eyes brightened, strength returned

The Hebrew in 1 Samuel 14:27 that is translated as “eyes brightened” or “strength returned” in English is translated in Mandinka as “his eyes were opened.” “This turns out to be a remarkable coincidence of idiom between Hebrew and Mandinka, both implying ‘strength returns.'” (Source: Rob Koops)

Likewise, in Chichewa (interconfessional translation) it is translated with a proverb that says “his eyes were brightened” and (also) refers to hunger being satisfied. (Source: Wendland 1987, p. 104)

swear / vow

Click here to view graphically

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “swear (an oath)” or “vow” in English is otherwise translated as:

  • “God sees me, I tell the truth to you” (Tzeltal)
  • “loading yourself down” (Huichol)
  • “speak-stay” (implying permanence of the utterance) (Sayula Popoluca)
  • “say what could not be taken away” (San Blas Kuna)
  • “because of the tight (i.e. ‘binding’) word said to a face” (Guerrero Amuzgo)
  • “strong promise” (North Alaskan Inupiatun) (source for all above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • “eat an oath” (Nyamwezi) (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • “drink an oath” (Jju) (source: McKinney 2018, p. 31).
  • “cut taboos” (Mairasi (source: Enggavoter 2004)

In Bauzi “swear” can be translated in various ways. In Hebrews 6:13, for instance, it is translated with “bones break apart and decisively speak.” (“No bones are literally broken but by saying ‘break bones’ it is like people swear by someone else in this case it is in relation to a rotting corpse’ bones falling apart. If you ‘break bones’ so to speak when you make an utterance, it is a true utterance.”) In other passages, such as in Matthew 26:72, it’s translated with an expression that implies taking ashes (“if a person wants everyone to know that he is telling the truth about a matter, he reaches down into the fireplace, scoops up some ashes and throws them while saying ‘I was not the one who did that.'”). So in Matthew 26:72 the Bauzi text is: “. . . Peter took ashes and defended himself saying, ‘I don’t know that Nazareth person.'” (Source: David Briley)

See also swear (promise) and Let your word be ‘Yes, Yes’, or ‘No, No’.

complete verse (1 Samuel 14:27)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 1 Samuel 14:27:

  • Kupsabiny: “But Jonathan had not heard that people had made an oath. He took the walking-stick he had and dipped (it) into the honey and then ate a small piece or that honey. From there/Then, he got strength.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “But Jonathan had not heard the report of his father’s causing the people to swear an oath. He pierced the beehive with the tip of the stick that he had. Then, lifting his hand, he took [it] into his mouth and ate. Then he knew that strength had come into his body.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “But Jonatan had- not -heard what his father had-sworn which should be-followed by the people. So he dipped the tip of his staff/walking-stick into the honey and ate, and his feeling became-better.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “But Jonathan did not hear what his father commanded because he had left the camp very early in the morning. So when he saw a honeycomb, he dipped the end of his walking stick into it and ate some honey. After he ate the honey, he felt stronger.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on 1 Samuel 14:27

Since the story takes an unexpected turn, it is appropriate to begin this part by translating the common conjunction as But. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh uses the word “However” at this point.

Staff: the Hebrew noun refers to a staff (New Revised Standard Version, New American Bible) or stick (New Jerusalem Bible, Revised English Bible, Good News Translation, New Living Translation), most likely made of wood. This may have been a stick used in walking, a weapon used in warfare, or even a symbol of his authority as the king’s son.

The honeycomb: this translates a word that occurs only here in the Old Testament. Though traditionally translated as honeycomb, the exact meaning is not certain.

As in the previous verse, the expression put his hand to his mouth means simply that “he ate.”

His eyes became bright: see also verse 29. This idiom means that he regained his strength. See the similar idiom in Psa 13.3; 19.8. New Jerusalem Bible renders this literally as “whereupon his eyes grew brighter.” If a literal translation will not express the correct meaning, it will be necessary to translate along the lines of Revised English Bible, “and [he] was refreshed,” or Contemporary English Version, “He felt stronger and more alert.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .