Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 4:34 - 4:35

As noted in the comments on the previous verse, these verses seem to have no clear connection to what precedes. The ancient Syriac translation, in fact, does not have verses 34-37. The demonstrative pronoun these in verse 38 seems to refer back to the names in verses 34-37, so Good News Translation restructures and numbers these verses as 34-38 (also Contemporary English Version, Bible en français courant, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente). Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch moves the words “The heads of their clans were” from verse 38 to the beginning of verse 34, explaining in a footnote that the words were moved. In addition to restructuring, Contemporary English Version also omits several names in these verses, and the reason is not clear. Contemporary English Version reads as follows:

34-38 As their families and clans became larger, the people of Simeon had the following leaders: Meshobab, Jamlech, Joshiah son of Amaziah, Joel, Jehu, Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, Benaiah, and Ziza.

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 .