complete verse (Matthew 18:32)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 18:32:

  • Uma: “Hearing that earlier, the king became angry. He ordered people to go call that slave whose behavior was evil. When he arrived, he said to him: ‘You (sing.) are very evil! Your (sing.) debt I wiped our of my books, because you (sing.) pleaded-for-mercy to me.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Therefore the sultan commanded the servant who had the great debt to come to him again. ‘You are really wicked/a fool,’ he said. ‘I told you, surprise, you need not pay your debt because you asked me to have pity.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And the king called that servant, and he said, ‘You are a wicked slave. I forgave you, and I removed from you the debt just because you begged me.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “‘Whereupon the king had-that official of his -called and he said to him, ‘Your (sing.) behavior is bad (strong rebuke)! I canceled (lit. set-aside) your (sing.) debt because you (sing.) entreated me.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “When that king knew, he at once sent for (him). On arriving, he said, ‘You, your nature/ways are really evil! I just wrote-off-as-paid the whole of your debt because you begged me for mercy.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “The boss then ordered for that one to be called again and he said to him: ‘You evil man. Here I forgave you all the money you owed me to do you the favor you asked.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Matthew 18:32

Summoned is translated “called … in” by Good News Translation (New Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible “sent for”) and him is identified as “the servant.” It may be necessary to render “called in the servant who had owed him so much money” or “… whose debt he had canceled.”

In the context wicked probably means something like “worthless” (Good News Translation) or “good for nothing.” New English Bible renders “You scoundrel!” and Barclay has “You utter scoundrel!” In translation it is suggested that a strong, though not vulgar, expression be used.

In Greek all that debt (Good News Translation “the whole amount you owed me”) is given a position of emphasis. In some languages it may be more logical to invert the order of the two clauses: “You begged me to forgive you, and so I canceled your entire debt.” Some translators have made the expression even stronger by saying “all that huge debt.”

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 .