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Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clearImportance=normal (All still tentative.)
OET (OET-RV)telling them, “Go ahead to the next village and in front of you you’ll see a donkey tied up and her colt near her. Untie the donkey and bring them back here to me.
Key: khaki:verbs, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
ULTsaying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied up, and a colt with her. Having untied them, bring them to me.
USTHe commanded them, “Enter the village of Bethphage, which you see ahead of you. As soon as you enter it, you will see a female donkey that someone has tethered. Her colt will be next to her. Remove the tether from the female donkey, and lead her and her colt to me here.
BSBsaying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt beside her. Untie them and bring them to Me.
BLBsaying to them, "Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey having been tied, and a colt with her. Having untied them, bring them to Me,
AICNTsaying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me.
OEB‘Go to the village facing you,’ he said, ‘and you will immediately find a donkey tethered, with a foal by her side; untie her, and lead her here for me.
WEBBEsaying to them, “Go into the village that is opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me.
NETtelling them, “Go to the village ahead of you. Right away you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me.
LSVsaying to them, “Go on into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey bound, and a colt with her—having loosed, you bring to Me;
FBVtelling them, “Go into the village. Right there you'll find a donkey tied up with a colt. Untie them and bring them to me.
TCNTtelling them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with it. Untie them and bring them to me.
T4TAs we approached Jerusalem, we came near Bethphage village, near Olive Tree Hill. Jesus said to two of his disciples, “Go to the village just ahead of us. As soon as you enter it, you will see a donkey and her foal that are {someone has} tied up. Untie them and bring them here to me.
LEBsaying to them, “Go into the village before you, and right away you will find a donkey tied and a colt with her. Untie them[fn]and[fn] bring them[fn] to me.
21:2*Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
21:2*Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“untie”) has been translated as a finite verb
BBESaying to them, Go into the little town in front of you, and straight away you will see an ass with a cord round her neck, and a young one with her; let them loose and come with them to me.
Wymthsaying to them, "Go to the village you see facing you, and as you enter it you will find a she-ass tied up and a foal with her. Untie her and bring them to me.
ASVsaying unto them, Go into the village that is over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.
DRASaying to them: Go ye into the village that is over against you, and immediately you shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them and bring them to me.
YLTsaying to them, 'Go on to the village over-against you, and immediately ye shall find an ass bound, and a colt with her — having loosed, bring ye to me;
Drbysaying to them, Go into the village over against you, and immediately ye will find an ass tied, and a colt with it; loose [them] and lead [them] to me.
RVsaying unto them, Go into the village that is over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.
WbstrSaying to them, Go into the village over against you, and immediately ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her, loose them , and bring them to me.
KJB-1769Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. (Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye/you_all shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.)
KJB-1611Saying vnto them, Goe into the village ouer against you, and straightway yee shall find an Asse tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them vnto me. (Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation)
BshpsSaying vnto the: Go into the towne that lyeth ouer agaynste you, and anone ye shall fynde an Asse tyed, & a colt with her: loose them and bryng them vnto me. (Saying unto them: Go into the town that lieth/lies over against you, and anon/immediately ye/you_all shall find an Ass tyed, and a colt with her: loose them and bring them unto me.)
GnvaSaying to them, Goe into the towne that is ouer against you, and anon yee shall finde an asse bounde, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them vnto me. (Saying to them, Go into the town that is over against you, and anon/immediately ye/you_all shall find an ass bounde, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. )
Cvdland sayde vnto them: Go in to the towne that lyeth before you, & anone ye shal fynde an Asse bounde, and hir foale with her: lowse them, and brynge the vnto me. (and said unto them: Go in to the town that lieth/lies before you, and anon/immediately ye/you_all shall find an Ass bounde, and her foal with her: lowse them, and bring the unto me.)
TNTsaiynge to the. Go in to the toune that lyeth over agaynste you and anone ye shall fynde an asse bounde and her colte with her: lose them and bringe them vnto me. (saiynge to them. Go in to the town that lieth/lies over against you and anon/immediately ye/you_all shall find an ass bound and her colte with her: lose them and bring them unto me. )
WyclGo ye in to the castel that is ayens you, and anoon ye schulen fynde an asse tied, and a colt with hir; vntien ye, and brynge to me. (Go ye/you_all in to the castel that is against you, and anon/immediately ye/you_all should find an ass tied, and a colt with her; untien ye/you_all, and bring to me.)
Luthund sprach zu ihnen: Gehet hin in den Flecken, der vor euch liegt, und bald werdet ihr eine Eselin finden angebunden und ein Füllen bei ihr. Löset sie auf und führet sie zu mir! (and spoke to to_them: Gehet there in the Flecken, the/of_the before/in_front_of you liegt, and soon becomet you/their/her one Eselin finden angebunden and a Füllen at ihr. Löset they/she/them on and führet they/she/them to mir!)
ClVgdicens eis: Ite in castellum, quod contra vos est, et statim invenietis asinam alligatam, et pullum cum ea: solvite, et adducite mihi:[fn] (dicens eis: Ite in castellum, that on_the_contrary you it_is, and immediately invenietis asinam alligatam, and pullum when/with ea: solvite, and adducite mihi: )
21.2Et pullum. Pullus est populus gentium cui nullus doctorum frenum correctionis imposuit, liber et lascivus, qui et ipse vinculis peccatorum irretitus erat. Omnes enim peccaverunt et egent gratia Dei Rom. 3.. Alii de solo pullo: Matthæus qui Hebræis scribit, et de asina dicit docens non desperari salutem Hebræis si pœniteant. Marcus dicit pullum ante januam in bivio inventum. Janua Christus, extra quam populus gentium stabat ligatus: non in una via fidei, sed in diversis erroribus.
21.2And pullum. Pullus it_is populus gentium cui nullus doctorum frenum correctionis imposuit, liber and lascivus, who and exactly_that/himself vinculis sinners irretitus was. All_of_them because peccaverunt and egent gratia of_God Rom. 3.. Alii about solo pullo: Matthæus who Hebræis scribit, and about asina dicit docens not/no desperari salutem Hebræis when/but_if pœniteant. Marcus dicit pullum before yanuam in bivio inventum. Yanua Christus, extra how populus gentium stabat ligatus: not/no in una road of_faith, but in diversis erroribus.
Here, a village that is opposite someone means that it is directly in front of them. Jesus is here referring to the village of Bethphage. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable phrase or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [the village directly in front of you] or [the village of Bethphage, which is before you]
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. If you need to say who did the action, you could use an indefinite subject. Alternate translation: [a donkey that a person has tied up]
Here Jesus implies that someone has used a rope or tether to secure the donkey so that it cannot wander away. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [secured with a tether]
A colt is a young donkey that is no longer a baby but is not yet full grown. If your readers would not be familiar with this type of animal, you could use the name of something similar in your area or you could use a more general term. Alternate translation: [one of her young ones] or [a young donkey]
By the time of the New Testament, the ancient city of Jerusalem had been transformed from the relatively small fortress of David’s day (2 Samuel 5:6-10; 1 Chronicles 11:4-9) into a major city with a Temple that rivaled the greatest temples in the Roman world. Just prior to Jesus’ birth, Herod the Great completely renovated and expanded the Temple of the Lord, and he also built a lavish palace for himself, various pools (where Jesus occasionally performed healings), public buildings, and military citadels, including the Antonia Fortress, which overlooked the Temple. Wealthy residents, including the high priest, occupied extravagant houses in the Upper City, while the poorer residents were relegated to less desirable areas like the Lower City. The Essene Quarter was so named because many of its residents belonged to the Essenes, a strict religious sect that was known for its careful attention to the law of Moses. Across the Kidron Valley lay the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus often met with his disciples (Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-53; John 18:1-14). Further east was the Mount of Olives, where Jesus began his triumphal entry one week before his crucifixion (Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-40; John 12:12-19), taught his disciples about the last days (Matthew 24-25; Mark 13), and eventually ascended to heaven after his resurrection (Luke 24:50-53; Acts 1:1-11).
Jesus’ Final Journey to Jerusalem
Much like the difficulties of discerning the Israelites’ journey to the Promised Land (see here), the task of reconciling the four Gospel accounts of Jesus’ final journey to Jerusalem into one coherent itinerary has proven very challenging for Bible scholars. As with many other events during Jesus’ ministry, the accounts of Matthew, Mark, and Luke (often referred to as the Synoptic Gospels) present a noticeably similar account of Jesus’ final travels, while John’s Gospel presents an itinerary that is markedly different from the others. In general, the Synoptic Gospels present Jesus as making a single journey to Jerusalem, beginning in Capernaum (Luke 9:51), passing through Perea (Matthew 19:1-2; Mark 10:1) and Jericho (Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-19:10), and ending at Bethany and Bethphage, where he enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey (Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44). John, on the other hand, mentions several trips to Jerusalem by Jesus (John 2:13-17; 5:1-15; 7:1-13; 10:22-23), followed by a trip to Perea across the Jordan River (John 10:40-42), a return to Bethany where he raises Lazarus from the dead (John 11), a withdrawal to the village of Ephraim for a few months (John 11:54), and a return trip to Bethany, where he then enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey (John 12:1-19). The differences between the Synoptics’ and John’s accounts are noteworthy, but they are not irreconcilable. The Synoptics, after noting that Jesus began his trip at Capernaum, likely condensed their accounts (as occurs elsewhere in the Gospels) to omit Jesus’ initial arrival in Jerusalem and appearance at the Festival of Dedication, thus picking up with Jesus in Perea (stage 2 of John’s itinerary). Then all the Gospels recount Jesus’ trip (back) to Bethany and Jerusalem, passing through Jericho along the way. Likewise, the Synoptics must have simply omitted the few months Jesus spent in Ephraim to escape the Jewish leaders (stage 4 of John’s itinerary) and rejoined John’s account where Jesus is preparing to enter Jerusalem on a donkey.
Bethany and Bethphage
Matthew 21:1-17; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-48; John 12:1-19; see also Matthew 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9
At the start of Passover one week before he was crucified, Jesus and his disciples traveled to Jerusalem, approaching the city from the east. When they arrived at the village of Bethphage, Jesus mounted a donkey and rode down the Mount of Olives as a humble king entering his capital city. Along the way, many people laid branches and cloaks in his path to welcome him. After Jesus entered the city, he immediately went up to the Temple and drove out the moneychangers and merchants there, and he healed the blind and the lame. Then he traveled nearly two miles outside the city to the village of Bethany to spend the night, which appears to have been where he typically lodged each night while visiting Jerusalem during the crowded Passover festival. Bethany is also where Jesus’ close friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus lived. One evening while Jesus was there at a large dinner party given in his honor, Martha served the food, and Mary poured expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair.
