22:64a

They blindfolded Him: The clause They blindfolded Him indicates that the guards covered Jesus’ face or eyes so that he could not see. They may have thrown something over his head or tied a cloth around his head to cover his eyes. The text is not specific about the type of blindfold that was used. Other ways to translate the clause are:

They put a cloth over Jesus’ eyes
-or-
They wrapped/covered his face so that he could not see

Describe the action in a natural way in your language.

22:64b

kept demanding: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as kept demanding is literally “were asking, saying.” This phrase probably implies that the men asked Jesus repeatedly, probably many times. They were using force as they asked him, so the Berean Standard Bible translation kept demanding fits this context well.

22:64c

Prophesy! Who hit You?: Here the guards were mocking Jesus. They knew that Jesus said that he was from God, and that many people believed that he was a prophet. The guards did not believe that he was a prophet, so they were mocking him. They implied that if he were a prophet, he would be able to say which people hit him, even though he did not see them.

Some ways to translate this mockery are:

If you are a prophet, tell us who hit you. (Revised English Bible)
-or-
Who hit you? Tell us, since ⌊you say⌋ you can speak messages from God!
-or-
Prove that you are a prophet, and tell us who hit you. (New Century Version)

In some languages it may be difficult to use the usual term for Prophesy here. That term may imply speaking God’s messages to people, and that meaning does not fit exactly in this context. If that is true in your language, you may need to use a substitute that fits this context. For example:

Who hit you? Guess! (Good News Translation)

Who hit You?: The word hit means to strike someone one or more times. It is not the same as the word translated as “beat” in 22:63, but it refers to the same action. There was a group of guards, and different guards hit Jesus. They did this repeatedly, and they continued to challenge him to say which of them had hit him that time. Translate this situation in a natural way in your language. Here is another way to translate this:

Who hit you that time? (New Living Translation (2004))

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