Description
The bag was a receptacle, made of leather or cloth, used to carry possessions, including money. See also Shepherd’s bag/pouch.
Translation
Generally, the words listed above carry a range of usages similar to that of the English word “bag.” These words refer to bags that can vary in size, in material, and in quality. Thus they indicate sacks for carrying grain but also handbags carried by women. Often a generic word for a bag made of pliable material such as cloth or leather will suffice. Translators should, of course, avoid a word that specifically indicates a bag made of plastic or other modern synthetic material. The context will usually help the translator choose between specialized terms, where such exist; for example, the Hebrew word charitim in 2KI 5:23 may be rendered “bags” or even “sacks,” while the same word in ISA 3:22 is better translated “purses” or “handbags.”
In GEN 42:0 – GEN 44:0 the Hebrew word ’amtachath indicates a large bag for carrying grain.
DEU 25:13; PRO 16:11; MIC 6:11: In these verses the Hebrew word kis refers to a bag in which a merchant carried weights. The point of these verses is that business dealings must always be honest, and the fact that the weights were kept in a bag is insignificant. For this reason GNT renders DEU 25:13 (literally “You shall not have in your bag a stone and a stone, large and small”) as “Do not cheat when you use weights [and measures].” The same approach is taken for the other two references. It is a good model.
In some passages it will be possible to replace the word “purse” with its contents, “money.” The second line of PRO 16:11 is rendered by GECL in a similar way, where it has “We will share the booty.” GNT says “we’ll all share what we steal.”
The Hebrew word tsror may usually be understood as “bundle,” that is, a wrapping prepared for the occasion and not so much a ready container or bag.
The Greek word zōnē in MAT 10:9 and MRK 6:8 (RSV “belts”) refers to the place where a man usually carried his money. GNT “pockets” provides a cultural equivalent, and so does NJB with “purses.” NAB retains “belts,” while Brc says “money-belts.” Some translators will use a general expression, such as “money carriers” or “things where you carry your money.” However, more often this object is dropped altogether; for example, the last clause of MAT 10:9 may be rendered “carry no money with you.”
MAT 10:10; MRK 6:8; LUK 9:3: In these verses the Greek word pēra is translated many different ways: “beggar’s bag (GNT), “beggar’s knapsack” (Brc), “haversack” (NJB), “pack” (REB), “traveling bag” (NAB), “knapsack” (Phps), “bag” (RSV, AT), and “wallet” (Mft). The problem is that this word in the New Testament may refer in general to any sort of bag that a traveler may put his things in or it may have the specialized sense of a bag carried by a beggar. As the survey of translations suggests, there is no agreement among scholars. Therefore translators can say either “bag for travelers” or “bag carried by beggars.” Obviously the apostles were to carry nothing with them when they went out.