11Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is already the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers;
Aari: “the day our Savior comes” (in Rom 13:11) (source: Loren Bliese)
in Mairasi its is translated as “life fruit” or “life fruit all mashed out.” Lloyd Peckham explains: “In secret stories, not knowable to women nor children, there was a magical fruit of life. If referred to vaguely, without specifying the specific ‘fruit,’ it can be an expression for eternity.” And for “all masked out” he explains: “Bark cloth required pounding. It got longer and wider as it got pounded. Similarly, life gets pounded or mashed to lengthen it into infinity. Tubers also get mashed into the standard way of serving the staple food, like the fufu of Uganda, or like poi of Hawaii. It spreads out into infinity.” (See also eternity / forever)
In Lisu a poetic construct is used for this term. Arrington (2020, p. 58f.) explains: “A four-word couplet uses Lisu poetic forms to bridge the abstract concrete divide, an essential divide to cross if Christian theology is to be understood by those with oral thought patterns. Each couplet uses three concrete nouns or verbs to express an abstract term. An example of this is the word for salvation, a quite abstract term essential to understanding Christian theology. To coin this new word, the missionary translators used a four-word couplet: ℲO., CYU. W: CYU (person … save … person … save). In this particular case, the word for person was not the ordinary word (ʁ) but rather the combination of ℲO., and W: used in oral poetry. The word for ‘save’ also had to be coined; in this case, it was borrowed from Chinese [from jiù / 救]. These aspects of Lisu poetry, originally based on animism, likely would have been lost as Lisu society encountered communism and modernization. Yet they are now codified in the Lisu Bible as well as the hymnbook.”
In the Contemporary Chichewa translation (2002/2016) it is translated with chipulumutso which is used to refer to an act of helping someone who is in problems but cannot help him/herself come out of the problems because of weakness. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)
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 13:11:
Uma: “We must do all this, relatives, because we know what is proper for us to do in this time. Let’s wake up from our sleep, because the time has almost arrived for the Lord Yesus to come lift us from this evil world. From the first of our believing in the Lord until now, the time of the Lord Yesus’ arrival has gotten closer-and-closer.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “That’s why you ought to do that, especially because you know that not long and Isa Almasi arrives again. At the beginning of our (dual) believing in Isa Almasi, it was as if the day when God will rescue/save us (dual) was still somewhat distant but now it is already very near. If you are figuratively people who are sleeping you ought/must now awake.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “It’s necessary that we do this for we know what is the proper thing to do at this time. Because starting from now, the time in the future when God will finish His setting us free is nearer than it was at the time long ago when we believed. And because of this, we must not be like people who have fallen asleep, but we must be like people who are on their guard.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “We must do this, because we know that the time in which we are now living is valuable/important. If I compare this time to the night, I say that we must wake-up, because our salvation is nearer than when we believed at first.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “These then are the words by which you must walk. Now be aware, concerning the day when you believed the good news, it has now well gone past. Now day by day comes nearer the day when Christ our Savior will come. We should not be just taking it easy.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Mezquital Otomi: “All this is what we ought to do because we know that the hour has come for seeking God more. And soon our Savior will come to take us away from this world. The time is nearer than when we first believed.”
Isthmus Zapotec: “It is necessary that you do all that these words say because it is now late. The day when we believed it appeared that it lacked yet much time but now already is coming rapidly the day when God is to save us.” (Source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
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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 formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).
You must do this is literally “and this.” The force of these two words is to tie Paul’s conclusion (vv. 11-14) to what he has previously said. This relation may be expressed in a number of ways. The New American Bible (“take care to do all these things”) and Phillips (“why all this stress on behavior?”) go essentially the same route as the Good News Translation, while many other translations merely use a particle or a few particles (Revised Standard Version “besides this”; New English Bible “in all this”; Jerusalem Bible “besides”; An American Translation* “all this especially”). Moffatt takes “this” as a modifier of the word rendered hour by the Good News Translation and so translates “and then you know what this Crisis means.” However, both the grammar and the context indicate that “this” is better taken as a reference to what precedes than to what follows.
The word here rendered hour (used by Paul elsewhere in 3.26; 1 Corinthians 4.5; 7.29) may be a difficult term to translate. Basically the meaning is that of “time,” not time as a chronological sequence but as something having a special significance. An American Translation* translates this word by “this critical time” and Moffatt by “Crisis.” The New English Bible renders the entire phrase as “in all this, remember how critical the moment is.” The Jerusalem Bible has “besides, you know ‘the time’ has come,” with a long note explaining the meaning of “the time.” In English the word hour (so Good News Translation and Revised Standard Version) seems to come nearest to expressing Paul’s meaning and eliminates the need for a long theological note. In some languages, however, the word “day” comes closer to expressing “critical time”—for example, “you must do this for you know this is the very day.” One must not assume that in such receptor languages “day” is taken any more literally than hour is in English.
