complete verse (1 Chronicles 16:19)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 1 Chronicles 16:19:

  • Kupsabiny: “God was saying these words when the people of Israel were still few
    and they were still foreigners/visitors in that land of Canaan.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “At that time you were few in number —
    very few indeed —
    and [you] were foreigners
    in the land of Canaan.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Long-time-ago there were only very few people of God,
    and they were just strangers in the land of Canaan.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “He said that to them when there were only a few of them,
    a tiny group of people who were living in that land like strangers/that belonged to other people;” (Source: Translation for Translators)

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (Japanese)

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Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 16:19

Verses 19-22 describe the condition of the Hebrews during the patriarchal age, when there were only a few of them and they had no settled residence in Canaan, but wandered from place to place (see Gen 12–35).

When they were few in number is literally “When you [plural] were few in number.” Instead of the pronoun they, some versions read “you” (New Jerusalem Bible, American Bible, Nouvelle version Segond révisée, La Bible du Semeur, Braun). However, rather than understanding “you” as the readers, New Jerusalem Bible and American Bible include this verse as the end of God’s words to the patriarchs begun in the previous verse, which does make better sense of the second person plural pronoun. The parallel text in Psa 105.12 has the pronoun “they,” referring to the patriarchs; and most versions have this pronoun here in 1 Chronicles also. Good News Translation renders this pronoun more dynamically, speaking of “God’s people,” but perhaps a better model in this context is that of Parole de Vie, which says “Our ancestors.”

Of little account means they were “insignificant” because they were few in number. However, Revised Standard Version may express a more negative sense than the Hebrew intends. The Hebrew word for little account is literally “a little,” and here may mean “a short time” or “small in numbers.” Good News Translation does not seem to translate this word. Other translations include “a handful” (New American Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “almost as nothing” (Braun), and “a tiny group” (New Living Translation).

And sojourners in it: The Hebrew word for sojourners is better rendered “temporary residents,” “immigrants” (La Bible du Semeur, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible), “foreign residents” ( NET Bible) or “resident aliens” rather than “strangers” (New Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible). In some language areas there are known groups of nomadic wanderers who may come and go according to the seasons, and terms for such groups may be used to render sojourners.

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 .

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Chronicles 16:19

16:19 When they were few in number, few indeed, and strangers in the land,

(English Standard Version🙂 When you were few in number, of little account, and sojourners in it,

You were not very many people. You were just a small number and you were strangers in the land.
-or-
You were only a few ⌊people⌋ . You were ⌊just a⌋ handful ⌊of people living in that land⌋ as temporary residents.

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