The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “myrrh” in English is translated as “bitter medicine” in Michoacán Nahuatl and as “myrrh perfume” in Tzotzil (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.).
In Mark 15:23, Usila Chinantec translates it as “the herb myrrh which is useful so that one not feel pain in his body.” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
Myrrh is probably the most precious spice in the Bible. It was worth more than its weight in gold. Our experts agree that the Hebrew word mor refers to the resin of one of the Commiphora genus, either myrrha, abyssinica or schimperi, all of which grew in what is now Yemen, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Madagascar. Other kinds of myrrh may have come from India (Commiphora erythraea, Commiphora opobalsamum). A more difficult question is the meaning of the word deror in Exodus 30:23. In the other places where it occurs it means “freedom” or “liberty.” This is the basis for the word “liquid” in some versions, but there is no certainty that “free” means “liquid.” The fact that myrrh was sometimes mixed with wine may suggest that deror means “liquid” here, but on the other hand, the weight of the myrrh is given in dry measure rather than liquid measure, which argues against it.
The myrrh plant is a bush or shrub with thick thorny branches that project and bend at odd angles. The leaves come in sets of three. The fruit is oval like a plum. The wood and bark have a pleasant smell. The gum oozes naturally from the branches, though some harvesters incise the branches to increase the flow. The sap or gum is clear or yellowish brown when it comes out, but gets darker as it dries. The taste of the gum is bitter (note the similarity of mor to the Hebrew word mar meaning “bitter”). In markets the gum is often found mixed with that of the kataf bush (bisabol).
God prescribed myrrh as an ingredient of the holy anointing oil (Exodus 30:23), and it is used as perfume in Esther, Psalms, Proverbs, and eight times in Song of Songs. It was brought as an expensive gift by the Magi to the new King (Matthew 2:11). As Jesus was dying on the cross, sympathetic bystanders may have offered it to him mixed with wine (Mark 15:23; see the parallel account in Matthew 27:34). Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes to prepare Jesus’ body for burial (John 19:39). In ancient Egypt myrrh was burned on the altars of the sun god, and in Persia it was attached to the crowns of kings when they appeared in public. Romans burned myrrh at funerals and cremations, which helps to explain its inclusion in the list of spices in Revelation 18:13. Today it is used in perfumes, lotions, and even in toothpaste.
Varieties of myrrh grow in the Horn of Africa and Madagascar, so people from those areas should have no difficulty finding words for it. As to whether the myrrh in Exodus 30:23 was liquid or solid, there seems to be no consensus, and the translator may be forgiven for simply ignoring the Hebrew word deror . Possible transliterations are Hebrew mor, Arabic mar, French mireh, and Spanish/Portuguese mirra.
The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated in English as “camel” is translated in Muna as “water buffalo.” René van den Berg explains: “Camels are unknown; the biggest known animal is the water buffalo (though now rare on Muna).”
In Bislama is is translated as buluk: “cow” / “bull” (source: Ross McKerras) and in Bahnar as aseh lăk-đa which is a combination of the Vietnamese loan word for “camel” (lăk-đa) and the Bahnar term for “horse” (aseh) to communicate that the camel is a beast of burden (source: Pham Xuan Tin in The Bible Translator 1952, p. 20ff. ).
In the 1900 Kalaallisut (Greenlandic) translation (a newer version was published in 2000) it was translated as ĸatigagtôĸ or “big-backed ones.” “Katigagtôĸ (modern qatigattooq), which has the literal meaning of ‘something with a big back.’ It comprises the noun ĸatigak (modern qatigak) ‘back’ combined with the suffix –tôĸ (modern –tooq) ‘something possessing a big X.’” (Source: Lily Kahn & Riitta-Liisa Valijärvi in The Bible Translator 2019, p. 125ff.)
In Luke 18:25, Mark 10:25, and Matthew 19:24 some versions of the Peshitta translation in Syriac Aramaic (Classical Syriac) show an ambiguity between the very similar words for “camel” and “rope.” Some translations of the Peshitta, therefore, use the “rope” interpretation, including the Classical Armenian Bible (մալխոյ for “rope”), the English translation by George Lamsa (publ. 1933) (It is easier for a rope to go through the eye of a needle), or the Dutch translation by Egbert Nierop (publ. 2020) (het voor een kabel eenvoudiger is het oog van een naald binnen te gaan).
In the above-mentioned three verses, it is translated in Noongar as “kangaroo” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).
There were two types of camel known in Bible times the most common being the Arabian Dromedary camelus dromedarius, which was indigenous to the area. The two-humped Bactrian Camel camelus bactrianus was also known and prized, but it was imported from Central Asia.
Camels belong to the same family as the South American llama, vicuna, alpaca, and guanaco, but camels are much larger and have a big fatty hump on their backs. Bactrian camels may reach a height of about two meters (6.5 feet), while dromedaries are even bigger. Dromedaries are a uniform light fawn color, while Bactrian camels are darker, especially in winter when they grow longer fur.
