11:14a
Then He said to the tree: Jesus spoke directly to the fig tree. This is unusual, so you may need to make it clear that he was speaking to the tree. He was not speaking to the people who were with him. For example:
And he addressed the fig tree (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
Then he spoke to the tree and said, “Tree…”
May no one ever eat of your fruit again: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as May no one ever eat of your fruit again means that the tree would never again produce fruit. It does not mean that the tree would produce fruit but no one would be able to eat it. One way to make this clear is to say:
May no one eat figs from you again. You shall never again produce fruit!
Jesus pronounced judgment on the fig tree. He did not ask or wish that it not bear fruit. He commanded it never to bear fruit again. He was making a very strong statement. The result was that the fig tree died (11:20). You may need to translate the command as a statement, as in the Good News Bible:
No one shall ever eat figs from you again!
It may be clearer in your language to use an indirect quote here. For example:
So he commanded that the tree never again bear any fruit.
11:14b
And His disciples heard this statement: Jesus’ disciples were close enough to hear what Jesus said to the fig tree. Be careful not to translate this in a way that means that Jesus said it to them.
This statement is important for connecting this with the rest of the story about the fig tree in 11:20.
disciples: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as disciples means “learners” who are in a special relationship with a teacher. The learners commit themselves to their teacher in order to learn from him and live according to his teaching and example. Disciples often lived with their teacher and followed him wherever he went.
Here are some other ways to translate this:
students/learners
-or-
apprentices
-or-
followers
See how you translated this term at 2:15b and 11:1c.
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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
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