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ParallelVerse 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 Intro C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16
Mark 15 V1 V3 V5 V7 V9 V11 V13 V15 V17 V19 V21 V23 V25 V27 V29 V31 V33 V35 V37 V39 V41 V43 V45 V47
Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.
Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)
OET (OET-RV) Governor Pilate didn’t think he’d be dead yet, so he called an army commander to find out if Yeshua had indeed died.![]()
OET-LV And the Pilatos wondered if he_has_ already _died, and having_called_to the centurion, he_asked him whether he_ already _died_off.
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SR-GNT Ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν, καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν κεντυρίωνα, ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν εἰ ἤδη ἀπέθανεν. ‡
(Ho de Pilatos ethaumasen ei aʸdaʸ tethnaʸken, kai proskalesamenos ton kenturiōna, epaʸrōtaʸsen auton ei aʸdaʸ apethanen.)
Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
ULT But Pilate marveled if he had already died, and having called the centurion, he questioned him, whether he had already died.
UST When Pilate heard that Jesus might already be dead, it surprised him. So, he summoned the Roman officer who was in charge of executing Jesus. Pilate asked the officer, “Is Jesus already dead?”
BSB Pilate was surprised [to hear] that [Jesus] was already dead, so he summoned the centurion to ask if [this was so].
MSB Pilate was surprised [to hear] that [Jesus] was already dead,[fn] so he summoned the centurion to ask if [this was so].
15:44 Or had been dead for some time
BLB And Pilate wondered if already He were dead. And having summoned the centurion, he questioned him whether He had died already.
AICNT Pilate was surprised that he was already dead, and summoning the centurion, he asked him if he had been dead for some time.
OEB But Pilate was surprised to hear that he had already died. So he sent for the officer, and asked if he were already dead;
WEBBE Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he had been dead long.
WMBB (Same as above)
NET Pilate was surprised that he was already dead. He called the centurion and asked him if he had been dead for some time.
LSV And Pilate wondered if He were already dead, and having called near the centurion, questioned him if He were long dead,
FBV Pilate was surprised that Jesus had died so soon, so he summoned the centurion and asked him if Jesus had already died.
TCNT Pilate was surprised that Jesus was already dead, so he called the centurion over and asked him if Jesus [fn]had been dead for some time.
15:44 had been dead for some time 97.8% ¦ was already dead TH WH 1.5%
T4T Pilate was surprised when he heard that Jesus was already dead. So he summoned the officer who was in charge of the soldiers who crucified Jesus, and he asked him if Jesus had already died.
LEB And Pilate was surprised that he was already dead, and summoning the centurion, asked him whether he had died already.
BBE And Pilate was surprised that he was dead; and, sending for the captain, he put a question to see if he had been dead for long.
Moff Pilate was surprised that he was dead already; he summoned the captain and asked if he had been dead some time,
Wymth But Pilate could hardly believe that He was already dead. He called, however, for the Centurion and inquired whether He had been long dead;
ASV And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
DRA But Pilate wondered that he should be already dead. And sending for the centurion, he asked him if he were already dead.
YLT And Pilate wondered if he were already dead, and having called near the centurion, did question him if he were long dead,
Drby And Pilate wondered if he were already dead; and having called to [him] the centurion, he inquired of him if he had long died.
RV And Pilate marveled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
(And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead. )
SLT And Pilate wondered if he were already dead: and having called the centurion, he asked him if he had been dead long ago.
Wbstr And Pilate wondered if he was already dead: and calling the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
KJB-1769 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
KJB-1611 And Pilate marueiled if he were already dead, and calling vnto him the Centurion, hee asked him whether hee had beene any while dead.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation)
Bshps And Pilate marueyled that he was alredy dead: and called vnto hym the Centurion, and asked of hym, whether he had ben any whyle dead.
(And Pilate marvelled that he was already dead: and called unto him the Centurion, and asked of him, whether he had been any while dead.)
Gnva And Pilate marueiled, if he were already dead, and called vnto him the Centurion, and asked of him whether he had bene any while dead.
(And Pilate marvelled, if he were already dead, and called unto him the Centurion, and asked of him whether he had been any while dead. )
Cvdl But Pylate marueyled yt he was deed all ready, & called ye captayne, & axed hi, whether he had loge bene deed.
(But Pilate marvelled it he was deed all ready, and called ye/you_all captain, and asked hi, whether he had long been deed.)
