SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 2023 – Page 77

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 10:13

10:13a

So the sun stood still: The clause So the sun stood still is a result clause. This was what happened as a result of Joshua’s prayer. Use whatever connecting word indicates a result in your language. The clause the sun stood still indicates that the sun remained in the same place in the sky. God answered Joshua’s prayer and caused the sun to stay still.

and the moon stopped: The clause and the moon stopped indicates that the moon remained in one place in the sky, because Joshua prayed for this to happen. God answered Joshua’s prayer and caused the moon to stay still.

10:13b

until the nation took vengeance upon its enemies: The sun and moon did not move through the sky for a long period of time. This allowed Israel to finish the battle against their enemies.

the nation: The phrase the nation refers to the Israelites.

took vengeance upon its enemies: The clause took vengeance upon its enemies indicates that the Israelites defeated the Amorites.

10:13c

Is this not written in the Book of Jashar?: This is a rhetorical question that functions as a statement. The expected response is “yes, it is.” It may be more natural in some languages to translate this as a statement. For example:

This is what is written down in the Book of Jashar

the Book of Jashar: The term Book of Jashar probably refers to a collection of stories about wars. It is also mentioned one other place in the Old Testament, 2 Samuel 1:18.

10:13d

So the sun stopped in the middle of the sky: Here is another way to translate this phrase:

The sun stayed in the midst of heaven (Revised Standard Version)

10:13e

and delayed going down about a full day: This clause adds information about the length of time the sun did not move in the sky. Yahweh made the sun stay in one place for about one day. The Hebrew clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as delayed going down is a Hebrew idiom.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

and did not go down for a whole day (Good News Translation)

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SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 11:2

11:2a

to the kings of the north in the mountains: The phrase the kings of the north in the mountains refers to other towns ruled by kings which were further north in the mountains of Galilee.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

the northern kings who were in the mountains (New International Version)
-or-
the kings in the hill country in the north (Good News Translation)

11:2b

in the Arabah south of Chinnereth: The Arabah refers to the valley of the Jordan River, north of the Dead Sea and south of Lake Galilee.

Chinnereth: Chinnereth refers to Lake Galilee.

Here is another way to translate this phrase:

the Jordan valley south of Lake Galilee (Good News Translation)

in the foothills: The phrase the foothills refers to the western foothills that were between the mountains and the coastal plain. This word was used in 9:1 and you should translate it the same way in both places.

and in Naphoth-dor to the west: The town of Dor was a seaport on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea south of Mount Carmel. It is not certain to what the term Naphoth refers.

Here are some other ways to translate this term:

the heights of Dor (NET Bible, New American Standard Bible)
-or-
on the coast near Dor (Good News Translation)
-or-
the district of Dor (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
-or-
the borders of Dor (King James Version)
-or-
Naphoth Dor (New International Version, God’s Word)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 12:23

12:23

Dor in Naphath-dor: The town of Dor was a seaport on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea south of Carmel. It is not clear what the Hebrew word “Naphath” refers to. This word appeared in 11:2 in a similar context. It is recommended that you translate this place name in agreement with the major language version in your area.

English versions differ in how they translate the word Naphath-dor. Here are some other ways to translate the name of this town:

Dor – near Naphath Dor (NET Bible)
-or-
Dor (in Naphath Dor) (New International Version)
-or-
Dor in the heights of Dor (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
Dor in the district of Dor (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
-or-
Dor (on the coast) (Good News Translation)
-or-
Dor in the coast of Dor (King James Version)

the king of Goiim: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible transliterates as Goiim means “nations.” For example:

the king of the nations in Galilee (New Jerusalem Bible)

Most English versions transliterate this word, as the Berean Standard Bible does. It is recommended that you transliterate it as the Berean Standard Bible does.

in Gilgal: There is a textual issue with the term Gilgal.

(1) The ancient Greek translation, the Septuagint, has the name Galilee.

(Revised Standard Version, English Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, Revised English Bible, Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version)

(2) The Hebrew text has the name Gilgal.

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, NET Bible, New Century Version, Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, New Living Translation (2004), God’s Word, King James Version)

It is recommended that you follow option (1) and translate this word as “Galilee” or “Galilee Region.” There is no evidence that there was a place called Gilgal in this area.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 13:31

13:31a

half of Gilead: The phrase half of Gilead indicates half of the region of Gilead. The other half of the Gilead region was captured from King Sihon and was mentioned in 12:2. You should translate the term Gilead the same way in both places.

and Ashtaroth and Edrei, the royal cities of Og in Bashan: Ashtaroth and Edrei were two important towns in the kingdom of King Og.

In some languages it may be more natural to begin a new sentence here. Here is another way to translate this verse:

It included half of Gilead, as well as Ashtaroth and Edrei (Good News Translation)

Ashtaroth: The town of Ashtaroth was the capital town of King Og of Bashan. Ashtaroth was mentioned in Joshua 9:10 and you should translate it the same way in both places.

Edrei: King Og also had a residence where he sometimes lived in the town of Edrei. Edrei was mentioned in Joshua 12:4, and you should translate it the same way in both places.

13:31b

All this was for the clans of the descendants of Machir son of Manasseh: The word All this indicates the towns that were listed in verses 13:30-31.

was for: The verb phrase was for is not in the Hebrew text. The Hebrew text has no verb, but in English a verb must be supplied.

the clans of the descendants: The phrase the clans of the descendants indicates that each clan or group of families within half of the tribe of Manasseh that was descended from Machir received their own portion of the land on the east side of the Jordan River.

Here is another way to translate this phrase:

Moses gave these towns to the people of Machir the son of Manasseh

Machir son of Manasseh: Machir was the first-born son of Manasseh.

Here is another way to spell Machir:

Makir (NET Bible, New International Version)

13:31c

that is, half of the descendants of Machir: The phrase half of the descendants of Machir contains similar information to the phrase in verse 13:31b “the people of Machir the son of Manasseh.” In some languages it is more natural to leave one of these phrases as implicit information.

Here is another way to translate verse 13:31b-c:

Moses gave these towns to the families in this half-tribe of Manasseh. These families were the descendants of Machir the son of Manasseh.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 15:15

15:15a

From there he marched against the inhabitants of Debir: The town called Debir in this verse is not the same as the place mentioned in 15:7. The location of this town is not clear.

he marched: Caleb marched uphill to fight against the people of Debir. Hebrew verbs keep track of elevation, and thus it says “went up.” If your language does not keep track of elevation, it may be more natural to say “went.”

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Then he went from Hebron to fight the people of Debir
-or-
Caleb next went to attack the town of Debir

15:15b

Debir (formerly known as Kiriath-sepher): Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

in past times the name of Debir was Kiriath-sepher
-or-
the town of Debir used to be called Kiriath-sepher

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 15:47

15:47a

Ashdod, with its towns and villages; Gaza, with its towns and villages: The town of Gaza was another one of the five most important towns of the Philistines.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

The town of Ashdod together with its towns and villages, and the town of Gaza together with its towns and villages also belonged to the people of Judah
-or-
They also received Ashdod and Gaza, and the towns and villages that were near them

15:47b

as far as the Brook of Egypt and the coastline of the Great Sea: The phrase Brook of Egypt occurred in Joshua 15:4, and you translate it the same way in both places.

the Great Sea: The phrase Great Sea refers to the Mediterranean Sea. This indicates that all the towns and villages near Ashdod and Gaza, and along the shore of the Mediterranean south to the Brook of Egypt, belonged to the people of Judah.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

and all the places southward along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea to the Brook of Egypt
-or-
This area reached all the way south along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea, to the stream at the border of Egypt

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 17:6

17:6a

because the daughters of Manasseh received an inheritance among his sons: The clause the daughters of Manasseh received an inheritance among his sons states the reason that the clan of Manasseh received ten areas of land. In some languages it may be helpful to reorder the information in verses 5 and 6 to make this clear. See the General Comment on 17:5–6a.

the daughters of Manasseh: The phrase the daughters of Manasseh refers to the five daughters of Zelophehad. These women were fifth-generation descendants of Manasseh. They were not literally his daughters. The Hebrew language uses “daughters” to refer to female descendants.

his sons: The phrase his sons refers to five of the sons of Gilead. These men were third-generation descendants of Manasseh. They were not literally his sons. The Hebrew language uses “sons” to refer to male descendants.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

This happened because the female descendants of Manasseh received portions of land like the male descendants
-or-
This was because the daughters of Zelophehad, who were descended from Manasseh, were assigned land along with their male relatives

General Comment on 17:5–6a

In some languages it may be more natural to reorder these verses and put the reason first. For example:

6a Because the female descendants of Manasseh received portions of land like their male relatives, 5a the clan of Manasseh received ten portions of land ⌊on the west side of the Jordan River⌋ . 5b The other descendants of Manasseh received the lands of Gilead and Bashan 5c on the east side of the Jordan River.

17:6b

And the land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the sons of Manasseh: The phrase the rest of the sons of Manasseh refers to the other descendants of Manasseh who were mentioned in Joshua 17:1. They received the land of Gilead on the east side of the Jordan River.

It is not clear from scripture exactly how these descendants of Manasseh were related to the six sons of Gilead. Possibly Machir had other sons who were brothers of Gilead.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

The land of Gilead was assigned to the other descendants of Manasseh
-or-
Other descendants of Manasseh had received the land of Gilead

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 18:20

18:20a

On the east side the border was the Jordan: The eastern border is easy to describe. The full description is in this one phrase.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

The Jordan River formed the eastern boundary line
-or-
The border on the east side of Benjamin’s land was the Jordan River

18:20b

These were the borders around the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Benjamin: The clause These were the borders around the inheritance is a conclusion to Joshua 18:12-20. We have now made a circle around all four of the boundary lines of the land that Benjamin received.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

This was the land that the clan of Benjamin received as their inheritance
-or-
That described the land that the Benjamin clan received as its permanent possession

These were the borders around the inheritance: The phrase the borders around refers to the boundary lines on all sides: north, south, east and west.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

These boundaries marked out the land that they received according to their family groups
-or-
Each clan received land within these boundaries

In some languages it may be more natural to combine the phrase the borders around with the information in 18:20b. For example:

These were the borders of the land which the clan of Benjamin received as their inheritance
-or-
Those boundaries described the land that the Benjamin clan received

the clans: The phrase the clans actually refers to the families within the clan of Benjamin.

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Source: SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 2023

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 10:13

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 11:2

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 12:23

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 13:31

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 15:15

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 15:47

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 17:6

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 18:20

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