21That is not the case! But a man of the hill country of Ephraim called Sheba son of Bichri has lifted up his hand against King David; give him up alone, and I will withdraw from the city.” The woman said to Joab, “His head shall be thrown over the wall to you.”
The Hebrew and Greek that is transliterated as “Ephraim” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with the sign for “palm tree” referring to the palm of Deborah in the land of Ephraim (see Judges 4:5. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
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:
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 If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior.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.”
Not true: literally “Not thus the matter.” In some languages it may be more natural to state clearly “It is not true that we want to destroy your city” or “We are not seeking to destroy your city.”
The order of the elements in the description of Sheba should follow whatever is most natural in the receptor language. Frequently the most natural order will be name, parentage, and then region of origin, although the Hebrew puts the last element first. These preliminary descriptive elements are then followed by an explanation of the reason why Sheba is being sought. Regarding the meaning and translation of the hill country of Ephraim, see the comments on this expression in 1 Sam 1.1.
Lifted up his hand: a literal rendering of this expression is not advisable in most cases. It refers, of course, to the rebellion that Sheba was seeking to lead against David. Some possible renderings are “is in rebellion” (Knox) or “has revolted” (New Jerusalem Bible). The same expression occurs in 18.28, and a similar expression, with a different Hebrew verb, is found in 1 Kgs 11.26.
Give up him alone: that is, “surrender that one man to me.” Instead of a general attack where many would be killed, the lives of others would be spared by simply handing over the one individual. Joab would then withdraw from the city, meaning that he would not carry through with his threat to destroy the whole city.
Behold: this particle is used at the beginning of the woman’s response to Joab in order to call attention to what she is about to say. While it is left untranslated in a number of versions (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, New International Version, New Revised Standard Version, and Revised English Bible as well as Good News Translation), many languages have focusing particles that can be used quite naturally in contexts like this.
His head shall be thrown to you over the wall: the passive verb form will have to be replaced by an active formulation in many languages. The agent(s) performing the action is almost certainly the people of the city. So the best translation may be something like “we will throw his head over the wall to you….”
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 .
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