. For example, the Ramoaina Back Translation says:
you should feed him, and if…
In some languages a full stop is most natural. For example, the Tagbanwa Back Translation says:
feed (him). If…
12:20b
give him a drink: Some English versions add the words “something to,” perhaps because a drink often refers to an alcoholic beverage in English. In many languages a drink will not imply an alcoholic beverage.
a drink.: In some English versions, there is a semi-colon (;) after the word drink. This indicates in English that there is a connection to the words that follow but does not say what that connection is. But the connecting word “for” begins 12:20c. You should use a comma or a full stop here, as the Berean Standard Bible does.
12:20c
For: Here this word introduces the reason for feeding a hungry enemy or giving a drink to a thirsty enemy.
in so doing: This phrase refers to feeding a hungry enemy or giving a drink to a thirsty enemy. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
In doing this (New International Version)
-or-
when you do that
you will heap burning coals on his head: This is a figure of speech. The scholars have several opinions about what it means:
(1) It refers to causing the enemy to be ashamed for the bad things he has done to the believer (Cranfield and others).
(2) It refers to adding more punishment for God to give the enemy at the final judgment (Schreiner and others).
(3) It refers to a rite, originally Egyptian, of repentance, so implies the enemy repents (Dunn and others).
(4) It refers to hospitality, inviting the enemy to join in the Christian love feast (Jewett).
The scholars argue for and against each of the options, except interpretation (4), which no one other than Jewett speaks to.
It is recommended that you translate literally, because it is not clear which interpretation is best. Many English versions translate literally here. For example:
you will be heaping red-hot coals on his head (New Jerusalem Bible)
If you translate literally you may want to explain its possible meanings in a footnote. Here is an example footnote:
Heaping burning coals on someone’s head is a figure of speech. Here are the three ways it is usually interpreted: (1) it refers to causing the person to be ashamed, (2) it refers to added, later punishment that God will give this person, or (3) it refers to the person repenting. It is not clear which meaning is correct.
However, if you must choose an interpretation, it is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), because a few English versions follow it. For example:
you will make them burn with shame (Good News Translation)
-or-
you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
you will make him feel guilty and ashamed (God’s Word)
If you translate according to interpretation (1), you may want to give a literal translation in a footnote. Here is an example footnote:
Literally: “you will heap burning coals on his head.”
General Comment on 12:20a–c
These words are a quote of Proverbs 25:21–22. If you indicate the location of quotes from the Old Testament with cross-references, you may want to do so here.
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