But he replied to the man who told him is translated “Jesus answered” by Good News Translation and “Jesus answered him” by Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch. New English Bible renders “Jesus turned to the man who brought the message and said….” If verse 47 is omitted from the translation, then there is no antecedent to the man who told him. The person to whom Jesus gave his answer is not explicitly mentioned in this verse by Good News Translation, since the antecedent is clearly marked by Good News Bible‘s rendering of verse 47.

Who is my mother, and who are my brothers? is divided into two separate sentences by Good News Translation, New English Bible, and New Jerusalem Bible. The form, whether one question or two, must be determined by the requirements of the receptor language. In some languages a question may even imply that Jesus does not know who his mother and brothers are, and that he is asking for the sake of information. Therefore it may be necessary to render the questions “Who is really my mother? Who are really my brothers?” or “Do you know who my mother is, and who my brothers are?” Or it may be better to replace the question form with a statement: “She is not really my mother, and these are not really my brothers.” But such a reply may suggest that Jesus is denying any physical ties to these people who literally are his immediate family. To avoid this false assumption, verses 48-50 may be translated as a unit: “My true brothers and sisters and mother are the people who do what my Father in heaven wants them to do. My disciples are my true mother and brothers!”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .