Translation commentary on Ezekiel 19:2

And say introduces the song itself and stresses that God gives Ezekiel the words to sing. If the discourse requirements of the language allow, it is acceptable to omit this clause (so Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New Living Translation, Bible en français courant, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch).

What a lioness was your mother among lions!: This line renders a rhetorical question in Hebrew, which Revised Standard Version and many other translations render as an exclamation (so Good News Translation, New International Version, Revised English Bible). A lioness is a metaphor for the royal family of David. There is a minor difficulty with the phrase your mother. Although this song seems to be addressed to the two rulers of Israel mentioned in the previous verse, the Hebrew pronoun for your is singular. It was probably addressed to the current king, Zedekiah, or to Jehoiachin, who was in exile with Ezekiel. For those languages in which it would be strange to have a singular pronoun following the mention of two kings, it may be necessary to begin the song with the vocative “O king” to make the connection clear. Alternatively, translators may use a dual or plural form of the pronoun “your,” if that fits their language better. The Hebrew phrase translated among lions functions like a superlative and focuses special attention on the lioness. For this phrase New American Bible has “a lion of lions,” Bible en français courant says “a remarkable lioness,” and Contemporary English Version translates “a brave lioness.” This whole line may be rendered “Your mother was a great [or, excellent] female lion.” It will be easier for many languages to use a simile here, such as “Your mother was like a great female lion” (similarly New Century Version, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch).

She couched in the midst of young lions: The Hebrew verb for couched describes the way animals lie down on the ground, stretching out and resting. It is a natural picture of a lioness resting with other lions.

Rearing her whelps means raising her cubs.

Although most translations follow the above interpretation of this verse, it is possible to divide the Hebrew lines of this verse differently as follows:

What is your mother? A lioness!
Among the lions she couched [or, lay down];
among the young lions she raised her cubs.

This rendering reflects the Hebrew text more accurately than the one in Revised Standard Version. It is the best model for translators to follow. It also reflects the way Hebrew poetry often repeats similar material in parallel lines.

The story in verses 2-9 uses four different Hebrew words for lion, which are translated in this verse as follows: (1) lioness, which is a female lion; (2) lions, which renders the most general term for lions, irrespective of age or sex; (3) young lions, which refers to lions that are just about to reach their full strength and maturity—this term is often used interchangeably with the second one; and (4) whelps, which are baby lions.
In cultures where lions are not known and there is no word for them, it is best to refer to them the first time as “wild animals, named ‘lions.’ ”

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

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