Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Chronicles 4:17:
Kupsabiny: “Other utensils were small basins, big spoons and forks. Huram-abi made for Solomon all those things of/for the House of God. He made those things from bronze that had been polished until they shone brightly. Those things were shaped from utensils/things of clay which were prepared in the valley of Jordan in between Sukkoth and Zarethan.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “The king had all the implements cast [caused to be melted in clay molds] in the plain of the Jordan between Succoth and Zarethan.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “King Solomon caused-to-make these through a mold/(something-to-form-something) which is there in the Plain/Valley of Jordan, between Sucot and Zaretan.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “They made them by pouring melted bronze into the clay molds that Huram had set up near the Jordan river between Succoth and Zarethan cities.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
The Hebrew, Greek and Ge’ez that is translated as “Jordan” means “descending (rapidly),” “flowing down.” (Source: Cornwall / Smith 1997 )
In Hungarian Sign Language it is translated with the sign for the river bordering Jordan and Israel, along with the general sign for river. (Source: Jenjelvi Biblia and HSL Bible Translation Group)
“Jordan river” in Hungarian Sign Language (source )
Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Ge’ez, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:
Ninia Yali: “big brother with the uplifted name” (source: Daud Soesilio in Noss 2007, p. 175)
Nyamwezi: mutemi: generic word for ruler, by specifying the city or nation it becomes clear what kind of ruler (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Ghomála’: Fo (“The word Fo refers to the paramount ruler in the kingdoms of West Cameroon. He holds administrative, political, and religious power over his own people, who are divided into two categories: princes (descendants of royalty) and servants (everyone else).” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn))
Faye Edgerton retells how the term in Navajo (Dinė) was determined:
“[This term was] easily expressed in the language of Biblical culture, which had kings and noblemen with their brilliant trappings and their position of honor and praise. But leadership among the Navajos is not accompanied by any such titles or distinctions of dress. Those most respected, especially in earlier days, were their headmen, who were the leaders in raids, and the shaman, who was able to serve the people by appealing for them to the gods, or by exorcising evil spirits. Neither of these made any outward show. Neither held his position by political intrigue or heredity. If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior. If the shaman failed many times in his healing ceremonies, it was considered that he was making mistakes in the chants, or had lost favor with the gods, and another was sought. The term Navajos use for headman is derived from a verb meaning ‘to move the head from side to side as in making an oration.’ The headman must be a good orator, able to move the people to go to war, or to follow him in any important decision. This word is naat’áanii which now means ‘one who rules or bosses.’ It is employed now for a foreman or boss of any kind of labor, as well as for the chairman of the tribal council. So in order to show that the king is not just a common boss but the highest ruler, the word ‘aláahgo, which expresses the superlative degree, was put before naat’áanii, and so ‘aláahgo naat’áanii ‘anyone-more-than-being around-he-moves-his-head-the-one-who’ means ‘the highest ruler.’ Naat’áanii was used for governor as the context usually shows that the person was a ruler of a country or associated with kings.”
In the plain of the Jordan: Revised Standard Version follows the structure of the Hebrew by placing this prepositional phrase at the beginning of the verse. However, this phrase will be placed more naturally at the end of the verse in many languages, as in Good News Translation. The plain of the Jordan refers to the lower valley of the Jordan River, which extends south from the Dead Sea. The Jordan Valley had clay deposits, which made this a good location for a bronze smelting industry since molds could be dug into the clay ground.
The king cast them: This literal translation may incorrectly suggest that Solomon himself did this work. Good News Translation more accurately expresses the meaning with “The king had them all made.” Such a translation keeps the focus on King Solomon without incorrectly suggesting that he himself did the manual labor. Cast means to pour molten metal into a mold.
In the clay ground is literally “in the thickness of the ground.” The parallel text in 1 Kgs 7.46 says “in the earth foundry.” Some scholars suggest that the text in 1 Kgs 7.46 should be slightly changed to read “at the ford of Adamah,” and some translations here in chapter 4 are based on this same proposed change in the Masoretic Text (so La Biblia Latinoamerica, Peregrino, and Menge, which say “near the ford of Adamah”). However, most interpreters understand the sense to be that foundries for smelting were made in the clay soil in the Jordan Valley. Revised English Bible says “in the foundry,” Anchor Bible has “in the earthen foundries,” and New Jerusalem Bible translates “by the process of sand casting.” Contemporary English Version provides a helpful model by beginning this verse with “by pouring melted bronze into the clay molds he had set up near the Jordan River.” Most likely the molds were dug out of the ground, so the following translation is recommended: “The king had them cast in molds dug out of the earth, in the plain of the Jordan” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). Since a “foundry” is a place where people work with metal in its molten form, some languages will express this idea in a very different way. One language, for example, says “They put the bronze in fire so that it became soft and then poured it into molds that were made of clay….”
Between Succoth and Zeredah: Succoth was a town located east of the Jordan River just north of the Jabbok River. According to 1 Kgs 11.26, the town of Zeredah was located in a completely different region. The Zeredah (literally “Zeredathah” [King James Version]) mentioned here in chapter 4 may be a different town of the same name or another name for “Zarethan,” which is found in the parallel passage of 1 Kgs 7.46. More likely, Zeredah is a deformation of the name “Zarethan,” and the same place is intended in both passages. This town was also east of the Jordan River, but its exact location is unknown. Several translations read “Zarethan” in this verse and in 1 Kgs 7.46 (so New International Version, New Living Translation, Anchor Bible, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, Dillard). Whichever solution is adopted here, it may be a good idea to add a footnote stating that “Zeredathah” is probably a variant of “Zarethan,” mentioned in 1 Kgs 7.46. It is also possible, though not likely, that the final consonant in the name “Zeredathah” may be a sign of location, in which case the translation of this whole phrase will be “between Succoth and in the direction of Zeredah” (Nouvelle version Segond révisée).
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 .
The king had them made in molds/forms in the clay soil. -or-
The king made them by melting the bronze/metal. Then they poured the metal into molds/forms they made in the earth.
4:17b in the plain of the Jordan
It was there in the Jordan Valley, -or-
It was done in the valley of the Jordan River.
4:17c between Succoth and Zeredah.
in a place between of Sukkoth and Zarethan. -or-
It was done in a place between Sukkoth town and Zarethan town.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.