leprosy, leprous

The Greek and Hebrew terms that are often translated as “leprosy (or: defiling/skin disease)” or “leprous (person)” in English is translated in Mairasi as “the bad sickness,” since “leprosy is very common in the Mairasi area” (source: Enggavoter 2004).

Following are various other translations:

  • Shilluk: “disease of animals”
  • San Mateo Del Mar Huave: “devil sore” (this and the above are indigenous expressions)
  • Inupiaq: “decaying sores”
  • Kaqchikel: “skin-rotting disease” (source for this and three above: Eugene Nida in The Bible Translator 1960, p. 34f. )
  • Noongar: “bad skin disease” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Tzotzil “rotting sickness” (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.)
  • Usila Chinantec “sickness like mal de pinta” (a skin disease involving discoloration by loss of pigment) (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)

See also stricken and leprosy healed.

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Leprosy (Word Study) and leprosy .

demon

The Hebrew and Greek that is typically translated/transliterated in English as “demon” is translated in Central Mazahua as “the evil spirit(s) of the devil” (source: Ellis Deibler in Notes on Translation July, 1967, p. 5ff.).

In Sissala it is translated with kaŋtɔŋ, which traditionally referred to “either a spirit of natural phenomena such as trees, rivers, stones, etc., or the spirit of a deceased person that has not been taken into the realm of the dead. Kaŋtɔŋ can be good or evil. Evil kaŋtɔŋ can bring much harm to people and are feared accordingly. A kaŋtɔŋ can also dwell in a person living on this earth. A person possessed by kaŋtɔŋ does not behave normally.” (Source: Regina Blass in Holzhausen 1991, p. 48f.)

In Umiray Dumaget Agta it is translated as hayup or “creature, animal, general term for any non-human creature, whether natural or supernatural.” Thomas Headland (in: Notes on Translation, September 1971, p. 17ff.) explains some more: “There are several types of supernatural creatures, or spirit beings which are designated by the generic term hayup. Just as we have several terms in English for various spirit beings (elves, fairies, goblins, demons, imps, pixies) so have the Dumagats. And just as you will find vast disagreement and vagueness among English informants as to the differences between pixies and imps, etc., so you will find that no two Dumagats will agree as to the form and function of their different spirit beings.” This term can also be used in a verb form: hayupen: “creatured” or “to be killed, made sick, or crazy by a spirit.

In Yala it is translated as yapri̍ija ɔdwɔ̄bi̍ or “bad Yaprija.” Yaprijas are traditional spirits that have a range presumed activities including giving or withholding gifts, giving and protecting children, causing death and disease and rewarding good behavior. (Source: Eugene Bunkowske in Notes on Translation 78/1980, p. 36ff.)

In Lamnso’ it is translated as aànyùyi jívirì: “lesser gods who disturb, bother, pester, or confuse a person.” (Source: Fanwong 2013, p. 93)

In Paasaal it is translated as gyɩŋbɔmɔ, “beings that are in the wild and can only be seen when they choose to reveal themselves to certain people. They can ‘capture’ humans and keep them in hiding while they train the person in herbalism and divination. After the training period, which can range from a week to many years, the ‘captured’ individual is released to go back into society as a healer and a diviner. The gyɩŋbɔmɔ can also be evil, striking humans with mental diseases and causing individuals to get lost in the wild. The Pasaale worldview about demons is like that of others of the language groups in the area, including the Northern Dagara [who use kɔ̃tɔmɛ with a similar meaning].” (Source: Fabian N. Dapila in The Bible Translator 2024, p. 415ff.)

See also devil and formal pronoun: demons or Satan addressing Jesus.

complete verse (Matthew 10:8)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 10:8:

  • Uma: “Heal the sick people, make-live the dead people, heal the people who are sick with leprosy, expel demons that possess people. All the blessings that God has given you, he gave freely [lit., dry], you do not buy them. So, you also must give freely what you have.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Heal the sick, cause-to-live if someone has died, heal the lepers, drive out the demons. I have given you power/authority and you did not pay (for it), therefore help and it should not be payed for.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Cure the sick, raised those who die, cure the lepers and those afflicted with demons. That which you have received from God, he didn’t make you pay for it. Don’t you also make the people you help pay.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Heal the sick, make-alive the dead, make-good/clean the ones sick from a fearsome skin disease, and make-evil-spirits -leave. You have paid nothing for this authority I gave to you, so don’t be charging for your help either.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Heal the sick ones and even make alive those who are already dead. Heal the lepers and drive out the evil spirits from those they are possessing. Well since you have received this aid/mercy without payment, give your aid also without it having to be paid for.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “Heal the people who are sick. Cause the dead to resurrect. Heal people whose bodies have rotted. Heal the people who walk with evil spirits. This power I have given to you did not cost you anything. Therefore do not charge the people whom you heal.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

formal pronoun: Jesus addressing his disciples and common people

Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.

As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator 2002, p. 210ff.), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.

Here, Jesus is addressing his disciples, individuals and/or crowds with the formal pronoun, showing respect.

In most Dutch translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and common people with the informal pronoun, whereas they address him with the formal form.

Translation commentary on Matthew 10:8

Sick is a participle made from the same stem as the noun “sickness” in 8.17; the root meaning is “be weak.” Here sick may have to be “sick people.”

Verse 1 mentioned the authority for healing the sick and casting out demons. Two related directions are now added: raise the dead (Good News Translation “bring the dead back to life”) and cleanse lepers (Good News Translation “heal those who suffer from dreaded skin diseases”). On the cleansing of lepers, see comments on 8.2.

Raise the dead can be “raise to life those who are dead” or “bring back to life people who have died.”

As we point out in 8.2, cleanse may have to be rendered as “heal.” Similarly, lepers should probably be translated as in 8.2.

The verb translated cast out may be used in other contexts (it occurs, for example, in 7.4, 5; 8.12; 9.25), but it is the word most generally used of the expulsion of demons (see 7.22; 8.16, 31; 9.33, 34).

For comments on demons, see 8.16, and see comments on “demoniacs” in 4.24.

Without paying and without pay translate the same word in its two occurrences. New English Bible translates “without cost … without charge”; New Jerusalem Bible has “without charge” in both places.

It may be necessary in some languages to provide objects for the verbs received and give. And it may even be obligatory to indicate from whom it is they have received and to whom it is they are to give. One may then translate “I gave to you the authority to do these things and you did not have to pay me for it. So now you go and do these same things for others, and do not ask them to pay you.”

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 .