Jordan

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 )

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Jordan River .

complete verse (2 Samuel 16:14)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Samuel 16:14:

  • Kupsabiny: “David and all the people he was together with were very tired when (they/he) arrived at river Jordan. They rested there.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “When the king and all the men with him arrived near the Jordan they were tired, so they rested.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “David and all his men were very exhausted, so they rested when they arrived at the River Jordan.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “When David and those who were with him arrived at the Jordan River, they were very tired. So they rested there.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

king

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Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:

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  • Piro: “a great one”
  • Highland Totonac: “the big boss”
  • Huichol: “the one who commanded” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Ekari: “the one who holds the country” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • Una: weik sienyi: “big headman” (source: Kroneman 2004, p. 407)
  • Pass Valley Yali: “Big Man” (source: Daud Soesilo)
  • 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.”

(Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. )

See also king (Japanese honorifics).

Translation commentary on 2 Samuel 16:14

And: the Hebrew conjunction need not necessarily be translated in this case, since it merely serves to connect the different parts of the story.

The people who were with him: that is, the rest of the group that has been traveling with David since he left Jerusalem. As in the previous verse the verb is third person singular, “the king arrived,” which keeps the focus on David.

Arrived weary: some scholars have speculated that the word translated weary was originally a place name or that the place name was very similar to it and therefore dropped out. New Jerusalem Bible, assuming that the place name is missing, says “The king and all the people who were with him arrived exhausted at … and there they drew breath.” In any case, it is best to translate the meaning found in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation. Languages may have very different ways of expressing this idea. Some other English words are “tired” or “exhausted.”

At the Jordan: these words are not in the traditional Hebrew text but are found in some manuscripts of the ancient Greek translation at this point, which is followed by New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New American Bible, Nueva Biblia Española, and numerous other modern versions. For some interpreters the overall context of the Hebrew clearly seems to require a place name, which must have dropped out or was changed to read weary. If translators follow this interpretation, it will be important in some cases to specify that the Jordan is a river. However, Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} evaluation to the Masoretic Text and recommends that the text be translated “and all the people who were with him arrived weary.” No place is named, but the implied place is probably “at the fords of the wilderness” (see 2 Sam 15.28).

He refreshed himself: while the focus is on David, he was not the only person to have been revitalized by the stop. All those who were with him would have also relaxed and perhaps refreshed themselves at the place near the river. In some languages it may be misleading to use the singular pronoun here. Note that both Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version use the plural “they.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .