high places

The Hebrew, Greek, and Ge’ez that is translated as “high places” in English is translated in Chitonga as malende. Ernst Wendland (1987, p. 57) explains: “The preceding expression [‘place for worship/sacrifice on top of hills’], though intelligible linguistically, sounds rather strange to the Tonga who live on the relatively flat plains of southern Zambia. There are ‘hills’ in their country, but normally no one would ever worship regularly there. For this reason the new translation will try out a cultural substitute (see below), malende, the ‘local shrine’ of Tonga traditional religion, where the ‘priest’ (clan head, who may be a chief as well) makes sacrifices to the spirits in time of corporate calamity, especially drought. This would seem to approximate quite closely the main elements of both form and function of the term ‘high places’ in the Old Testament, which were not always or even usually set upon hills, especially in the latter days of the monarchy (cp. 2 Kings 17:9, 29).”

In the Chichewa interconfessional translation (publ. 1999), it is translated as “shrines for worshiping images there.” (Source: Ernst Wendland in The Bible Translator 2002, p. 319ff. )

complete verse (2 Kings 14:4)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Kings 14:4:

  • Kupsabiny: “Even though that was so, (he) did not (yet) tear down where idols were worshipped there on the hills,. People continued to make sacrifices there and burned sweet smelling things.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Yet he did not remove the places to do puja. People continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “He did- not -cause- the places-of-worship in the high places -to-be-destroyed, so the people continued to offer offerings/sacrifices and to burn incense there.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “But, like his father, he did not tear down the places for worshipping Yahweh at pagan shrines. The people continued to burn incense to honor Yahweh on those hills instead of in Jerusalem, the place that Yahweh had appointed.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on 2 Kings 14:4

But the high places were not removed: The conjunction But may be out of place here if the contrast has already been marked near the end of the previous verse as Good News Translation has done with “instead.” It will, however, be important to ensure that contrast is marked at some point since the existence of such places of worship stand in sharp contrast with faithfulness to Yahweh.

For high places, see the comments at 1 Kgs 3.2 and 2 Kgs 12.3.

The passive verbal expression were not removed has been replaced by an active form in Good News Translation. Such a model may prove helpful to other languages where the passive form is either nonexistent or unnatural in this context. But in some cases translators may prefer to use a causative verb form conveying the idea that Amaziah did not cause his agents to tear down the local shrines. Compare 2 Kgs 15.35.

Sacrificed and burned incense: See the comments at 1 Kgs 3.3 and 2 Kgs 12.3.

The second reference to the high places in this verse may be better translated by a pronoun (for example, “them”) or by an adverb (Good News Translation “there”).

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on 2 Kings 14:4

14:4a Nevertheless, the high places were not taken away,

This was one of the ways in which Amaziah followed the example of Joash. See 2 Kings 12:3.

Amaziah did not destroy/demolish the hilltop shrines.

-or-

Amaziah did not ⌊have his people⌋ remove the local worship places.

14:4b and the people continued sacrificing

The people continued to sacrifice ⌊animals⌋

-or-

So the people of Judah kept on ⌊going there to⌋ offer sacrifices

14:4c and burning incense on the high places.

and burn incense at those shrines.

-or-

and burn sweet-smelling spices at those places.

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