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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
Mat C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24 C25 C26 C27 C28
Mat 14 V1 V2 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 V29 V30 V31 V32 V33 V34 V35 V36
OET (OET-LV) For/Because the Haʸrōdaʸs having_apprehended the Yōannaʸs, bound him and put_ him _away in prison, because_of Haʸrōidias, the wife of_Filippos, the brother of_him.
OET (OET-RV) Herod said this because he had previously had Yohan arrested and put in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife.
In this section, Matthew wrote how John the Baptist was killed. This section can be difficult to translate because the events are not in chronological order.
Verses 1–2 refer to events that happened after John the Baptist died. But verses 3–12 refer back to events that had happened before John the Baptist died, and they include the story of his death. You will need to clearly indicate the change in time at 14:3.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
The Death of John the Baptist (GNT)
John the Baptist Beheaded (NASB)
There are parallel passages for this section in Mark 6:14–29 and Luke 9:7–9.
Now Herod had arrested John and bound him
¶ Herod said that because some time earlier he had John arrested, tied with ropes/chains
¶ Months before that, Herod had commanded his soldiers to arrest John, tie him up,
Now: The Greek conjunction that the BSB translates as Now is usually translated as “For.” It indicates that the events in 14:3–12a are the reason/basis for Herod’s statements in 14:2. Herod wrongfully killed John (14:7–10), so he may have thought that God corrected that wrong by causing John to live again.
The events of 14:3–5 happened several months or even a year before 14:1–2. The story of Jesus does not resume until 14:12b. You may want to indicate that a change in time begins here at 14:3.
Here are some other ways to translate this:
Because earlier
For previously
He said that because some months earlier
Some time earlier
Herod had arrested John: This clause means that Herod commanded his soldiers to arrest John. Herod himself did not arrest John.
Here are some other ways to make this clear:
Herod had earlier ordered his men to arrest John
Herod sent his soldiers, and they went and arrested John
and bound him: The Greek word that the BSB translates as bound means “tie” a person so that he cannot escape. Here the soldiers tied John’s arms and/or legs with either ropes or chains.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
and tied him with ropes/chains
and he had him tied up (GNT)
This word does not imply that the soldiers tied John so tightly that he could not move.
and put him in prison
and locked up in prison.
and imprison him. So they did it.
and put him in prison: In some languages the idea of put him in prison is expressed as a verb. For example:
caused him to be imprisoned
Other languages do not have a specific word for prison. These languages can express the idea of “put in prison” as:
locked/tied in a room
on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife,
He did this because of Herodias who had been the wife of his brother Philip,
He did those things to please his wife. Her name was Herodias. Herodias had earlier been the wife of his older brother Philip.
on account of Herodias: The Greek word that the BSB translates as on account of means “because of” Herodias. When John told Herod that it was not lawful for him to have Herodias, he offended both Herod and Herodias. As a result, Herodias had a grudge against John (Mark 6:19a). So Herod put him in prison “to appease Herodias” or “to make Herodias happy.”
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
because of Herodias (NIV)
as a favor to…Herodias (NLT)
Herod did this for Herodias (GW)
Herodias: The word Herodias is the name of a woman. You should write the name Herodias according to the spelling system that your language uses for a woman’s name.
She is a new person in the story. If your language has a particular way to introduce new people into a story, you should use it here.
his brother Philip’s wife: Herodias had been married to Philip. Philip was Herod’s older brother.While there is no direct statement in the Bible or in Josephus that Philip was Herod’s older brother, Josephus does state that Herod the Great married Philip’s mother before he married Herod Antipas’ mother. So it is assumed that Philip was born before Herod Antipas. Herod divorced his first wife to marry Herodias. And Herodias divorced Philip to marry Herod. Then Herod and Herodias got married while Philip was still alive.
