Translation introduction to Judith (United Bible Societies)

Translating Judith

Judith tells the story of a brave Israelite woman determined to remain faithful to her religion while saving her hometown from an invasion.
Cast of characters in the book of Judith

The following list of characters is the order in which they occur in the book of Judith.

Nebuchadnezzar — King of Assyria.
Arphaxad — King of the Medes, defeated by Nebuchadnezzar.
Holofernes — Assyrian general who lays siege to the Israelite city of Bethulia. The villain of the story.
Joakim — Israelite high priest in Jerusalem.
Achior — Ammonite military leader who cautions Holofernes about the Israelites. Holofernes sends him off to Bethulia, where Holofernes’ soldiers tie him up and leave him. When Holfernes is killed, Achior becomes a believer in the God of Israel.
Uzziah — A leader of the Israelite city of Bethulia, and spokesman for the other leaders.
Chabris and Charmis — Two elders of Bethulia.
Judith — Heroine of the story, a beautiful Israelite widow.
Judith’s maid — An unnamed woman who accompanies Judith on her adventures.
Bagoas — Eunuch serving as personal attendant to Holofernes.

Some characteristics of the book of Judith

Judith is a well-crafted narrative telling how a faithful Israelite woman single-handedly defeats the Assyrian army threatening her hometown of Bethulia. Judith is not introduced until chapter 8. The first seven chapters are a slow buildup to her appearing on the scene, at which time the action speeds up and the narrative gains interest.

The book seems to reinvent history. Nebuchadnezzar appears here as King of Assyria, while the man known to history was King of Babylonia a century later. His opponent, Arphaxad of Media, is unknown. The book speaks of the Jewish people having returned from exile (4.3), yet the Assyrians, and Babylonians as well, were threats to the Israelite population before the exile. The geography of the book is just as odd. Holofernes’ army takes only three days to march 300 miles to southeastern Asia Minor, and then he fights in areas associated with North Africa. After this he attacks Mesopotamia, and the next thing we know he is in Palestine (2.21-28).

The historical and geographical errors in the book are so obvious that scholars today believe they are deliberate. They are a device of the author to direct the reader’s attention away from past history and to the story itself. The town of Bethulia, center of the action, is completely unknown. All of this suggests that the characters and events in the book are symbolic. Judith’s symbolism is obvious. The name Judith is simply the feminine form of the word “Jew,” and it is clear that she represents the faith and resources of the Jewish people. The military threat to Bethulia probably represents any kind of threat to Jerusalem and to Jewish integrity. People who faithfully follow the Law of God can oppose such a threat. Bethulia probably is derived from Bethel, which means “house of God,” so it is an imaginary representation of Jerusalem or Judea.

Judith is by far the most developed character in the story. She is beautiful, she is cunning, she is resourceful, she is brave. She is faithful to God, to Jewish tradition, and to the memory of her husband. She is also deceptive and willing to use her sexuality as a weapon against her enemy. She is as profound a thinker as the wise men of Israel (8.11-23). She can pray like a prophet (chapter 9), sing like a psalmist (chapter 16) and act with the bloody violence of one of the judges (13.4-9). Her fidelity and valor put to shame the men who rule in Bethulia.

Holofernes, with his boastfulness, exemplifies how those who dare oppose God’s purposes are reduced to fools. Claiming to act for his god Nebuchadnezzar, he reduces most of the world known at the time to ruins. Finally he prepares for a climactic assault on Bethulia to destroy all the Jewish people. But he meets a bloody end at the hands of a single Israelite woman.

Binding the two parts of the book (chapters 1–7 without Judith and chapters 8–16 with her) is the character of Achior, the Ammonite leader who functions much like Balaam does in the book of Numbers. A non-Israelite, he respects Israel and warns Holofernes against ill-advised action. Holofernes turns him over to the Israelites so he can meet his doom along with them, but after Judith’s conquest he appears again as a witness to Israel and Israel’s God, even joining the community of Israel as one of them.

The circumstances of the writing of Judith

The author is unknown. Various dates have been suggested for the writing of the book, but opinion today is heavily in favor of a date in the first century B.C. In 9.8 Judith’s words seem to reflect the experience of the Jews with Antiochus Epiphanes in the second century. Customs referred to in 8.6 and 11.13 seem to suggest an even later origin in the first century B.C., when the tradition of the Pharisees was widely known. The political organization of Israel in Judith, involving a high priest working alongside a senate, also seems to speak for a date as late as the first century B.C. Judith is referred to by the Christian writer Clement of Rome about A.D. 90. Since Clement knows the book in its Greek translation, we must allow time after writing for the book to become known, be translated, and be circulated in translation. The first century B.C. is consistent with these observations. There is general agreement that the book was originally written in Hebrew, though some would argue for Aramaic. Hebrew idioms are often easily discerned behind the Greek translation. Most scholars would venture that Judith was written in Palestine, although there is not a great deal of evidence to help solve this question.

