The Greek and Hebrew that is often translated into English as “(the two) shall become one flesh” is translated as “become just one” in Copainalá Zoque and San Mateo del Mar Huave or with existing idiomatic equivalents such as “become one blood” in Mitla Zapotec, “become the complement of each other’s spirit” in Tzeltal (source for this and above Bratcher / Nida), “become one body” in Uab Meto (source: P. Middelkoop in The Bible Translator 1952, p. 208ff. ), or “tie with wife as one, so that they tie one insides” in Luang (source: Kathy and Mark Taber in Kroneman [2004], p. 539).
In Tataltepec Chatino it is translated as “the two shall accompany each other so that they no longer seem two but are like one person,” in Choapan Zapotec as “when the man and woman live together in front of God, it is as if just one person,” and in Mezquital Otomi as “they aren’t two, it is as though they are one.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
Following are a number of back-translations of Ephesians 5:31:
Uma: “In the Holy Book it is written like this: "That is why a man leaves his mother and father, and lives at-one/in-harmony with his wife, in order that they two people become like one person."” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “It is written hep in the holy-book, saying, ‘When a man takes a wife, he leaves his mother and father and becomes one with his wife, and the two of them are one body already.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Because of this there is a written word of God which says, ‘A man will go away from his mother and father and get married; and as for those two, the man and the woman, they will become one.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “There is a written word of God which says, ‘That is the reason why a man leaves his father and mother in order to take-up-residence-with his spouse, and they become one.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “That’s why, when a man has married, he now leaves his father and mother for he and his wife now share-together. Well it’s none other than they are now like one body-entity.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “It is written in the Holy Book: ‘When a man marries he leaves his father and mother in order to live with his wife. Because now these two people might be said to be only one person in that the same life they have.'” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
The Greek text of verse 31 is composed entirely of the quotation of Genesis 2.24; there are no introductory words. Good News Translation, for clarity, has added As the scripture says (see also New English Bible, Translator’s New Testament). Since in so many languages one cannot speak of the Scriptures “saying something,” one may need to change As the scripture says to “As one can read in the writings” or “As one can read in the Holy Writings.”
The phrase which begins the quotation, For this reason, differs in the Greek text here from the Septuagint of Genesis 2.24 but has the same meaning. In this context the phrase has no clear meaning and is used only because it is part of the text cited. As Robinson remarks, Genesis 2.24 is quoted to justify the statement of the writer of Ephesians that a man who loves his wife loves himself. Barth says that “for this reason” introduces the rest of the quotation from Genesis 2.24, because the relation of Christ to the church is the fulfillment of what Genesis 2.24 says about a man becoming one flesh with his wife. This seems quite fanciful.
Because of the fact that the phrase For this reason does not point specifically to some previous statement in the text of Ephesians, it may be more satisfactory to use a somewhat more general transitional phrase or word, for example, “accordingly” or “so.”
The compound verb translated unite occurs elsewhere in the New Testament only in Mark 10.7 (where Gen 2.24 is also quoted; in the quotation in Matt 19.5 the simple form of “unite” is used; it is also used in 1 Cor 6.16, 17, where Paul also quotes from Gen 2.24). The word has a definite sexual dimension, alluding to the sexual union of husband and wife; in 1 Corinthians 6.16 Paul uses the simple form of the verb in the same sense of a man having intercourse with a prostitute.
In translating the statement a man will leave his father and mother one must avoid the implication of “desert” or “abandon.” Will leave his father and mother can often be best rendered as “will leave the home of his father and mother.” Or else in some languages it may be necessary to say “For this reason a man’s primary relationship (or, responsibility) is no longer with his father and mother, but with his wife. When he marries, he and his wife become one.”
Good News Translationthe two will become one translates the Greek “the two will become one flesh” (see Revised Standard Version). It may be impossible to translate the two will become one, especially if the predicate numeral “one” must show plural agreement with the subject. Therefore it may be necessary to translate this by “the two will become like one person.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert C. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1982. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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