MARK 1:6 Parallel Verse View

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.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor.
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 And John was clothed with camel hair and a leather belt around his waist, and he was eating locusts and wild honey.

UST John wore rough clothes that he made out of camel’s hair. He fastened around his waist a belt that he made from animal skin. He ate grasshoppers and honey that he found in that desolate area.

BSB John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

MSB John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

BLB And John was clothed in camel's hair and a belt of leather around his waist; and he is eating locusts and wild honey.

AICNT Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey.

OEB John wore clothes made of camels’ hair, with a leather strap round his waist, and lived on locusts and wild honey;

WEBBE John was clothed with camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts and wild honey.

WMBB Yochanan was clothed with camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts and wild honey.

NET John wore a garment made of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.

LSV And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and a girdle of skin around his loins, and eating locusts and honey of the field,

FBV John wore clothes made of camel hair, with a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts[fn] and wild honey.

1:6 Most likely locust beans rather than the insect.

TCNT Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist; he ate locusts and wild honey.

T4T John wore rough clothes made of camel’s hair. And as the prophet Elijah had done, he wore a leather belt around his waist; and what he ate was only grasshoppers and honey that he found in that desolate area.

LEB And John was dressed in camel’s hair and a belt made of leather around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.

BBE And John was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather band about him; and his food was locusts and honey.

Moff John was dressed in camel's hair, with a leather girdle round his loins, and he ate locusts and wild honey.

Wymth As for John, his garment was of camel's hair, and he wore a loincloth of leather; and his food was locusts and wild honey.

ASV And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and had a leathern girdle about his loins, and did eat locusts and wild honey.

DRA And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and he ate locusts and wild honey.

YLT And John was clothed with camel's hair, and a girdle of skin around his loins, and eating locusts and honey of the field,

Drby And John was clothed in camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins, and ate locusts and wild honey.

RV And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and had a leathern girdle about his loins, and did eat locusts and wild honey.

SLT And John was dressed in camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and eating locusts and wild honey;

Wbstr And John was clothed with camels hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he ate locusts and wild honey;

KJB-1769 And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey;

KJB-1611 And Iohn was clothed with camels haire, and with a girdle of a skin about his loines: and he did eat locusts and wilde honie,
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps Iohn was clothed with Camelles heere, and with a girdle of a skynne about his loynes: and he did eate locustes and wylde hony.
(Yohn was clothed with Camelles hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins: and he did eat locusts and wild honey.)

Gnva Nowe Iohn was clothed with camels heare, and with a girdle of a skinne about his loynes: and he did eate Locusts and wilde hony,
(Now Yohn was clothed with camels hear, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins: and he did eat Locusts and wild honey, )

Cvdl Ihon was clothed with Camels heer, and with a lethron gerdell aboute his loynes, and ate locustes and wylde hony,
(Yohn was clothed with Camels hair, and with a lethron girdle about his loins, and ate locusts and wild honey,)

TNT Iohn was clothed with cammylles heer and with a gerdyll of a skyn a bout hys loynes. And he dyd eate locustes and wylde hony
(Yohn was clothed with cammylles hair and with a girdle of a skin a bout his loins. And he did eat locusts and wild honey )

Wycl And Joon was clothid with heeris of camels, and a girdil of skyn was about hise leendis; and he ete hony soukis, and wilde hony, and prechide,
(And Yohn was clothed with hairs of camels, and a girdle of skin was about his leendis; and he eat honey soukis, and wild honey, and preached,)

Luth Johannes aber war bekleidet mit Kamelhaaren und mit einem ledernen Gürtel um seine Lenden und aß Heuschrecken und wilden Honig.
(Yohannes but what/which clothed with camelhaaren and with on ledernen belt/girdle(n) around/by/for his lumbar and ate locusts and wild honey.)

ClVg Et erat Joannes vestitus pilis cameli, et zona pellicea circa lumbos ejus, et locustas et mel silvestre edebat.[fn]
(And was Yoannes vestitus hair cameli, and purse pellicea around/about waist his, and locusts and honey silvestre edebat. )

1.6 Et erat Joannes, etc. HIER. Vestis prophetæ et cibus et potus, totam austeram vitam prædicantium significant, et gentes, etc., usque ad quia omnia a gratia Evangelii, in qua non est distinctio Judæi et Græci. BEDA. Vestitus pilis cameli. Quia peccata non fovit, sed aspere increpavit, dicens: Genimina viperarum, etc. Zona pellicea, etc., usque ad in melle enim dulcedo, in locusta alacer volatus, sed cito deciduus.

