David cuts Saul's robe (image)

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Image taken from the Wiedmann Bible. For more information about the images and ways to adopt them, see here .

For other images of Willy Wiedmann paintings in TIPs, see here.

self-referencing pronoun for king or queen

In Malay, the pronoun beta for the royal “I” (or “my” or “me”) that is used by royals when speaking to people of lower rank, subordinates or commoners to refer to themselves in these verses. This reflects the “language of the court because the monarchy and sultanate in Malaysia are still alive and well. All oral and printed literature (including newspapers and magazines) preserve and glorify the language of the court. Considering that the language of the court is part of the Malaysian language, court language is used sparingly where appropriate, specifically with texts relating to palace life.” (Source: Daud Soesilo in The Bible Translator 2025, p. 263ff.)

complete verse (1 Samuel 24:18)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 1 Samuel 24:18:

  • Kupsabiny: “You yourself have showed me today that you have nothing bad to me because, you did not kill me at the time when God put me in your hands.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Yes, today you showed me how good you are to me. Even though the LORD delivered me into your hand, you did not kill me.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “This day you have-shown to me your (sing.) goodness. The LORD handed- me -over to you (sing.), but you (sing.) did- not -kill me.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “When Yahweh put me in a place in that cave where you could have easily killed me, you did not do that.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

2nd person pronoun with low register (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 second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used anata (あなた) is typically used when the speaker is humbly addressing another person.

In these verses, however, omae (おまえ) is used, a cruder second person pronoun, that Jesus for instance chooses when chiding his disciples. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also first person pronoun with low register and third person pronoun with low register.

Honorary "are" construct denoting God ("hand over")

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme are (され) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, watas-are-ru (渡される) or “hand over” is used.

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

Translation commentary on 1 Samuel 24:18

You have declared: the second person singular pronoun, you, is again emphatic. Some interpreters propose that the Hebrew verb should be corrected to a verb meaning “to make great.” This suggestion lies behind the translation in New American Bible, “Great is the generosity you showed me today.” Hebrew Old Testament Text Project, however, gives an {A} rating to the Masoretic Text. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament, on the other hand, does not give a rating to the MT here, since there really is no textual problem. Various scholars have suggested that the Hebrew verb should be corrected, but there is no basis for this either in the Hebrew manuscripts or in the ancient versions.

The LORD put me into your hands: see verses 4 and 10.

Into your hands: see the comments on 4.8.

In some languages it may be advisable to restructure this verse along the following lines:

• Although the LORD gave you the opportunity to kill me, you did not do it. So you have proven today that you are good to me.

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 .