Paragraph 1:27–28

This paragraph indicates that the people in the synagogue were amazed when the unclean spirit left. They were amazed that Jesus had the authority to cause unclean spirits to obey him.

1:27a

All the people were amazed: In some languages it may be natural to say what amazed the people here. For example:

All the people were amazed at/by this
-or-
This miracle that Jesus had done amazed all the people
-or-
The people all thought, “He certainly has special/great power!”

See the General Comment on 1:27a–b at the end of 1:27b for ways to translate the relationship between 1:27a and 1:27b.

All the people: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as All the people is literally “all” or “everyone.” It refers to all the people in the synagogue who had just seen Jesus cause the evil spirit to leave the man.

amazed: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as amazed also means “astonished,” “shocked,” or “stunned.” It is not the same Greek word as the one used in 1:22a, but it has a similar meaning. There may be a idiom in your language to express the people’s shock and amazement. For example:

[All who were there] widened their eyes
-or-
[The people all] had their mouths open

1:27b

began to ask one another: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as began to ask one another can mean “discussed with one another” or “debated with one another.” It does not only mean that the people asked each other questions. 1:27c gives the content of what the people asked or discussed with each other.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

they discussed what had happened. They asked one another:
-or-
they asked one another, saying:

General Comment on 1:27a–b

In Greek, 1:27b begins with a word that introduces a result. In this context it indicates that the statement “began to ask one another” in 1:27b is the result of the people being amazed in 1:27a.

Here are some different ways this relationship may be expressed:

The people were all so amazed that (New International Version)
-or-
Everyone was stunned. They said to each other… (God’s Word)
-or-
Amazement gripped the audience, and they began to discuss what had happened. (New Living Translation)

Notice that in the God’s Word version, the result relationship is implied. In the New Living Translation, the word “and” implies “and so.” Translate this relationship in a way that is clear and natural in your language.

1:27c–d

A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits: There are two ways to understand how the phrase with authority relates to the context:

(1) The phrase with authority relates to “a new teaching.” It means that Jesus’ teaching had authority. For example:

It must be some new kind of powerful teaching! (Contemporary English Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New Century Version, New Living Translation, Contemporary English Version)

(2) The phrase with authority relates to “He commands even the unclean spirits.” It means that Jesus commanded the unclean spirits with authority. For example:

This man has authority to give orders to the evil spirits (Good News Bible)

(Revised Standard Version, Good News Bible)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most English versions and scholars.

1:27c

What is this?: This is a rhetorical question. It expresses surprise. There are at least three ways to translate this rhetorical question:

• As a rhetorical question. For example:

What sort of new teaching is this? (New Living Translation)
-or-
What is happening here? (New Century Version)

• As a statement or exclamation. For example:

This is amazing.
-or-
Wow! Amazing!

• As a tag question. For example:

This is amazing, isn’t it?

Some languages may have an idiom that expresses amazement. Use a natural way to express this type of amazement in your language.

A new teaching with authority!: The Berean Standard Bible translates the phrase A new teaching with authority as an exclamation that answers the rhetorical question. There is no verb in this exclamation. There are many other acceptable ways to translate this phrase. Here are some other possibilities:

• Combine the phrase with the rhetorical question at the beginning of 1:27c. For example, the New Living Translation says:

“What sort of new teaching is this?” they asked excitedly. “It has such authority!” (New Living Translation)

• Include some words to make the phrase into a sentence. For example, the God’s Word says:

This is a new teaching that has authority behind it! (God’s Word)

Translate in a way that will effectively express the people’s surprise at Jesus’ new and authoritative way of teaching.

A new teaching: The phrase A new teaching refers to the way Jesus taught. The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as new means that the people had never before seen or heard anyone teach that way. Jesus’ manner of teaching was different and amazing. (The Greek word kainos means “new” in quality, in other words, different, strange or remarkable. It is distinct from the Greek word neos, which means “new” in time (BAGD page 394, Cranfield page 81, Robertson page 261). Louw and Nida (page 645, #67.115) focus on the meaning “previously unknown.”) A new teaching does not imply that Jesus’ current teaching was different from his previous teaching.

with authority: The characteristic of Jesus’ teaching that made it “new” or “amazing” or “different” is that he taught with authority. He showed absolute certainty about the truth of what he taught. See the note on 1:22b for an explanation of authority in this context.

1:27d

He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him: In this sentence the people indicated that they were amazed that Jesus had such great authority. Their statement means that Jesus even had the power to command unclean spirits to leave the people whom they were possessing.

they obey Him: The phrase they obey Him implies that the unclean spirits were forced to obey Jesus. They had to do what he told them even though they did not want to.

In some languages it may be necessary to make explicit the content of Jesus’ command. For example:

He even orders unclean spirits to leave people, and the unclean spirits obey him.

In some languages it may be more natural to change the order of the clauses in 1:27d. For example:

Even unclean spirits must obey him when he commands them to leave!

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