In Greek verse 11 is all one sentence and the last part is “for now our salvation is nearer than when we believed.” The verb “believed” is an aorist tense and must be taken as a reference to the time in the past when the Roman Christians first became believers. For this reason the verb is best translated when we first believed (see also Revised Standard Version, New English Bible, Moffatt, An American Translation*). It is better to maintain the idea of “to believe” than to introduce a non-Pauline expression such as “than it was when we were converted.” If an object of the verb is demanded in the receptor language, then “Jesus Christ” is best supplied; one must avoid using a post-Pauline expression such as “than when we first accepted the faith.”
Once again a noun, “our salvation” is transformed by the Good News Translation into a verb phrase, the moment when we will be saved. If the passive expression we will be saved must be changed into an active one, then God is the agent: “when God will save us.”
In a number of languages the most appropriate general expression for time would not be moment but “day”; hence, “the day when God will save us is now closer than it was when we first believed in Jesus Christ.”
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 .
In this section, Paul used several metaphors to encourage the Roman believers to live properly. He said they should live decent lives in the present time as they waited for their final salvation to arrive. He compared them to people sleeping at night, and said the time had arrived for them to wake up. He also said they should stop following behavior that belongs to the darkness and which only satisfies their sinful nature. Instead they should put on the qualities of the Lord Jesus Christ like putting on clothing. He described those qualities as “the armor of light.”
Here are other possible headings for this section:
Live/Walk in the light and power of God
-or-
Be active in your faith and serve God through his power
Paragraph 13:11–14
13:11a
And do this, understanding the occasion: The Greek is more literally “And this, knowing the time.” There are several ways to interpret the Greek words:
(1) The words “and this” imply do, a command to love your neighbor (13:8–10) or possibly all the commands of 12:1–13:10, and “knowing the time” indicates why believers should love their neighbors. For example:
And do this because you know the time (New American Bible, Revised Edition)
(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Good News Translation, New American Standard Bible, King James Version, New American Bible, Revised Edition, New Living Translation (2004), NET Bible, New Century Version)
(2) The words “and this” introduce a new topic: “knowing the time.” For example:
Besides this you know what hour it is (Revised Standard Version)
(English Standard Version, Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible)
(3) The words “and this” do not contribute to the meaning and can be omitted. For example:
You know what sort of times we live in (Contemporary English Version)
(God’s Word, Contemporary English Version, Revised English Bible)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), because that seems to fit the context best. The scholars do not discuss why one interpretation is better than the other.
And do this: Here the word this refers to what Paul said in 13:8–10. In many languages the word “that” would be more clear. For example:
do that
understanding the occasion: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as occasion refers to a period of time, often a time when it is right for something to happen or be done. Paul explained part of what should happen in 13:11b, and 13:11c–12a explain parts of what the current situation is like. Here are other ways to translate this Greek word:
the kind of time it is
-or-
what kind of era/age it is
13:11b
The hour has come: The Greek is more literally “the hour already.” It indicates that it was presently the time for believers in Rome to “wake up” from their “sleep,” that is, to be doing things that God wants them to do. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
it is already the hour (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
the time is now
-or-
It is now time (New Century Version)
hour: The Greek word here refers to the time when something happens. Here are other ways to translate this word:
moment (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
time (Good News Translation)
for you to wake up from your slumber: This is a figure of speech that refers to stop being unaware or lazy. In some languages a literal translation will have this figurative meaning. In other languages a literal translation would refer only to actually waking from sleep. If that is true in your language, you may want to:
• Translate literally and explain its meaning in a footnote. Here is an example footnote:
This is a figure of speech that refers to stop being unaware or lazy.
• Add the word “like” in your translation. For example:
for you to be ⌊like⌋ ⌊someone⌋ waking up from your slumber
• Explain its meaning in your translation. For example:
for you to wake from your slumber, ⌊that is, stop being lazy about serving God!⌋
• Translate without the figure of speech. For example:
for you to stop being lazy about serving God
You may then want to indicate the literal words in a footnote. Here is an example footnote:
Literally: for you to wake from sleep.
13:11c
for: Here this word introduces an explanation why believers are to “wake up from…slumber” (13:11b).
our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed: Paul spoke of salvation as something that can be near or far. In some languages it is not natural to talk in that way. If that is true in your language, speak of the day of salvation approaching. For example:
⌊the day of⌋ our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed
our salvation is nearer now: God saves us when we first believe. The final part of what he has done for us will happen at the great judgment day. While the rest of the world will be condemned, we will receive a blessing, the result of our salvation. The time for that to happen is always getting closer. For example:
⌊the final part of⌋ God saving us is nearer to us
-or-
the time in the future when God will finish His setting us free is nearer
salvation: This word refers to being rescued from something harmful or dangerous. In Scripture it generally refers to rescue ahead of time from God’s anger at the final judgment. See the above examples. Also see how you translated this word in 1:16.
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
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