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OET (OET-LV) And answered one of of_the elders, saying to_me:
These, which having_been_clothed in_the robes the white, who_all they_are and from_where they_came?
OET (OET-RV) Then one of the elders asked me, “Who are those people in white robes and where have they come from?”
In this section, John saw a new part of this vision. He saw believers rejoicing, praising, and worshiping in heaven. One of the elders around the throne (4:4) explained the vision to John.
Other examples of headings for this section are:
The vision of a huge crowd of believers and its explanation
The Great Multitude in White Robes (NIV)
God’s People Around His Throne in Heaven (GW)
Then one of the elders addressed me:
¶ In response, one of the elders/leaders asked me,
¶ Then one of the leaders responded to the words of the angels and asked me,
one of the elders addressed me: The Greek words are literally “one of the elders answered and said to me.” The word “answered” probably indicates that the elder responded to the praise of the angels (7:12). He responded by speaking to John. Other ways to translate these words are:
one of the elders responded and asked me
one of the elders asked me (NIV)
One of the elders turned to me and asked (REB)
“These in white robes,” he asked, “who are they,
“These people in white robes, who are they,
“Who are these people wearing white robes?
and where have they come from?”
and where are they from?”
Where did they come from?”
“These in white robes,” he asked, “who are they, and where have they come from?”: This is a leading question. It causes someone to think about what the answer might be. The elder knew the answer to this question and he also knew that John did not know the answer. He asked John this question to cause John to think about the people in white robes. Since John replied, you should translate these words as a question.
These in white robes…who are they…?: The words These in white robes are emphasized in the Greek and the BSB by being first in the clause. Some languages will not be able to emphasize those words in that way. For example:
who are these in white robes…?
If possible emphasize the words These in white robes in another way. For example:
Look at these people dressed in white robes. Who are they…?
What about those people dressed in white robes? Who are they…?
who are they, and where have they come from?: These clauses are two questions. In some languages it is more natural to separate the questions. For example:
Who are they? Where have they come from?
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / hendiadys
ἀπεκρίθη & λέγων μοι
answered & saying (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἀπεκρίθη εἱς ἐκ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων λέγων μοί Οὗτοι οἱ περιβεβλημένοι τάς στολάς τάς λευκάς τίνες εἰσίν καί πόθεν ἦλθον)
This phrase expresses a single idea by using two words connected with and. The word responded indicates that this elder was saying these things to John in response to what John was seeing in this vision. If it would be more natural in your language, you could express this meaning with an equivalent phrase that does not use “and.” Alternate translation: [asked me]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion
οὗτοι, οἱ περιβεβλημένοι τὰς στολὰς τὰς λευκὰς, τίνες εἰσὶν καὶ πόθεν ἦλθον
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἀπεκρίθη εἱς ἐκ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων λέγων μοί Οὗτοι οἱ περιβεβλημένοι τάς στολάς τάς λευκάς τίνες εἰσίν καί πόθεν ἦλθον)
This elder is using the question form to introduce something he wants to make sure John understands. Since John answers the question in the next verse, it would be appropriate to retain the question form in your translation, but if it would be helpful to your readers, you could word the question in a way that would show its purpose. Alternate translation: [Do you know who these people are who are wearing white robes and where they have come from]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive
περιβεβλημένοι τὰς στολὰς τὰς λευκὰς
˓having_been˒_clothed (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἀπεκρίθη εἱς ἐκ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων λέγων μοί Οὗτοι οἱ περιβεβλημένοι τάς στολάς τάς λευκάς τίνες εἰσίν καί πόθεν ἦλθον)
If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. Alternate translation: [the ones wearing white robes]
OET (OET-LV) And answered one of of_the elders, saying to_me:
These, which having_been_clothed in_the robes the white, who_all they_are and from_where they_came?
OET (OET-RV) Then one of the elders asked me, “Who are those people in white robes and where have they come from?”
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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