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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 (JHN) 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
Luke C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24
Luke 2 V1 V3 V5 V7 V9 V11 V13 V15 V17 V19 V21 V23 V27 V29 V31 V33 V35 V37 V39 V41 V43 V45 V47 V49 V51
OET (OET-LV) And see, a_man was in Hierousalaʸm, whose name was Sumeōn/(Shimˊōn), and the this_ man _was righteous and devout, waiting_for the_comfort of_ the _Israaʸl/(Yisrāʼēl), and the_ holy _spirit was on him.
OET (OET-RV) Now listen, there was a man named Simeon in Yerushalem and he was godly and committed, waiting for God to rescue Yisrael. He was full of the holy spirit
The events in this section happened some days after Jesus was born.
In 2:21–24, Luke mentioned three ceremonies that were done when Jewish boys were born:
the baby boy was circumcised;
the mother was ritually purified;
the baby boy was presented to God.
In 2:25–38 Luke described two other events that happened while Joseph, Mary, and Jesus were at the temple in Jerusalem. God allowed two righteous people named Simeon and Anna to see Jesus and to thank God for him. Simeon spoke a prophecy about Jesus and Mary.
In 2:39–40 Luke concluded the section. Joseph and Mary took Jesus back to their home in Nazareth, where he grew and became strong and wise. The Gospel of Matthew indicates that before they went to Nazareth, Joseph and Mary took Jesus to Egypt and stayed there for some time. Although Luke does not mention this, you should connect the clauses in 2:39 in a way that does not contradict it.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it. Some other possible headings for this section are:
Jesus’ Parents Obey Moses’ Teachings (GW)
Jesus Presented at the Temple (NASB)
Some English versions begin new sections at 2:25 and at 2:36. If you decide to do this in your translation, some possible headings are:
Simeon saw Jesus and prophesied about him (2:25)
Anna thanked God for Jesus and told others about him (2:36)
Simeon’s Prophecy (2:25)
Anna’s Prophecy (2:36)
Now there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon,
¶ At that time a man named Simeon lived in Jerusalem.
¶ In the city of Jerusalem there was a man whose name was Simeon.
Now there was: In this context the Greek phraseThis Greek phrase is kai idou. It occurs twenty-six times in Luke at 1:20, 1:31, 1:36, 2:25, 5:12, 5:18, 7:12, 7:37, 8:41, 9:30, 9:38, 9:39, 10:25, 11:31, 11:32, 11:41, 13:11, 13:30, 14:2, 19:2, 23:14, 23:15, 23:50, 24:4, 24:13, and 24:49. that the BSB translates as Now introduces background information about a new person in the story. You should introduce this background information in a natural way in your language. Some ways to do this in English are:
At that time (GNT)
There was at that time (REB)
In Jerusalem lived (NCV)
who was righteous and devout.
He was a righteous/moral man and careful to follow God.
He did what God said was good, and he was faithful to God.
righteous: The Greek word that the BSB translates here as righteous means “morally good.” It refers to a person who does what pleases God, that is, what is right according to God’s standards. Some other ways to translate righteous are:
He was a good man
He lived right
He lived in a way that pleased God
He obeyed God’s law
The same Greek word that the BSB translates here as righteous was also used in 1:6a.
devout: The Greek word that the BSB translates as devout refers to a person who has great reverence for God. He respects God, so he is careful to do what God requires. Some other ways to translate this word are:
careful to follow God
sincere in serving God
faithful to God
He was waiting for the consolation of Israel,
He was waiting for the one who would comfort Israel. (GW)
He longed to see the Christ who would comfort the people of Israel,
waiting: In this context, the word waiting indicates that Simeon was waiting for, expecting, and looking forward to something. God had promised to send a Savior. Simeon was waiting and hoping for the Savior to come.
the consolation of Israel: The Greek word that the BSB translates here as consolation may also be translated as “comfort.”The Greek word here is paraklēsis. The root of this word is the same as the root of the word that has traditionally been translated as “the Comforter” in John 14–16. The phrase the consolation of Israel refers here specifically to the Messiah, who would comfort God’s people Israel. God had promised to send the Messiah to comfort them.
Some ways to translate the consolation of Israel in this context are:
Translate consolation in a general way with a word such as “comfort” or “salvation.” For example:
living in expectation of the “salvation of Israel” (JBP)
Translate consolation by referring more specifically to the Messiah. For example:
waiting for the one who would comfort Israel (GW)
eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel (NLT)
and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
The Holy Spirit was with him.
and God’s Spirit guided him.
the Holy Spirit was upon him: The Holy Spirit was with Simeon. He was guiding him and showing him what God planned to do.
Holy Spirit: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as Holy Spirit refers to the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit is God, together with God the Father and God the Son. The Holy Spirit is Spirit in the sense that he is a living being who does not have a physical body. He is Holy in the sense that he is divine. He is perfect in every way and is completely pure and sinless. Because of these qualities, he is worthy of awe.
Some other ways to translate Holy Spirit are:
Spirit/Breath of God
God’s Spirit
Sacred Spirit
The Holy Spirit is not a ghost of a dead person. Your translation should not imply this or that God has died.
This term also occurs in 1:15c. Translate it the same way in both places. See holy, sense A2, in KBT.
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
ἰδοὺ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἰδού ἄνθρωπος ἦν ἐν Ἰερουσαλήμ ᾧ ὄνομα Συμεών καί ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος δίκαιος καί εὐλαβής προσδεχόμενος παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ καί Πνεῦμα ἦν Ἅγιον ἐπʼ αὐτόν)
Luke uses the term behold to call the reader’s attention to what he is about to say. Your language may have a similar expression that you can use here.
Note 2 topic: writing-participants
ἄνθρωπος ἦν ἐν Ἰερουσαλὴμ, ᾧ ὄνομα Συμεών
˓a˒_man was in man (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἰδού ἄνθρωπος ἦν ἐν Ἰερουσαλήμ ᾧ ὄνομα Συμεών καί ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος δίκαιος καί εὐλαβής προσδεχόμενος παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ καί Πνεῦμα ἦν Ἅγιον ἐπʼ αὐτόν)
Luke uses this phrase to introduce a new character into the story. If your language has its own way of doing that, you could use it here in your translation.
Note 3 topic: translate-names
Συμεών
Simeon_‹was›
Simeon is the name of a man.
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / doublet
ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος δίκαιος καὶ εὐλαβής
¬the man this_‹was› righteous (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἰδού ἄνθρωπος ἦν ἐν Ἰερουσαλήμ ᾧ ὄνομα Συμεών καί ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος δίκαιος καί εὐλαβής προσδεχόμενος παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ καί Πνεῦμα ἦν Ἅγιον ἐπʼ αὐτόν)
The terms righteous and devout mean similar things. Luke uses the two terms together to emphasize what a godly man Simeon was. If it would be helpful in your language, you could combine them. Alternate translation: [he was a godly man]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom
προσδεχόμενος
waiting_for
This is an idiomatic usage of the term waiting. It does not mean passively waiting for something to happen, but eagerly anticipating something that someone wants to happen. Alternate translation: [eagerly anticipating] or [looking forward to]
Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy
παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ
˓the˒_comfort ¬the ˱of˲_Israel
This phrase refers by association to the one who would bring consolation, meaning “comfort,” to the people of Israel. Alternate translation: [the one who would come and comfort the people of Israel] or [the one who would come to help the people of Israel]
Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ
˓the˒_comfort ¬the ˱of˲_Israel
Luke assumes that readers will know that this is a reference to the Messiah. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could state that explicitly. Alternate translation: [the Messiah, who would come to help the people of Israel]
Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / personification
τοῦ Ἰσραήλ
¬the ˱of˲_Israel
Luke is referring to all of the Israelites as if they were a single person, their ancestor, Israel. Alternate translation: [of the people of Israel]
Note 9 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
Πνεῦμα ἦν Ἅγιον ἐπ’ αὐτόν
˓the˒_Spirit was Holy on him
The word upon creates a spatial metaphor that means that the Spirit of God was with Simeon in a special way. The Spirit gave him knowledge and direction for his life, as the next two verses show. Alternate translation: [the Holy Spirit guided him in special ways]
2:25 Simeon was righteous and devout, like Zechariah and Elizabeth (1:6). They represent the righteous remnant of Israel that awaited God’s salvation (Isa 10:20-22). Some have assumed that Simeon was a priest; the text says only that he was a devout man in Jerusalem.
• eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel (literally awaiting Israel’s consolation): This is an allusion to Isa 40:1, which promised comfort to Israel after returning from exile.
• The Holy Spirit was upon him: See study note on Luke 1:41.
OET (OET-LV) And see, a_man was in Hierousalaʸm, whose name was Sumeōn/(Shimˊōn), and the this_ man _was righteous and devout, waiting_for the_comfort of_ the _Israaʸl/(Yisrāʼēl), and the_ holy _spirit was on him.
OET (OET-RV) Now listen, there was a man named Simeon in Yerushalem and he was godly and committed, waiting for God to rescue Yisrael. He was full of the holy spirit
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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