Camels do not have hooves but a large footpad with two broad toes ideally suited to walking on sand. In other ways too they are ideally suited to life in desert areas. They store excess food in their humps and this makes it possible for them to go a long time without eating. Special blood cells also enable them to go without water for long periods. They also have a very efficient digestive system and can extract the maximum amount of nutrition from apparently dry vegetation. This adaptation to harsh environments means that camels can make long journeys through dry areas which would be beyond the abilities of other types of pack animal such as donkeys. Camels were used for riding and for carrying heavy loads. They were also used to pull carts.
In winter the fur of camels thickens and grows longer and then when summer comes they shed their winter fur in large wads. These wads of camel hair are collected and twisted into cords and ropes or spun into thread which is then used for weaving coarse cloth. This cloth was usually used for making tents but it was sometimes used for making outer robes.
Camels’ milk was used as food and drink but their meat was considered unclean by the Israelites.
In spite of the fact that camels were considered to be unclean for food they were a symbol of wealth and commerce. People or nations with many camels were automatically viewed as commercially successful and wealthy as the possession of camels opened up the possibility of transporting goods long distances and engaging in trade.
In areas where camels are not known, the word is often transliterated from Hebrew or the dominant language of the area. However, in some languages descriptive names have been invented. In some South American languages names meaning “hump-backed llama” or “big alpaca with a hump” have been used. Elsewhere expressions such as “hump-backed horse” have been used. A fuller description should usually be included in a glossary or word list.
The Hebrew, Greek, Ge’ez, and Latin that is translated in English typically as “vine” is translated in Lak as къюмайтӀутӀул мурхьра: “the (grape-) cluster tree.”
Vitaly Voinov tells this story: “Laks (who live in the mountainous regions of Dagestan) historically have had no experience with planting and tending vineyards. They buy grapes at the market or the store, but that’s about all they know of grape growing. Thus, in field testing, none of the readers could picture the primary image of this chapter. The translator’s initial attempt of rendering ‘vine’ as ‘grape stalk’ met with complete non-understanding. After much discussion of the problem and potential solutions, we settled on what one of the field testing respondents suggested to remedy the problem: ‘vine’ was rendered as ‘the (grape-)cluster tree’ (къюмайтӀутӀул мурхьра). Technically grapes of course don’t grow on trees, but something had to be put in the text, and it had to be said in a way that the average reader/hearer could understand it. The Lak team could have borrowed the Russian word for ‘vine’ (лоза), but since this is a very low-frequency word in the Russian language, it’s likely that many Laks wouldn’t know the Russian word either. So the team settled for a reduction of accuracy in order to achieve greater clarity. After all, the primary point of importance in this passage is not a horticultural analysis, but a metaphorical comparison to the spiritual world, to the relationship between the Father, His Son, and the followers of Jesus. This rendering allows readers to get to the core of this meaning without getting tangled up in unknown terms.”
The Common Grape Vine Vitis vinifera is mentioned more often than any other plant or tree in the Bible. Excavations in Greece have discovered grape seeds dating to 4500 B.C. Egyptian records document the existence of cultivated vines in Canaan as early as 2375 B.C., and subsequent records report trade in vine products around 1360 B.C. and many times thereafter.
The vine is a creeping plant that develops a woody stem when it matures. It grows along the ground until it finds a tree or other object to climb, using tendrils. It bears bunches of small round fruit that are sweet and juicy. Today farmers grow them commercially throughout the Mediterranean area, in South Africa, in North America, and in many other countries. The first reference to the vine in the Bible (Genesis 9:20) tells us that Noah planted a vineyard (Hebrew kerem) and that he made an alcoholic drink from the fruit. Farmers since then have improved on the size, color, and quality of the fruit by careful pruning and selection until now there are at least 65 kinds of grapevines. Like many other plants in temperate areas, the vine has leaves that appear in early spring. After the fruit is picked and the weather gets cold, the leaves drop off and the plant is bare until the following spring. A typical vineyard in Bible times was surrounded by a stone fence. It had a stone tower from which the owner could watch for predators, and a place to squeeze the juice out of the fruits.
The vine is the most frequently cited plant in the Bible, and that alone makes it special. Vines, grapes, raisins, and wine were a major element of Jewish life, so it is not a surprise that the vine and its products are used figuratively probably more than any other Bible plant. After the flood purified the earth at the time of Noah, the vine became the means by which the human race was plunged again into sin (Genesis 9:20). We know from Jacob’s blessing in Genesis 49:11f. and other passages that the vine was the symbol of blessing, prosperity, and happiness. The fact that there were groups like the Nazirites and Rechabites who abstained from drinking wine simply shows the radical self-denial that these people imposed on themselves. A drink offering of wine was an important part of worship (Exodus 29:40), and the image of contentment was “every man under his vine and under his fig tree” (Micah 4:4). Jotham includes the vine in his well-known Parable of the Trees (Judges 9:7ff.). In the New Testament, Jesus rescued a man from humiliation at a wedding party by miraculously providing a fresh supply of wine (John 2:1ff.). Wine becomes a major symbol in the Christian community when Jesus foreshadows his crucifixion by comparing the wine poured out in the Passover celebration to his blood (Matthew 26:27f. et al.). He speaks of the need for Christians to be like the branches of the vine, drawing their nourishment from him, the True Vine (John 15.:1ff.). Nearly every New Testament writer makes some metaphorical reference to the vine or its products.
