The various Greek, Aramaic, Latin and Hebrew terms that are translated as “sea,” “ocean,” or “lake” in English are all translated in Chichewa with one term: nyanja. Malawi, where Chichewa is spoken, has a lot of lakes but does not share a border with the ocean. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
3rd person pronoun with high register (Japanese)
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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 third person singular and plural pronoun (“he,” “she,” “it” and their various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. While it’s not uncommon to avoid pronouns altogether in Japanese, there are is a range of third person pronouns that can be used.
In these verses a number of them are used that pay particularly much respect to the referred person (or, in fact, God, as in Exodus 15:2), including kono kata (この方), sono kata (その方), and ano kata (あの方), meaning “this person,” “that person,” and “that person over there.” (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Sung version of Mark 4
Translation commentary on Mark 4:40 – 4:41
Text:
In v. 40 after este ‘you are’ Textus Receptus, Nestle, Tischendorf, Soden, Vogels, Taylor and Kilpatrick add houtōs ‘thus’ which is omitted by Westcott and Hort, Lagrange, Souter, Merk and Revised Standard Version.
In v. 40 instead of pōs ouch echete ‘how (is it that) you do not have’ read by Textus Receptus, Tischendorf, Merk and Nestle; oupō echete ‘do you not (yet) have’ is preferred by Westcott and Hort, Souter, Soden, Vogels, Lagrange, Revised Standard Version, Kilpatrick.
Exegesis:
deiloi (only here in Mark) ‘timid,’ ‘fearful,’ ‘cowardly.’
pōs ‘how?,’ ‘how is it possible that…?’
pistin (cf. 2.5) ‘faith,’ ‘belief,’ ‘trust’: whether in God, or in Jesus himself, the text does not specify.
ephobēthēsan phobon megan ‘they feared a great fear’: a Semitic manner of intensive statement ‘they feared greatly,’ ‘they were very much afraid.’
phobeomai (5.15, 33, 36; 6.20, 50; 9.32; 10.32; 11.18, 32; 12.12; 16.8) ‘to be afraid,’ ‘to be awed.’
pros allēlous (8.16; 9.34; 15.31; en allēlois 9.50) ‘to themselves,’ i.e. ‘to one another’ (not privately, each one to himself, but in the group, one to the other).
ara (11.13) ‘then,’ ‘therefore’: as an inference from all that has preceded; ‘In light of this, who, then, is this man?’
kai ho anemos ‘even the wind’: so the great majority of modern translations (American Standard Version, Revised Standard Version, Goodspeed, Berkeley, Manson, The Modern Speech New Testament, Williams, Montgomery, Zürcher Bibel, O Novo Testamento de Nosso Senhor Jesus Cristo. Revisdo Autorizada); Translator’s New Testament, however, “both wind and….”
hupakouei (cf. 1.27) ‘they obey.’
Translation:
Them must in some languages be clearly indicated as ‘disciples’ because of the immediately preceding reference to the ‘wind and sea.’
The description of fear leads to a number of idioms, e.g. ‘your heart trembles’ (Tzeltal), ‘shiver in your liver’ (Uduk), and ‘to have such little hearts’ (Tzotzil). This fear must be carefully distinguished from the meaning of fear as reverence or respect.
For faith see 1.15. In some languages, however, one cannot speak of faith without indicating the object of the faith. Despite the fact that the Greek does not specify whether this is faith in Jesus or God, it is probably more acceptable to translate as ‘faith in God,’ since it would seem that faith is here spoken of in terms of its widest application to experiences of confidence and trust, rather than with regard to specific reliance on Jesus’ own leadership and provision for their needs.
Filled with awe is equivalent in some instances to ‘completely amazed,’ ‘their thoughts left them,’ ‘their hearts fell.’
Who, introducing the last question is not a simple interrogative pronoun relating to identity. It rather asks ‘what sort of person is this that….’ Or, as in some languages, ‘who is this sort of person that….’ At any rate, there must usually be some type of qualifier to supplement the words as they stand in the English text.
Obey him may be rendered as ‘do what he says’ (or ‘commands’).
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 4:41
4:41a
Overwhelmed with fear: The Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Overwhelmed with fear is literally “they feared with great fear.” The verb “feared” and the noun “fear” can mean both “afraid” and “wonder, amazement.” Probably both meanings are indicated here. If possible use an expression that includes these meanings. For example:
They were filled with fear and amazement
-or-
They were greatly afraid and amazed
-or-
They were astounded
asked: The first sentence in 4:41b is a question, but the second sentence is a statement. You will need to decide whether it is more natural in your language to use the verb “said” or “asked” here.
4:41b
The Greek text of 4:41b includes a word that is translated in different ways by English versions. The Berean Standard Bible leaves this word implied. Some English versions have translated it as “then.” For example, the NET Bible says:
Who then is this?
In this context the word “then” implies a conclusion that people make because of certain evidence. The disciples realized that Jesus had showed amazing authority. They were asking what that evidence showed about who he was.
Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?: In the Greek, 4:41b is one sentence in the form of a question. The New Revised Standard Version follows the Greek structure and translates this literally as:
Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
It may be natural in your language to follow the Berean Standard Bible and the New Revised Standard Version and include the words even the wind and the sea obey Him in the question. However, if this would not be natural, you could follow the New International Version and other English versions that separate the words even the wind and the sea obey Him from the question:
Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him! (New International Version)
-or-
Who then is this? Even the wind and sea obey him! (NET Bible)
Translate this as one sentence or two, whichever is natural in your language.
Who is this: This is a rhetorical question. It strongly indicates surprise, fear, and amazement. The disciples were not asking for Jesus’ name. Instead, they were wondering what kind of man Jesus was and how he could do such powerful miracles.
The Jews believed that only God controlled such things as wind and waves. So the disciples were asking who Jesus could be that he could do the same things God does. Translate this sentence in a way which indicates surprise and awe.
Here are some other ways to translate this:
• As a rhetorical question. For example:
What kind of man/person then is this?
• As an exclamatory statement. For example:
This man is amazing! No one but God can do what he has done!
that even the wind and the sea obey Him?: Usually the subject of the verb obey is a person or an animal. But here the subject is the wind and the sea. It may be more natural in your language to reword this clause to indicate that the wind and waves did as Jesus commanded. For example:
Even the wind and the sea do as he commands!
-or-
He commanded the wind and the sea to stop, and they stopped!
-or-
He controls even the wind and the sea!
sea: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible literally translates as sea refers to the water of the Sea of Galilee. For this reason, the New International Version translates this word as “waves.” See how you translated this word in 4:39a.
General Comment on 4:41b
The clause even the wind and the sea obey him begins with the word “that” in the Greek text. The word “that” indicates that the clause even the wind and the sea obey him gives the reason for asking Who is this? It may be more natural in your language to have the reason clause first. For example:
Even the wind and the waves obey him, so who is this?
Paragraph 5:1–5
In this paragraph, the action in 5:1–2 is followed by some background information in 5:3–5. In some languages, it may be good to change the order of some of the information in these verses. See the suggestions in the General Comment on 5:2–6 at the end of 5:6b. The action of the story continues in 5:6.
5:1a–b
This story happened immediately after the story about Jesus calming the storm on the lake at the end of Mark 4. The Greek text has a general connector here. You may want to begin this story in a way that shows the connection between the events. For example:
Then they went across…
-or-
Just after the storm, they went across…
On the other side of the sea, they arrived: Here Jesus and disciples continued the boat trip that they began in 4:36. They finished the remaining part of the trip and arrived at the other side of the lake. Your translation should indicate that they were continuing the trip, not that they were beginning it. For example:
They continued across the lake to the other side, where they arrived
-or-
They finished going to the other side of the lake and arrived
-or-
Jesus and his disciples arrived on the other side of Lake Galilee (Good News Bible)
On the other side of the sea: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as On the other side of the sea is literally “to the other side of the lake.” They sailed from the northwest shore of the lake to the northeast shore. If your language requires or prefers that you indicate the direction of travel, indicate that they were sailing east.
the sea: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the sea refers to Lake Galilee. This is the same lake that was mentioned in many other passages, including 1:16a and 2:13. Refer to how you translated it there. Since the phrase the sea indicates a specific lake, in some languages you may need to give its name. For example:
Lake Galilee
they: The word they here refers to Jesus and his disciples. Refer to them at the beginning of this story in a natural way in your language.
the region of the Gerasenes:
There is a textual issue in this verse: (1) Some Greek manuscripts have
Gerasenes, people from the town of Gerasa (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Good News Bible, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, New Century Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Living Translation, New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible). (2) Other Greek manuscripts have Gadarenes, people from the town of Gadara (King James Version). (3) Other Greek manuscripts have Gergesenes, people from the town of Gergesa. It is recommended that you follow option (1). It has the support of some of the best manuscripts, and most English versions. However, commentaries are divided in which option they support. If the major language version in your area uses option (2) or (3), you may choose to follow it. Scholarly opinion is divided due to the geographical problem. Gerasa was more than 30 miles (55 kilometers) southeast of Lake Galilee, while Gadara was only about 6 miles southeast of the lake. The third variant, Gergesenes, may refer to the people from a small village on the northeast shore of the lake known today as Kersa or Kursi. (See the Jerusalem Perspective articles Gergesa: Site of the Demoniac’s Healing by Mendel Nun (no. 50, January/March 1996) and Gergesa, Gerasa, or Gadara? Where Did Jesus’ Miracle Occur? (no. 51, April/June 1996). For arguments in support of option (2), Gadara, see Consultant Notes for this passage in TW 4.)) The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the Gerasenes refers to people who lived in the city called Gerasa and the countryside around it. See the next note for discussion of a textual issue concerning this phrase. The Gerasenes were mostly non-Jewish people.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
region/area of the Gerasa people
-or-
place where people called the Gerasenes lived
-or-
region of the city of Gerasa and around it
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