desert / wilderness

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The Greek, Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Latin that is translated as “desert” or “wilderness” in English is translated in a number of ways:

  • Mairasi: “a place where noisiness is cut off (or: stops)” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Muna: pandaso bhalano pr “big barren-field” (source: René van den Berg)
  • Balinese: “barren field” (source: J.L. Swellengrebel in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 75ff. )
  • Wantoat: “uninhabited place” (source: Holzhausen 1991, p. 38)
  • Umiray Dumaget Agta: “where no people dwell” (source: Larson 1998, p. 98)
  • Shipibo-Conibo: “where no house is” (source: James Lauriault in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 32ff. )
  • Amri Karbi: “waterless region/place” (source: Philippova 2021, p. 368)
  • Ocotlán Zapotec: “large empty place” (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • Pa’o Karen: “jungle” (denoting a place without any towns, villages and tilled fields) (source: Gordon Luce in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 153f. )
  • Low German translation by Johannes Jessen, publ. 1933, republ. 2006: “steppe”
  • Yakan: “the lonely place” (source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “a land where no people lived” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “the place with no inhabitants” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Cherokee: inage or “far away downstream” (source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 16)
  • Matumbi uses various term: lubele (desert, sandy place without water) — used in John 11:54, lupu’ngu’ti (a place where no people live, can be a scrub land, a forest, or a savanna) — used in Mark 1:3 et al.), and mwitu (a forest, a place where wild animals live) — used in Mark 1:13 et al.) (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
  • Chichewa Contemporary translation (2002/2016): chipululu: a place uninhabited by people with thick forest and bush (source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Adioukrou: loj or “savannah” — “land that is not village, nor forest, nor field (source: Hill 2006)

Note that in Luke 15:4, usually a term is used that denotes pastoral land, such as “eating/grazing-place,” in Tagbanwa (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation).

See also wilderness and desolate wilderness.

complete verse (2 Chronicles 20:16)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Chronicles 20:16:

  • Kupsabiny: “Tomorrow go down and go to fight those people when they are coming up from the valley of Ziz. You will find/meet them end of the valley in front of the wilderness of Jeruel.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Go down to fight with them tomorrow. They will come by way of the heights of Ziz. You will meet them at the end of the gorge in the wilderness of Jeruel.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Tomorrow you (plur.) go-down to them. You will-see them coming-up to the ascent of Ziz, at the tip of the place-where- water -flows that goes to the deserted-place of Jeruel.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Tomorrow march down toward them. They will be climbing up through Ziz Pass north of En-Gedi. You will meet them at the end of the gorge near the Jeruel Desert.” (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 2 Chronicles 20:16

Tomorrow go down against them may be rendered “Tomorrow march down against them” (New International Version, NET Bible). The downward direction is significant here since the enemy army would be coming up a mountain pass.

Behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz: The Hebrew particle rendered behold directs the attention of King Jehoshaphat and his people toward the new information that the enemy army would be climbing the narrow mountain pass at Ziz, so it would be vulnerable to attack. The ascent of Ziz, which was located in the region of Tekoa (verse 20) about 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) south of Jerusalem, was a road that went up more than 325 meters (1,065 feet) from Engedi in the direction of Jerusalem over the distance of more than 1,600 meters (5,250 feet), but only about 800 meters (2,625 feet) “as the crow flies.” This road taken by the enemy troops was steep and difficult, but it was the shortest route from Moab to Judah. La Bible du Semeur, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, and La Bible Pléiade speak of “the mountain of the Flower” since the Hebrew word Ziz means “flower” or “blossom.” Bible en français courant and Parole de Vie are similar with “the slope of Flowers.” The term Ziz is sometimes transliterated with the Hebrew definite article on it as “Haziz” (Moffatt) or “Hassis” (Anchor Bible). The ascent of Ziz has often been identified with the Wadi Hasasah, but this identification is no longer widely accepted.

You will find them at the end of the valley, east of the wilderness of Jeruel: This clause does not mean that the enemy army was lost, but rather that the place mentioned here would be the point at which the two armies would meet. So it may be better to translate find them as “meet them” (Contemporary English Version) or “encounter them” (Bible en français courant). Jeruel was an area of the Judean wilderness. It was on the west shore of the Dead Sea, north of Engedi and south of Tekoa. The Hebrew term for wilderness refers to an uninviting area where people prefer not to live (see the comments on 1 Chr 12.8). It is frequently translated “desert” (Contemporary English Version, New International Version, New Century Version, God’s Word, La Bible du Semeur, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy).

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 2 Chronicles 20:16

20:16a Tomorrow you are to march down against them.

Tomorrow go down and attack them.
-or-
Walk downhill toward them tomorrow and fight them.

20:16b You will see them coming up the Ascent of Ziz,

They will be coming up the road through the Ziz Mountain Pass.
-or-
They will be on the ⌊steep⌋ road called Ziz ⌊that runs from En Gedi towards Jerusalem⌋.

20:16c and you will find them at the end of the valley facing the Wilderness of Jeruel.

You will meet them at the end of the gorge in the Jeruel Desert.
-or-
You will meet them at the end of the valley in the Jeruel Wilderness.

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