The Greek that is typically transliterated in English as “Satan” is transliterated in Kipsigis as “Setani.” This is interesting because it is not only a transliteration that approximates the Greek sound but it is also an existing Kipsigis word with the meaning of “ugly” and “sneaking.” (Source: Earl Anderson in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 85ff. )
In Morelos Nahuatl it is translated as “envious one” (source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.) and in Tibetan: bdud (བདུད།), lit. “chief devil” (except in Rev. 20:2, where it is transliterated) (source: gSungrab website ).
Jesus turned to the twelve closest disciples and others who were with him:
— Have you understood my parables about the sower?
They replied:
— No, we did not understand.
Jesus said:
— I will tell other parables. How will you understand me? I will explain it to you now. The seed is the word of God. The sower is the person who tells the word of God to the people. The seed that fell on the road is the people who, though they heard the word, did not accept it. Their eyes were closed. Satan sees that the seed fell on the road and takes everything away.
Stony ground, there is a little bit of earth on top — these are the people who heard the word and gladly accepted it. But the seed could not take deep roots, because after some time these people had difficulties, troubles, condemnation of others, and these people give up their faith because of fear. Therefore, the seed sprouted but dried up.
Third. The seed that fell on the soil with weeds. This is a situation where people listen to God’s word, but they want more money, they think about worldly problems: this is how weeds destroy the sprouts of God’s word.
Fourth. Good, fertile soil is people who hear God’s word, agree and accept it, change their lives and do many good deeds that bear good fruit.
Original Russian back-translation (click or tap here):
Иисус обратился к двенадцати ближайшим ученикам и другим людям, которые были с ним:
— Вы поняли мои притчи о сеятеле?
Те ответили:
— Нет, мы не поняли.
Иисус сказал:
— Я буду еще рассказывать другие притчи. Как же вы будете понимать меня? Я вам сейчас объясню. Семя — это слово Божье. Сеятель — это человек, который рассказывает слово Божье людям. Семя, которое упало на дороге — это люди, которые, хотя и слышали, но никак не восприняли слово. Глаза у них были, как будто закрыты. Сатана же, увидев, что семя упало на дорогу, все уносит.
Каменистая почва, есть чуть-чуть земли сверху — это люди, которые услышали слово и с радостью его приняли. Но семя не смогло пустить глубокие корни, потому что спустя какое-то время у этих людей случились трудности, беды, осуждение окружающих, и эти люди из-за страха отказываются от веры. Поэтому семя проросло, но высохло.
Третье. Семя, которое упало на почву с сорняками. Это ситуация, когда люди слушают слово Божье, но они хотят побольше денег, думают о житейских проблемах: так сорняки губят ростки слова Божьего.
Четвертое. Хорошая, плодородная почва — это люди, которые услышав слово Божье, соглашаются и принимают его, меняют свою жизнь и совершают множество хороших дел, которые приносят добрые плоды.
Retrotraducciones en español (haga clic o pulse aquí)
Los doce discípulos y algunas (otras) personas dijeron: “Jesús, la historia, el ejemplo que nos explicaste antes, ¿qué significa? Nosotros no entendemos.”
Jesús (dijo): “¿Uds no entienden? Ay, si yo les explico historias y ejemplos pero uds no entienden, lo mismo va a continuar en adelante. ¿Cómo puede ser?
Oigan, ahora Dios les da la gracia de que uds pueden entender y descubrir el significado de lo que yo les expliqué hace rato.
El hombre que siembra semillas ¿qué representa? Él es como un hombre que explica y predica la palabra de Dios.
Oigan, miren, el camino con la tierra dura en donde caen las semillas y los pájaros los acaban todas, eso representa cuando él explica y predica la palabra de Dios y algunos personas lo ven pero inmediatamente satanás se lo quita y las personas lo olvidan.
La otra parte con las piedras y poco tierra donde caen las semillas y las plantas crecen rápidamente pero los raíces no pueden profundizar y las plantas marchitan, eso representa cuando él explica y predica la palabra de Dios y algunas personas lo ven y están contentos, pero después al continuar hay problemas y la gente los insulta y están en contra de ellos y ya no continuan a prestar atención a la palabra de Dios, y desvian.
La otra parte donde hay la mala hierba que cubre la tierra y cuando las semillas caen las plantas crecen pero no maduran, eso representa cuando él explica y predica la palabra de Dios y algunas personas lo ven pero en sus mentes están soñando y preocupados con problemas, piensan de dinero y cosas que les gustan y ya no siguen a poner atención a la palabra de Dios, sino desvian. Sus vidas no cambian nada sino quedan lo mismo.
La otra area donde la tierra es buena y cuando las semillas caen las plantas crecen y maduran y hay treinta plantas, y otras plantas maduran y hay sesenta plantas, y otras plantas maduran y hay cien, eso representa cuando él explica y predica la palabra de Dios y algunas personas lo ven y entienden y son transformados, sus vidas cambian para bien.
Y al continuar otras personas lo ven y entienden y son transformados y cambian sus vidas para bien, y otras personas lo ven y entienden y son transformados y cambian sus vidas para bien, y otras personas ven el buen testimonio.”
Jesús dijo: “A las personas afuera yo sólo doy historias breves para que ellos vean y oigan, pero no entiendan nada del significado, porque las personas pueden arrepentirse y Dios les perdonará y borrará (sus pecados) pero ellos no quieren, por eso.”
The twelve disciples and some (other) people said: “Jesus, the story that you just told us, what does it mean? We don’t understand it.”
Jesus (said): “You don’t understand? If I tell you stories and examples and you don’t understand the same will happen in the future. How can that be?
“Listen, now God will give you the grace that you can understand and figure out what I have just told you.
“The man who sows seeds, what does he represent? He is like a man who explains and preached the word of God.
“Hey, look, the road with the hard ground on which the seeds fall and the birds eat them all up, that represents when he explains and preaches the word of God and some people see it, but immediately Satan takes it away and the people forget it.
“The other part with the stones and very little soil where the seeds fall and the plants grow rapidly but the roots cannot get deeper and the plants whither, that represents when he explains and teaches the word of God and some people see it and are happy, but afterwards there are problems and the people insult them and are against them and they do not continue to pay attention to the word of God, but turn aside.
“The other part where there are weeds that cover the ground and when the seeds fall the plants grow but do not ripen, that represents when he explains and preaches the word of God and some people see it but in their minds they are dreaming and preoccupied with problems, they set their minds on money and things that they like and they do not continue to pay attention to the word of God. They turn aside and their lives do not change at all but stay the same.
“The other area where the soil is good and when the seeds fall the plants grow and ripen and there are thirty plants and other plants ripen and there are sixty plants and others ripen and there are 100, that represents when he explains and preaches the word of God and some people see it and understand it and are transformed, their lives change for the better.
“And then other people see it and understand and are transformed and change their lives for the better, and other people see it and understand and are transformed and change their lives for the better, and other people see the good testimony.”
Jesus said: “To the people out there I only give brief stories so that they see and hear but do not understand the meaning, because the people can repent and God will forgive them and wipe out (their sins) but they do not want to, that’s why.”
Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 4:15:
Uma: “There are people who can be compared to the seeds that fall on the road. They do hear God’s words, but the King of Evil-ones comes and makes-them-forget/distracts them, with the result that they no longer in-heart those words.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “And the other people are figuratively like the way where the word/message of God spilled onto. When they hear the message, immediately the leader of demons goes there to grab the message from their minds.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “That which is planted which fell on the path, that’s like people who hear th word of God, and Satan appeared and makes it so that they forget the word which they had heard.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “The ones-that-fell on the path, they are compared to the people who hear (things)-concerning God’s ruling. Whereupon Satan goes immediately and he removes from their minds the words that they heard.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “What is meant by the pathway which got scattered on is the people who hear this teaching but then just forget it for it is quickly taken away by Satanas.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Mezquital Otomi: “The seeds that fell along the road are like people who hear God’s word, but right away Satan comes and causes them to forget the word which has been told to them.”
Tzotzil: “Just like the seed that falls on the road and is eaten by the birds, thus are some people who having heard the word of God, the devil comes and he takes out the word of God from their hearts.” (Source for this and one above: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-kotoba (みことば) or “word (of God)” in the referenced verses.
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
Instead of eis autous ‘in them’ in v. 15 read by Nestle, Westcott and Hort, Souter, Taylor, and Kilpatrick, Textus Receptus has en tais kardiais autōn ‘in their hearts’; Tischendorf, Soden, Vogels, Merk, and Lagrange have en autois ‘in them.’
Exegesis:
houtoi … hoi para tēn hodon ‘these … (are) the ones along the path’: it is to be noticed that in the explanation of the parable (vv. 15-20) the demonstratives, prepositional phrases and participles are all masculine, not neuter. The explanation of the parable has in view men (not seeds), i.e. the listeners, those who in one way or another receive the word (proclaimed to them).
hoi para tēn hodon ‘the ones along the path’: it is not said of these (as it is of the others, vv. 16, 18, 20) ‘sown on the path’ since they were not properly sown at all – they fell on the path without penetrating the soil.
In the explanation, by a change of figure, the various kinds of soil become various kinds of men who (literally) are sown therein. Properly what is sown is the (same) Word, and the soils represent the different classes of hearers: in the explanation, however, the various classes of hearers are sown. Though there is inconsistency in figures between the parable and its explanation, the meaning is clear throughout, and a straightforward translation will reproduce the meaning accurately.
ho logos ‘the Word,’ ‘the (Christian) Message’ (cf. 2.2).
eis autous ‘in them’ (not, ‘among’).
airei (some 20 times in Mark) ‘carry away,’ ‘take off.’
