They that trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth/They trample down the weak and helpless. The Hebrew for the word translated trample here is not clear. In some translations it has been taken to mean (1) “long for,” in which case the Hebrew would be “they long for the dust of the earth on the head of the poor.” This is the way the older English translations have it: “that pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor” King James Version (King James Version). Such a translation of the Hebrew has been understood in different ways: (a) as a picture of extreme greed: the rich landowners even long to own the small quantity of earth people throw on their heads as a sign of mourning; (b) as a picture of the way poor people are pushed down: the rich are only satisfied when they see the poor in a miserable condition; (c) as “they long for land at the expense of the poor.”
In other translations the problem word has been understood as (2) “crush,” trample (upon) down, in which case the Hebrew text—after some slight changes—could be translated literally as in the Revised Standard Version, as well as in most modern commentaries and English translations. The shortened form in the Good News Translation They trample down covers all the meaning of the Hebrew sentence as understood in the second interpretation. Leaving out the head … into the dust of the earth reduces the picture language but does not change the meaning. Moffatt, on the other hand, uses a comparison to keep the picture: “they trample down the poor like dust.”
With our present knowledge, we cannot be sure which of these interpretations is best, but (1a), (1b), and (2) may be followed equally well in translation.
If interpretation (1a) is used, reason for the behavior may have to be stated in many translations; for example, “they (the rich landowners) even long to own the earth which poor people throw on their heads as a sign of mourning.”
Interpretation (1b) is less difficult for translation. Such a statement as “they like to see poor people mourning” or “they like to see poor people throwing earth on their heads as a sign of mourning” can easily be made.
If interpretation (2) is followed, Good News Translation can usually be taken as a model. Of course, the expression used to translate trample down must imply oppression and not only physical “walking on.” In some languages the expression will be something like: “they rob the poor.”
The poor … afflicted/the weak and helpless … poor. Good News Translation has apparently changed the order of these two terms. In the Hebrew it is the poor which goes with trample, and “weak/oppressed/humble” which goes with push … out of the way. In doing this, of course, the TEV has not changed the meaning of the passage, since the expressions are parallel and are picture language for the same kind of action toward poor people who are not able to defend themselves.
Turn aside the way of …/push … out of the way can be interpreted in two different ways: (a) as a general statement like in Good News Translation, and (b) as a more specific act such as “they pervert the way (or: cause judgment) of the weak.” The more specific interpretation is made stronger by the parallel expression in 5.12. Here again it is difficult to decide, but as the specific case is included in the general, it is perhaps preferable to follow (a). In that case, if an expression like push … out of the way is not natural and there is no similar use of picture language, the translation will have to say something like “they worry/trouble miserable people” (compare Moffatt: “and humble souls they harry”).
If interpretation (b) is preferred, some restructuring will be necessary, such as “they keep the miserable from getting justice.”
A man and his father go in to the same maiden/A man and his father have intercourse with the same slave girl. The men involved are a man and his father, which should not be translated as “father and son” (New English Bible) because the Hebrew implies “not only the son, but even the father.”
The Hebrew go in to includes the meaning of sexual intercourse. However, the attention seems to be less on the intercourse than on the way the woman is abused. The general theme is still that of mistreating the lower classes: “not only the son, but even the father, goes after the servant girl.” In different languages, of course, the polite ways of expressing the sexual behavior will vary.
Slave girl is the right translation, rather than “prostitute” (New American Bible, Jerusalem Bible note, Smith-Goodspeed). If temple prostitution was emphasized, we would expect to find verse 7b after verse 8. Also, nowhere in the Old Testament does the word for “girl” mean “prostitute,” nor anything equivalent in ancient translations.
So that my holy name is profaned/and so profane my holy name. This is the result of the treatment of the servant girl, expressed through a Hebrew particle translated and so. Profane can often be translated by a word equivalent to English “defile.” In languages in which it is hard to find an acceptable equivalent for holy, the translator can simply say “profane/defile/dishonor my name.” Since the name stands for God himself, the translation can say something like “profane/defile/dishonor me.”
Quoted with permission from de Waard, Jan & Smalley, William A. A Handbook on Amos. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1979. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .