Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 6:73

Instead of Ramoth, the parallel text in Josh 21.29 has the name “Jarmuth” in the Masoretic Text. But the Septuagint text of Josh 21.29 reads “Ramoth.”

Instead of Anem, the parallel list of cities in Josh 21.29 has “En-gannim.” Some scholars think that the name Anem arose through several scribal errors from the original name “En-gannim.” Others think that Anem is either an abbreviation or shortened form of “En-gannim.” Still others think that the two names refer to two distinct towns. New American Bible and EinheitsĂŒbersetzung correct the Masoretic Text here to read “Engannim” and “En-Gammin” respectively, but all other translations here read Anem.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 7:28

Their possessions and settlements were Bethel and its towns …: The pronoun Their refers to the descendants of Ephraim. The Hebrew noun translated possessions may refer to property in general, including slaves. But in this context, as in 1 Chr 9.2, it refers to “lands” (New Jerusalem Bible) that had been allotted to their tribe and were to remain in the possession of that tribe.

Bethel was located about 16 kilometers (10 miles) north of Jerusalem, on the border between the tribes of Ephraim and Benjamin.

The words its towns (literally “its daughters” [Osty-Trinquet]) may be translated “the towns around it” (Good News Translation), “its surrounding villages” (New International Version), or “the neighboring villages” (Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente). Other renderings include “its dependencies” (New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, American Bible) and “its dependent villages” (Revised English Bible). Compare 5.16.

Naaran, located near Jericho, is called “Naarah” in Josh 16.7. But virtually all modern versions retain the difference in spelling.

Gezer was a city of refuge in the territory of Ephraim (see the comments on 1 Chr 6.67). Shechem to the north in the hill country of Ephraim was another city of refuge for the central tribes (see the comments on 1 Chr 6.67; see also Josh 20.7).

Some interpreters consider Ayyah to be the same as Ai (Gen 12.8; 13.3; Josh 7.2), located in the south very near Bethel, but not all scholars agree on this. Ayyah may be a variant spelling for Aija, mentioned with Bethel in Neh 11.31, and Aija also may be a variant spelling for Ai. Some ancient translations in Latin and Aramaic support the name “Gaza” instead of Ayyah, and this is the basis for the rendering “Gaza” in some translations (King James Version, Revised English Bible) and “Azzah” in others (An American Translation, Moffatt). Menge reads “Ayyah (or: Gaza?),” but such uncertainty regarding the text is better placed in a footnote rather than within the text. The name “Gaza” probably arose from a misreading of the middle Hebrew letter in Ayyah. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text. So translators should maintain the name Ayyah.

Since many readers will not know the locations of these towns, the meaning of this verse may be expressed more clearly as in New Living Translation: “The descendants of Ephraim lived in the territory that included Bethel and its surrounding towns to the south, Naaran to the east, Gezer and its villages to the west, and Shechem and its surrounding villages to the north as far as Ayyah and its towns.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch likewise makes explicit that Shechem and Ayyah were in the north. However, if Ayyah is identified with the city of Ai in the south, then the translation should read “… Bethel and Ayyah and their surrounding towns to the south, Naaran to the east, Gezer and its villages to the west, and Shechem and its surrounding villages to the north.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 8:31

Zecher is called “Zechariah” in the parallel passage of 1 Chr 9.37. Some common language translations use the same name in both places, either by writing “Zechariah” here (Good News Translation, New Living Translation) or “Zecher” in 9.37 (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). If such an adjustment is not made in the text, a footnote may be used to inform the reader that the same person is intended.

A number of translations add the name “Mikloth” at the end of this verse on the basis of the Septuagint and the parallel in 9.37 (so Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, Osty-Trinquet, Luther, Peregrino. It is possible that a scribe accidentally omitted the name in verse 31 if it occurred here at the end of this verse as well as at the beginning of the next verse. La Bible PlĂ©iade and La Sainte Bible: La version Etablie par les moines de Maredsous place the name “Mikloth” within square brackets to show that it is not in the Masoretic Text.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 9:32

And some of their kinsmen of the Kohathites … is literally “And from the sons of the Kohathites, from their brothers….” As in verse 30, if “sons of” is translated literally, this may suggest incorrectly that the text refers to children of the Kohathite clan and not to the Kohathite clan members themselves. The pronoun their refers to the Levites of other clans.

Had charge of is literally “over” (see verse 28).

Showbread is literally “bread of the row” or “bread of arrangement.” This particular expression is used only in 1–2 Chronicles and in Neh 10.33. Elsewhere in the Bible, this bread is usually called “bread of the Presence” (literally “bread of the face” in Exodus). In each case the reference is to the twelve loaves of bread consecrated to God and set before him in two rows on the golden table in the Holy Place every Sabbath. The English term showbread comes from Tyndale’s translation, which was based on that of Martin Luther in German. New Revised Standard Version revises to say “rows of bread,” which is much more in keeping with the literal Hebrew. Others say “sacred loaves of bread” (Contemporary English Version) or “Bread of the Presence” (Revised English Bible). Some translations give the impression that the responsibility of these members of the clan of Kohath was to set the bread out in proper arrangement, but others indicate that they were the ones to make the bread. Perhaps both elements were involved.

The Hebrew term for sabbath comes from a verb meaning “to rest” or “to abandon work.” It is similar to the word for “seven,” and it was on the seventh day that Yahweh rested, following the work of creation (Gen 2.2-3). In many languages it is best translated “day of rest” in this context.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 11:7

And David dwelt in the stronghold; therefore it was called the city of David: It is important that the relationship of cause and effect between the two clauses in this verse be made clear in translation. This may be done by using a transition expression such as therefore or “that is why” (Revised English Bible) between them or by introducing the first clause with a word such as “Because” (Good News Translation). Contemporary English Version includes the implied information that David’s move took place some time after the battle, translating the whole verse as follows: “Later, David moved to the fortress– that’s why it’s called the City of David.”

For stronghold see 1 Chr 11.5 above. But in this case the qualifying words “of Zion” do not appear. It was called is literally “they called it.” The plural is indefinite, meaning “people called it.” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “it was renamed,” suggesting that it had previously had a different name. In languages where passive verbs are rare or unnatural in such a context, a more literal rendering using the indefinite third person plural active verb may be preferred.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 11:40

Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite: Since both Ira and Gareb are qualified by the term Ithrite, some languages may find it more natural to use the term only once, saying “Ira and Gareb who were both Ithrites” or “Ira and Gareb from Jattir” (Good News Translation). The adjective Ithrite apparently refers to the clan or tribe from which these two warriors came. However, some interpreters understand the Hebrew word here to be “Jattirite,” which is an adjective referring to the town of Jattir (so Good News Translation, EinheitsĂŒbersetzung, Menge).

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 13:6

And David and all Israel went up is literally “And David went up, and all Israel.” Some modern versions take the initial common Hebrew conjunction as a temporal connector, translating “Then” (Contemporary English Version, New Living Translation). Went up may be rendered simply “went” (Good News Translation).

To Baalah, that is, to Kiriath-jearim: The writer assumes that the readers know how the ark came to be located in the city of Kiriath Jearim (see 1 Sam 6.1–7.1). The English preposition to before the names of the two cities Baalah and Kiriath-jearim translates two different Hebrew prepositions. The first Hebrew preposition is often translated “into” following a verb of motion. The second preposition has the basic meaning “toward.” There is no conjunction between the two names. The Hebrew says simply “to Baalah to Kiriath Jearim.” But since Baalah was the old name for the city elsewhere called Kiriath-jearim (see Josh 15.9), many translations add the words that is in order to indicate that the two place names refer to the same city.

Which belongs to Judah may be rendered “in the territory of the tribe of Judah” (Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje).

To bring up from there the ark of God: The ark was regarded as a very holy object.

Which is called by the name of the LORD who sits enthroned above the cherubim is literally “Yahweh who sits [on] the cherubim which is called a name.” The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain. “A name” probably means “Yahweh’s name.” The whole clause seems to mean “which was known by the name ‘LORD enthroned upon the cherubim’ ” (New American Bible) or “which bears the title ‘Yahweh enthroned on the winged creatures’ ” (New Jerusalem Bible). Compare also “ ‘the box of the LORD who sits above the cherubim’ as it is called.” On the other hand, the sense may be that the divine name was spoken over the Covenant Box on certain occasions. Some scholars change the vowel of the Hebrew word for “name” to read “there,” and translate this clause as “who sits enthroned on the cherubim, there [where] he is invoked.” Other scholars have suggested other changes in the Hebrew text, but the Masoretic Text probably means something like the rendering in New Jerusalem Bible.

The cherubim were two golden statues of winged creatures that symbolized God’s majesty and were associated with his presence. The usual image of cherubim in Western art shows them as round-faced infants with wings, but this does not correspond at all to the descriptions of these creatures found in the Old Testament or to their appearance in the art of ancient Near Eastern countries. These creatures were winged beings that were depicted as part human and part animal. The descriptions of such creatures are not uniform throughout the Old Testament, but see the descriptions in Exo 25.17-22 and Ezek 10.1-22. The Hebrew word for cherubim has traditionally been transliterated (so King James Version, Reina-Valera revisada), and many modern versions continue this approach (so New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New American Bible, Bible en français courant, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente). However, it will be more meaningful in most languages to say something like “winged creatures” (Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible) and include a more detailed explanation in a word list entry. One of the primary functions of the cherubim was that of protecting divine property such as the tree of life in the Garden of Eden (Gen 3.24) and the Covenant Box (Exo 25.17-22). For this reason some translators render cherubim as “guardians of God’s things” or “protecting beings.” Their other main function was to serve as a throne for gods and/or kings.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 16:20

This verse describes the situation of the Hebrew nomads, wandering from place to place. It is probably better in many languages to make a new sentence of this verse rather than continuing the one begun earlier as in Revised Standard Version.

Wandering from nation to nation: The Hebrew word translated nation is often used in the Old Testament to refer to pagan peoples as distinct from Israel. But the meaning here is more likely geographical. For this reason it is possible to translate from nation to nation as “from country to country” (Good News Translation, Parole de Vie).

From one kingdom to another people: If this translation of the Hebrew expresses the intended meaning, then kingdom may refer to Egypt, and another people may refer to the Canaanites and the neighboring countries. But more likely, this line is parallel in meaning to from nation to nation.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .