Translation commentary on Deuteronomy 21:20

Is stubborn and rebellious: the same words used in verse 18.

He will not obey our voice: as in verse 18.

A glutton and a drunkard: see the same phrase in Pro 23.20-21. Some take the Hebrew noun translated glutton to mean “spendthrift” (New Jerusalem Bible) or “wastrel” (Revised English Bible); New International Version has “profligate”; Good News Translation has “wastes money and is a drunkard.” There is no way to be sure which is better; a term like glutton fits in nicely with drunkard; a glutton is someone who eats too much food, while a drunkard is someone who drinks too much wine. If there aren’t exact technical terms available, we may translate “He eats too much food and drinks too much wine.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

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