UTN uW Translation Notes:

Mark 6 General Notes

Structure and Formatting

3. Jesus teaches and performs miracles (3:7–6:6) * Jesus teaches in his hometown (6:1–6)4. Jesus expands his ministry and encounters opposition (6:7–8:21) * Jesus sends out the Twelve (6:7–13) * Herod hears about Jesus (6:14–16) * Flashback: Herod executes John the Baptist (6:17–29) * Jesus feeds 5,000 men (6:30–44) * Jesus walks on water (6:45–52) * Jesus heals people in the region of Gennesaret (6:53–56)

Special Concepts in this Chapter

Jesus’ instructions on how to travel

Jesus instructs the disciples not to bring money, food, or extra clothing with them when they travel and preach the good news. Instead, he wants the disciples to rely on the hospitality of people they visit. Make sure that your translation indicates that the disciples should not pack money, food, or extra clothing because they will be staying with people who welcome and provide for them.

Herod and Herodias

The man named “King Herod” (6:14) ruled over the area to the northwest of the Sea of Galilee, which is where Jesus spent much of his ministry. Herodias was married to Herod’s brother Philip, and the two of them had a daughter. However, Herodias divorced Philip and married Herod, who had also divorced his previous wife. Since the Jewish law condemned anyone who married his brother’s wife while his brother was still alive (see Leviticus 20:21), John the Baptist rebuked Herod for doing this. It was in response to this rebuke that Herod had John the Baptist put in prison and eventually executed. Make sure that your translation accurately refers to the relationships between Herod, Herodias, and Herodias’ daughter.

The miracle of multiplying food

In 6:30–44, Mark tells a story in which Jesus provides 5,000 men with food. They were in a place where no people lived, and all the food that Jesus and his disciples had were five loaves of bread and two fish. Despite that, Jesus used the five loaves of bread and the two fish to feed everyone who was there. Mark does not tell us exactly how Jesus did this, but he does say that there were more leftovers than what they started with. Your translation should not explain how Jesus multiplied the food, but it should be clear that he did a miracle.

The miracle of walking on water

In 6:45–52, Mark tells a story in which Jesus walks on top of the Sea of Galilee, even though there was a storm. When Jesus climbs into the boat that the disciples were in, the storm miraculously stops. Your translation should not explain exactly how Jesus walked on the water, but it should be clear that Jesus walking on the water and the storm stopping were both miracles.

Important Figures of Speech in this Chapter

Other Possible Translation Difficulties in this Chapter

The flashback to John’s death

In this chapter, Mark includes a story that happened before the stories that appear before and after it in his narrative. Previously, Mark narrates how Jesus sent out the Twelve (6:7–13). Then, he describes how people, and especially Herod Antipas, respond to Jesus (see 6:14–16). Then, to explain how Herod responded to Jesus, Mark includes a story that happened earlier. This type of storytelling is called a flashback. Here, the flashback tells about how John the Baptist died (see 6:17–29). In 6:30, Mark returns to the main narrative and tells what happened after the events recorded in 6:7–13. Make sure that you use a form that shows your readers that 6:17–29 is a flashback that describes something that happened previously, and 6:30 continues with the main narrative. (See: writing-background)

Singular and plural forms of “you”

Many of the forms of “you” in this chapter appear when Jesus is talking to his disciples. Because of this, most forms of “you” in this chapter are plural. You should assume forms of “you” are plural unless a note specifies that the form is singular. (See: figs-yousingular)

The historic present

To call attention to a development in the story, Mark uses the present tense in past narration. In this chapter, the historic present occurs in verses 1, 7, 30, 31, 37, 38, 45, 48, and 50. If it would not be natural to do that in your language, you could use the past tense in your translation. (See: translate-tense)