Translation commentary on Mark 2:14

Exegesis:

paragōn (cf. 1.16) ‘passing by.’

ton tou Alphaiou ‘the (son) of Alphaeus’: the regular way of denoting filial relationship.

kathēmenon epi ‘sitting at’ (not ‘upon’).

to telōnion ‘revenue office,’ ‘custom house,’ ‘toll house’: Translator’s New Testament “customs office.” This customs office in Capernaum would be in the service of Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee.

akolouthei moi ‘follow me (in discipleship)’ (cf. 1.18).

Translation:

In some languages the transition between taught them and passed on is somewhat too abrupt. This may require the addition of some temporal particle such as ‘then,’ so as to show the proper sequence of events and to avoid the words ‘passing on’ being confusedly taken as more or less part of the teaching.

The tax office is ‘where they received taxes’ (or ‘customs’). This does not refer to the collection of personal taxes on wealth, but to the collection of customs on produce being transported to or through Capernaum. The equivalent of this type of tax in many communities are the levies imposed on merchants or farmers from surrounding regions who come into a market town to sell their wares or produce.

For an adequate translation of follow see 1.17.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator's Notes on Mark 2:14

2:14a

As He was walking along, He saw Levi: The words As He was walking along, he saw Levi indicate here that Jesus saw Levi during the time that Jesus was walking by the lake.

Levi son of Alphaeus: The phrase Levi son of Alphaeus identifies who Levi was. He was the son of a man named Alphaeus. This is the first time that Levi is referred to in Mark. Introduce him into the story in a natural way in your language.

2:14b

sitting at the tax booth: The phrase sitting at the tax booth implies that Levi was doing his work. He was collecting taxes for the Roman government. The other Jews despised people who did this job. See the discussion about this in the introduction to Section 2:13–17.

tax booth: The tax booth was probably some sort of small table under a shade where Levi sat to receive taxes from the people.

tax: In this context a tax was money that a tax collector received from his own people to give to the Roman government that ruled them. See the discussion about this in the introduction to this section. If you do not have a word in your language for tax, you may need to use a descriptive phrase. For example:

money that was collected for the/another government
-or-
money taken from people to pay something to a conqueror
-or-
something paid to a conqueror

You may want to include a footnote to explain the meaning of this word. You may also want to explain it in a glossary. For example:

Taxes are money that a tax collector takes from people and gives to the government. In the New Testament, the tax collectors worked for the Romans, who were ruling over the Jews. The tax collectors often cheated people by forcing them to pay more money than they owed. Many Jews despised the tax collectors.

2:14c

“Follow Me,” He told him: In Greek this part of the verse begins with the words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as He told him. The Berean Standard Bible places these words after the phrase Follow me. Put these words in a natural place in your language.

Follow Me: In this context the phrase Follow me means “become my disciple (or learner or apprentice).” Jesus was inviting Levi to be with him every day, listen to his teaching, observe his actions, and learn from him. See also the note on 1:17a, where a similar phrase is used.

2:14d

and Levi got up and followed Him: The forms of the Greek verbs that the Berean Standard Bible translates as got up and followed imply that Levi was definite about his action. He left his seat in the tax collector’s booth and went with Jesus so that Jesus could teach him. The Greek verbs emphasize that action of abandoning his work and going with Jesus. Translate this sudden action in a natural way.

Paragraph 2:15–17

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