Translation:
In some languages a metaphor such as ‘the sower sows the word’ is meaningless, but a simile is completely understandable, and in fact is the closest natural equivalent, e.g. ‘the sower, as it were, sows the word.’ This little element ‘as it were’ (whether a complete phrase, a particle, or even a suffix on the verb) gives the clue to the reader that this is not to be understood literally, but in a figurative sense. Such shifts from strict metaphors to similes are frequently required for proper sense.
The word is in this context ‘the message,’ ‘the pronouncement,’ or even ‘the good news,’ for this is the technical use of Greek logos to represent the Christian message.
There is a certain difficulty in the words used to introduce the series of four types of persons. In the Revised Standard Version the words used are these (verse 15), these (verse 16), others (verse 18) and those (verse 20). In other languages one may need to adapt this series somewhat in order to produce an intelligible sequence, e.g. ‘some … others … still others … finally those.’
These are the ones along the path … is a metaphorical expression which may be shifted into the form of a simile by some verb such as ‘represent,’ ‘stand for,’ or ‘mean,’ e.g. ‘some represent the people along the path….’
Sown in them must in many languages be ‘sown in their hearts.’
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 .
Some are like the seeds along the path, where the word is sown: The Greek text here is literally “these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown” (as in the Revised Standard Version).
The words “these are the ones” (Revised Standard Version) introduce the first group of people. These people are compared to the path along which the sower has sown the word/seed. Jesus described what happens when such people hear the word.
Here are some other ways to translate this comparison:
Sometimes the word/teaching falls along the path. This is like what happens when some people… -or-
These/Some people are like the path along which the word is sown/scattered.
along the path: Translate this phrase as you did in 4:4b.
is sown: The verb is sown is passive. In the parable, the farmer sowed the seed. This event represents someone telling the gospel.
If it is more natural in your language to say who sowed, you may want to use “someone.” For example:
someone sowed/told the word
If possible keep the focus on the word.
4:15b–c
As soon as they hear it, Satan comes: The Greek clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as As soon as they hear it, Satan comes is literally “when they hear, Satan immediately comes” (as in the New Revised Standard Version). The God’s Word has another way to translate this:
Whenever they hear the word, Satan comes at once
If you have included the information that these people hear the word in 4:15a, it may be natural to translate this as:
as soon as that happens -or-
immediately after that
Satan: The word Satan is the Hebrew name of the chief or leader of all the evil spirits. In Hebrew his name means “enemy.” He is the enemy of God and God’s people. See how you translated this name in 3:23–26. Here are some ways to translate Satan:
• Use a local name or idiom that refers to the chief of all demons.
• Use a descriptive phrase such as:
the chief/leader of the evil spirits -or-
the spirit enemy of God
• Transliterate the name Satan. If this word is not already known in your area, you may also want to add a descriptive phrase. For example:
Satanas, the ruler of demons -or-
Shaitan
If you transliterate Satan or borrow a word from another language, be sure that it communicates the biblical meaning to people in your culture. It is important to check this in each biblical context.
Try to use a term that will be acceptable to churches in the area. It is suggested that you also add a footnote or glossary entry that further explains who Satan is. For example:
Satan is the leader of all the evil spirits or demons. Once he was an angel in heaven, but he rebelled against God. God expelled him from heaven, and now he tempts people on earth. Here are other names for Satan that are used in the Bible: “Beelzebul,” “the Devil,” “the Evil One,” “the Enemy,” and “the Tempter.”
See how you translated this word in 1:13a.
takes away the word that was sown in them:
There is a minor textual issue here: (1) Some Greek manuscripts have in/into them. For example, the Contemporary English Version says: “Satan comes and snatches the word that was sown in them” (Berean Standard Bible, Revised Standard Version, New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Standard Bible, New Living Translation, God’s Word, Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, NET Bible, Revised English Bible, New Century Version). (2) Other Greek manuscripts have in their hearts. For example, the King James Version says: “taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts” (King James Version). You should follow option (1) since it has the best manuscript support.) Again, this clause mixes the explanation with the metaphor. The phrase the word is part of the explanation. The phrase was sown in them is a metaphor. It may be more natural in your language to explain the metaphor here. For example:
takes away what has been sown in their minds (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English) -or-
removes the word of God that they heard
takes away the word: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as takes away can also be translated as “removes.” Satan takes away the seed/word in the sense that he makes the person “forget” what they have heard. In some languages it may be natural to translate it in a non-figurative way. For example:
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.