For lo is literally “And behold.” Lo renders the Hebrew focusing particle. Good News Translation and many other modern versions ignore it, but if the receptor language has an equivalent device to draw attention to what follows, it will be appropriate to use it here.

Our fathers have fallen by the sword: Here the Hebrew word for fathers is taken literally by Good News Translation, but it is more accurately translated “ancestors” (Contemporary English Version, New Century Version, New Jerusalem Bible). Have fallen by the sword is a way of saying “died in combat” (see the comments on 2 Chr 20.9 and 21.4). An alternative model for this whole clause is “our ancestors died in battle.”

And our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for this: In some languages it may be more natural to render our sons and our daughters and our wives as “our wives and children” (Good News Translation). For are in captivity, see the comments on 2 Chr 6.37. This phrase and the previous one may be rendered “our enemies have taken away our wives and children into exile.” The demonstrative pronoun this refers to God’s anger. It was because of God’s anger that the people of Judah died in battle and became exiles in other countries (see 2 Chr 28.5-8 for an example). New International Version and Parole de Vie express for this by beginning this verse with “This is why…,” and New Living Translation is similar with “Because of this….”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .