Acts 20;35 support the weak

Acts 20:35 Support the Weak

I show here an example of translator discretion, how various translations have supplied this subject or that for the verb in English, or in my case have chosen not to supply a subject.  This is a common occurrence when translating the Greek New Testament into English.  Mind you that there is no Greek textual variant here, so a differing source Greek text does not explain the differences among the English translations for this clause.  The Greek verb is an INFINITIVE, preceded by δεῖ (indicates an OBLIGATION or NECESSITY), and there is NO SUBJECT.

The clause in Greek, and a formal equivalent translation:
ὅτι οὕτως κοπιῶντας δεῖ ἀντιλαμβάνεσθαι τῶν ἀσθενούντων
how with such labor it is necessary to support the weak

Tyndale         how that so laboring ye ought to receive the weak
Genev            howe that so labouring, ye ought to support the weake
KJV                  how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak
ASV                 that so laboring ye ought to help the weak
NKJV               by laboring like this, that you must support the weak
CEV                 how you should work to help everyone who is weak
NASB              that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak
MEV                how, working like this, you must help the weak

Phillips           that by such hard work, we must help the weak
GNB                that by working hard in this way we must help the weak
NIV                  that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak
TNIV               that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak
ESV                  that by working hard in this way we must help the weak
NRSV              that by such work we must support the weak
NABRE           that by hard work of that sort we must help the weak
NET                 that by working in this way we must help the weak
GW                  that by working hard like this we should help the weak

RSV                 that by so toiling one must help the weak

HCSB               that by laboring like this, it is necessary to help the weak
CSB                  that it is necessary to help the weak by laboring like this
DRP                 how with such labor it is necessary to support the weak

I originally rendered it, “how with such labor one must help the weak,” but I changed my mind for two reasons.  (1), this obligation does not apply to you if you are one of those weak ones that need the support.  So it is better not to supply any of the subjects “you,” “we,” or “one.”  (2) I want to keep an English word that couples with the English infinitive, because the δεῖ applies to the next, following phrase as well, which also begins with an infinitive, “to remember.”  It is necessary both to labor, and to remember.

NLT                  how you can help those in need by working hard

Finally, the New Living Translation is an outlier; here the NLT says “you CAN help those in need.”  That is simply 180 degrees opposite of what the Greek says.  The Greek says it is an obligation or a necessity.  The NLT is this inaccurate extremely often.  I have no tolerance for the NLT at all, and I believe it is my duty from God to urge you to throw away these following translations: The Message, the NLT, the NRSV, and the NAB.