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 inclusive form (including the addressee).
Source: Velma Pickett and Florence Cowan in Notes on Translation January 1962, p. 1ff.
Following are a number of back-translations of Galatians 5:1:
Uma: “Kristus freed us from the Law of Musa so that we are really free. That is why we must make-stay our hearts, let us not want to be made slaves again.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “We (incl.) are no longer like a slave having to follow the commands of the law written by Musa because we (incl.) have been freed by Almasi. Therefore really don’t be willing to be enslaved again but/instead remain/be steadfast so that you are free.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “By means of Christ releasing us (incl.) from slavery, we have been freed from obedience to the Law. Therefore, it’s necessary that we (incl.) who’ve been set free should resist so that we might not again become enslaved.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Cristo freed us so that we might have true freedom. Persevere therefore in defending your freedom. Don’t permit that they cause-you -to-carry-on-the-shoulder the law of Moses, because you will again become a slave.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Cristo has released us from our enslavement to the law in order that our no longer being slaves would be enduring/lasting. Therefore it’s necessary that you now stand up for your having gotten-out/release. Yes indeed, really don’t cause yourselves to be enslaved again.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Jesus Christ took care of our sins. Therefore we do not follow the law which the Jews follow in order to save our souls. Be encouraged to be firm with this word. Do not think that there will be punishment if you do not follow the law.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
The Greek Christos (Χρηστός) is typically transliterated when it appears together with Iésous (Ἰησοῦς) (Jesus). In English the transliteration is the Anglicized “Christ,” whereas in many other languages it is based on the Greek or Latin as “Kristus,” “Cristo,” or similar.
When used as a descriptive term in the New Testament — as it’s typically done in the gospels (with the possible exceptions of for instance John 1:17 and 17:3) — Christos is seen as the Greek translation of the Hebrew mashiaḥ (המשיח) (“anointed”). Accordingly, a transliteration of mashiaḥ is used, either as “Messiah” or based on the Greek or Latin as a form of “Messias.”
This transliteration is also used in the two instances where the Greek term Μεσσίας (Messias) is used in John 1:41 and 4:25.
In some languages and some translations, the term “Messiah” is supplemented with an explanation. Such as in the GermanGute Nachricht with “the Messiah, the promised savior” (Wir haben den Messias gefunden, den versprochenen Retter) or in Muna with “Messiah, the Saving King” (Mesias, Omputo Fosalamatino) (source: René van den Berg).
In predominantly Muslim areas or for Bible translations for a Muslim target group, Christos is usually transliterated from the Arabic al-Masih (ٱلْمَسِيحِ) — “Messiah.” In most cases, this practice corresponds with languages that also use a form of the Arabic Isa (عيسى) for Jesus (see Jesus). There are some exceptions, though, including modern translations in Arabic which use Yasua (يَسُوعَ) (coming from the Aramaic Yēšūa’) alongside a transliteration of al-Masih, Hausa which uses Yesu but Almahisu, and some Fula languages (Adamawa Fulfulde, Nigerian Fulfulde, and Central-Eastern Niger Fulfulde) which also use a form of Iésous (Yeesu) but Almasiihu (or Almasiifu) for Christos.
In Indonesian, while most Bible translations had already used Yesus Kristus rather than Isa al Masih, three public holidays used to be described using the term Isa Al Masih. From 2024 on, the government is using Yesus Kristus in those holiday names instead (see this article in Christianity Today ).
Other solutions that are used by a number of languages include these:
Dobel: “The important one that God had appointed to come” (source: Jock Hughes)
Noongar: Keny Mammarap or “The One Man” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Mairasi: “King of not dying for life all mashed out infinitely” (for “mashed out,” see salvation; source: Lloyd Peckham)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “One chosen by God to rule mankind” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Bacama: Ma Pwa a Ngɨltən: “The one God has chosen” (source: David Frank in this blog post )
Binumarien: Anutuna: originally a term that was used for a man that was blessed by elders for a task by the laying on of hands (source: Desmond Oatridges, Holzhausen 1991, p. 49f.)
