truth

Nida (1947, p. 230) says this about the translation of the concept of “truth”: “The words for ‘truth’ and ‘true’ are not always the most readily discovered in aboriginal languages. In some instances the only expression which corresponds to ‘true’ is something like ‘it happened.’ A falsehood is something that ‘did not happen.’ In a good many languages the meaning of ‘truth’ is expressed by the words signifying ‘straight’ and ‘direct.’ Untruth is accordingly ‘crookedness.’ An abstract noun such as English “truth” is quite difficult to find in some instances. Only an expression such as ‘true statement’ or ‘true word’ will be found to correspond to English ‘truth.’”

The Greek, Latin, Ge’ez, and Hebrew that is usually translated in English as “truth” is translated in Luchazi with vusunga: “the quality of being straight” (source: E. Pearson in The Bible Translator 1954, p. 160ff. ), in Obolo as atikọ or “good/correct talk” (source: Enene Enene), and in Ekari as maakodo bokouto or “enormous truth” (esp. in John 14:6 and 17; bokouto — “enormous” — is being used as an attribute for abstract nouns to denote that they are of God [see also here]; source: Marion Doble in The Bible Translator 1963, p. 37ff. ).

Helen Evans (in The Bible Translator 1954, p. 40ff. ) tells of the translation into Kui which usually is “true-thing.” In some instances however, such as in the second part of John 17:17 (“your word is truth” in English), the use of “true-thing” indicated that there might be other occasions when it’s not true, so here the translation was a a form of “pure, holy.”

The translation committee of the Malay “Good News Bible” (Alkitab Berita Baik, see here ) wrestled with the translation of “truth” in the Gospel of John:

“Our Malay Committee also concluded that ‘truth’ as used in the Gospel of John was used either of God himself, or of God’s revelation of himself, or in an extended sense as a reference to those who had responded to God’s self-disclosure. In John 8:32 the New Malay translation reads ‘You will know the truth about God, and the truth about God will make you free.’ In John 8:44 this meaning is brought out by translating, ‘He has never been on the side of God, because there is no truth in him.’ Accordingly Jesus ‘tells the truth about God’ in 8:45, 46 (see also 16:7 and 8:37a). Then, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life’ (John 14:6) becomes ‘I am the one who leads men to God, the one who reveals who and what God is, and the one who gives men life.” At 3:21 the translation reads ” … whoever obeys the truth, that is God himself, comes to the light …’; 16:13a appears as ‘he will lead you into the full truth about God’; and in 18:37 Jesus affirms ‘I came into the world to reveal the truth about God, and whoever obeys God listens to me.’ On this basis also 1:14 was translated ‘we saw his glory, the glory which he had as the Father’s only Son. Through him God has completely revealed himself (truth) and his love for us (grace)’; and 1:17 appears as ‘God gave the law through Moses; but through Jesus Christ he has completely revealed himself (truth) and his love for us (grace).'” (Source: Barclay Newman in The Bible Translator 1974, p. 432ff. )

The German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) has followed a somewhat similar path to the Malay committee 50 years earlier in the gospel of John. In John 1 it translates “truth as “God’s nature,” in John 3 as “God’s will,” in John 8 as “God’s reality,” in John 14 as “encountering God,” and in John 16 as “God’s truth.”

Translation commentary on 2 Esdras 7:104

He answered me and said may be rendered “The angel [Uriel] answered [or, replied].”

Since you have found favor in my sight, I will show you this also: See the comments on verse 102. Contemporary English Version says “Since you are deserving, I will answer your questions.”

The day of judgment is decisive and displays to all the seal of truth: Revised Standard Version‘s footnote lets us know that by saying decisive the translators are interpreting the Latin word for “bold.” To us this is normal translational procedure and requires no footnote. We may render this word as “final” (Good News Bible) or better still “absolutely final.” The seal of truth refers to a document containing a judge’s decision, sealed to make it official. This sentence anticipates the answer to Ezra’s question, given in verse 105. By Judgment Day it will be too late to offer prayer on behalf of others. A model that attempts to get this meaning across for this sentence without causing the reader difficulty with the symbolism of a seal is “What happens on Judgment Day is absolutely final, and everyone will know it.” Contemporary English Version provides another possible sense for this sentence, saying “The final judgment will be a hard time, because the truth about every person will be told.” Another possible model based on this sense is “The final judgment will be a hard time, because God will reveal the truth about everyone.” We prefer the first sense.

Just as now a father does not send his son, or a son his father, or a master his servant, or a friend his dearest friend, to be ill or sleep or eat or be healed in his stead: This sentence continues in the next verse, but we prefer to break it into several sentences (so Good News Bible). Instead of be ill, the Latin text has “understand” (Revised Standard Version and Good News Bible footnotes). The Greek words for be ill and “understand” look similar, and the Latin translator could have confused them. The ancient translations read be ill, which we prefer. The repetition of father and son may be unnecessarily wordy in some languages. If so, here is a possible model for this verse:

• He replied, “Since I am pleased with you, I will answer that question also. What happens on Judgment Day is absolutely final, and everyone will know it. As things are now, people cannot get their children, their parents, their servants, or their dear friends to sleep for them, eat for them, get sick* or be cured for them. [Everyone has to act for himself.]
* Some ancient translations get sick; Latin understand.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Esdras. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.