1.6 And was Yoannes, etc. HIER. Clothes the_prophets and food and drink(n), the_whole austeram life they_preachium significant, and people/nations, etc., until to because everything from grace of_the_Gospels, in/into/on which not/no it_is distinction Jews and Græci. BEDA. Vestitus hair cameli. Because sins not/no fovit, but aspere increpavit, saying: Genimina viperarum, etc. Zona pellicea, etc., until to in/into/on honey because sweet/pleasantlydo, in/into/on locust enthusiastic flight, but quickly deciduous.

UGNT καὶ ἦν ὁ Ἰωάννης ἐνδεδυμένος τρίχας καμήλου, καὶ ζώνην δερματίνην περὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔσθων ἀκρίδας καὶ μέλι ἄγριον.
(kai aʸn ho Yōannaʸs endedumenos triⱪas kamaʸlou, kai zōnaʸn dermatinaʸn peri taʸn osfun autou, kai esthōn akridas kai meli agrion.)

SBL-GNT ⸂καὶ ἦν⸃ ὁ Ἰωάννης ἐνδεδυμένος τρίχας καμήλου καὶ ζώνην δερματίνην περὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔσθων ἀκρίδας καὶ μέλι ἄγριον.
(⸂kai aʸn⸃ ho Yōannaʸs endedumenos triⱪas kamaʸlou kai zōnaʸn dermatinaʸn peri taʸn osfun autou, kai esthōn akridas kai meli agrion.)

RP-GNT Ἦν δὲ ὁ Ἰωάννης ἐνδεδυμένος τρίχας καμήλου, καὶ ζώνην δερματίνην περὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐσθίων ἀκρίδας καὶ μέλι ἄγριον.
(Aʸn de ho Yōannaʸs endedumenos triⱪas kamaʸlou, kai zōnaʸn dermatinaʸn peri taʸn osfun autou, kai esthiōn akridas kai meli agrion.)

TC-GNT [fn]Ἦν δὲ [fn]ὁ [fn]Ἰωάννης ἐνδεδυμένος τρίχας καμήλου, καὶ ζώνην δερματίνην περὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ, καὶ [fn]ἐσθίων ἀκρίδας καὶ μέλι ἄγριον.
(Aʸn de ho Yōannaʸs endedumenos triⱪas kamaʸlou, kai zōnaʸn dermatinaʸn peri taʸn osfun autou, kai esthiōn akridas kai meli agrion. )

1:6 ην δε ¦ και ην CT

1:6 ο ¦ — TR

1:6 ιωαννης ¦ ιωανης WH

1:6 εσθιων ¦ εσθων SBL TH WH

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 1:1–8: God sent John the Baptizer to prepare the people to receive Jesus

These notes have divided this section into three paragraphs:

1:1 serves as an introduction both to section 1:1–8 and to the book as a whole.

1:2–3 introduces John the Baptizer by quoting the Old Testament verses that predict his ministry.

1:4–8 describes John, his ministry and his message.

In some languages it may be more natural to make different paragraph breaks. For example:

1:1–3 and 1:4–8 (GNT, NCV)
1:1–8 (NRSV, REB, NAB, NJB)

Divide the paragraphs in a way that will fit the style of your language.

It is good to translate the section before you decide on a section heading for it. You will need to use terms in the heading that you have used in the verses within the section. For example, before you write a section heading for this section, you will need to know how you have translated the word “Baptizer.” See the note on 1:4a.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

The preaching of John the Baptizer

John prepared people for Jesus to arrive

There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 3:1–12; Luke 3:1–18; and John 1:19–28.

Paragraph 1:4–8

This paragraph describes the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy in 1:2–3. It identifies John as “the messenger” and “the voice” that were mentioned in those verses. It also describes what John did and what he preached. In some languages you may want to divide 1:4–8 into two paragraphs: 1:4–5 and 1:6–8.

1:6a

John was clothed in camel’s hair,

John wore clothes that were woven from camel’s hair,
John dressed like a prophet in a simple/rough robe

John was clothed in camel’s hair: John probably wore a long, loose robe made with a rough kind of cloth that was woven from the hair of a camel. It was not made from camel skin with the hair still on it. Clothing made from camel’s hair was commonly worn by poor people and by prophets.

