They sent it to Jerusalem: It refers to the money in the previous verse. So translators may say “they sent the money to Jerusalem.”

The money was sent to the priests as well as the other people in Jerusalem. Contemporary English Version has the preposition “for,” which seemingly indicates that the meaning is “for … to use.” In certain languages this will be a good translation. But it must be clear that the money was not for them to use for their own purposes (see verse 10).

Jehoiakim the high priest, the son of Hilkiah, son of Shallum: Priest may be difficult to translate in some languages, especially for translators who have not yet translated the New Testament. A Handbook on Leviticus has an excellent discussion on the Levitical priests:

The primary duty of the priest was to serve as an intermediary between the LORD and his people. The means by which this was done was sacrifice. Thus in some languages this word has been translated “sacrificer” or “intermediary.” But care should be taken to avoid negative connotations of a word like “sacrificer.” If it evokes ideas of pagan sacrifice quite different from those of the people of Israel, then another term should be sought….

A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark lists terms that a number of cultures have used; for example, “one who presents man’s sacrifice to God,” “one who takes the name of the sacrifice,” and “spokesman of the people before God.”

Jehoiakim the high priest may be alternatively translated as “Jehoiakim the chief sacrificer” or “Jehoiakim the chief [or, head] spokesman of the people before God.” The Greek text identifies Jehoiakim only as “the priest” (Revised Standard Version footnote), not as the high priest, but the author clearly intends to identify this man as the high priest. The son of Hilkiah, son of Shallum may be rendered “the son of Hilkiah and grandson of Shallum” (so Good News Translation). Contemporary English Version omits the information about Hilkiah and Shallum, but it should be retained by translators. Jehoiakim is otherwise unknown, though Hilkiah and Shallum are named in a list of priests in 1 Chr 6.13. There is a Joakim (or Joachim) mentioned as high priest in Judith (4.6), but he is also unknown. Possibly both Jehoiakim and Joakim refer to the same person as Joiakim in Neh 12.10, 26.

The priests refers to “the other priests” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version), in other words, those lower in rank than the high priest.

And to all the people who were present with him in Jerusalem may be rendered “as well as all the people living there in Jerusalem.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Shorter Books of the Deuterocanon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2006. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Revised Standard Version translates verse 18 as a continuation of verse 17, which it is in Greek. There are two problems, however, in connecting this verse with the previous verse. The first problem is to present a contrast between those who cannot praise God and those who can. This is easily broken into two sentences. Good News Translation demonstrates one way while New English Bible suggests another: “17 … The dead are in their graves … it is not they who can sing the Lord’s praises or applaud his justice; 18 it is living men … who will sing thy praises … and applaud thy justice.” The second problem is that the second item in the contrast (verse 18) doesn’t fit smoothly with the first one. The writer seems to be saying “It is not the dead, but the infirm who…”; but the proper contrast is between the dead and the living. Good News Translation and New English Bible are sensitive to this and insert the phrase “the living” to make it clear. Good News Translation goes further with its very helpful addition of “even though they may be….”

The person that is greatly distressed may be rendered “they may be suffering greatly” (Good News Translation) or “we are in terrible pain” (Contemporary English Version). The meaning of the Greek clause rendered here is an unsolved problem. Moore comments that “no modern scholar has translated this particular clause to anyone’s satisfaction other than his own”. Dancy observes concerning the New English Bible rendering that “it is very difficult to get that or any other satisfactory translation out of the Greek.” The clause in question seems to read literally “the soul grieving over greatness.” Most translators interpret “over greatness” adverbially as “greatly,” in the light of Deut 28.65 (“a trembling heart, and failing eyes, and a languishing soul”). Hence, Revised Standard Version has the person that is greatly distressed and Good News Translation “they may be suffering greatly.” Another approach is to interpret “grieving over greatness” as grieving over having lost a higher status (New English Bible “mourning their fall from greatness”) or grieving over losing the strength of youth (Moore “the person who remembers better days”). Moore’s solution is very tempting indeed. It makes excellent sense in the context (the “person” in this verse is, of course, the exiled Jews), but translators may prefer the security of caution here and go with the majority. A footnote indicating that the Greek is unclear here would not be out of place. There was probably a problem in the Hebrew text behind the Greek translation.

That goes about bent over and feeble: Good News Translation translates this “bent and weak.” This is fine, but we should note that there is a verb here, meaning “walk.” The writer is thinking of the painful gait of an old person. Moore translates “shuffles along.”

