buying / selling

The Greek that is translated as “buying” and “selling” in English is both translated in Ulithian as “exchange.” Stephen Hre Kio (in The Bible Translator 1987, p. 246f. ) explains: “There are buyers and sellers in the Temple whom Jesus drove away. But Ulithians do not buy or sell; they only exchange. And so we have ‘exchange’ for both buying and selling.”

dove, pigeon

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “dove” or “pigeon” in English is translated in Pijin with the onomatopoeia kurrukurru. (Source: Bob Carter)

In righteous anger he attacked hypocrisy (image)

“Jesus is doing something extremely dangerous here. The Thai temple is a place in which it is considered by religious people inappropriate to show any anger or strong emotions. It has to be an extremely urgent reason for someone to do something as violent as this in such a sacred space.”

Drawing by Sawai Chinnawong who employs northern and central Thailand’s popular distinctive artistic style originally used to depict Buddhist moral principles and other religious themes; explanation by Paul DeNeui. From That Man Who Came to Save Us by Sawai Chinnawong and Paul H. DeNeui, William Carey Library, 2010.

For more images by Sawai Chinnatong in TIPs see here.

synagogue, temple (inner), temple (outer)

In many English translations the Greek terms “hieron” (the whole “temple” in Jerusalem or specifically the outer courts open to worshippers) and “naos” (the inner “shrine” or “sanctuary”) are translated with only one word: “temple” (see also for instance “Tempel” in German [for exception see below] and “tempel” in Dutch, Danish, or Afrikaans).

Other languages make a distinction: (Click or tap here to see more)

  • Navajo: “house in which worship is carried out” (for naos)
  • Balinese: “inner part of the Great Temple” (“the term ‘inner part’ denoting the hindmost and holiest of the two or three courts that temples on Bali usually possess”) vs. “Great Temple”
  • Telugu: “womb (i.e. interior)-of-the-abode” vs. “abode”
  • Thai: a term denoting the main audience hall of a Buddhist temple compound vs. “environs-of-the-main-audience-hall”
  • Kituba: “place of holiness of house-God Lord” vs. “house-God Lord”
  • Shipibo-Conibo: “deep in God’s house” vs. “God’s house” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • German das Buch translation by Roland Werner (publ. 2009-2022): “inner court of the temple” (Tempelinnenhof) vs. “temple”

Languages that, like English, German, Dutch, Danish, or Afrikaans don’t make that distinction include:

  • Mandarin Chinese: “聖殿 Shèng diàn” (“holy palace”)
  • Loma: “the holy place”
  • Pular: “the sacred house” (source for this and the one above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Zarma: “God’s compound”
  • Eastern Highland Otomi: “big church of the Jews”
  • Yatzachi Zapotec: “big house on top (i.e. most important)”
  • Toraja-Sa’dan: “house that is looked upon as holy, that is sacred, that is taboo and where one may not set foot” (lit. “house where-the-belly-gets-swollen” — because taboo is violated — using a term that is also applied to a Muslim mosque) (source for this and the three above: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • Mairasi: Janav Enggwarjer Weso: “Great Above One’s (God’s) House” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Noongar: Maya-maya-Kooranyi: “Sacred House” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Huehuetla Tepehua: “the big church of the Israelites”
  • Aguaruna: “the house for talking to God” (source for this and above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
  • Guhu-Samane: “festival longhouse of God” (“The biiri, ‘festival longhouse’, being the religious and social center of the community, is a possible term for ‘temple’. It is not the ‘poro house’ as such. That would be too closely identified with the cult of poro. The physical features of the building, huge and sub-divided, lend it further favor for this consideration. By qualifying it as ‘God’s biiri’ the term has become meaningful and appropriate in the context of the Scriptures.”) (Source: Ernest Richert in The Bible Translator, 1965, p. 81ff. )
  • Enga: “God’s restricted access house” (source: Adam Boyd on his blog)

Another distinction that tends to be overlooked in translations is that between hieron (“temple” in English) and sunagógé (“synagogue” in English). Euan Fry (in The Bible Translator 1987, p. 213ff. ) reports on this:

“Many older translations have simply used transliterations of ‘temple’ and ‘synagogue’ rather than trying to find equivalent terms or meaningful expressions in their own languages. This approach does keep the two terms separate; but it makes the readers depend on explanations given by pastors or teachers for their understanding of the text.

“Translators who have tried to find meaningful equivalents, for the two terms ‘temple’ and ‘synagogue’ have usually made a distinction between them in one of two ways (which focus on the contrasting components of meaning). One way takes the size and importance of the Temple to make a contrast, so that expressions such as ‘sacred meeting/ worship house of the Jews’ and ‘big sacred meeting/worship house of the Jews’ are used. The other way focuses on the different nature of the religious activity at each of the places, so that expressions such as ‘meeting/worship house of the Jews’ and ‘sacrifice/ceremony place of the Jews’ are used.

“It is not my purpose in this article to discuss how to arrive at the most precise equivalent to cover all the components of meaning of ‘temple’. That is something that each translator really has to work through for himself in the light of the present usage and possibilities in his own language. My chief concern here is that the basic term or terms chosen for ‘temple’ should give the reader of a translation a clear and correct picture of the location referred to in each passage. And I am afraid that in many cases where an equivalent like ‘house of God’ or ‘worship house’ has been chosen, the readers have quite the wrong picture of what going to the Temple or being in the Temple means. (This may be the case for the word ‘temple’ in English too, for many readers.)”

Here are some examples:

  • Bambara: “house of God” (or: “big house of worship”) vs. “worship house” (or: “small houses of worship”)
  • Toraja-Sa’dan: “house where-the-belly-gets-swollen” (see above) vs. “meeting house for discussing matters concerning religious customs” (and “church” is “house where one meets on Sunday”)
  • Navajo: “house in which worship is carried out” vs. “house of gathering” (source for all above: Bratcher / Nida)
Click or tap here to see a short video clip about Herod’s temple (source: Bible Lands 2012)

Click or tap here to see a short video clip showing synagogues in New Testament times (source: Bible Lands 2012)

See also this devotion on YouVersion .

complete verse (Mark 11:15)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 11:15:

  • Uma: “[When] they arrived in Yerusalem, Yesus went to the yard of the House of God. There is expelled the people who were selling. He overturned on them their money changing tables, and he also overturned the seats of those selling pigeons/doves.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “When they arrived in Awrusalam, Isa went into the big prayer-house and he drove out the people trading/selling and those who bought inside the house of God. He overturned the tables of the people who exchanged money. He also overturned the seats of those selling doves for sacrifices.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, he went again into the church, the House of God, and he drove out the cheats there who bought and sold. He turned over the tables of those who changed money and the seats of those who sell doves for sacrifice.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Then Jesus entered the Temple and drove-out those who were selling and buying what-would-be-offered to God. He also tipped-over the tables of those who exchanged money and the seats of those who sold doves.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “On their arriving at Jerusalem again, Jesus again entered the Templo. He drove out the traders and buyers from its like-a-yard. He turned over the tables of the money exchangers and the seats of the sellers of doves.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Jerusalem

The name that is transliterated as “Jerusalem” in English is signed in French Sign Language with a sign that depicts worshiping at the Western Wall in Jerusalem:


“Jerusalem” in French Sign Language (source: La Bible en langue des signes française )

While a similar sign is also used in British Sign Language, another, more neutral sign that combines the sign “J” and the signs for “place” is used as well. (Source: Anna Smith)


“Jerusalem” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)

Translation commentary on Mark 11:15

Text:

Before agorazontas ‘buying’ Textus Receptus omits tous ‘the ones,’ ‘those,’ which is retained by all modern editions of the Greek text.

Exegesis:

hieron (cf. 11.11) ‘Temple’: here specifically the Court of the Gentiles where all this traffic was carried on.

tous pōlountas (cf. 10.21) ‘those who sold’: the merchants who sold the animals, as well as oil, wine, and salt, for the Temple sacrifices.

tous agorazontas (cf. 6.36) ‘those who bought’: pilgrims who came to offer sacrifice and worship in the Temple.

tas trapezas (cf. 7.28) ‘the tables’ on which the money changers displayed their coins; ‘banks.’

tōn kollubistōn (only here in Mark) ‘of the money changers’: many of the worshipers, Jews of the Dispersion, would not have the half shekel coins required for the payment of the Temple tax (cf. Rawlinson).

tas kathedras (only here in Mark) ‘the chairs,’ ‘seats,’ ‘stools.’

tas peristeras (cf. 1.10) ‘the doves’ used in sacrifices, according to the requirements of the Law (cf. Lev. 12.6, 8; 14.22; 15.14, 29).

katestrepsen (only here in Mark) ‘he upset,’ ‘he overturned.’

Translation:

Came to may require alteration to ‘arrived at.’

Drive out may be rendered in a form parallel to what is used in other Gospels where the action is described as accomplished – at least in part – by the use of a whip. Where languages require a distinction between driving out as a group, or singly (as, for example, in Navajo), the former is probably preferable.

Sold and … bought is in some languages best rendered as ‘exchanged’ (or in some cultures as ‘bartered’).

Pigeons, which are very widespread, – at least in some relatively similar form – may be translated by the closest local parallel, even though the relationship may not be exact.

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 .