Noongar: Keny Boolanga-Yira Waangki-Koorliny: “One God is Sending” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Uab Meto: Neno Anan: “Son of heaven” P. Middelkoop explains: “The idea of heavenly power bestowed on a Timorese king is rendered in the title Neno Anan. It is based on the historical fact that chiefs in general came from overseas and they who come thence are believed to have come down from heaven, from the land beyond the sea, that means the sphere of God and the ghosts of the dead. The symbolical act of anointing has been made subservient to the revelation of an eternal truth and when the term Neno Anan is used as a translation thereof, it also is made subservient to a new revelation of God in Jesus Christ. The very fact that Jesus came from heaven makes this translation hit the mark.” (Source: P. Middelkoop in The Bible Translator 1953, p. 183ff. )
In Finnish Sign Language both “Christ” and “Messiah” are translated with a sign signifying “king.” (Source: Tarja Sandholm)
“Christ / Messiah” in Finnish Sign Language (source )
Law (2013, p. 97) writes about how the Ancient GreekSeptuagint‘s translation of the Hebrew mashiah was used by the New Testament writers as a bridge between the Old and New Testaments (click or tap here to read more):
“Another important word in the New Testament that comes from the Septuagint is christos, ‘Christ.’ Christ is not part of the name of the man from Nazareth, as if ‘the Christs’ were written above the door of his family home. Rather, ‘Christ’ is an explicitly messianic title used by the writers of the New Testament who have learned this word from the Septuagint’s translation of the Hebrew mashiach, ‘anointed,’ which itself is often rendered in English as ‘Messiah.’ To be sure, one detects a messianic intent on the part of the Septuagint translator in some places. Amos 4:13 may have been one of these. In the Hebrew Bible, God ‘reveals his thoughts to mortals,’ but the Septuagint has ‘announcing his anointed to humans.’ A fine distinction must be made, however, between theology that was intended by the Septuagint translators and that developed by later Christian writers. In Amos 4:13 it is merely possible we have a messianic reading, but it is unquestionably the case that the New Testament writers exploit the Septuagint’s use of christos, in Amos and elsewhere, to messianic ends.”
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 formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).
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 benefactive construction as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017.
Here, kaihōshite (解放して) or “set free” is used in combination with kudasaru (くださる), a respectful form of the benefactive kureru (くれる). A benefactive reflects the good will of the giver or the gratitude of a recipient of the favor. To convey this connotation, English translation needs to employ a phrase such as “for me (my sake)” or “for you (your sake).” (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Illustration by Horst Lemke (1922-1985) for the GermanGute Nachricht für Sie – NT68, one of the first editions of the Good News Bible in German of 1968. Lemke was a well-known illustrator who illustrated books by Erich Kästner , Astrid Lindgren and many others.
There is an obvious connection between this verse and the preceding one (4.31); both are concerned with freedom. Accordingly, it is sometimes preferred to include 5.1 with the preceding section rather than with what follows, as is the case in the UBS Greek New Testament.
This close relation, coupled with the unusual construction of the first part of this verse, has given rise to serious textual problems, various solutions of which are reflected in modern translations. The decision we have to take regarding the textual variants centers primarily on whether one should take 5.1 with what immediately precedes or with what follows. If the former, the following rendering is possible: “We are children … of the free woman with the freedom for which Christ set us free” (Moffatt; compare Knox “we are sons of the free woman, not of the slave; such is the freedom Christ has won for us”). The evidence, however, strongly favors the latter alternative, and this is reflected in Good News Translation.
After deciding what text to follow, one has to determine what Paul means by the statements in this verse. The grammatical form of “freedom” is dative, and this can be either a dative of instrument or a dative of purpose or designation. If the dative of instrument is understood, the following rendering is possible: “by means of this freedom Christ set us free.” Most translators, however, understand here a dative of purpose, so that Paul is understood to be saying “Christ has set us free in order that we can live as free people” (Jerusalem Bible “when Christ freed us, he meant us to remain free”; New English Bible “Christ set us free, to be free men”).
Freedom here should be understood as freedom from the Law, and the pronoun us is inclusive, referring to both Paul and his readers.
Though the Good News Translation rendering Freedom is what we have—Christ has set us free! is rhetorically effective and indicates a close relation to the preceding verse, it may be difficult to reproduce this type of structure in another language, especially if the freedom which the Christian possesses is to be interpreted as the purpose for which Christ set believers free. Therefore one may translate “Christ has set us free so that we could truly be free.” In a number of languages, however, there is no appropriate term for “free” which would suggest freedom from arbitrary obligations or control, and therefore it may be necessary to speak of being free in terms of “not being slaves,” for example, “Christ has rescued us so that we need not be slaves at all,” or “… so that we need not live like slaves.”
The last part of the verse presents both exhortation and warning. Stand, then, as free people is intensive and is better translated “stand firm” or, in a figurative sense, “dig your heels in firmly.” While the Greek does not have as free people, yet it is clear that what Paul wants the Galatians to be firm about is their freedom in Christ. Stand, then, as free people may be rendered as “Determine to remain free,” or “Be sure that you remain as people who have been released.”