There are around 65 kinds of grapevines (Vitis vinifera) found in the Northern Hemisphere. They belong to a larger family of creeping plants called Vitaceae, which has over 800 species throughout the world including many in the tropical and warm climates of the world.
Grapevines have occasionally been grown in West Africa (for example, in The Gambia and in northern Nigeria) but are not well known even where they are grown commercially. Attempts at substituting a local tree name have not been entirely successful because the species chosen is usually not cultivated and/or does not have the same economic or social function that the grape had in Israel.
Thus it is probably best to use a transliteration from a major language. However, in parts of Nigeria and perhaps elsewhere, the word grep refers to “grapefruit” and should be avoided in translation. A transliteration from “vine” or “wine” is preferred, although a translator needs to be careful. The English word “vine” refers to any creeping plant, but it also refers to a particular kind of vine that produces grapes (Vitis vinifera). This can be confusing. Furthermore, translators in English-speaking countries should think carefully about what they are going to do with the word “wine.” In The Gambia, Mandinka translators first used “wayini tree” but later concluded that it may be better to have a word for “vine” that is not necessarily identical with “wine.” Bine, from binekaro (“vinegar”), was considered, as was inabi (“grape”) from Arabic.
Languages that borrow the Arabic word inabi must deal with the fact that this word bears an unfortunate resemblance to annabi (“prophet”) and new readers reading “water of inabi” in a context of prophecy may associate it, for better or worse, with prophets and prophecy. In northern Nigeria church people have gotten used to inabi in the New Testament even though many of them don’t know what it is. Basa in Nigeria uses a wild grape-like plant (afwafwa), and Igala has used the same species (achiwebetema) for years. Likewise, two translations in Mali and Burkina Faso use their local name for a wild vine (Lannea microcarpa) for the biblical vine. There is a species (Rhoicissus tridentata) in southern and eastern Africa known as “African grape” (locally called “bobbejaantou”). In such cases translators should write a footnote (or glossary item) stating that the grapes of Bible times were larger and sweeter than the local variety, and that they were cultivated extensively as a source for producing beverages. Other possibilities for transliteration are: vinyola/videra (Portuguese), vitis (Latin), and inab (Arabic).
Fruit of the vine (Hebrew ‘enav; Greek botrus, staphulē): There is some evidence that botrus refers to a bunch of grapes, while staphulē refers to individual grapes. According to Louw and Nida (Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains, 1988), however, both words may refer to individual grapes as well as bunches of grapes. The Hebrew word tirosh is equivalent to the word “vintage” in English, that is, the grape harvest and possibly the first squeezing of the grapes. It is normally used along with the words referring to the olive harvest (yitshar) and grain harvest (dagan).
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated in English translations as “Judges” (as the title of the biblical book) of “judges” (in Judg 2:16 and 2:17 Ruth 1:1, and in Acts 13:20) is translated into Bukusu as “leaders” (in the case of the title of the book ‘The book of Leaders’). In light of this, there is no real need to explain that these persons were not judges of a court of law, but leaders.
In Isthmus Mixe it is also translated as “leaders,” in Morelos Nahuatl as “authorities,” and in Eastern Highland Otomi as “judges who were the rulers of the people.” (Source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
Martin Ehrensvärd, one of the translators for the DanishBibelen 2020, comments on the translation of this term: “The ancient type of leader called judges in the bible (described in the Book of Judges) presents its own problems in a translation like this. Calling them ‘judges’ simply doesn’t work because that was such a small part of what they did. We discussed this at length but never came up with anything better than ‘leader’.” (Source: Ehrensvärd in HIPHIL Novum 8/2023, p. 81ff. )
Click or tap here to see a short video clip about judges in ancient Israel (source: Bible Lands 2012)
The Greek and Hebrew that is translated into English as “moth(s)” was translated as “cockroach(es)” in Gola “since moths are not seen as destroying things but cockroaches are” (source: Don Slager). The same translation was chosen for Uripiv (source: Ross McKerras).
In Yakan it is translated as “termites” (source: Yakan Back Translation) and in Tagbanwa as “chewing-insects” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation).
There is general consensus that ‘ash refers to a moth, and sas to its larva stage in the Hebrew Bible, and that sēs in the New Testament also refers to a moth. The moth referred to is always in contexts of destroyed or damaged clothing, so the reference is obviously to a moth that lays its eggs on human clothing. This limits the type of moth to one of the clothes moths of the Tineidae family, probably Tineola biselliella. Although the damage is blamed on the moth in the Bible, it is actually its larvae that cause the damage. It is possible that both moth and larva are meant when ‘ash is used.
Clothes moths are smallish brown or gray moths that lay eggs in clothing or other forms of cloth. The eggs hatch into very small caterpillars, which almost immediately begin to feed on the fibers. They make small silken cocoons from which only the heads protrude, and later finally emerge as moths.
Moths are symbols of decay, ruin, and slow destruction.
