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 12:39)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 12:39:

  • Uma: “They are happy to be seated in the honorable seats in the prayer houses. They are happy if they are seated in the good seats in the feasts.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “If in the prayer-house, they want to sit in the seat for the respected people. Likewise if they are at a feast, their wish is to sit in the most prominent seat.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And when they are in the church, they want that they are the oens to be seated in the seats of high people. And they also want that they are greatly respected when they attend feasts.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “They also choose the best seats in the sinagoga (synagogue), and when they go to join-in-eating, it has to be the important people that they go and sit-with.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “And their favorite seats in the worship-place are the seats where important people are seated. It’s like that too at feasts.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Choapan Zapotec: “Also they want to sit where the respected people sit in the synagogue. Also when there is a fiesta, they want to eat first.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

Translation commentary on Mark 12:39

Exegesis:

prōtokathedrias en tais sunagōgais ‘the chief seats in the synagogues,’ ‘the places of importance in the synagogues’: it is explained that in the synagogue such seats were to be found in front of the Ark (which contained the sacred scrolls), facing the people, reserved for the scribes and other dignitaries.

sunagogē (cf. 1.21) ‘synagogue.’

prōtoklisias en tois deipnois ‘the chief couches at the banquets,’ ‘the places of honor at the banquets’: these were next to the host (for an instance of this cf. Lk. 14.7).

deipnon (cf. 6.21) ‘reception,’ ‘formal dinner,’ ‘banquet.’

Translation:

This verse is a continuation of the construction begun in 12.38, but it is often not possible to employ a series of relative clauses. Accordingly, one must generally break the sentence at this point and reintroduce the subject, e.g. ‘they like the best seats.’ ‘Best,’ however, should not refer to the quality of the seats, but to the distinction and prestige accompanying the position, e.g. ‘the most important seats.’

For synagogues see 1.21.

At feasts may require expansion to ‘when they attend banquets,’ or ‘when they are feasting,’ since feasts may be translatable only by what is a verb, not a noun.

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 .