Exegesis:
lepros (14.3) ‘a leper’ (cf. the parallel Lk. 5.12 anēr plērēs lepras ‘a man full of leprosy’). The exact meaning of lepra (and of the Hebrew saraʿath, of which it is the translation) is by no means certain. Arndt & Gingrich point out that in pre-Biblical Greek the term meant psoriasis: there is widespread agreement that, even if the term sometimes denoted leprosy in the Bible, it also included other skin diseases. Dr. K. P. C. A. Gramberg argues that saraʿath and lepra did not denote leprosy at all. Dr. J. L. Swellengrebel, in a review of the Biblical evidence, shows that these terms certainly denoted some kind of disease which could be of a serious nature and which carried with it ceremonial uncleanness.
parakalōn … kai gonupetōn legōn ‘pleading … and kneeling saying’: the three participles describe the manner in which the man erchetai ‘came’ to Jesus.
parakalōn (5.10, 12, 17, 18, 23; 6.56; 7.32; 8.22) ‘entreating,’ ‘pleading,’ ‘beseeching.’
gonupetōn (10.17) ‘kneeling’: literally ‘to fall (piptō) on the knee’ (gonu).
hoti ‘that’: again recitative, introducing direct speech (cf. v. 37).
katharisai (1.41, 42; 7.19) ‘to make clean’: in the Septuagint the verb is used of physical and ceremonial cleansing, and means ‘to make clean’ or ‘to declare clean.’ Here it is used in the former sense, ‘to make clean.’
Notice that the request of the leper is conditioned not on Jesus’ ability to make him clean (“you can make me clean”) but on his desire or willingness (“if you will” or “if you wish”).
Translation:
A great deal of confusion has existed with respect to the word leper (and leprosy), for the area of meaning of this word is not the same in the Bible as it is in contemporary medical usage (see above). Moreover, leprosy is not known in certain parts of the world, and in other areas where it does exist, it may be spoken of in quite idiomatic ways, e.g. ‘lazaro sickness’ (Shipibo-Conibo, an expression borrowed into Shipibo-Conibo from Spanish, which associates leprosy with Lazarus) and ‘disease of animals’ (Shilluk).
Where leprosy is not known, it is necessary to employ some type of descriptive expression which will indicate something of the seriousness of the disease, but not badly distort its real significance. The following types of expressions are used: ‘sickness of skin rotting’ (Huichol), ‘ulcer sickness’ (Tzeltal, in which ulcer refers generally to all types of skin diseases), and ‘decaying sores’ (Barrow Eskimo).
However, even where leprosy is known, since the meaning of the Biblical term is uncertain, it may be wise to use a more general term or descriptive phrase which none the less conveys the seriousness of the condition, and if possible also carries the connotation of ceremonial uncleanness, e.g. as suggested in Balinese ‘ominous disease.’ A meaningless loan-word should certainly be avoided.
Beseech may be translated as ‘to ask strongly’ or ‘to ask insistently.’ In Huichol the equivalent is ‘to give one a desire,’ an interesting shift of psychological viewpoint.
Kneeling must sometimes be described more specifically as ‘kneeling in front of,’ depending upon local idiomatic requirements.
If you will means ‘if you desire to’ or ‘if you want to.’
Though the “cleansing of lepers” seems to us to be an entirely normal way of speaking, this is quite impossible in many languages. Lepers may ‘be healed,’ but ‘not cleansed,’ for cleansing would imply only washing out of wounds. For example, in several translations it was found that this expression ‘to cleanse’ or ‘to make clean’ meant only ‘to give a bath to’ or ‘to wash.’ Accordingly in such instances a translator must render the passage as ‘if you want to heal me, you can do so.’ Moreover, it may be necessary to choose between different words for ‘heal,’ e.g. in Southern Bobo Madaré kiri means to heal external diseases and kuru internal ones. Without a careful distinction at this point the reader could become quite confused.
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .