complete verse (Matthew 13:26)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 13:26:

  • Uma: “That rice indeed grew until heads-appeared, [and] the grass also became visible in the midst of the rice.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “So-then when the seeds were growing and began to bear fruit, the weeds were also seen.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And when the good plants sprouted, the bad plants also sprouted.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “They two grew until they bore-fruit, then it was recognized that there were weeds that were added-in.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “That wheat sprouted. Just as it was fruiting, those poisonous weeds sprouted.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “When the wheat was grown, then the heads were produced. Then was seen which were just weeds.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Matthew 13:26

Then the weeds appeared also must not be taken to imply that the weeds suddenly shot up after the wheat had matured. The meaning is that the distinction between the weeds and the wheat was not evident until heads of grain began to form on the wheat. A sentence that would make this point clear is “When the plants began to bear grain (or, fruits), at that time people were able to see the weeds, too.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .