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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Yhn C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21
Yhn 3 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28 V30 V31 V32 V33 V34 V35 V36
OET (OET-LV) The one having the bride, is the_bridegroom, but the friend of_the bridegroom, the one having_stood and hearing from_him, is_rejoicing with_joy because_of the voice of_the bridegroom.
Therefore this the my the joy has_been_fulfilled.
OET (OET-RV) It’s the groom that has the bride—the best man is happy because he sees that the groom is happy. So I’m actually completely happy with all this.
John’s disciples had an argument with another Jew. They argued about whether John’s baptism or Jesus’ baptism was better. John told his disciples that he was just there to tell people that Jesus was the Savior. So Jesus should get more followers. Jesus was superior to him.
Here are some other possible section headings:
Jesus was more important than John the Baptist
John the Baptist told the truth that he knew about Jesus
John declared that he was not the Messiah. The Messiah, he said, was much more important than he was.
These two sentences contain a metaphor. There is a bridegroom, a bride, and a friend of the bridegroom. These represent Jesus, God’s people, and John the Baptist. See the General Comment at the end of 3:29c for ways to help make the meaning clear. As you translate this metaphor, consider the customs of your own culture. The main point of this metaphor is that the bridegroom (Jesus) is more important than his friend (John the Baptist).
The bride belongs to the bridegroom.
The bridegroom is the one who marries/takes the bride.
At a wedding the groom is the important one, the one who marries the bride.
The bride belongs to the bridegroom: This illustration or metaphor is about a wedding. It does not refer to a specific wedding, but to weddings in general. The point is that the bridegroom is the important man at any wedding. He is the one who marries the bride. Refer to Mark 2:19–20 to see how you translated bridegroom there.
Here are other ways to translate this metaphor:
The bridegroom is the one to whom the bride belongs. (GNT)
He who has the bride is the bridegroom. (NRSV)
At a wedding the groom is the one who gets married. (CEV)
The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him,
The bridegroom’s friend stands nearby and listens for his voice
The best man just waits and listens for him.
The friend of the bridegroom: The friend of the bridegroom is like the best man in Western culture. He helped the bridegroom prepare for his wedding. This is a picture of John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Jesus. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
The bridegroom’s friend (REB)
The friend who helps the bridegroom (NCV)
The friend who serves the bridegroom
stands and listens for him: The exact meaning of this expression is not clear. The friend waits and listens for the bridegroom, but it does not say where or why he waits. He may be at the bride’s house or at the bridegroom’s house.
Nor is it clear what the bridegroom says. The important point is that the best man is less important than the bridegroom. He acts in a humble way, just standing and listening. Probably he is listening for the bridegroom to arrive. Here are other ways to translate this expression:
stands by and listens to/for him
waits and listens for his coming
and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice.
and is happy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice.
He is very happy when he hears the bridegroom come.
is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice: The bridegroom’s friend is very happy just to hear the bridegroom speak. This shows that the bridegroom is much more important than his friend. His friend is content to be less important. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
He is very glad/happy that he gets to hear the bridegroom’s voice.
rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice (NRSV)
In some languages it may be natural to combine the information in this sentence. For example:
29b–cThe best man is glad just to be there and to hear the groom’s voice. (CEV)
That joy is mine, and it is now complete.
In that same way I am now completely happy.
I too am very happy that the bridegroom has come to his bride.
I am like that friend and so now I rejoice, because the Messiah has come to his people.
The Greek begins this sentence with a word that refers back to the previous statement. The NRSV translates it as “For this reason.” John indicated that he was like the bridegroom’s friend, and that he was happy just as the friend was. He was happy that the one whom he had waited for had come. He was also happy that he had heard his voice. He was even happy that now people were going to Jesus to be baptized, rather than to him. Here are other ways to translate this sentence:
This is how my own happiness is made complete. (GNT)
That’s why I am so glad. (CEV)
In the same way I am really happy. (NCV)
In 3:29d, John explains part of the metaphor—he is happy like the bridegroom’s friend is happy. However, it may still be necessary to explain more of the metaphor in your translation. Your readers need to understand that the bridegroom is a metaphor/illustration of the Messiah. Also, they should understand that he has come to his people just as the bridegroom comes to his bride. You may need to make some of this explicit. For example:
29aIt is the bridegroom who marries the bride and that is who the Messiah is like. 29b⌊I am just like a friend who helps the bridegroom. This friend listens to know that the bridegroom has come 29cand then he is glad. 29dI too am now full of joy that the Messiah has come.
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
ὁ ἔχων τὴν νύμφην, νυμφίος ἐστίν & τοῦ νυμφίου & τὴν φωνὴν τοῦ νυμφίου
the the_‹one› (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ὁ ἔχων τήν νύμφην νυμφίος ἐστίν ὁ δέ φίλος τοῦ νυμφίου ὁ ἑστηκώς καί ἀκούων αὐτοῦ χαρᾷ χαίρει διά τήν φωνήν τοῦ νυμφίου αὕτη Οὖν ἡ χαρά ἡ ἐμή πεπλήρωται)
John the Baptist uses bride and bridegroom to refer to people who believe in Jesus and Jesus himself, respectively. Since these are important terms for Christians and for Jesus, you should translate the words directly and not provide a plain explanation in the text of your translation. If it would be helpful in your language, you could translate these words with similes. Alternate translation: [The one who is like one who has a bride is like a bridegroom … of the one who is like a bridegroom … of the voice of one who is like a bridegroom]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / 123person
ὁ δὲ φίλος τοῦ νυμφίου, ὁ ἑστηκὼς καὶ ἀκούων αὐτοῦ, χαρᾷ χαίρει
the the_‹one› (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ὁ ἔχων τήν νύμφην νυμφίος ἐστίν ὁ δέ φίλος τοῦ νυμφίου ὁ ἑστηκώς καί ἀκούων αὐτοῦ χαρᾷ χαίρει διά τήν φωνήν τοῦ νυμφίου αὕτη Οὖν ἡ χαρά ἡ ἐμή πεπλήρωται)
John the Baptist is referring to himself in the third person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could translate this in the first person. Alternate translation: [But I am the friend of the bridegroom, and I stood and heard him, and I rejoice]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / doublet
χαρᾷ χαίρει
˱with˲_joy ˓is˒_rejoicing
These words mean basically the same thing. The repetition is used to emphasize how much joy John had because Jesus had come. Alternate translation: [rejoices greatly]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive
αὕτη & ἡ χαρὰ ἡ ἐμὴ πεπλήρωται
this & ¬the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ὁ ἔχων τήν νύμφην νυμφίος ἐστίν ὁ δέ φίλος τοῦ νυμφίου ὁ ἑστηκώς καί ἀκούων αὐτοῦ χαρᾷ χαίρει διά τήν φωνήν τοῦ νυμφίου αὕτη Οὖν ἡ χαρά ἡ ἐμή πεπλήρωται)
If your language does not use the passive form in this way, you can state this in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. Alternate translation: [I rejoice greatly] or [I rejoice with complete joy]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / 123person
αὕτη & ἡ χαρὰ ἡ ἐμὴ
this & ¬the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ὁ ἔχων τήν νύμφην νυμφίος ἐστίν ὁ δέ φίλος τοῦ νυμφίου ὁ ἑστηκώς καί ἀκούων αὐτοῦ χαρᾷ χαίρει διά τήν φωνήν τοῦ νυμφίου αὕτη Οὖν ἡ χαρά ἡ ἐμή πεπλήρωται)
Here, my refers to John the Baptist, the one who is speaking. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: [this joy that I, John, have]
3:29 John the Baptist saw Jesus as the bridegroom and himself as the bridegroom’s friend. His response deflected glory from himself and elevated Jesus’ stature.
OET (OET-LV) The one having the bride, is the_bridegroom, but the friend of_the bridegroom, the one having_stood and hearing from_him, is_rejoicing with_joy because_of the voice of_the bridegroom.
Therefore this the my the joy has_been_fulfilled.
OET (OET-RV) It’s the groom that has the bride—the best man is happy because he sees that the groom is happy. So I’m actually completely happy with all this.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.
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