In some languages, it may sound like John had expensive fur clothes. If that is true in your language, it may be necessary to add a word such as “only” or “simple” to indicate that John did not wear fancy clothes. For example:

John’s clothes were only made from woven camel hair

John wore a simple robe made from woven camel hair

John was dressed in a rough coat of camel’s hair (REB)

See the General Comment on 1:6a–b at the end of the notes for 1:6b for another suggestion.

was clothed in camel’s hair: The phrase was clothed in camel’s hair is passive. In some languages it may be more natural to use an active phrase. For example, the CSB says:

wore a camel-hair garment (CSB)

camel: If a camel is an unknown animal in your language, consider using one of the following options:

Use a loan word plus a general term. For example:
an animal called camel
Use a general word such as “animal.” For example:
clothes made of animal hair
Omit the reference to an animal or camel and just translate the significance of this kind of clothing. For example:
simple clothes/robe like a prophet

Avoid using a phrase that describes the appearance or usefulness of a camel. That may distract your readers from the actual significance of the clothing.

1:6b

with a leather belt around his waist.

and his belt was made from animal skin.
and had a strip/piece of animal skin tied around his waist.

with a leather belt around his waist: This belt was probably a piece of animal skin that John tied around his robe at the waist. It was not like the leather belts that can be bought in a store.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

strip of rawhide

belt made of animal skin

In some languages the word belt may already imply that it is worn around the waist. In such languages, you may not need to translate the words “around the waist” explicitly.

General Comment on 1:6a–b

It may be helpful to include a footnote with information about the clothes and belt in 1:6a–b. For example:

This kind of clothing/robe was worn by poor people and by prophets. The prophet Elijah also wore a leather belt (2 Kings 1:8).

1:6c

His food was locusts and wild honey.

His food was locusts and honey that was made by wild bees.
He ate locusts and honey that he found in the wilderness.

In Greek this sentence begins with a common conjunction that is often translated as “and” (see the NIV). This conjunction connects 1:6c to 1:6a–b. 1:6a–b describes John’s clothing and 1:6c describes John’s food. Connect these facts in a natural way in your language.

His food was locusts and wild honey: The Greek verb that the BSB translates as His food was indicates that John ate locusts and wild honey as his regular food. In some languages, a word like food is not used with things such as honey. If your language is like this, you will need to use a different word that fits with the word “honey.” For example:

His food was locusts and his drink was wild honey.

locusts: The word locusts refers to insects that resemble very large grasshoppers. If you have a word for “locust” or “grasshopper,” be sure that it refers to a type that people can eat. If locusts or grasshoppers are not known in the language area, you may use one of the following options:

Use a general term plus a loan word. For example:
insects called locusts
Use a general term. For example:
insects/bugs
Use a phrase that describes the significance of this kind of food. For example:
simple food that he could find in the wilderness If you use this option, the description will include “wild honey.” You may want to add a footnote to describe both foods.

It may be helpful to include a footnote that explains the significance of these foods. For example:

In Palestine, people who wandered from place to place with their flocks often ate locusts and wild honey. People who lived in cities or towns did not usually eat these kinds of food.

wild honey: The words wild honey refer to honey that wild bees make. It contrasts with honey that people get by keeping bees to produce honey for them. If people do not keep bees in your culture, the word “wild” may not be necessary. Use a natural expression in your language. For example:

water of wild-bees

honey that he found

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: writing-background

καὶ & ὁ Ἰωάννης

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί ἦν ὁ Ἰωάννης ἐνδεδυμένος τρίχας καμήλου καί ζώνην δερματίνην περί τήν ὀσφύν αὐτοῦ καί ἐσθίων ἀκρίδας καί μέλι ἄγριον)

Here Mark uses the word And to introduce background information that will help readers understand what happens next. The word does not introduce another event in the story. This background information is found in [1:6–8](../01/06.md). Use a natural form in your language for introducing background information. Alternate translation: [Concerning this John, he]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

ἦν & ἐνδεδυμένος

was & ˓having˒_dressed_in

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: [clothed himself with]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

ἦν & ἐνδεδυμένος τρίχας καμήλου

was & ˓having˒_dressed_in hairs ˱of˲_˓a˒_camel

Here Mark implies that John wore clothes made from camel hair. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression or plain language. Alternate translation: [wore clothing made from the hair of camels]

Note 4 topic: translate-unknown

ζώνην δερματίνην

˓a˒_belt leather