TNT And Pylate merveled that he was alredy deed and called vnto him the Centurion and axed of him whether he had bene eny whyle deed.
(And Pilate marvelled that he was already deed and called unto him the Centurion and asked of him whether he had been any while deed. )
Wycl But Pilat wondride, if he were now deed.
(But Pilate wondered, if he were now deed.)
Luth Pilatus aber verwunderte sich, daß er schon tot war, und rief den Hauptmann und fragte ihn, ob er längst gestorben wäre.
(Pilatus but surprised itself/yourself/themselves, that he already dead was, and shouted the captain/leader and asked him/it, if/whether he long_ago died were.)
ClVg Pilatus autem mirabatur si jam obiisset. Et accersito centurione, interrogavit eum si jam mortuus esset.
(Pilatus however was_surprised when/but_if already obiisset. And accersito centurione, asked him when/but_if already dead was. )
UGNT ὁ δὲ Πειλᾶτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν; καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν κεντυρίωνα, ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν εἰ πάλαι ἀπέθανεν.
(ho de Peilatos ethaumasen ei aʸdaʸ tethnaʸken; kai proskalesamenos ton kenturiōna, epaʸrōtaʸsen auton ei palai apethanen.)
SBL-GNT ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν, καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν κεντυρίωνα ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν εἰ ⸀πάλαι ἀπέθανεν·
(ho de Pilatos ethaumasen ei aʸdaʸ tethnaʸken, kai proskalesamenos ton kenturiōna epaʸrōtaʸsen auton ei ⸀palai apethanen;)
RP-GNT Ὁ δὲ Πιλάτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν· καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν κεντυρίωνα, ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν εἰ πάλαι ἀπέθανεν.
(Ho de Pilatos ethaumasen ei aʸdaʸ tethnaʸken; kai proskalesamenos ton kenturiōna, epaʸrōtaʸsen auton ei palai apethanen.)
TC-GNT Ὁ δὲ [fn]Πιλάτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκε· καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν κεντυρίωνα, ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν εἰ [fn]πάλαι ἀπέθανε.
(Ho de Pilatos ethaumasen ei aʸdaʸ tethnaʸke; kai proskalesamenos ton kenturiōna, epaʸrōtaʸsen auton ei palai apethane. )
Key for above GNTs: red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).
15:43-45 Joseph of Arimathea (possibly from the village of Ramathaim, twenty miles northwest of Jerusalem) was an honored member of the high council and a secret disciple of Jesus who was waiting for the Kingdom of God to come (see Matt 27:57; Luke 23:50-51; John 19:38). He courageously requested the body of Jesus from Pilate for burial. Since he was a member of the high council and was not known to be Jesus’ disciple, it served Rome’s purposes to grant his request: It would satisfy Jewish concerns about leaving the dead exposed after sunset (Deut 21:22-23), and Jesus’ disciples would not receive the body.
After someone died on a cross, his body was normally left on the cross to rot. Sometimes the Romans threw the body in a group grave and buried it without any honor. But for the Jews, a proper burial was important. It was their custom to bury the body on the same day that a person died.
Joseph was determined to give Jesus a proper burial. So he bravely went to Pilate and asked permission to do this. When he did this, he risked being punished. Pilate might have thought that since he was a friend of Jesus, he was also rebelling against Rome.
The Sabbath day began just a few hours after Jesus died. On the Sabbath, it was forbidden to move a dead body. So Joseph had to act very quickly in all that he did.
In this section, Mark emphasized two important facts that help readers understand that Jesus truly rose from the dead. First, he showed that Jesus was really dead. Second, he said that the women in 15:47 observed and noted carefully the location of the tomb where Jesus was laid. They did not mistakenly go to the wrong tomb later.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Joseph put/laid the body of Jesus in a tomb
Jesus was placed in a burial cave.
The burial of Jesus
There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 27:57–61, Luke 23:50–55, and John 19:38–42.
In Jewish culture, a new day started at sunset. Jesus had died sometime during the middle of the afternoon. The Sabbath day would begin in a few hours. On the Sabbath day, a dead body could be washed and prepared for burial, but it could not be moved. This explains why Joseph had to hurry to bury Jesus’ body.
Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was already dead,
Pilate was amazed/astonished that Jesus had already died.
