Then renders the common Hebrew conjunction. Here it marks a reversal in the thinking and activity of the four men, so certain languages will require that this contrast be marked. Good News Translation does so with “But then.” Revised English Bible also has “But.”

They said to one another: See the comments on verse 3.

We are not doing right: In some languages this may be stated as “The things we are doing are not good.” But in other cases it will be more natural to speak of doing wrong rather than not doing right; for example, New Revised Standard Version has “What we are doing is wrong” while New Jerusalem Bible says simply “We are doing wrong.”

The word rendered good news does not necessarily refer to news that is good in every context. However, in both biblical Hebrew and related Semitic languages, the sense of this noun and related verbs is nearly always “good news,” and there can be no doubt that this is the meaning that is intended here.

Punishment will overtake us: The motivation behind the lepers’ change in thinking seems to have been a fear of punishment. But it is also possible to translate “we shall incur guilt” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “we will be found guilty” (New Revised Standard Version), “we shall be held to blame” (Revised English Bible), or simply “we shall certainly be punished” (New Jerusalem Bible).

Now therefore is literally “and now.” This represents a very strong logical connection that should be retained in translation wherever possible.

Come, let us go: It may seem strange to some translators to have both come and go here. While the basic meaning of the first verb is “go, move, walk,” it is sometimes used by a speaker to urge others to action. Since this seems to be its function here, it may be misleading to translate it literally. New Jerusalem Bible tries to capture the idea of exhortation while at the same time retaining something of the form of the original by saying “Come on, let us go.” On the other hand, New Revised Standard Version omits it altogether and Revised English Bible seeks to convey the imperative idea in the form of the second verb, saying “We must go.”

The king’s household: Good News Translation has translated “the king’s officers” here, but in verse 11 Good News Translation speaks of “the palace.” Since the reference is ultimately to human beings, it seems reasonable to translate “the people of the king’s house [palace]” in both cases.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .