hell

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The Greek that is translated in English versions as “hell” (or “Gehenna”) is translated (1) by borrowing a term from a trade or national language (this is done in a number of Indian languages in Latin America, which have borrowed Spanish “infierno” — from Latin “infernus”: “of the lower regions”), (2) by using an expression denoting judgment or punishment, e.g. “place of punishment” (Loma), “place of suffering” (Highland Totonac, San Blas Kuna) and (3) by describing a significant characteristic: (a) the presence of fire or burning, e.g. “place of fire” (Kipsigis, Mossi), “the large bonfire” (Shipibo-Conibo), or (b) the traditionally presumed location, e.g. “the lowest place” (a well-known term in Ngäbere), “the place inside” long used to designate hell, as a place inside the earth (Aymara). (Source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)

In Noongar it is translated as Djinbaminyap or “Punishing place” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang) and in Tagbanwa as “the fire which had no dying down” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation).

The Mandarin Chinese dìyù (地獄 / 地狱), literally “(under) earth prison,” is a term that was adopted from Buddhist sources into early Catholic writings and later also by Protestant translators. (Source: Zetzsche 1996, p. 32)

cause to stumble, offend

“The word ‘offend’ as a translation of the Greek skandalizó seems to cause all sorts of trouble for translators. The difficulty is that the meaning of this word covers such a wide area. The basic meaning of the Greek is ‘to cause to stumble by putting some impediment in the way.’ The present central meaning of English ‘offend’ is often quite different. In some languages there is no metaphorical value in a translation ‘to cause someone to stumble.’ If the language permits no such metaphor, the translator should not attempt to force it. In Highland Totonac, the metaphor ‘to show the wrong road to’ is used in a manner almost exactly parallel to the Greek idiom.” (Source: Nida 1947)

In San Blas Kuna the translation is “spoil the heart” (source: Claudio and Marvel Iglesias in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 85ff.).

See also fall away, stumble.

complete verse (Mark 9:43)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 9:43:

  • Uma: “‘If for instance one of our hands makes [lit., carries] us sin, just cut it off. It’s better we have just one hand, as long as we get good life with God. That would be far better than for us to have two hands yet in the end we enter hell in the fire that blazes continually.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “If your hand carries/influences you to sin, leave your sin. It’s parable is, as if you cut off your hand. It is better for you to enter heaven even if you are maimed (putuk), than that you have two hands but go to hell, into the fire that cannot be put out.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “If your hand is the means by which you are successfully tempted, cut it off and throw it away because it is better if you are maimed and given eternal life rather than having two hands you are thrown into hell where the fire is never put out.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Therefore if your (sing.) hand/arm is what-makes-you-(sing.)-sin, cut-it-off. Because it would be better if you (sing.) go to share the life in heaven with one hand/arm cut-off than your (sing.) having two hands/arms and you (sing.) are thrown into the place of fire that never goes-out.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “For supposing your (sing.) hand is where the sin you do originates, just cut it off. For it doesn’t matter even if one hand is cut off, as long as life which is without ending will be yours. Rather than having both hands which will be thrown there in the fire which never dies down.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Mark 9:43

Exegesis:

apokopson (9.45) ‘cut (it) off.’

kullon (only here in Mark) ‘maimed,’ ‘crippled,’ ‘deformed.’

eiselthein eis tēn zōēn (9.45) ‘to enter into life’: i.e. future life, eternal life, the blessed life with God (cf. zōē aiōnios ‘eternal life’ 10.17, 30).

apelthein eis tēn geennan ‘go away to Gehenna,’ ‘go off into hell’ (for aperchomai eis ‘go away to’ cf. 6.32, 36, 46; 7.24, 30; 8.13).

apelthein ‘to go off’: in the light of the use of exelthein ‘to go out’ in 7.29 with the meaning ‘to be cast out,’ and of the passive verb blēthēnai ‘to be thrown’ in the parallel passages in vv. 45, 47, it is probable that apelthein here means simply ‘to be cast,’ ‘to be thrown,’ as synonym of blēthēnai ‘to be thrown’ in vv. 45, 47.

geenna (9.45|, 47prj:GRK.Mark 9.45) in the New Testament is ‘hell,’ the eschatological place of final punishment.

asbeston (only here in Mark) ‘unquenchable,’ ‘inextinguishable,’ ‘which cannot be put out.’

Translation:

As suggested in the previous verses ‘cause to stumble’ (which is the literal meaning of the Greek text) must be modified in various translations. In this particular verse a literal rendering might be entirely misleading, i.e. ‘to stumble over one’s hands’ or ‘to be tripped up because of one’s hands.’ Accordingly, one must use some other equivalent expression, e.g. ‘if your heart is spoiled because of your hand’ (Kekchi). In Copainalá Zoque the appropriate expression for this passage is ‘if your hand causes you to be lost.’

In languages in which comparative expressions cannot be formed by the ready use of certain special forms or idioms (there are a number of languages which have no such morphological or syntactic devices), a number of adjustments may be required. For example, in Tzeltal one may say ‘it is good if you enter … with just one hand, but if you have two hands and go to hell…, poor you!’ The comparative is only implied, not specifically stated. However, the ultimate effect of the communication is just as positive as it is in English, Greek, or any other languages which have specific comparative constructions such as better … than.

Enter life cannot be said in many languages, for the concept of ‘life’ may be translatable only as a verb. In Kekchi, for example, one must translate ‘enter into heaven and live.’ It is quite true that in the Greek text ‘enter life’ is not restricted specifically to going to heaven, but in contrast with going to Gehenna the parallelism does support such an addition.

Hell (reflecting the use of Greek Gehenna) is rendered in three principal ways: (1) by borrowing a term from a trade or national language (this is done in a number of Indian languages in Latin America, which have borrowed Spanish infierno), (2) by using an expression denoting judgment or punishment, e.g. ‘place of punishment’ (Loma (Liberia)), ‘place of suffering’ (Highland Totonac, San Blas Kuna), or ‘place of destruction,’ and (3) by describing a significant characteristic: (a) the presence of fire or burning, e.g. ‘place of fire’ (Kipsigis, More), ‘the large bonfire’ (Shipibo-Conibo), or (b) the traditionally presumed location, e.g. ‘the lowest place’ (a well-known term in Ngäbere), ‘the place inside’ long used to designate hell, as a place inside the earth (Aymara).

In choosing a word for hell it is equally important to study possibilities for translating hades (see Bible Translating, 231-32). This latter term is transliterated (not too common a practice) or described as ‘the place of the dead’ (though distinguished clearly from ‘cemetery’).

If hell is translated as ‘the place of fire,’ then the added expression to the unquenchable fire may be combined as ‘to the place of fire which cannot be put out.’

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 .