εἴτε διακονίαν ἐν τῇ διακονίᾳ, εἴτε ὁ διδάσκων ἐν τῇ διδασκαλίᾳ,
7ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching;
The Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek that is typically translated in English as “serve,” “minister,” “walk with,” or “service” is translated in Igede as myị ẹrụ or “agree with message (of the one you’re serving).” (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
In Quetzaltepec Mixe, “serve” is translated as “obey.” (Source: Robert Bascom)
The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).
For this verse, translators typically select the inclusive form (including the writer of the letter and the readers).
Source: Velma Pickett and Florence Cowan in Notes on Translation January 1962, p. 1ff.
Following are a number of back-translations of Romans 12:7:
To serve and to teach both translate nouns in Greek; however, in English the verb phrase is much clearer. To serve (Revised Standard Version “service”) is rendered “practical service” by An American Translation* and Moffatt and “administration” by the New English Bible and the Jerusalem Bible. The word itself means simply “service” (see 15.31), and it is doubtful if one should give it the technical and specialized meaning of the New English Bible and Jerusalem Bible rendering. “Administration” would seem to presuppose a more highly organized church structure than was in existence at that time. Moreover, the idea of “administration” focuses attention on an aspect of meaning that is certainly not primary in the word. Where a receptor language possesses a rather general term for serve requiring no grammatical goal, there is very little difficulty in the translation. However, most languages possess no such convenient equivalent. It is therefore necessary in many instances to employ an expression which will be a satisfactory descriptive substitute—for example, “help the congregation,” “assist the group of believers,” or “be of service to the fellow believers.”
It may be necessary to fill out the ellipses in the initial clauses of verses 7 and 8—for example, “If God has given us the ability to help the believers, we should help them; if he has given us the ability to teach, we should teach; if he has given us the ability to encourage others, we should encourage them.”
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 .
12:7a
if: The Greek word here includes the meaning of “or.” A believer may not have the gift of prophecy, but he or she may have the gift of service. For example:
or if
serving: The Greek word here originally focused on giving food to others at meals. It then included helping others in similar ways. Eventually the word became defined by the office of “deacon,” but this definition probably does not apply here. Here are other ways to translate this word:
serving others (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
be a servant to your companions
let him serve: Here this phrase indicates that the believer with the gift of serving should actually serve others. They should do as they are gifted to do. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
to serve
-or-
then serve (New International Version (2011))
-or-
he/she must serve
-or-
serve properly
12:7b
if it is teaching: 12:7b begins with the same Greek word that means “or if” as in 12:7a. For example:
or if ⌊you are⌋ the one teaching
The Berean Standard Bible indicates a connection with its semi-colon at the end of 12:7a.
teaching: Here this word implies teaching related to religion, which includes the Old Testament, the gospel of Jesus, faith, Christian living, and so forth. In some languages a literal translation would only refer to teaching as a school teacher, not a religious teacher. If that is true in your language, explain the correct meaning in your translation. For example:
teaches ⌊religion⌋
-or-
teaches ⌊about Jesus⌋
But the context may be enough in imply teaching religion.
let him teach: Here this phrase indicates that the believer with the gift of teaching should actually teach others. They should do as they are gifted to do. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
to teach
-or-
then teach (New International Version (2011))
-or-
he/she must teach
-or-
teach properly
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L’un a-t-il le don du service ? Qu’il serve : cette proposition est parallèle à ce qui précède, litt. « si le service, dans le service ». Le mot service est διακονία diakonia, parfois rendu par « ministère », mais très souvent avec le sens du « ministère diaconal, le service d’aide aux malheureux » (note de la Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). Il est clair que les traducteurs devraient fournir les verbes qui manquent en grec. Ils pourront suivre la Traduction œcuménique de la Bible ou la Bible en français courant : « Si un autre a le don de servir, qu’il serve ». Dans plusieurs langues, il faudra fournir le complément d’objet direct, par exemple, « aider les autres dans la communauté », « assister des croyants en difficulté », ou encore « être au service de frères ».
L’autre celui d’enseigner ? Qu’il enseigne est litt. « si l’enseignement, dans l’enseignement ». Le premier verbe est un participe mais la majorité des versions le rendent par un nom. Encore une fois les traducteurs inséreront les mots qui conviennent pour formuler des phrases correctes dans leur langue. La Bible en français courant propose « Celui qui a le don d’enseigner doit enseigner ».
Dans certaines langues, il sera nécessaire de répéter les expressions et parfois d’introduire l’agent, Dieu. Ainsi, « Si Dieu a accordé à l’un de nous la capacité d’aider d’autres croyants, il doit les aider ; si Dieu lui a accordé la capacité d’enseigner, il doit les enseigner ».
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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