The Greek text of Judith is in good shape, with relatively few difficult textual problems.

Outline of contents

Introduction: Nebuchadnezzar (1.1-16)
Part I: Holofernes (2.1–7.32)
Nebuchadnezzar’s orders to Holofernes (2.1-13)
Holofernes carries out Nebuchadnezzar’s orders (2.14–3.10)
Israel prepares for war (4.1-15)
Holofernes’ questions (5.1-4)
Achior’s answer (5.5-21)
The war council’s response (5.22-24)
Holofernes’ response to Achior (6.1-9)
The Assyrians expel Achior (6.10-13)
Achior in Bethulia (6.14-21)
Holofernes lays siege to Bethulia (7.1-18)
Conditions in Bethulia (7.19-32)
Part II: Judith (8.1–16.25)
Judith introduced (8.1-8)
Judith confronts the elders of Bethulia (8.9-36)
Judith’s prayer (9.1-14)
Judith carries out her plans (10.1-23)
Holofernes welcomes Judith (11.1-4)
Judith explains her plans to Holofernes (11.5-19)
Holofernes praises Judith (11.20-23)
Judith carries out her plans (12.1-9)
Judith kills Holofernes (12.10–13.10a)
Judith welcomed back to Bethulia (13.10b-20)
Judith’s plan (14.1-5)
Achior’s conversion (14.6-10)
Judith’s plan is carried out (14.11–15.7)
Judith is celebrated as a heroine (15.8-13)
Judith’s song of praise (16.1-17)
Judith’s later life (16.18-25)

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Translation commentary on Judith 1:13

He led his forces against King Arphaxad: “Nebuchadnezzar” is inserted as subject by Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version. It is understood in the Greek, but it is a helpful repetition for the reader, especially if a new paragraph is begun with verse 13. Some translators will need to repeat information from verse 1; for example, “In the seventeenth year that King Nebuchadnezzar ruled over Assyria he….” Led his forces against … may be rendered “led his soldiers to fight against the soldiers of King Arphaxad.”

Defeated him in battle … overthrew the whole army: These two clauses may be combined; for example, “completely defeated Arphaxad’s soldiers, including….”

All his cavalry and all his chariots: All his cavalry means “all his soldiers riding horses.” Good News Translation reads “charioteers” instead of the literal chariots, since it is the men riding them who are defeated and not the equipment. However, chariots will need a descriptive phrase in some languages; for example, “war wagons/carts pulled by horses.” It may be necessary to express the final part of this sentence as follows:

• He completely defeated Arphaxad’s soldiers, including his soldiers on horses and his soldiers in war carts pulled by horses.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Translation commentary on Judith 3:3

Behold, our buildings … lie before you: Behold will be rendered in some languages as “look” or “please take notice.” For wheat see 2.27. Our flocks and herds is rendered “our livestock” in both Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version. However, in some languages “our animals” will be a natural translation (compare 2.27). All our sheepfolds with their tents (literally “all the sheepfolds of our tents”) is better rendered in New Revised Standard Version as “all our encampments.” It refers to places where herders might make camp while seeing to the herds. Good News Translation‘s “our tents” is marginally acceptable, though the reference is not to the stuff the tents are made of. We suggest “all the camps of our herders [or, shepherds].” Lie before you is a shortened form of the same Greek expression “lie prostrate before you” in verse 2. Here lie before you is obviously figurative. All the possessions of the overrun towns are now offered to Holofernes as spoils of war. Good News Translation‘s “are at your disposal” is an effective equivalent. Contemporary English Version combines the last two clauses into “are yours.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Translation commentary on Judith 5:13

God dried up the Red Sea before them: Good News Translation has “their god dried up the Red Sea in front of them,” but in connection with its restructuring of 5.12b, this appears to say that it was the Egyptian god who dried up the Red Sea. It would be clearer to say “The God of these Israelites dried up….” In some languages the concept of dried up will be difficult to translate. In such cases we may follow Contemporary English Version with “The God of the Israelites then caused the Red Sea to open up, and the people walked safely through on dry land.” The Red Sea is the body of water lying between Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Translation commentary on Judith 7:1 - 7:3

In these verses Holofernes arranges his forces for battle. This is the order in the Greek:
Holofernes orders the army to break camp,
move against Bethulia,
seize the mountain passes,
and make war on the Israelites.
The soldiers break camp and move.
The numerical strength of the force is described.
The soldiers camp in the valley near Bethulia.
The army spreads out over a wide front.

Good News Translation combines verses 1 and 2 so as to get the numbers of the soldiers out of the way before beginning the narrative. This brings Holofernes’ orders and the execution of the orders together in the narrative, but it does force the addition of the idea of Holofernes gathering his army, which is not mentioned in the Greek text. One would assume from the narrative so far that the army was already gathered, but some action is necessary to begin the story of the siege; starting off with the numbers of soldiers involved would be a poor beginning. The original order (Revised Standard Version, Contemporary English Version) actually works well. The numbers involved are told while the army is on the march, giving the impression of a strong army on the move. Compare a similar device in Gen 46. There the aged Jacob prepares to move with his whole family down to Egypt. In verses 5-7 they leave; in verse 28 they arrive. In between (verses 8-27) is a long list of individuals. Because the list is placed at the narrative time of the journey, it creates the impression of a large company on the move.

Ordered his whole army, and all the allies who had joined him may be rendered “commanded all his soldiers along with those from the other nations” or “commanded all his soldiers along with those who had come to fight the Israelites with him.” The clause who had joined him is redundant after allies. Allies are by definition forces who are joined in a common cause. Good News Translation, with “his allied forces,” leaves nothing out.

To break camp means “to take down their tents and leave” or simply “to leave there.”

Move against Bethulia may be translated “march toward the town of Bethulia” (Contemporary English Version).

Seize the passes up into the hill country: For passes see 4.7; for hill country see 2.22.

The clause So all their warriors moved their camp that day is translated well by New American Bible: “That same day all their fighting men went into action.” Contemporary English Version expresses it more simply: “So they marched out.” Their warriors refers to all the enemy soldiers.

For infantry see 1.4; for cavalry see 1.13.

Together with the baggage and the foot soldiers handling it: The Greek word translated baggage refers to all the military supplies and provisions that had to accompany an army on the march. Good News Translation expresses it well with “equipment.” The text does not actually call the men handling it foot soldiers, but simply “men on foot.” It is probably not altogether wrong to call them soldiers, but Good News Translation‘s “support troops who took care of the equipment” is better, as long as “took care of” is understood as “in charge of” and not “seeing to the needs of.”

A very great multitude in Greek is a summation of the preceding statistics. Good News Translation moves it forward as a preface to the numbers: “It was an immense army” (similarly Contemporary English Version). Another way to say this is “There was a huge number of soldiers.”

They encamped may be rendered “They set up [or, erected] their tents.”

For spring see 6.11.

They spread out in breadth …: For Dothan and Esdraelon see 3.9. The geography of verse 3 is necessarily vague since Balbaim and Cyamon are unknown. It is widely assumed that Balbaim is the same unknown site referred to as “Belmain” in 4.4 and “Balamon” in 8.3. Cyamon may be the same town as Jokmeam of 1 Kgs 4.12, just east of Mount Carmel. The real point here is to impress the reader that Holofernes’ massive army has been deployed over a very wide area. An alternative way to express this final sentence is:

• Their tents occupied an area so wide it stretched from the town of Dothan to the town of Balbaim, and so long that it reached from the town of Bethulia to the town of Cyamon, which faces Jezreel Valley.

An alternative translation model for verses 1-3a is the following:

• The next day, Holofernes ordered all his own soldiers and all those from the other nations who were helping him to take down their tents and march toward the town of Bethulia. He commanded them to seize all the paths through the mountains, and then to attack the Israelites. There was a huge number of soldiers—one hundred and seventy thousand foot soldiers, and twelve thousand soldiers riding horses. This did not include all the soldiers who carried the supplies [or, equipment]. So all these soldiers moved out and set up their tents beside the spring in the valley near Bethulia….

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Translation commentary on Judith 8:4

After discussing Judith’s genealogy, the author describes Judith herself. It will be good to begin a new paragraph here, as do Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version.

Judith had lived at home as a widow: Widowhood is an important motif in the book of Judith. Obviously it would be awkward to have a married woman involved in the supposed seduction of Holofernes later in the book. When Judith makes her appeal to God in the next chapter, she emphasizes that she is a widow; see 9.4, 9. Compare this with Sir 35.14-15; see also Psa 68.5. God is the protector of widows. Further, Judith’s widowhood reflects the desperate situation of the city itself. The conquered city of Jerusalem is referred to as “widow” in Isa 54.4 and Lam 1.1. For this author Judith’s widowhood also is tied in with her piety. She is as devoted to Judaism as she was to her late husband. She is presented as an early example of the religious women. She is consciously devoted to living a religious life, even though it is not completely ascetic. She kept her considerable property during her life. Compare the prophet Anna in Luke 2.36-38. Nothing is said about Judith having children, nor does she marry her husband’s next of kin, as was her right, in order to have children. Instead, at her death she wills her property to her husband’s nearest kin (16.24).

