20then I will pluck you up from the land that I have given you, and this house, which I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight and will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples.
The Greek and Hebrew that are translated as “consecration” or “consecrate” in English is translated in Poqomchi’ as “set apart” (when applying to a ritual not to a moral status). (Source: Robert Bascom)
In Newari it is translated as “make holy” (source: Newari Back Translation) and in Kwere as “put to holy work” when it refers to making someone or something suitable for priestly duties, when it refers to individual consecration outside of the priestly duty, “offer (yourselves) for my sake” is also used. (Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Chronicles 7:20:
Kupsabiny: “I shall chase the people of Israel from this land that I gave (them). And again, I shall refuse this house that I dedicated/set aside to be worshipped in. Then, the people of other countries will despise Israel and taunt (them).” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “I will uproot you from the land I have given you, and I will abandon this temple which I have consecrated for worshiping me. The people of the nations will ridicule it and looking at it they will despise it.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “I will-cause- you (plur.) -to-leave from my land that I gave to you, and I will-forsake this temple that I have-chosen as a place which where I will-be-honored. Then this will-be mocked and laughed-at by all the people.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “I will cause you to be expelled from this land that I have given to you, and I will abandon this temple that I have set apart to be the place where people should worship me. I will cause it to be despised and ridiculed by people of all nations.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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 choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
Then renders the common Hebrew conjunction. Here it introduces the consequences of the potential disobedience described in the previous verse. New Century Version makes this clear by beginning the verse with “If you do….”
I will pluck you up from the land which I have given you: Instead of the pronoun you, the Masoretic Text says “them” (so also New International Version, Moffatt). Revised Standard Version has followed the Septuagint (so also Good News Translation, Revised English Bible, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). The pronoun “them” refers to the Israelites, but it is more natural in English to use the pronoun you in this context since they are being addressed. I will pluck you up from the land is a figurative way of saying “I will remove you from the land” (Good News Translation) or “I will take the Israelites out of my land” (New Century Version). The land, which refers to the Promised Land, is literally “my ground” or “my land” (New International Version, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). Nouvelle version Segond révisée has “my territory.” But the possessive pronoun “my” is redundant since this phrase is followed by which I have given you.
And this house, which I have consecrated for my name: See the comments on verse 16. New Living Translation says “this Temple that I have made holy to honor my name.”
I will cast out of my sight is literally “I will throw away from my face.” This same expression occurs in Jer 15.1, where it is translated by Revised Standard Version as “Send them [the Israelites] out of my sight.” It is used figuratively here to mean that God will want nothing more to do with the Temple. Cast out of my sight has also been translated “abandon” (Good News Translation), “reject” (New Living Translation, Revised English Bible), and “disown” (New Jerusalem Bible).
And will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples: The pronoun it refers to the Temple. The Hebrew term for proverb is the same one used in the book of Proverbs, where it refers to a wise saying that is often repeated. Here it means “mocking taunt.” The Hebrew word rendered byword refers to a taunt or a derisive saying used to ridicule or make fun of others. The two terms taken together in this context may be rendered “story to mock and ridicule” or “something that people make fun of and laugh about.” All peoples refers to all other nations, not including the Israelites. Moffatt says “all nations.” Others may prefer to say “all non-Israelite peoples.” For this whole clause Contemporary English Version has “so that people everywhere will think it is only a joke and will make fun of it.”
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 .
7:20a then I will uproot Israel from the soil I have given them,
then I will tear Israel out of the land I have given them. -or-
⌊In that case,⌋ I will remove the people of Israel from the land I have given them.
7:20b and I will banish from My presence this temple I have sanctified for My Name.
I will leave this temple that I have set apart as my own. -or-
I will no longer stay in my house that I have declared to be my own holy place.
7:20c I will make it an object of scorn and ridicule among all the peoples.
I will make Israel an object of scorn, and all the other nations will disrespect them. -or-
I will make Israel be a people who are mocked and ridiculed by all the other peoples. -or-
Then all the foreign people will speak about Israel with contempt and laughter.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.