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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 ESA 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
Rom C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16
Rom 13 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14
OET (OET-LV) To_no_one nothing be_owing, except not/lest which one_another to_be_loving, because/for the one loving the other, the_law has_fulfilled.
OET (OET-RV) Don’t be in debt to anyone other than the debt of love to each other, because those who love one another have fulfilled God’s law
In this section, Paul urged believers to love each other. This requirement to love is like a debt that they always owe, so they must always be loving each other. Loving others fulfills the Old Testament law.
Here are other possible headings for this section:
Love fulfills the Laws of Moses
We must love our fellow believers
Be indebted to no one,
¶ Do not owe anyone anything,
¶ Do not have a debt with anyone.
Be indebted to no one: The Greek text literally says: “To no one owe nothing.” The two negatives (“no one” and “nothing”) strengthen the command in Greek to not owe anything to others.Dunn (page 776). Some languages can follow the Greek and have the correct meaning. For example:
Owe no one nothing!
But many languages translating both negatives would have the wrong meaning. If that is true in your language, translate the correct meaning. For example:
Owe nothing to anyone (NABRE)
Let us not be in debt to othersUma Back Translation on TW.
Be indebted: Here this word refers to a requirement to repay something, not just money. The word you use should allow for any requirement to repay something.
except to one another in love.
but owe this one thing: always love one another.
But one thing you must do, and that is you must love one another.
except to one another in love: In contrast to having no requirements to repay anything (13:8a), these words indicate that we have the requirement to always love each other. Here are other ways to translate these words:
but for this one: Love one another
But actually there is always a debt of ours to others. That debt of ours is to always love each other
Even if you no longer have a debt, you have yet a different debt. This debt is your love to your fellowsYakan Back Translation on TW.
but we are always required to do this: Love each other
But actually there is something we must always do. It is loving each other
one another: Here this phrase refers to other believers.Jewett (page 807) says, “‘One another’ clearly refers to fellow believers, as Zahn, Lietzmann, and others have shown.”
love: The word love refers to a strong affection and concern for a person. In some languages an idiom such as “give/put heart/liver” is used for the meaning of love. See how you translated this word in 12:9.
For he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.
For the person who loves someone else has accomplished the demands of the laws of Moses.
For when someone loves another person, then he has fulfilled the requirements of the Law.
For: Here this word introduces something that supports Paul’s words to love each other.
his neighbor: Here this word refers to someone other than yourself.
has fulfilled the law: Here the Greek word that the BSB translates as fulfilled refers to accomplishing what the law demands for us to do.See Dunn (page 777) or Jewett (page 809). Here are other ways to translate this phrase:
will fulfill the requirements of God’s law (NLT)
have done all that the Law demands (CEV)
has met every requirement of the law (REB)
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / doublenegatives
μηδενὶ μηδὲν ὀφείλετε
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Μηδενί μηδέν ὀφείλετε εἰ μή τό ἀλλήλους ἀγαπᾶν ὁ γάρ ἀγαπῶν τόν ἕτερον νόμον πεπλήρωκεν)
If your readers would misunderstand this double negative, you could translate it as a positive statement. Alternate translation: [Do not owe anyone anything]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
μηδενὶ μηδὲν ὀφείλετε, εἰ μὴ τὸ ἀλλήλους ἀγαπᾶν
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Μηδενί μηδέν ὀφείλετε εἰ μή τό ἀλλήλους ἀγαπᾶν ὁ γάρ ἀγαπῶν τόν ἕτερον νόμον πεπλήρωκεν)
Here Paul speaks of loving other believers as if it were a debt owed to them. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly or use a simile. Alternate translation: [Owe nothing to anyone, but love one another as if it were a debt that you owed them]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
τὸ ἀλλήλους
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Μηδενί μηδέν ὀφείλετε εἰ μή τό ἀλλήλους ἀγαπᾶν ὁ γάρ ἀγαπῶν τόν ἕτερον νόμον πεπλήρωκεν)
Here, one another refers to other Christians. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: [other believers]
Note 4 topic: grammar-collectivenouns
νόμον
˓the˒_law
See how you translated the law in [2:12](../02/12.md).
OET (OET-LV) To_no_one nothing be_owing, except not/lest which one_another to_be_loving, because/for the one loving the other, the_law has_fulfilled.
OET (OET-RV) Don’t be in debt to anyone other than the debt of love to each other, because those who love one another have fulfilled God’s law
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.