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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 4 V1 V3 V5 V7 V9 V11 V13 V15 V17 V19 V21 V23 V25 V27 V29 V31 V33 V35 V37 V39
OET (OET-LV) And they_were_afraid with_ great _fear and they_were_saying to one_another:
Who consequently is this, that both the wind and the sea is_submitting to_him?
OET (OET-RV) But now they were very afraid again and asked each other, “Who could this man be that both the wind and waves obey him?”
While Jesus and his disciples were going across Lake Galilee in a boat, a strong wind began to blow. The wind caused big waves on the lake. The waves were big enough to come into the boat. The boat was about to sink, but Jesus spoke to the waves and because Jesus had the authority to command them to stop, the wind and the waves stopped.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Jesus calmed a storm on the lake
Jesus stopped the wind and waves
A storm obeys Jesus
There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 8:23–27 and Luke 8:22–25.
Overwhelmed with fear, they asked one another,
They were filled with amazement and fear and asked each other,
They were greatly amazed and fearful and said among themselves,
Overwhelmed with fear: The Greek words that the BSB translates as Overwhelmed with fear is literally “they feared with great fear.” The verb “feared” and the noun “fear” can mean both “afraid” and “wonder, amazement.” Probably both meanings are indicated here. If possible use an expression that includes these meanings. For example:
They were filled with fear and amazement
They were greatly afraid and amazed
They were astounded
asked: The first sentence in 4:41b is a question, but the second sentence is a statement. You will need to decide whether it is more natural in your language to use the verb “said” or “asked” here.
“Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
“What kind of man/person is this? Even the wind and waves/water obey him.”
“Even the wind and the waves obey him, so where did this man get such authority?”
The Greek text of 4:41b includes a word that is translated in different ways by English versions. The BSB leaves this word implied. Some English versions have translated it as “then.” For example, the NET says:
Who then is this?
In this context the word “then” implies a conclusion that people make because of certain evidence. The disciples realized that Jesus had showed amazing authority. They were asking what that evidence showed about who he was.
Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?: In the Greek, 4:41b is one sentence in the form of a question. The NRSV follows the Greek structure and translates this literally as:
Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
It may be natural in your language to follow the BSB and the NRSV and include the words even the wind and the sea obey Him in the question. However, if this would not be natural, you could follow the NIV and other English versions that separate the words even the wind and the sea obey Him from the question:
Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him! (NIV)
Who then is this? Even the wind and sea obey him! (NET)
Translate this as one sentence or two, whichever is natural in your language.
Who is this: This is a rhetorical question. It strongly indicates surprise, fear, and amazement. The disciples were not asking for Jesus’ name. Instead, they were wondering what kind of man Jesus was and how he could do such powerful miracles.
The Jews believed that only God controlled such things as wind and waves. So the disciples were asking who Jesus could be that he could do the same things God does. Translate this sentence in a way which indicates surprise and awe.
Here are some other ways to translate this:
As a rhetorical question. For example:
What kind of man/person then is this?
As an exclamatory statement. For example:
This man is amazing! No one but God can do what he has done!
that even the wind and the sea obey Him?: Usually the subject of the verb obey is a person or an animal. But here the subject is the wind and the sea. It may be more natural in your language to reword this clause to indicate that the wind and waves did as Jesus commanded. For example:
Even the wind and the sea do as he commands!
He commanded the wind and the sea to stop, and they stopped!
He controls even the wind and the sea!
sea: The Greek word that the BSB literally translates as sea refers to the water of the Sea of Galilee. For this reason, the NIV translates this word as “waves.” See how you translated this word in 4:39a.
The clause even the wind and the sea obey him begins with the word “that” in the Greek text. The word “that” indicates that the clause even the wind and the sea obey him gives the reason for asking Who is this? It may be more natural in your language to have the reason clause first. For example:
Even the wind and the waves obey him, so who is this?
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom
ἐφοβήθησαν φόβον μέγαν
˱they˲_˓were˒_afraid ˱with˲_fear great
Here, the phrase feared a great fear means that they were extremely afraid. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable phrase or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [they were extremely afraid] or [they were terrified]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / infostructure
τίς ἄρα οὗτός ἐστιν, ὅτι καὶ ὁ ἄνεμος καὶ ἡ θάλασσα ὑπακούει αὐτῷ?
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἐφοβήθησαν φόβον μέγαν καί ἔλεγον πρός ἀλλήλους Τίς ἄρα οὗτος ἐστίν ὅτι καί ὁ ἄνεμος καί ἡ θάλασσα αὐτῷ ὑπακούει)
If it would be helpful in your language, you could turn this into two sentences, one asking the question, and the other giving the reason for the question. Alternate translation: [Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!]
τίς ἄρα οὗτός ἐστιν, ὅτι καὶ ὁ ἄνεμος καὶ ἡ θάλασσα ὑπακούει αὐτῷ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἐφοβήθησαν φόβον μέγαν καί ἔλεγον πρός ἀλλήλους Τίς ἄρα οὗτος ἐστίν ὅτι καί ὁ ἄνεμος καί ἡ θάλασσα αὐτῷ ὑπακούει)
This is a genuine question, not a statement in question form. The disciples are looking for information about what kind of person Jesus could be if he can do these things. Alternate translation: [Who then is this person, for even the wind and the sea obey him]
Note 3 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result
τίς ἄρα
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἐφοβήθησαν φόβον μέγαν καί ἔλεγον πρός ἀλλήλους Τίς ἄρα οὗτος ἐστίν ὅτι καί ὁ ἄνεμος καί ἡ θάλασσα αὐτῷ ὑπακούει)
Here, the word then indicates that the disciples ask this question in response to what Jesus has done. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [So then, who] or [Given what he just did, who]
4:41 The disciples were absolutely terrified—a frequent response to Jesus in Mark (5:15, 33; 6:50; 9:32; 10:32; 11:18; 16:8).
• Who is this man? Readers already know that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God (1:1, 11, 24; 3:11).
OET (OET-LV) And they_were_afraid with_ great _fear and they_were_saying to one_another:
Who consequently is this, that both the wind and the sea is_submitting to_him?
OET (OET-RV) But now they were very afraid again and asked each other, “Who could this man be that both the wind and waves obey him?”
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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