But renders the Hebrew verbal transition marker that is sometimes translated “And it happened.” Here it is correctly translated in such a way as to show contrast since what happens in this verse is contrary to expectation. Gedaliah’s assurance that everything would go well is contradicted by the events described here.

In the seventh month: This does not mean the month of July. It refers to mid-September to mid-October. See the comments on the need for a glossary explanation of the calendar system in the Old Testament at verse 1. See also Appendix A, “The Hebrew Calendar.” Since Gedaliah apparently began his rule “In the fifth month” (verse 8), it is quite legitimate to translate here “about two months after Gedaliah began his rule” (Contemporary English Version).

Son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama may possibly sound as if one of the named persons is the father and the other is the mother of Ishmael. But this is clearly not the case. The meaning is that Nethaniah is the son of Elishama. Ishmael was, therefore, the “grandson of Elishama” as Good News Translation indicates. There can be no doubt that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah mentioned here is the same person as found in the list at verse 23.

Of the royal family is literally “of kingly seed.” Translators in some languages may need to make it clearer which royal family is intended here since this expression may have to be translated “of the tribe of the chief.” The man named Ishmael, who is at the center of this incident, is mentioned elsewhere only in the parallel passage in Jer 40–41. So it is difficult to be certain what royal family he was connected with. But it is virtually certain that he was an Israelite and not a member of a Babylonian royal clan. Biblia Dios Habla Hoy says “who was of the royal family of Judah” and the first edition of Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch says “who came from the family of King David.” Since the kings of Judah had several wives, it is not surprising that there would be many people who could claim “royal blood.” The parallel passage in Jer 40–41 provides greater detail about this case of treason. Ishmael was sent by the king of Ammon to betray Gedaliah, who trusted him in spite of warnings about his unfaithfulness.

Attacked and killed Gedaliah and the Jews and the Chaldeans: The Masoretic Text says “they attacked Gedaliah and he died and the Judeans and the Chaldeans.” Gray correctly notes that the accusative (direct object) forms “the Judeans and the Chaldeans” are very awkward in Hebrew following the verb “died.” For this reason Gray omits the words “and he died” and translates “they struck down Gedaliah and the Jews and the Chaldeans.” Other interpreters solve the grammatical difficulty by correcting “he died” to read “they killed” (so Revised Standard Version, New American Bible, La Bible Pléiade).

Even though the Hebrew is admittedly awkward, it is possible to make sense of it without correcting the verb. New Revised Standard Version, for example, says “they struck down Gedaliah so that he died, along with the Judeans and Chaldeans.” Compare also New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh: “they struck down Gedaliah and he died; [they also killed] the Judeans and the Chaldeans.”

The Jews translates the same Hebrew noun that Revised Standard Version renders “the men of Judah” in 2 Kgs 16.6. This noun literally means “someone belonging to the tribe of Judah,” but that is not the meaning it has in the Old Testament. Rather, it began to be used in the Babylonian period to refer to the Israelite people who lived in the province of Judea. Verse 21 refers to these same people as “Judah.” New Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, and Osty-Trinquet say “the Judeans/Judaeans,” while other translations say “the Jews” (Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New American Bible). The rendering “the Israelites” (Good News Translation) fails to keep the focus on the people of the southern kingdom of Judah.

Good News Translation shifts the specific mention of the place name Mizpah forward in this verse in order to show more clearly where Ishmael and his ten men went. The adverb “there” is then used later in the verse. This model may be helpful to translators in certain other languages.

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 .