When Pilate heard/learned from Joseph that Jesus was already dead, he was surprised.
Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was already dead: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was already dead is literally “Pilate was surprised that he was already dead.” The BSB has supplied the phrase to hear to make the clause natural English.
was surprised: The Greek verb that the BSB translates as was surprised expresses surprise or amazement. Here it includes an element of doubt. Pilate was surprised or amazed to hear that Jesus had already died, and he sent for the centurion to confirm the report.
Here are some other ways to translate this:
was astonished/amazed that
wondered/marveled that
so he summoned the centurion
He sent for the centurion
He sent for the officer who was in charge of crucifying Jesus.
So he sent/commanded someone to tell the leader/chief of the soldiers to come to him in order to be sure.
so: The Greek conjunction that the BSB translates here as so introduces what Pilate did as a result of what he heard from Joseph. He summoned the centurion to investigate. Connect 15:44b to 15:44a in a way that is natural in your language for this context.
he summoned the centurion: The Greek verb that the BSB translates as summoned here means “commanded to come.” The centurion was still by the cross, so Pilate sent someone to tell the centurion to come to him. The REB translates this as:
sent for the centurion (REB)
to ask if this was so.
and asked him if Jesus was already dead.
When the officer came/arrived, Pilate asked him if it was true that Jesus had already died.
He asked the leader/chief, “Has Jesus already died?”
to ask if this was so: In some languages, it may be natural to use direct speech for this question. For example:
…he/Pilate asked him, “Has Jesus already died?”
…he asked him, “Is it true that Jesus is already dead?”
Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-words-phrases
δὲ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ Πιλᾶτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν καί προσκαλεσάμενος τόν κεντυρίωνα ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτόν εἰ ἤδη ἀπέθανεν)
Here, the word But introduces the next thing that happened. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word or phrase that introduces the next event, or you could leave But untranslated. Alternate translation: [Then]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν
if already ˱he˲_˓has˒_died
Here Mark means that Pilate was not sure whether Jesus had already died, but he marveled that it might be true. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a form that indicates this kind of possibility. Alternate translation: [because it was possible that Jesus had already died]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
τὸν κεντυρίωνα
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ Πιλᾶτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν καί προσκαλεσάμενος τόν κεντυρίωνα ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτόν εἰ ἤδη ἀπέθανεν)
Here Mark implies that this is the same centurion who was in charge of crucifying Jesus (see [15:39](../15/39.md)). If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [the centurion who was in charge of Jesus’ crucifixion] or [the centurion who oversaw Jesus’ execution]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / quotations
ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν εἰ πάλαι ἀπέθανεν
˱he˲_asked (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ Πιλᾶτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν καί προσκαλεσάμενος τόν κεντυρίωνα ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτόν εἰ ἤδη ἀπέθανεν)
It may be more natural in your language to have a direct quotation here. Alternate translation: [he asked him, “Has he already died?”]

Matthew 26-27; Mark 14-15; Luke 22-23; John 13-19
On the Thursday before he was crucified, Jesus had arranged to share the Passover meal with his disciples in an upper room, traditionally thought to be located in the Essene Quarter of Jerusalem. After they finished the meal, they went to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus often met with his disciples. There Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’ own disciples, betrayed him to soldiers sent from the High Priest, and they took Jesus to the High Priest’s residence. In the morning the leading priests and teachers of the law put Jesus on trial and found him guilty of blasphemy. The council sent Jesus to stand trial for treason before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, who resided at the Praetorium while in Jerusalem. The Praetorium was likely located at the former residence of Herod the Great, who had died over 30 years earlier. When Pilate learned that Jesus was from Galilee, he sent him to Herod Antipas, who had jurisdiction over Galilee. But when Jesus gave no answer to Herod’s many questions, Herod and his soldiers sent him back to Pilate, who conceded to the people’s demands that Jesus be crucified. Jesus was forced to carry his cross out of the city gate to Golgotha, meaning Skull Hill, referring to what may have been a small unquarried hill in the middle of an old quarry just outside the gate. After Jesus was unable to carry his cross any further, a man named Simon from Cyrene was forced to carry it for him. There at Golgotha they crucified Jesus. After Jesus died, his body was hurriedly taken down before nightfall and placed in a newly cut, rock tomb owned by Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the Jewish high council. This tomb was likely located at the perimeter of the old quarry.