complete verse (Luke 16:28)

Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 16:28:

  • Noongar: “There I have five brothers. You let Lazarus go to tell them so they don’t also come to this place of pain.'” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Uma: “Because I still have five relatives. Order Lazarus to warn them so that they do not come here to this place of suffering.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “for I have there five brothers. Tell Lasarus to instruct them that they should change their behavior so that they will not come here to this place for suffering pain.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “because I have four younger brothers. And it’s necessary that they know beforehand, so that they should not come to this place of those who are tormented.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “so that he will advise/admonish my five siblings who are there so that they will not also come here to the place of excessive suffering.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “For (he will) warn my five siblings there, so that they won’t get to come here to this place of hardship/suffering.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Japanese benefactives (keikokushite)

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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, keikokushite (警告して) or “warn” 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. )

Translation commentary on Luke 16:27 – 16:28

Exegesis:

eipen de ‘he said,’ change of subject.

erōtō se oun ‘then I beg you.’ oun means ‘in that case.’

hina pempsēs auton eis ton oikon tou patros mou ‘that you send him to my father’s house,’ i.e. ‘family,’ implying a restoring to life. oikos tou patros mou refers to his brothers, as v. 28 shows, not to his father.

(V. 28) echō gar pente adelphous ‘for l have five brothers,’ parenthetical clause explaining ‘my father’s house.’

hopōs diamarturētai autois ‘in order to warn them,’ final clause dependent upon pempsēs.

diamarturomai ‘to warn,’ or, ‘to testify,’ i.e. ‘to inform fully,’ preferably the former.

hina mē kai autoi elthōsin ‘lest they too may come,’ final clause dependent upon diamarturētai.

eis ton topon touton tēs basanou ‘to this place of torment.’ tēs basanou (cf. on v. 23) qualifying genitive.

Translation:

He said. The speaker often has to be specified.

My father’s house, or, ‘those who live in my father’s house,’ ‘my nearest kin,’ ‘my family.’

(V. 28) Where a more specific term for brothers (see 6.14) is obligatory they may be taken to have been younger brothers and/or of the same parents.

So that they may warn them, often better as a new sentence here, ‘cause him to warn them,’ or, ‘let him (go and) warn them’ (cf. e.g. Sranan Tongo, Tae,’ Good News Translation). Warn them, or more analytically, ‘tell them not to do as I did.’

Lest they … come, or, ‘in order that they … may not come,’ i.e. once they will have died; hence some adjustments may be required, cf. v. 22.

Place of torment, or, ‘place where I (or, we, exclus.) suffer torment/pain.’

Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Luke 16:28

16:28a

for I have five brothers: This phrase explains why the rich man wanted Abraham to send Lazarus to his father’s house. The rich man was concerned for his five brothers who were still living there. Some versions do not translate the word for explicitly.

brothers: The brothers were all the sons of the same man, the rich man’s father. They may or may not have all been the sons of the rich man’s mother.

If you need to make it explicit whether these brothers were younger or older than the rich man, you should say that they were younger.

16:28b

This part of the verse gives the purpose for which Abraham was to send Lazarus to the rich man’s family. In Greek, it is introduced by a word meaning “so that.” For example:

so that he may warn them (Revised Standard Version)

Let him warn them: In this context, the clause Let him warn them means that Lazarus was to urge the brothers to change their way of life. He would warn them about how God would punish them if they did not change. He was to tell them to repent, as 16:30 makes explicit. In some languages it may be helpful to make this information explicit here. For example:

Tell him to warn them ⌊to repent⌋

16:28c

so that they will not also end up in this place of torment: This clause expresses the purpose for which Lazarus was to warn the brothers of the rich man. The purpose of the warning was to prevent the brothers from coming to the place of torment (“so that…not”). Another way to express this purpose is:

lest they also come… (Revised Standard Version)

Consider the most natural way in your language to express this purpose.

this place of torment: The word for torment also occurs in 16:23a. Other ways to translate the phrase this place of torment are:

this place of extreme suffering/pain
-or-
this place where I am suffering terribly

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