Will ascribe to thee glory and righteousness: This clause in Greek is not precisely the same as the one in the previous verse, but it is very close. Some translators may feel that the contrast expressed in verses 17-18 is enhanced by expressing these two clauses with similar wording. New English Bible is an example with “will sing thy praises … and applaud thy justice.” Good News Translation may have felt the repetition awkward, since in its restructuring, this last clause of the verse is removed to the beginning, where it immediately follows the similar clause in verse 17. However, the Good News Translation restructuring uses only one sentence for the whole verse, which will be difficult to do in some languages. An alternative is:

• But even though we suffer greatly, walk with difficulty, have failing eyesight, and are hungry, we are still alive. And so, O Lord, we can praise you and tell others how good [or, just] you are.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Shorter Books of the Deuterocanon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2006. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

For this verse compare Job 28.12. The pronoun her refers to Wisdom (for the use of the feminine pronoun, see the comments on verse 12). In the first line most translators will need to use the noun “Wisdom” instead of the pronoun, as Good News Translation and New English Bible have done. The two questions asked in the text are rhetorical questions, with “No one” as the expected answer. Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version establish this by converting the questions into a simple statement. The poetic image involved here is that of Wisdom as a woman who has a home (her place) full of riches (her storehouses); the riches are of course wisdom. The author believes that the source of wisdom is God alone, and therefore no one has ever found its location; it would be like finding the end of the rainbow.

These questions could be restated like this:

• Has anyone ever found where God keeps his wisdom, or entered the place where all these priceless truths are stored?

This rendering would at least lead the reader in the direction of the expected negative answer, and fit in well with the following verses.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Shorter Books of the Deuterocanon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2006. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

For I have seen the captivity of my sons and daughters: Captivity does not refer to the state of being held captive, but the act of being taken captive, as Good News Translation brings out. In languages that do not have the passive voice, we may express this first line as “because I have watched my enemies drag my sons and daughters away to foreign lands.”

Which the Everlasting brought upon them: Which refers back to captivity. Good News Translation repeats the noun for clarity. Contemporary English Version refers back to it by saying “The eternal God has done this to punish them.” The Everlasting is literally “the Eternal.” Both Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version have “the Eternal God.” This name for God is used several times in Baruch from this point on. For this expression see the comments on verse 8, but there the Greek is literally “Eternal God.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Shorter Books of the Deuterocanon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2006. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

Babylon has fallen, the exiles have started on their way, Jerusalem has prepared herself for their arrival, and now, in this last subsection, they arrive. The prediction of Bar 4.24 comes true.

The writer, who in this major section of Bar 4.5–5.9 has been heavily relying on Isaiah 40–66, at this point turns to another source, The Psalms of Solomon. It may be useful to quote at this point the relevant passage from Wright’s translation of The Psalms of Solomon (11.2-9) in the Charlesworth edition:

2 Stand on a high place, Jerusalem, and look at your children,
from the east and the west assembled together by the Lord.
3 From the north they come in the joy of their God;
from far distant lands God has assembled them.
4 He flattened high mountains into level ground for them;
the hills fled at their coming.
5 The forests shaded them as they passed by;
God made every fragrant tree to grow for them.
6 So that Israel might proceed under the supervision of the glory of their God.
7 Jerusalem, put on (the) clothes of your glory,
prepare the robe of your holiness,
for God has spoken well of Israel forevermore.
8 May the Lord do what he has spoken about Israel and Jerusalem;
may the Lord lift up Israel in the name of his glory.
9 May the mercy of the Lord be upon Israel forevermore.

Arise, O Jerusalem, stand upon the height: Once more, a strong imperative begins the subsection. The Greek words rendered Arise and stand are related words, echoing each other. In English this could have been conveyed with “Stand up … stand.” Together the two verbs urge Jerusalem to rise to a standing position and to take a stand on an elevated place. The text does not actually say “mountaintop” (Good News Translation) but the poet very likely has this in mind. Compare Isa 40.9, which uses the same imagery.

Look toward the east: This clause is exactly the same as in Bar 4.36. The idea is omitted from Good News Translation, but Contemporary English Version includes it with “look east.”

See your children gathered from west and east, at the word of the Holy One, rejoicing that God has remembered them: These lines are very close to the corresponding lines in Bar 4.37 (see the comments there). The only particular difference is that west and east are reversed, and that west is literally “setting of the sun.” The correspondence between these two verses is not entirely sacrificed in Good News Translation, although the following sentence from Good News Translation in 4.37 could easily have been repeated here: “They have been gathered together from the east and from the west by the command of God, the Holy One.” Contemporary English Version restructures the sentence in the active voice, and this will be helpful to many translators: “Our Holy God has gathered your children from the east and the west.” For a comment on the Holy One, see Bar 4.22. The last line, rejoicing that God has remembered them, has a close correspondence also to 4.37, but even Revised Standard Version was not able to bring it out. The phrasing in Greek is exactly the same, except that where 4.37 has “glory of God,” this verse has “remembrance of God.” This means, as both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation have it, that God has remembered the people. The author is using here the same word, “remembrance,” that was used at Bar 4.27 (see the comments there). In some languages Contemporary English Version will be a helpful model for this line: “and they are celebrating because he hasn’t forgotten them.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Shorter Books of the Deuterocanon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2006. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.