Sovereign Lord

The Greek that is translated in English as “Sovereign Lord” is translated as

  • “you who are Chief, you own all of us, truly you are God” in Chichimeca-Jonaz
  • “Big Father, you are God” in Isthmus Mixe
  • “my Lord who is the greatest” in Lalana Chinantec
  • “our Lord, he who is greatest before us” in Ayutla Mixtec
  • “you, Lord God, who is very great” in Tepeuxila Cuicatec
  • “you, the Lord able to do all things” in Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac
  • “God our Father, you are our Boss, the biggest” Tataltepec Chatino (source for this and all above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
  • “Lord, Owner of All Power” in Hausa (source: Hausa Common Language Bible Back Translation)
  • “Lord who is mightier than all” in Hiligaynon (source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)

complete verse (Genesis 24:65)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 24:65:

  • Kankanaey: “and she asked-for-information from the slave, ‘Who is that man who is approaching to meet-us?’ ‘The child of my master,’ he said answering. Therefore Rebeka covered her face with a head-cloth, because that was the custom of young-ladies there.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Then she asked Abraham’s servant — ‘Who is [that] man coming from over there?'” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “and asked the servant of Abraham, ‘Who is that man in the field who is-approaching us (excl.)?’ The servant answered, ‘He is my master Isaac.’ Therefore Rebeka covered her face with a veil.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “and asked the servant, ‘Who is that man who is approaching?’ The servant replied, ‘That is Isaac, my master, the man you will be marrying.’ So she took her veil and covered her face, which was the custom for a woman who was about to be married.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

unleavened bread

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “unleavened bread” in English is translated in various ways:

  • Chichimeca-Jonaz: “bread that doesn’t have its medicine that makes it puff up”
  • Teutila Cuicatec: “bread without its sour”
  • Tepeuxila Cuicatec: “bread that has no mother” (source for this and above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
  • Mairasi: “bread without other ingredient” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Chichewa: “non-puffed-up bread”
  • Chitonga: “bread without fermented grain” (source for this and above: de Regt / Wendland 2016)
  • Hiligaynon: “bread that has-none of that-which-causes-to-expand” (source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Tatar: “unleavened flat cakes” (source: Lénart de Regt in The Bible Translator 2017, p. 131ff. )
  • Nkumbi / Mbangala / Songo: “bread that has gone no yeast” — “this is an application of a common construction in Angolan Bantu languages for speaking about the ingredients in some foods: ‘there is salt in the soup’ is rendered literally, ‘the soup has gone salt.’ (Source: Riikka Halme-Berneking in The Bible Translator 2014, p. 353ff. )

dishonor God

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The Greek in Romans 2:23 that is usually translated in English as “dishonor God” is translated in various ways:

See also complete verse (Romans 2:23).

complete verse (Genesis 28:15)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 28:15:

  • Kankanaey: “It is moreover utterly true that I will be with you (sing.) continually so-that I will take-care-of you (sing.) wherever (lit. even-if where) you-(sing.)-go. Then I will also escort you (sing.) to return to this country here. I will not moreover leave/abandon you (sing.), but rather I will fulfill all that I promised to you (sing.),’ God said.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “I am with you. No matter where you go I will be caring for you. And I will bring you back here. I will not leave you until the work of [my] promise to you has been fulfilled.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Always remember that I am-with you and I will-watch-over you wherever you go. I will-have- you -return to this land and I will- not -leave you until I have-fulfilled my promise to you.'” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “I will help you and protect you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you; I will continue to do for you all that I have promised to do.'” (Source: Translation for Translators)

adultery

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The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “adultery” in English (here etymologically meaning “to alter”) is typically understood as “marital infidelity.” It is (back-) translated in the following ways:

  • Highland Totonac: “to do something together”
  • Yucateco: “pair-sin”
  • Ngäbere: “robbing another’s half self-possession” (compare “fornication” which is “robbing self-possession,” that is, to rob what belongs to a person)
  • Kaqchikel, Chol: “to act like a dog” (see also licentiousness)
  • Toraja-Sa’dan: “to measure the depth of the river of (another’s) marriage”
  • North Alaskan Inupiatun: “married people using what is not theirs” (compare “fornication” which is “unmarried people using what is not theirs”) (source for this and all above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Purari: “play hands with” or “play eyes with”
  • Chicahuaxtla Triqui: “talk secretly with spouses of our fellows”
  • Isthmus Zapotec: “go in with other people’s spouses”
  • Tzeltal: “practice illicit relationship with women”
  • Huehuetla Tepehua: “live with some one who isn’t your wife”
  • Central Tarahumara: “sleep with a strange partner”
  • Hopi: “tamper with marriage” (source for this and seven above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • German: Ehebrecher or “marriage breaker” / Ehe brechen or “breaking of marriage” (source: Zetzsche)
  • In Falam Chin the term for “adultery” is the phrase for “to share breast” which relates to adultery by either sex. (Source: David Clark)
  • In Ixcatlán Mazatec a specification needs to be made to include both genders. (Source: Robert Bascom)
  • Likewise in Hiligaynon: “commit-adultery-with-a-man or commit-adultery-with-a-woman” (source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)

See also adultery, adulterer, adulteress, and you shall not commit adultery.

patriarchs

The Greek that is often translated as “patriarchs” in English is translated as

  • “first old fathers” in Isthmus Zapotec
  • “the ancient fathers” in Tzeltal / Highland Totonac
  • “the old important people who lived long ago were forefathers of the Israelites” in Yatzachi Zapotec
  • “the 12 sons of Jacob” Central Tarahumara
  • “the fathers from way back when” in Chicahuaxtla Triqui (source for this and above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • “chiefs over each of the clans of Israel” in Bariai (source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • “our twelve grandfathers” in Kupsabiny (source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • “twelve children from where Jews came-from” in Hiligaynon (source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)

perplexed

The Greek in Mark 6:20 that is translated into English as “perplexed” is translated as

  • “his heart was gone” in Tzeltal
  • “hard chased” (as in animals in a hunt) in Piro
  • “his mind was killing him” in Navajo (Dinė)
  • “his stomach rose up” in Farefare
  • “he was very irresolute” (i.e. “it was all wrong with him”) in Indonesian
  • “his heart was very divided” in Javanese (source for this and all above: Bratcher / Nida 1961)
  • “confused his head” in Hiligaynon (source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • “his heart was agitated” in Uma (source: Uma Back Translation)
  • “his thinking was difficult” in Kankanaey (source: Kankanaey Back Translation)

See also Seat of the Mind for traditional views of “ways of knowing, thinking, and feeling” as well as perplexed, perplexed / puzzled, or troubled / perplexed,