34-01
The Mustard Seed [34-01]
Jesus told many other stories about the kingdom of God. For example, he said, “The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed that someone planted in his field. You know that the mustard seed is the smallest seed of all.”
耶稣教导了其他许多关于天国的事。祂说：“神的国就像人在地里种的芥菜种。它本是所有种子里最小的一颗。
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- stories - Jesus used these stories to teach truths about God's kingdom. It is not clear if the events actually happened or not. If your language has a term that includes both fictional and real stories, you should use it here.
- mustard seed - This probably refers to the seed of the black mustard plant, which has tiny seeds that rapidly grow into very large plants. If there is a word for this plant in your language, you should use it. If not, you may need to substitute the name of another plant which has the same characteristics.
- the smallest seed of all - That is, "the smallest of all the seeds that people plant."
34-02
The Large Tree [34-02]
“But when the mustard seed grows, it becomes the largest of all of the garden plants, big enough that even the birds come and rest in its branches.”
但是当它长大的时候，却是园中最高大的一棵植物，甚至鸟儿也来到树枝上搭窝。
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- (Jesus continues the story.)
- mustard seed - See how you translated this term in [[:zh:obs:notes:frames:34-01|[34-01]]].
- grows - You may want to add, "into a mature plant."
- garden plants - This can also be translated as, "plants that would be planted in a garden."
- rest in - This may also be translated as, "sit on" or, "perch on."
34-03
The Yeast [34-03]
Jesus told another story, “The kingdom of God is like yeast that a woman mixes into some bread dough until it spreads throughout the dough.”
耶稣又说天国好像是妇人把面酵放在面团里的，直到它使全团都发起来。
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- story - See how you translated this term in [[:zh:obs:notes:frames:34-01|[34-01]]].
- yeast - This can also be translated as, "leaven" or, "the little bit of leaven." It is added to bread dough to make it rise. A little bit of yeast can be mixed into a large amount of dough and make the whole batch of dough rise.
- bread dough - This is a mixture of flour and liquid that can be shaped and baked into bread. If you do not have words for dough or flour, you can borrow a word for flour or call it "ground-up grain."
- it spreads throughout the dough - That is, "every part of the dough has yeast in it" or, "the yeast grows throughout all the dough."
34-04
The Treasure in the Field [34-04]
“The kingdom of God is also like treasure that someone hid in a field. Another man found the treasure and then buried it again. He was so filled with joy that he went and sold everything he had and used the money to buy that field.”
神的国又好比财宝藏在田里。有人发现了，就把它掩盖起来，然后很开心地把自己所有的都变卖了，去购买那块田。
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- (Jesus told another story.)
- treasure - That is, "something that is very valuable."
- buried it again - It is also possible to add, "so that no one else would find it."
- filled with joy - Another way to say this is, "very happy" or, "excited."
- buy that field - Some people may want to add, "so that the treasure would be his."
34-05
The Perfect Pearl [34-05]
“The kingdom of God is also like a perfect pearl of great value. When a pearl merchant found it, he sold all that he had and used the money to buy it.”
天国又好比一个商人寻找贵重的珍珠。当他发现了一颗极贵重的珍珠，就去卖掉他所有的一切，来购买那颗珍珠。
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- (Jesus continues with another story about the kingdom of God.)
- perfect pearl - That is, "a pearl without any defects."
- pearl - If pearls are unknown, this can be translated as, "beautiful stone" or, "beautiful stone-like thing."
- of great value - That is, "that was very valuable" or, "that was worth a lot of money."
- pearl merchant - That is, "pearl dealer" or, "pearl trader." This refers to a person whose business is buying and selling pearls.
34-06
Two Men at the Temple [34-06]
Then Jesus told a story to some people who trusted in their own good deeds and despised other people. He said, “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One of them was a tax collector, and the other was a religious leader.”
接着耶稣又说了一个相信自己的好行为而轻视别人的故事。“有两个人来到圣殿祷告。一个是税吏，另一个是祭司。”
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- story - See how you translated this term in [[:zh:obs:notes:frames:34-01|[34-01]]].
- trusted in their own good deeds - That is, "believed that their good deeds made them righteous" or, "were proud of how perfectly they kept God's law" or, "believed that their good deeds caused God to be completely pleased with them."
- despised other people - That is, "considered other people to be inferior to them" or, "looked down on other people."
34-07
The Religious Leader's Prayer [34-07]
“The religious leader prayed like this, ‘Thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like other men—such as robbers, unjust men, adulterers, or even like that tax collector.’”
“祭司如此祷告：神啊我感谢你，我不像那些强盗，弯曲和犯奸淫的人，甚至也不像那个税吏一样。”
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- (Jesus continues the story.)
- The religious leader prayed like this - Another way to say this would be, "This is how the religious leader prayed" or, "The religious leader prayed in this way."
- I am not a sinner like - That is, "I am not sinful like" or, "I am righteous, not like."
- unjust men - That is, "men who are not righteous" or, "people who do evil things" or, "law breakers."
34-08
I Am Good [34-08]
“‘For example, I fast two times every week and I give you ten percent of all the money and goods that I receive.’”
“我每周禁食两次并且我也做十一奉献。”
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- (Jesus continues to tell of the religious leader's prayer.)
- I fast - The religious ruler believed that doing this would earn favor with God.
- ten percent - That is, "one-tenth."
34-09
The Tax Collector's Prayer [34-09]
“But the tax collector stood far away from the religious leader, and did not even look up to heaven. Instead, he pounded on his chest with his fist and prayed, ‘God, please be merciful to me because I am a sinner.’”
“但是那个税吏却远远地站着，甚至不敢抬头望天，只是捶胸祷告道：神啊，求你怜悯我这个罪人。”
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- (Jesus continues the story.)
- stood far away - This can also be translated as, "stood at a distance" or, "stayed separate."
- did not even look up to heaven - The word "even" indicates that people normally looked up to heaven when praying to God, but that this man did not because he was so ashamed of his sin.
- he pounded on his chest with his fist - This could also be translated as, "because of his grief, he hit his chest with his fist" or, "he pounded his chest in sorrow." If people would find this hard to understand because they beat their chest for other reasons, you could translate this as, "he showed his despair."
34-10
The Proud Will Be Humbled [34-10]
Then Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, God heard the tax collector's prayer and declared him to be righteous. But he did not like the religious leader's prayer. God will humble everyone who is proud, and he will lift up whoever humbles himself.”
接着耶稣说：“我实在地告诉你们，那个税吏回到家中已经被饶恕，祭司却不被饶恕。凡是骄傲的必降为卑，但凡谦卑的必升为高。”
故事来源:马太福音 13:31-33, 44-46; 马可福音 4:30-32; 路加福音 13:18-21; 18:9-14
Important Terms:
Translation Notes:
- declared him to be righteous - That is, "considered him to be a righteous person." Even though the tax collector was a sinner, God was merciful to him because of his humility and repentance.
- will humble - This could also be translated as, "will give a lower status to" or, "will cause to not be important." It could be translated figuratively as, "will bring down."
- will lift up - That is, "will give a higher position to" or, "will honor."
- humbles himself - That is, "chooses to behave in a humble way" or, "has a humble attitude about himself."
- A Bible story from - These references may be slightly different in some Bible translations.