Because Herodias was no longer married to Philip, it may not be natural in your language to use the phrase Philip’s wife. You may need to say:
Herodias, who had previously been married to Herod’s older brother Philip
Herodias, who was formerly the wife of Philip, older brother of Herod
Note 1 topic: writing-background
γὰρ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Γάρ Ἡρῴδης κρατήσας τόν Ἰωάννην ἔδησεν αὐτόν καί ἐν φυλακῇ ἀπέθετο διά Ἡρῳδιάδα τήν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ)
The word For introduces background information that tells about how John died. This background information continues in [14:4–12](../14/04.md). In your translation, present this information in a way that makes it clear that this is background information, not the next event in the story. Alternate translation: [Now sometime earlier,] or [By this time, John had already died. Here is what happened:]
Note 2 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result
ὁ & Ἡρῴδης κρατήσας τὸν Ἰωάννην, ἔδησεν αὐτὸν καὶ ἐν φυλακῇ ἀπέθετο, διὰ Ἡρῳδιάδα, τὴν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου, τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ
¬the & Herod ˓having˒_apprehended (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Γάρ Ἡρῴδης κρατήσας τόν Ἰωάννην ἔδησεν αὐτόν καί ἐν φυλακῇ ἀπέθετο διά Ἡρῳδιάδα τήν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ)
If it would be more natural in your language, you could reverse the order of these elements, since the second half of the verse gives the reason for the result that the first half of the verse describes. Alternate translation: [Because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, Herod, having seized John, bound him and put him in prison]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ὁ & Ἡρῴδης κρατήσας τὸν Ἰωάννην, ἔδησεν αὐτὸν καὶ ἐν φυλακῇ ἀπέθετο
¬the & Herod ˓having˒_apprehended (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Γάρ Ἡρῴδης κρατήσας τόν Ἰωάννην ἔδησεν αὐτόν καί ἐν φυλακῇ ἀπέθετο διά Ἡρῳδιάδα τήν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ)
Matthew implies that Herod sent his soldiers to do these things. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [Herod sent his soldiers to seize John, bind him, and put him in prison]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
διὰ Ἡρῳδιάδα, τὴν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου, τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Γάρ Ἡρῴδης κρατήσας τόν Ἰωάννην ἔδησεν αὐτόν καί ἐν φυλακῇ ἀπέθετο διά Ἡρῳδιάδα τήν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ)
Matthew implies that Herod married Herodias after she divorced Philip, Herod’s brother. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [because of Herodias, whom he married after she divorced his brother Philip]
Note 5 topic: writing-participants
Ἡρῳδιάδα, τὴν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου, τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ
Herodias (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Γάρ Ἡρῴδης κρατήσας τόν Ἰωάννην ἔδησεν αὐτόν καί ἐν φυλακῇ ἀπέθετο διά Ἡρῳδιάδα τήν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ)
Matthew introduces Herodias as a new participant in the story. If your language has its own way of introducing new participants, you could use it here in your translation. Alternate translation: [a woman named Herodias, who was the wife of his brother Philip]
Note 6 topic: translate-names
Φιλίππου
˱of˲_Philip
The word Philip is the name of a man.
Note 7 topic: translate-kinship
τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ
the brother ˱of˲_him
It is not certain whether Philip was older or younger than Herod, but it is slightly more likely that he was older. So, if you have to use a form that refers to an older or younger brother, you could state that Philip was older. Alternate translation: [his older brother]
Note 8 topic: writing-pronouns
αὐτοῦ
˱of˲_him
The pronoun his refers to Herod. If this is not clear for your readers, you could use the person's name here. Alternate translation: [Herod’s]
14:3-12 The popular appeal of John’s message posed a political threat (see Josephus, Antiquities 18.5.2). Years after John’s execution, the Jews viewed Herod’s military defeat at the hands of Aretas (AD 36) as a just recompense for putting an innocent man to death.
OET (OET-LV) For/Because the Haʸrōdaʸs having_apprehended the Yōannaʸs, bound him and put_ him _away in prison, because_of Haʸrōidias, the wife of_Filippos, the brother of_him.
OET (OET-RV) Herod said this because he had previously had Yohan arrested and put in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife.
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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