For three years and four months: It may be significant that this totals 40 months. It recalls the Israelites 40 years in the wilderness. Moore points out that Bethulia was under seige for 40 days, but suggests that this may be coincidental. Maybe not.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Translation commentary on Judith 9:2

O Lord God of my father Simeon, to whom …: Lord God may also be expressed “Lord [or, Master] our God [or, the God we serve].” For a note on the translation of Lord God, see Tob 3.2. Simeon was an “ancestor,” not her actual father (so Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). Good News Translation uses “remember…” after Judith addresses God. She is not calling on God to remember anything he has forgotten, nor does the verb “remember” occur in the Greek text. Good News Translation uses it to avoid the liturgical relative pronoun whom. A simpler way to do this is to start a new sentence; for example, “O Lord God, whom my ancestor Simeon worshiped. You gave him a sword…” (compare New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible).

Thou gavest a sword: While the Genesis 34 story is critical of Simeon for his deceptive act, Judith praises her ancestor and attributes his action to God’s help. God’s assistance to Simeon is in focus rather than the sword. So in cultures where “swords” are not used for warfare, one may say “You helped him [Simeon] take revenge on….”

To take revenge on the strangers: For revenge see 1.12. Neither strangers nor “foreigners” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version) is an appropriate term for the Shechemites of Gen 34, to whom Judith refers here. They were hardly foreigners; they were native to the land and had been there much longer than Jacob’s family. They may not even have been strangers to Jacob’s family, but even if they were, that is not the point. The Greek word means “another people.” “Non-Jews” or even “non-Israelites” would be anachronistic, although the author of Judith would probably have approved of it. One could say “local people,” “people of Shechem,” or even “neighboring peoples who didn’t worship God.” Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version introduce the name “Dinah,” though she is not named in the Greek text. Even better is “his younger sister Dinah.” An alternative translation model for this clause along with the previous one is: “You helped him take revenge on the people of Shechem who had seized his younger sister Dinah.”

Who had loosed the girdle of a virgin to defile her, and uncovered her thigh to put her to shame, and polluted her womb to disgrace her: In this context defile means to have sex with the woman so that she is no longer a virgin; shame refers to humiliating her by removing her clothing; polluted refers to the semen entering the womb in an act of violent and wicked sex; disgrace refers to the result of this activity on the violated woman. The strong terms defile and polluted are near synonyms. They are used since in ancient times raping a woman would render her unfit for marriage.

There is a textual difficulty in this part of the verse. It will help to see it in its literal context:

… who loosed the womb [?] of a virgin unto defilement,
and exposed her thigh unto shame,
and polluted her womb unto dishonor.

The problem is that the first occurrence of the word “womb” does not fit the context well. Although there is some dissent (Moore), virtually all scholars agree that a simple error was made early. The word for a belt or headband (mitra in Greek) was confused with the word for womb (metra in Greek). So the Revised Standard Version has girdle. The Good News Translation reading of the above lines is:

… who seized Dinah, who was a virgin, tore off her clothes, and defiled her; they stripped her naked and shamed her; they raped her and disgraced her.

Good News Translation takes “loosed her belt/headband” to mean “tore off her clothes.” It describes three stages in the act of rape (“tore off her clothes,” “stripped her naked,” and “raped her”). Although this is the usual solution, one does not have to emend the text. “Belt/headband” is a guess; there is no manuscript evidence for it. One can understand “loosed” as “broke” or “violated”; for example, “The foreigners violated her womb and defiled [or, disgraced] her.” Then the last two actions describe the rape itself.

Note that each of the three actions (verbs) is matched with a noun: “loosed” with “defilement,” “exposed” with “shame,” and “polluted” with “dishonor.” Revised Standard Version translates all these nouns as verbs: to defile, to put to … shame, and to disgrace (similarly Good News Translation). The words defile and polluted will be used effectively in 9.8 with reference to the temple, where they refer to violent and wicked acts being committed which make the temple unfit for use.

For thou hast said, ‘It shall not be done’—yet they did it: This last sentence in the verse contains a direct quotation, which Good News Translation expresses in the content of one verb: “you had forbidden.” The quotation gives force to God’s prohibition, but it sounds awkward in English. An adverb could help in Good News Translation; for example, “you had absolutely forbidden.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Translation commentary on Judith 10:20

Holofernes’ companions and all his servants came out and led her into the tent: Companions is literally “those who sleep beside.” They are surely “bodyguards,” as Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version have it. But not only the bodyguards, the general’s “personal servants” come out also. Once again Judith is getting quite an escort! Came out and led her into the tent may be rendered “came out of his tent and led Judith inside” (Contemporary English Version).

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.