mind

The Greek that is typically translated as “mind” in English is translated in Warao as obojona, a term that “includes the concepts of consciousness, will, attitude, attention and a few other miscellaneous notions.” (Source: Henry Osborn in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 74ff. )

In Elhomwe it is often translated as “heart,” “because all thoughts come from heart in Elhomwe thought.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

See other occurrences of Obojona in the Warao New Testament.

pray / prayer

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The Hebrew, Aramaic, Latin, and Greek that is translated as “pray” (or “prayer”) in English is often translated as “talking with God” (Central Pame, Tzeltal, Chol, Chimborazo Highland Quichua, Shipibo-Conibo, Kaqchikel, Tepeuxila Cuicatec, Copainalá Zoque, Central Tarahumara).

Other solutions include:

  • “beg” or “ask,” (full expression: “ask with one’s heart coming out,” which leaves out selfish praying, for asking with the heart out leaves no place for self to hide) (Tzotzil)
  • “cause God to know” (Huichol)
  • “raise up one’s words to God” (implying an element of worship, as well as communication) (Miskito, Lacandon) (source of this and all above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • “speak to God” (Shilluk) (source: Nida 1964, p. 237)
  • “talk together with Great Above One (=God)” (Mairasi) (source: Enggavoter, 2004)
  • “call to one’s Father” (San Blas Kuna) (source: Claudio and Marvel Iglesias in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 85ff. )
  • “beg” (waan) (Ik). Terrill Schrock (in Wycliffe Bible Translators 2016, p. 93) explains (click or tap here to read more):

    What do begging and praying have to do with each other? Do you beg when you pray? Do I?

    “The Ik word for ‘visitor’ is waanam, which means ‘begging person.’ Do you beg when you go visiting? The Ik do. Maybe you don’t beg, but maybe when you visit someone, you are looking for something. Maybe it’s just a listening ear.

    When the Ik hear that [my wife] Amber and I are planning trip to this or that place for a certain amount of time, the letters and lists start coming. As the days dwindle before our departure, the little stack of guests grows. ‘Please, sir, remember me for the allowing: shoes, jacket (rainproof), watch, box, trousers, pens, and money for the children. Thank you, sir, for your assistance.’

    “A few people come by just to greet us or spend bit of time with us. Another precious few will occasionally confide in us about their problems without asking for anything more than a listening ear. I love that.

    “The other day I was in our spare bedroom praying my list of requests to God — a nice list covering most areas of my life, certainly all the points of anxiety. Then it hit me: Does God want my list, or does he want my relationship?

    “I decided to try something. Instead of reading off my list of requests to God, I just talk to him about my issues without any expectation of how he should respond. I make it more about our relationship than my list, because if our personhood is like God’s personhood, then maybe God prefers our confidence and time to our lists, letters, and enumerations.”

In Luang it is translated with different shades of meaning (click or tap here to read more):

  • For Acts 1:14, 20:36, 21:5: kola ttieru-yawur nehla — “hold the waist and hug the neck.” (“This is the more general term for prayer and often refers to worship in prayer as opposed to petition. The Luang people spend the majority of their prayers worshiping rather than petitioning, which explains why this term often is used generically for prayer.”)
  • For Acts 28:9: sumbiani — “pray.” (“This term is also used generically for ‘prayer’. When praying is referred to several times in close proximity, it serves as a variation for kola ttieru-yawur nehla, in keeping with Luang discourse style. It is also used when a prayer is made up of many requests.”)
  • For Acts 8:15, 12:5: polu-waka — “call-ask.” (“This is a term for petition that is used especially when the need is very intense.”)

Source: Kathy Taber in Notes on Translation 1/1999, p. 9-16.

See also Nehemiah’s prayer (image).

complete verse (1 Corinthians 14:15)

Following are a number of back-translations of 1 Corinthians 14:15:

  • Uma: “So, what is good for us to do? We should pray in our heart with languages from the Holy Spirit, and pray also with languages that others understand. We [should] sing praising God in our heart with languages from the Holy Spirit, and also sing praising God with languages that others understand.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Na what shall I do? I do two things. I pray in language not understood by the people and I pray also in language that the people understand. Likewise I sing in language not understood by the people and I also sing in language which the people understand.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Because of this, I want to pray, guided by the Holy Spirit; but I also want that my companions understand what I am saying. And when I sing, I want that my singing be inspired by the Holy Spirit, but it’s necessary also that what I’m singing be understood.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “What then is proper for me to do? What I will do is, I will pray in words/languages that my spirit causes-me -to-speak, but I will also pray in words that I understand. I will sing in words/languages that my spirit causes-me -to-speak, but I will also sing in words/languages that I understand.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Well since it’s like that, what would be good for me to do? I will do both of them, in which I will pray under the inspiration of the Espiritu Santo, and I will also pray in my own language that everyone can understand. Like that also if I am singing my praise to God.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “What should I do then? It is necessary that I pray to God with all my heart, but with words which people hear when I pray. It is necessary that I sing hymns with all my heart, but with hymns which the people hear.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on 1 Corinthians 14:15

What am I to do? may be rendered as “If that is the case, what should I do?” Revised Standard Version, Good News Bible, and most common language translations assume that Paul is asking a real question about his own future conduct. However, Moffatt‘s translation “Very well then” and Phillips‘ “therefore” turn the question into a positive expression indicating a logical connection with verse 14. This interpretation seems preferable.

The rest of this verse consists of two closely parallel statements, each of which is divided into two halves. In languages where such repetition is not natural, it may be possible to shorten the whole text to say “I will pray and sing both with my spirit and also with my mind.”

For the meaning of spirit and mind, see the comments on verse 14.

Good News Bible introduces “my” in this verse, as it was used in the Greek in verse 14.

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, 2nd edition. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1985/1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Corinthians 14:15

14:15a What then shall I do?

So what do I conclude from this?
-or-
So this is what they should do:

14:15b I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind.

I intend to pray with my spirit but also with my thoughts.
-or-
They should pray with their heart/liver but also with their brain.

14:15c I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind.

I intend to sing with my spirit but also with my thoughts.
-or-
They should sing with their heart/liver but also with their brain.

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