See Holy Spirit.
Lord
The Hebrew adonai in the Old Testament typically refers to God. The shorter adon (and in two cases in the book of Daniel the Aramaic mare [מָרֵא]) is also used to refer to God but more often for concepts like “master,” “owner,” etc. In English Bible translations all of those are translated with “Lord” if they refer to God.
In English Old Testament translations, as in Old Testament translations in many other languages, the use of Lord (or an equivalent term in other languages) is not to be confused with Lord (or the equivalent term with a different typographical display for other languages). While the former translates adonai, adon and mare, the latter is a translation for the tetragrammaton (YHWH) or the Name of God. See tetragrammaton (YHWH) and the article by Andy Warren-Rothlin in Noss / Houser, p. 618ff. for more information.
In the New Testament, the Greek term kurios has at least four different kinds of use:
- referring to “God,” especially in Old Testament quotations,
- meaning “master” or “owner,” especially in parables, etc.,
- as a form of address (see for instance John 4:11: “Sir, you have no bucket”),
- or, most often, referring to Jesus
In the first and fourth case, it is also translated as “Lord” in English.
Most languages naturally don’t have one word that covers all these meanings. According to Bratcher / Nida, “the alternatives are usually (1) a term which is an honorific title of respect for a high-ranking person and (2) a word meaning ‘boss’, ‘master’, or ‘chief.’ (…) and on the whole it has generally seemed better to employ a word of the second category, in order to emphasize the immediate personal relationship, and then by context to build into the word the prestigeful character, since its very association with Jesus Christ will tend to accomplish this purpose.”
When looking at the following list of back-translations of the terms that translators in the different languages have used for both kurios and adonai to refer to God and Jesus respectively, it might be helpful for English readers to recall the etymology of the English “Lord.” While this term might have gained an exalted meaning in the understanding of many, it actually comes from hlaford or “loaf-ward,” referring to the lord of the castle who was the keeper of the bread (source: Rosin 1956, p. 121).
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Following are some of the solutions that don’t rely on a different typographical display (see above):
- Navajo (Dinė): “the one who has charge”
- Mossi: “the one who has the head” (the leader)
- Uduk: “chief”
- Guerrero Amuzgo: “the one who commands”
- Kpelle: “person-owner” (a term which may be applied to a chief)
- Central Pame: “the one who owns us” (or “commands us”)
- Piro: “the big one” (used commonly of one in authority)
- San Blas Kuna: “the great one over all” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
- Guhu-Samane: Soopara (“our Supervisor”) (source: Ellis Deibler in Notes on Translation July, 1967, p. 5ff.)
- Balinese: “Venerated-one” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
- Yanesha’: “the one who carries us” (source: Nida 1952, p. 159)
- Northern Emberá: Dadjirã Boro (“our Head”)
- Rarotongan: Atu (“master or owner of a property”)
- Gilbertese: Uea (“a person of high status invested with authority to rule the people”)
- Rotuman: Gagaja (“village chief”)
- Samoan: Ali’i (“an important word in the native culture, it derives from the Samoan understanding of lordship based on the local traditions”)
- Tahitian: Fatu (“owner,” “master”)
- Tuvalu: Te Aliki (“chief”)
- Fijian: Liuliu (“leader”) (source for this and six above: Joseph Hong in The Bible Translator 1994, p. 329ff. )
- Bacama: Həmə miye: “owner of people” (source: David Frank in this blog post )
- Hopi: “Controller” (source: Walls 2000, p. 139)
- Iyansi: Mwol. Mwol is traditionally used for the “chief of a group of communities and villages” with legal, temporal, and spiritual authority (versus the “mfum [the term used in other Bantu languages] which is used for the chief of one community of people in one village”). Mwol is also used for twins who are “treated as special children, highly honored, and taken care of like kings and queens.” (Source: Kividi Kikama in Greed / Kruger, p. 396ff.)
- Ghomala’: Cyəpɔ (“he who is above everyone,” consisting of the verb cyə — to surpass or go beyond — and pɔ — referring to people. No human can claim this attribute, no matter what his or her social status or prestige.” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn )
- Binumarien: Karaambaia: “fight-leader” (Source: Oates 1995, p. 255)
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Warlpiri: Warlaljamarri (owner or possessor of something — for more information tap or click here)
We have come to rely on another term which emphasizes God’s essential nature as YHWH, namely jukurrarnu (see tetragrammaton (YHWH)). This word is built on the same root jukurr– as is jukurrpa, ‘dreaming.’ Its basic meaning is ‘timelessness’ and it is used to describe physical features of the land which are viewed as always being there. Some speakers view jukurrarnu in terms of ‘history.’ In all Genesis references to YHWH we have used Kaatu Jukurrarnu. In all Mark passages where kurios refers to God and not specifically to Christ we have also used Kaatu Jukurrarnu.
New Testament references to Christ as kurios are handled differently. At one stage we experimented with the term Watirirririrri which refers to a ceremonial boss of highest rank who has the authority to instigate ceremonies. While adequately conveying the sense of Christ’s authority, there remained potential negative connotations relating to Warlpiri ceremonial life of which we might be unaware.
Here it is that the Holy Spirit led us to make a chance discovery. Transcribing the personal testimony of the local Warlpiri pastor, I noticed that he described how ‘my Warlaljamarri called and embraced me (to the faith)’. Warlaljamarri is based on the root warlalja which means variously ‘family, possessions, belongingness’. A warlaljamarri is the ‘owner’ or ‘possessor’ of something. While previously being aware of the ‘ownership’ aspect of warlaljamarri, this was the first time I had heard it applied spontaneously and naturally in a fashion which did justice to the entire concept of ‘Lordship’. Thus references to Christ as kurios are now being handled by Warlaljamarri.” (Source: Stephen Swartz, The Bible Translator 1985, p. 415ff. )
- Mairasi: Onggoao Nem (“Throated One” — “Leader,” “Elder”) or Enggavot Nan (“Above-One”) (source: Enggavoter 2004)
- Obolo: Okaan̄-ene (“Owner of person(s)”) (source: Enene Enene)
- Angami Naga: Niepu (“master,” “owner”)
- Lotha Naga: Opvui (“owner of house / field / cattle”) — since both “Lord” and YHWH are translated as Opvui there is an understanding that “Opvui Jesus is the same as the Opvui of the Old Testament”
- Ao Naga: Kibuba (“human master,” “teacher,” “owner of property,” etc.) (source for this and two above: Nitoy Achumi in The Bible Translator 1992 p. 438ff. )
- Seediq: Tholang, loan word from Min Nan Chinese (the majority language in Taiwan) thâu-lâng (頭儂): “Master” (source: Covell 1998, p. 248)
- Thai: phra’ phu pen cao (พระผู้เป็นเจ้า) (divine person who is lord) or ong(kh) cao nay (องค์เจ้านาย) (<divine classifier>-lord-boss) (source: Stephen Pattemore)
- Arabic often uses different terms for adonai or kurios referring to God (al-rabb الرب) and kurios referring to Jesus (al-sayyid الـسـيـد). Al-rabb is also the term traditionally used in Arabic Christian-idiom translations for YHWH, and al-sayyid is an honorary term, similar to English “lord” or “sir” (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin).
- Tamil also uses different terms for adonai/kurios when referring to God and kurios when referring to Jesus. The former is Karttar கர்த்தர், a Sanskrit-derived term with the original meaning of “creator,” and the latter in Āṇṭavar ஆண்டவர், a Tamil term originally meaning “govern” or “reign” (source: Natarajan Subramani).
- Burunge: Looimoo: “owner who owns everything” (in the Burunge Bible translation, this term is only used as a reference to Jesus and was originally used to refer to the traditional highest deity — source: Michael Endl in Holzhausen / Riderer 2010, p. 48)
- Yagaria: Souve, originally “war lord” (source: Renck, p. 94)
- Aguacateco: Ajcaw ske’j: “the one to whom we belong and who is above us” (source: Rita Peterson in Holzhausen / Riderer 2010, p. 49)
- Konkomba: Tidindaan: “He who is the owner of the land and reigns over the people” (source: Lidorio 2007, p. 66)
- Chichewa: Ambuye Ambuye comes from the singular form Mbuye which is used to refer to: (1) someone who is a guardian or protector of someone or group of people — a grandparent who has founded a community or village; (2) someone who is a boss or master over a group of people or servants and has absolute control over them; (3) owner of something, be it a property, animals and people who are bound under his/her rule — for people this was mostly commonly used in the context of slaves and their owner. In short, Mbuye is someone who has some authorities over those who call him/her their “Mbuye.” Now, when the form Ambuye is used it will either be for honorific when used for singular or plural when referring to more than one person. When this term is used in reference to God, it is for respect to God as he is acknowledged as a guardian, protector, and ruler of everything. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation).
- Hdi uses rveri (“lion”) as a title of respect and as such it regularly translates adon in the Old Testament. As an address, it’s most often with a possessive pronoun as in rvera ɗa (“my lion” = “my lord” or “sir”). So, for example, Genesis 15:2 (“O Lord God”) is Rvera ɗa Yawe (“My lion Yahweh”) or Ruth to Boaz in Ruth 2:13: “May I find your grace [lit. good-stomach] my lion.” This ties in nicely with the imagery of the Lord roaring like a lion (Hosea 11:10; Amos 3:8; Joel 3:16). Better still, this makes passages like Revelation 5:5 even richer when we read about rveri ma taba məndəra la Yuda, “the Lion of the tribe of Judah”. In Revelation 19:16, Jesus is rveri ta ghəŋa rveriha “the lion above lions” (“lord of lords”). (Source: Drew Maust)
Law (2013, p. 97) writes about how the Ancient Greek Septuagint‘s translation of the Hebrew adonai was used by the New Testament writers as a bridge between the Old and New Testaments: “Another case is the use of kurios referring to Jesus. For Yahweh (in English Bibles: ‘the Lord‘), the Septuagint uses kurios. Although the term kurios usually has to do with one’s authority over others, when the New Testament authors use this word from the Septuagint to refer to Jesus, they are making an extraordinary claim: Jesus of Nazareth is to be identified with Yahweh.”
See also Father / Lord.
request / beg (Japanese honorifics)
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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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The concept of “requesting” is translated in the Shinkaiyaku Bible as o-negai (お願い), combining “request” (negai) with the respectful prefix o (お).
(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Japanese benefactives (inotte)
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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 benefactive construction as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017.
Here, inotte (祈って) or “pray” is used in combination with kudasaru (くださる), a respectful form of the benefactive kureru (くれる). A benefactive reflects the good will of the giver or the gratitude of a recipient of the favor. To convey this connotation, English translation needs to employ a phrase such as “for me (my sake)” or “for you (your sake).” (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Translation commentary on Romans 15:30
In Greek verses 30-32 are all one sentence. I urge you translates the same verb used in 12.1, I make this appeal. It is also used in 12.8 with the meaning of to encourage.
The Greek phrase “love of the Spirit” must be taken with the meaning the love that the Spirit gives (New English Bible “the love that the Spirit inspires”).
It is not easy to specify precisely how the phrases by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love that the Spirit gives are to be related to the verb urge. The Greek preposition dia indicates primarily “through” or “by means of,” but this does not imply agency. In other words, it would not be correct to say: “our Lord Jesus Christ is the one who causes me to urge you.” It would seem that the most satisfactory way of defining the relation in this clause is to consider by our Lord Jesus Christ as stating the underlying basis for Paul’s urging the believers at Rome to pray to God for him. Perhaps this can be most satisfactorily rendered as “because of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and because of the love that the Spirit has given us, I urge you to pray with me very earnestly to God for me.”
Join me in praying fervently (An American Translation* “join me in most earnest prayer”; Phillips “to stand behind me in earnest prayer”) is rendered “to strive together with me in your prayers” (Revised Standard Version). The verb rendered “to strive together with” (Revised Standard Version) is a metaphor alluding to warfare (note New English Bible “be my allies in the fight”), but it is best taken figuratively with the meaning of “to join together fervently (in praying).” The New English Bible (“be my allies in the fight; pray to God for me that…”) takes this phrase as describing two actions, but this is not the sense in which the Greek would normally be understood.
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 15:30
Paragraph 15:30–32
15:30a
Now: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Now introduces a new but related topic. It is not a time word. Translate it in a way that is natural for starting to write about a new topic or theme.
I urge you, brothers: The word brothers is in the end of what Paul said to them, both in the Greek and in the Berean Standard Bible. In some languages this word must be first. For example:
Brothers, I appeal to you
I urge you: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as urge has a wide range of meaning. Many scholars believe it means “exhort” here. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
I appeal to you (English Standard Version)
-or-
I encourage you (God’s Word)
brothers: This word refers to all the believers living in Rome, both men and women. The word indicates a close relationship between believers because God has made them his (adopted) children. See how you translated this word in 1:13 or 15:14.
15:30b
by our Lord Jesus Christ: This phrase indicates that Paul appealed to the Roman believers in the name of Jesus Christ. Paul asked them to pray for him because they all believed in Jesus and this is something that Jesus wanted them to do. For example:
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (New Living Translation (2004))
by the love of the Spirit: This phrase indicates that love from the Holy Spirit is the basis for Paul appealing to them to pray for him. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
by the love that the Spirit creates (God’s Word)
-or-
on the basis of the love from the Spirit
-or-
because of…the love that the Holy Spirit gives us (New Century Version)
15:30c
to join me in my struggle by praying: Here the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as struggle refers to working hard at helping someone. Here it refers to earnestly praying for Paul, as Paul prayed for himself in taking the collection of money to Jerusalem. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
to join me in earnest prayer to God on my behalf (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-
to join fervently with me in prayer to God on my behalf (NET Bible)
for me: This phrase indicates that Paul wanted the Roman believers to pray for him, as he explained in 15:31a–b.
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Commentaire sur la traduction de la lettre aux Romains 15.30
15.30-33
Bien que Paul envisage avec confiance son voyage vers Rome, il est conscient des dangers qu’il devra affronter en passant par Jérusalem avant d’arriver là-bas. C’est pourquoi il demande aux chrétiens de Rome de prier ardemment pour lui.
En grec, Rom 15.30 forme une seule phrase, qu’il conviendra de couper au moins en deux. Voir pour cela la Bible en français courant.
Mais je vous exhorte : le verbe grec est le même qu’en Rom 12.1 (« Je vous exhorte », Traduction œcuménique de la Bible et Bible en français courant) et qu’en Rom 12.8 (« exhorter », Traduction œcuménique de la Bible ; « encourager », Bible en français courant). Voir Rom 12.1.
Pour frères, voir Rom 1.13. La Parole de Vie a mis « Frères et sœurs » en première position.
par notre Seigneur Jésus Christ ou « au nom de notre Seigneur Jésus Christ » (Die Gute Nachricht). Voir Rom 5.1.
par l’amour de l’Esprit doit être compris au sens de « l’amour que donne l’Esprit Saint » (Bible en français courant) ou « l’amour que l’Esprit inspire » (Revised English Bible).
Il n’est pas facile de faire ressortir avec précision comment par notre Seigneur Jésus Christ et par l’amour de l’Esprit doivent être reliés aux mots je vous exhorte. La préposition grecque διά dia (par) signifie en premier lieu par ou « au moyen de », mais elle n’implique pas une idée d’agence. Par conséquent, il ne serait pas juste de dire « notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ est celui qui fait que je vous exhorte ». On pourrait plutôt considérer que par notre Seigneur Jésus Christ est à la base de l’exhortation que Paul adresse aux chrétiens de Rome de prier Dieu pour lui. On pourrait traduire par « à cause de notre foi en Jésus-Christ et à cause de l’amour que donne l’Esprit Saint, je vous exhorte à prier Dieu… »
à combattre avec moi par les prières que vous adressez à Dieu pour moi : le verbe grec pour combattre avec signifie « combattre aux côtés de » et non « contre ». Cette image, tout en évoquant la guerre, exprime l’idée d’une prière faite « avec ferveur » (Good News Bible) ou « intensément » (Parola del Signore). On pourrait dire « combattez avec moi en adressant à Dieu des prières en ma faveur » (Bible en français courant), « combattez avec moi, en priant Dieu pour moi » (La Bible du Semeur), « luttez avec moi quand vous priez Dieu pour moi » (Parole de Vie).
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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