Do not allow yourselves to become slaves again is literally “do not be caught again by a yoke of slavery.” The verb Paul uses means “to be ensnared” and is in the passive form; the false teachers are the implied agents.
Paul refers to “a” yoke of slavery, not “the” yoke, thus addressing both Jews and Gentiles. Any legalistic system, whether Jewish or Gentile, is bound to make slaves of people. The yoke is an appropriate metaphor for bondage, since an animal under a yoke has to obey its master. The Jew spoke of “taking the yoke of the law” upon himself, and it could be that the false teachers have been using this kind of language with the Galatians.
It is interesting to note that Jesus also used the figure of the yoke, but to describe obedience and apostleship (Matt 11.29).
In translating this type of expression, there are three alternatives: (1) the figure can be retained, as long as the readers understand what it means; (2) another metaphor can be substituted (as in Phillips “shackles of slavery”); (3) the metaphor can be replaced by a nonmetaphor, as in Good News Translation.
The addition of again makes it clear that Paul is referring to their former state of subservience either to the Jewish or to the pagan system before they accepted the Christian message.
In rendering do not allow yourselves to become slaves again, it may be important to indicate some type of agent, for example, “do not let people cause you to become slaves again,” or “… to enslave you again.” It may be, however, that a reference to “becoming slaves” or “enslaving” would be understood only in a literal sense. One may therefore change the metaphor into a simile, for example, “to become like slaves again,” or “to live as though you were slaves again.”
Quoted with permission from Arichea, Daniel C. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Galatians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
In this section, Paul tried to persuade the Galatians believers not to yield to the pressure from the false teachers to get circumcised. He warned them that if they became circumcised in order to receive God’s approval, then they would have rejected the grace and freedom that God had given them. They would become slaves again. He encouraged them to refuse circumcision and remain free.
Some other possible headings for this section are:
Keep your freedom (New Century Version) -or-
Do not become slaves again
Paragraph 5:1
In this paragraph, Paul told the Galatians to remain free. He told them not to become slaves again to the law.
5:1a
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free: There are several ways to interpret the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as It is for freedom. The two main interpretations are:
(1) It indicates the purpose for which Christ freed us. He freed us in order that we would have freedom from the law. For example:
Christ has freed us so that we may enjoy the benefits of freedom. (God’s Word)
(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, Revised Standard Version, English Standard Version, Revised English Bible, God’s Word)
(2) It emphasizes the verbset us free in the sentence. For example:
So Christ has truly set us free. (New Living Translation (2004))
(Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New Living Translation (2004))
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). The majority of English versions and many commentaries follow this interpretation.
Some other ways to translate this clause are:
Christ has set us free so that we might really be free ?from the law? . -or-
Christ has delivered/rescued us ?from the law? so that we would not be slaves ?to it? . -or-
We have freedom now, because Christ made us free. (New Century Version)
us: The pronoun us refers to both Paul and the Galatians.
5:1b
Stand firm, then: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Stand firm means “persevere.” Paul told the Galatians to persevere in the freedom that they had. They were to remain/continue in that freedom.
Some other ways to translate this clause are:
Therefore persevere ?in this freedom? -or-
So stand strong (New Century Version) -or-
Therefore be firm ?in this freedom? (God’s Word) -or-
So be strong -or-
So remain/continue ?in this freedom?
and do not be encumbered once more: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as be encumbered means “be loaded down with” or “be burdened by.” Trying to obey religious laws is like being weighed down by a heavy load.
Some other ways to translate this clause are:
and do not let yourselves be burdened again (New International Version) -or-
and do not accept again -or-
and do not again surrender
once more: The phrase once more indicates that the Galatians had previously been slaves to religious laws when they worshiped idols. Obeying the law of Moses was no different than their former idol worship. Both made people slaves.
by a yoke of slavery: This is a figure of speech. A yoke is a piece of wood that is put over the necks of two oxen to join them together so that they work together. A yoke is also a piece of wood that one person wears around his neck to balance and carry two heavy loads. In this context, yoke refers to the type of yoke that a person wears. It was usually slaves who wore yokes. A yoke itself could be heavy, but it also represented the hard work of a slave. Obeying religious laws is like being a slave and wearing a yoke to carry a heavy load. They are similar in that both are miserable and undesirable.
Some ways to translate this figure of speech are:
• Keep the figure of speech. For example:
by a yoke such as slaves wear
• Modify the figure of speech. For example
into the slavery of the law (New Century Version) -or-
to ?obeying religious laws again. This is like? being a slave -or-
Do not let laws tie you.
• Translate the meaning without the figure of speech. For example:
Do not think that you must follow certain religious laws ?to be right with God?
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