6:13a

stars of the sky: The phrase of the sky describes the location of the stars. It poetically contrasts with the phrase “to the earth.” But in some languages the phrase of the sky is not necessary or natural. For example:

stars (Good News Translation)

of the sky: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as sky also means “heaven.” Here the word refers to the place where stars are. Use the normal word in your language here.

In some languages it is more natural to refer to the sky as the place where the stars fell from. For example:

the stars fell from the sky

6:13b

unripe figs dropping from a tree: This kind of fig tree bears edible fruit. Sometimes the tree bears fruit later than the normal time for figs.

In some languages fig trees are not known. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Use the name of a common tree that bears fruit that the wind could blow off the tree as the fruit becomes ripe. You may then want a footnote to explain the literal word. For example:

Literally: “fig tree.”

• Use the major language word. You may want to include a footnote to explain why that tree was chosen for this simile. An example footnote is:

The fig tree is a common tree in Israel that produces late fruit. The autumn winds can easily blow the figs off the tree.

unripe figs: The Greek word here refers to figs that remained unripe late in the fig growing season. They do not ripen. After the growing season, a strong wind can easily blow them off of the tree. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

out of season figs
-or-
late figs (New International Version)

Use a word that describes fruit that a wind could blow off of the trees.

shaken by a great wind: This clause is passive. Some languages must use an active clause. For example:

when a great wind shakes it

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