14When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It hurts you to kick against the goads.’
The Greek proverb in Acts 26:14 which is translated directly by some English versions as “kick against the goads (=a spiked stick used for driving cattle)” and refers to “pointless fighting” became “throw chaff into the wind” in the Khmer Standard Version translation of 2005 (the translators also considered “spit vertically upwards”). (Source David Clark)
In Lalana Chinantec it is translated as “as a bull which kicks a sharp stick which his owner holds so do you,” in Teutila Cuicatec as “you are doing the same as an ox that is hurting itself, kicking the sharp stick that people drive it with,” in Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac as “like a horse when it kicks the stick with which it is driven” (source for this and two above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.), and in Elhomwe as “because you are against me, you are hurting yourself” (source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext).
In Russian, the phrase Трудно тебе идти против рожна (Trudno tebe idti protiv rozhna) or “kick against the goads” is widely used as an idiom in every-day life, with the meaning of undertaking a risky action against constraint imposed by tradition or authority. The wording of the quote originated in the Russian Synodal Bible (publ. 1876). (Source: Reznikov 2020, p. 63f.)
Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)
The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).
For this verse, translators typically select the exclusive form (only including Paul and his companions).
Source: SIL International Translation Department (1999).
Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 26:14:
Uma: “Down we (excl.) all fell. And I heard someone speaking to me in the Yahudi language, he said to me: ‘Saulus! Saulus! Why do you (sing.) persecute me? But it is you (sing.) yourself that will hurt, if you keep opposing the call of your (sing.) Lord.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “We (excl.) all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice speaking to me in the Hibrani language. The voice said, ‘O Saul, Saul. Why do you persecute me? You are just the one-having-difficulty when you oppose me.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And all of us, we fell down and I heard someone talking in the Hebrew language, and he said, ‘Hey Saul, why are you doing bad things to me? You are having a hard time because there is no use in resisting me.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “and we (excl.) all fell-over. Then I heard a voice saying in the language Hebreo, ‘Saulo, Saulo, why do you (sing.) hardship-me? It is your (sing.) own self that you (sing.) are-hardshipping in your (sing.) opposing me like a water-buffalo that kicks the poking-instrument of the plower.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “We(excl.) all went-down-on-our-faces on the ground and then I heard a voice which spoke to me, saying in the Hebreo-language, ‘Saulo, Saulo, why are you doing like this which is persecuting me? I tell you that you are only hurting yourself through your fighting-against/disobeying my will.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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 first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
According to 9.4 only Paul fell down, while here it is stated all of us fell to the ground. It is explicitly stated here that Saul (Paul) was spoken to in the Hebrew language, while in 9.4 and 22.7 only the use of the word Saul implies this fact.
“It is hard for you to kick against the stick” must be understood in the sense of “you hurt yourself by kicking against the stick.” The kind of stick referred to was a sharp-pointed stick used by a person goading an ox or a donkey while working. What appears as a metaphor in Greek is rendered here as a kind of simile, since it would be difficult for the average person to understand what is really involved in an ox kicking against its owner’s stick and how this might apply to an individual.
Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
We all fell to the ground: This clause indicates that Paul and the others were so frightened by the light that they fell down.
I heard a voice say to me in Hebrew: In Greek it is natural to refer to a voice speaking when the person speaking is not seen. Paul heard Jesus speak before he saw him. In some languages it is more natural to refer to the person in a general way rather than the voice. For example:
I heard someone saying to me in Hebrew
Hebrew: The Greek phrase here is “the Hebrew language.” During the time when the Old Testament was written, they spoke Hebrew. Hebrew and Aramaic are two similar languages. Jesus’ first language was probably Aramaic. The language of Jews in Israel at that time was Aramaic. So Paul was probably referring to “the language spoken by the Hebrews”; that is, Aramaic. Translate this word as you did in 21:40.
26:14b
Saul, Saul: Repeating the name shows that the person speaks earnestly or with much feeling. In some languages repeating the name is not natural or has a different meaning. If so, translate in a way that indicates addressing someone earnestly. Two ways in English are:
Saul, friend, -or-
Saul, brother,
Saul: Paul was also known by his Jewish name Saul (13:9). Paul is called Saul from 7:58 to 13:9.
why do you persecute Me?: Paul persecuted those who believed that Jesus was the Christ. In that way he persecuted Jesus.
This question can be understood as both a real question and a rhetorical question. Jesus wanted Saul to reply and explain himself and his motives. It is also a rhetorical way to tell Saul that he is unhappy that Saul was persecuting him and wants him to stop. But since this question can be understood as a real question, you should translate it as a question.
But some languages must translate this in the rhetorical sense of a command, because Paul does not answer this question. For example:
Stop persecuting me!
26:14c
It is hard for you to kick against the goads: This was a Greek proverb that was probably well-known in Israel. The metaphor refers to an ox or other animal used for pulling things. Its owner uses a “goad” (a sharp stick) to direct it. The ox may rebel and kick at the owner, but the owner points the goad at its leg so it kicks the goad instead. This teaches the ox not to kick but do as directed.
The Greek proverb indicates that people should not rebel against what the gods tell them to do, because if they do rebel, they only hurt themselves. Jesus used this proverb to indicate that Saul was fighting against God by persecuting people who followed Jesus.
In some languages, a literal translation would not have the correct meaning. If so, you may want to:
• Translate literally and explain the meaning in a footnote. An example footnote is:
This proverb refers to an ox or other animal rebelling and kicking at the owner, but the owner points the goad at its leg so it kicks the goad instead. Jesus used this proverb to indicate that Saul was fighting against God by persecuting people who followed Jesus. -or-
This proverb indicates that Saul was fighting against God by persecuting people who followed Jesus.
• Use a proverb or saying in your language that has that meaning. You may then want a footnote to indicate the literal words. An example footnote is:
Literally: “It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” This saying means that Saul was hurting himself by what he was doing.
• Explain the meaning in your translation. For example:
You are ⌊fighting against God but only hurting yourself like an ox/donkey⌋ kicking at its owner but kicking the goad instead. -or-
You are hurting yourself by hitting back, like an ox kicking against its owner’s stick. (Good News Translation)
• Translate the meaning without the figure of speech. For example:
You are fighting against God but only hurting yourself. -or-
It’s hard for [ a mortal like ] you to resist God. (God’s Word)
You may then want a footnote to indicate the literal words. An example footnote is:
Literally: “It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”
goads: The goads were pointed sticks. They were used to poke an animal to make it move or change direction. The goads were not used to injure the animal. Another English word is:
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
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