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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
Mark C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16
Mark 2 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28
OET (OET-LV) And the apprentices/followers of_Yōannaʸs and the Farisaios_party were fasting.
And they_are_coming and they_are_saying to_him:
For/Because_ why _reason the apprentices/followers of_Yōannaʸs and the apprentices/followers of_the Farisaios_party are_fasting, but the your apprentices/followers are_ not _fasting?
OET (OET-RV) Now the followers of Yohan-the-immerser and members of the Pharisees regularly fasted. So a small group came to Yeshua and asked, “How come Yohan’s followers and the Pharisee party fast regularly, yet your followers don’t?”
At the time when Jesus lived, Jewish people often went without eating food for one or more days. They did this to show they were sorry for their sins or to ask for favor from God. This is called “fasting.”
In this section people asked Jesus why he and his disciples did not fast. Jesus answered the question about fasting. Then he indicated that he was teaching a new way to live for God. His new way would not fit into the old traditions. To illustrate this point, Jesus used three comparisons:
To explain why his disciples did not fast, Jesus compared himself to a bridegroom, and he compared his disciples to wedding guests. They could not fast while he was with them.
To show that his way and the old traditions did not match, Jesus compared his new way to new cloth. The old traditional ways were like an old garment. No one would sew new cloth onto an old garment.
Then Jesus compared his new way to new wine and the old way to old wineskins. When new wine was put into old wineskins, both were ruined.
This section can be difficult for people to understand because Jesus used comparisons to illustrate a point, but he did not make the point explicit. The point was that he was teaching a new way that was different from the old Jewish traditions. In some languages it may be necessary to include a footnote to explain this.
In this section there are some ideas that may not be familiar in certain cultures. For example:
fasting
Jewish wedding customs about bridegrooms
sewing patches onto cloth
new wine and old wineskins
Consider carefully how to translate each of these ideas in a meaningful way in your language. The Notes for this section will give suggestions.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Jesus taught that his new way was different from Jewish traditions
Jesus’ new way and the old ways
This story also occurs in Matthew 9:14–17 and Luke 5:33–39.
In this paragraph it is important for readers to know what “fasting” meant in the Jewish culture. In this context, “fasting” means to abstain from food for religious reasons. The Jewish people often fasted at times when they were very serious about praying to God. See 1 Samuel 7:5, Matthew 6:16–18, Luke 2:37, Acts 13:2. Often Jewish people would fast for some time to prepare for God to speak to them (see Exodus 24, Daniel 9:3, Matthew 4:2).
John the Baptizer’s disciples and the Pharisees followed these Jewish customs.
Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were often fasting.
¶ The disciples of John the one who baptizes people and the Pharisees were fasting.
¶ At a certain time John the Baptizer’s followers and the Pharisees were deliberately abstaining from eating food,
This part of the verse is background information. It introduces a situation in which Jesus gave a new teaching. Translate this background information in a natural way in your language.
Now: The Greek conjunction that the BSB translates as Now here introduces background information. It is not a time word in this context.
John’s disciples: John had disciples, just as Jesus did. These disciples followed him, learned from him, and tried to obey his teachings. You should use the same word for “disciple” here as you use for Jesus’ disciples. See the note on 2:15b.
John: The name John refers here to John the Baptizer (John who baptized people). See the note on 1:4a. Since more than one John is mentioned in Mark, it may be necessary to make this explicit:
the disciples of John the Baptizer
the disciples of John, the one who baptized people
and the Pharisees: There is a textual issue in 2:18a. (1) Some Greek manuscripts have “the disciples of John and the Pharisees.” For example, the NET says: “John’s disciples and the Pharisees” (BSB, NIV, GNT, RSV, NJB, NET, ESV, NASB, REB, GW, NLT, CEV, NCV). (2) Some Greek manuscripts have “the disciples of John and those of the Pharisees.” For example, the JBP says: “The disciples of John and those of the Pharisees” (KJV, JBP). Option (1) has better support from Greek manuscripts. However, the phrase “disciples of the Pharisees” occurs in 2:18c. So in some languages, it may be more natural to follow option (2) and use that phrase here as well. The Pharisees were a Jewish religious group or party. They believed that it was very important to obey all of the Jewish religious laws very carefully and in detail. See the note on 2:16a.
fasting: In this context the Greek word that the BSB translates as fasting means “deliberately abstain from eating for some time.” If fasting for religious reasons is not a familiar idea in your language, you may need to explain it in a footnote or in your translation. For example:
often gave up eating for a certain time (NCV)
going without food to pray/meditate
not eating food for a certain length of time to show that they were devoted to God
So people came to Jesus and asked,
Some people came to Jesus and asked him,
and/so some people came and said to Jesus,
Some people approached Jesus and asked him
So: In Greek, 2:18b begins with a common conjunction that the BSB translates as So. Mark used this conjunction to connect what the people saw in 2:18a with what they asked Jesus in 2:18b. Connect these two events in a natural way in your language.
people: The Greek word that the BSB translates as people is literally “they.” In some languages you may need to identify more explicitly who “they” refers to. If that is true in your language, it is probably best to use a general subject, as the BSB does.
came to Jesus and asked: The people who observed the disciples of John the Baptizer and the Pharisees fasting came to Jesus to ask him a question. The NLT96 has another way to say this:
One day some people came to Jesus and asked
came: In some languages it is more natural to use a verb like “went” here instead of came.Some languages prefer to express verbs of motion from the viewpoint of the source rather than the destination. For example:
On one occasion some people went to Jesus…
asked: The Greek word that the BSB translates as asked is a general verb of speech that is often translated as “said.” Because the people asked a question, the BSB uses the English word “asked.” Use the verb of speech that is most natural in your language.
Jesus: The Greek text refers to Jesus here with a pronoun (“him” in English). Refer to him in a natural way in your language for this context.
Why don’t Your disciples fast like John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees?: The question in 2:18c–d is actually both a statement and a question. The people told Jesus that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees were fasting. They also asked him why his disciples were not fasting. In some languages it may be more natural to use two sentences to express these ideas. For example:
John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast often. Why do your disciples not fast?
Why don’t Your disciples fast like John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees?: Scholars do not agree about the function of the question in this verse. There are two views:
It is a rhetorical question. It functions as an indirect rebuke. The people were critical of Jesus because he did not make his disciples follow the traditional religious practices of the Jews.
It is a real question. The people observed the disciples of Jesus not fasting, and they wondered why they did not fast.
In English (and in Greek) the same words would be used here for a real question or a rhetorical question, so the versions are ambiguous. It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). In Luke 5:33, where this same story occurs, it is clearer that the people who spoke were criticizing Jesus.
There are at least three ways to translate this rhetorical question:
As a question. For example, the RSV says:
Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?
As a statement. For example:
John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast. Your disciples should also fast.
As a statement with a tag question. For example:
John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast. Your disciples should fast, too, shouldn’t they?
Use whichever form is most natural in your language to indicate that the people who spoke to Jesus were indirectly criticizing Jesus.
“Why don’t Your disciples fast
“Why do your disciples not fast regularly,
“Why do your disciples not go without eating because of your religion.
“Why do your disciples eat every day
fast: There are two ways to interpret the verb fast in this part of the verse:
It refers to a general practice of fasting. For example, the NCV says:
Why do John’s followers and the followers of the Pharisees often give up eating, but your followers don’t? (BSB, GNT, CEV, NCV, RSV, NLT, NET, NASB, GW, KJV, NJB)
It refers to a specific time when the disciples were fasting and people observed them. For example, the REB says:
Why is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not? (NIV, REB)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Use a general expression that refers to the practice of fasting.
like John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees?”
like the disciples of John the Baptizer and of the Pharisees fast regularly?”
like the disciples/followers of John the Baptizer and the disciples/followers of the Pharisees often go without eating because of their religion”
but the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees habitually fast.”
those of the Pharisees: In this context the phrase those of the Pharisees refers to people who followed/obeyed the teachings of the Pharisees.
There are at least two options for translating the term in this context:
Use the same term for disciples as you used for the disciples of Jesus and of John. See the note on disciples at 2:15b. See also disciple in the Glossary. This is probably best unless your term for “disciple” would not be possible to use with a group like the Pharisees.
Use a different expression or term for disciples of the Pharisees than you used for disciples of Jesus. For example:
people who obeyed the Pharisee-group teachings
If you use the first option, you may want to include a footnote to explain how the word disciples is used in this context.
In some languages it may be more natural to change the order of 2:18c and 2:18d. For example:
18dThe disciples of John and the Pharisees fast. 18cShouldn’t your disciples fast as well?
18dHow is it that Johnʼs disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, 18cbut yours are not? (NIV)
Note 1 topic: writing-newevent
καὶ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἦσαν οἱ μαθηταί Ἰωάννου καί οἱ Φαρισαῖοι νηστεύοντες Καί ἔρχονται καί λέγουσιν αὐτῷ Διά τί οἱ μαθηταί Ἰωάννου καί οἱ μαθηταί τῶν Φαρισαίων νηστεύουσιν οἱ δέ σοί μαθηταί οὒ νηστεύουσιν)
Here, the word And introduces the next major event in the story. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word or phrase that introduces the next event, or you could leave And untranslated. Alternate translation: [Later,]
Note 2 topic: writing-background
ἦσαν οἱ μαθηταὶ Ἰωάννου καὶ οἱ Φαρισαῖοι νηστεύοντες & καὶ
were the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἦσαν οἱ μαθηταί Ἰωάννου καί οἱ Φαρισαῖοι νηστεύοντες Καί ἔρχονται καί λέγουσιν αὐτῷ Διά τί οἱ μαθηταί Ἰωάννου καί οἱ μαθηταί τῶν Φαρισαίων νηστεύουσιν οἱ δέ σοί μαθηταί οὒ νηστεύουσιν)
Here Mark introduces background information that will help readers understand what happens next. Use a natural form in your language for introducing background information. Alternate translation: [it happened that the disciples of John and the Pharisees were fasting. And]
Note 3 topic: writing-pronouns
ἔρχονται
˱they˲_˓are˒_coming
The pronoun they refers to some people who asked Jesus this question. If this is not clear for your readers, you could use a form that refers to people without identifying who they are. Alternate translation: [certain people come]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / infostructure
διὰ τί οἱ μαθηταὶ Ἰωάννου καὶ οἱ μαθηταὶ τῶν Φαρισαίων νηστεύουσιν, οἱ δὲ σοὶ μαθηταὶ οὐ νηστεύουσιν
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἦσαν οἱ μαθηταί Ἰωάννου καί οἱ Φαρισαῖοι νηστεύοντες Καί ἔρχονται καί λέγουσιν αὐτῷ Διά τί οἱ μαθηταί Ἰωάννου καί οἱ μαθηταί τῶν Φαρισαίων νηστεύουσιν οἱ δέ σοί μαθηταί οὒ νηστεύουσιν)
If it would be helpful in your language, you could turn this sentence into two sentences, one giving the reason for the question, and the other asking the question. Alternate translation: [The disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast. For what reason do your disciples not fast?]
OET (OET-LV) And the apprentices/followers of_Yōannaʸs and the Farisaios_party were fasting.
And they_are_coming and they_are_saying to_him:
For/Because_ why _reason the apprentices/followers of_Yōannaʸs and the apprentices/followers of_the Farisaios_party are_fasting, but the your apprentices/followers are_ not _fasting?
OET (OET-RV) Now the followers of Yohan-the-immerser and members of the Pharisees regularly fasted. So a small group came to Yeshua and asked, “How come Yohan’s followers and the Pharisee party fast regularly, yet your followers don’t?”
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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