secure

In Gbaya, the notion of “(to stand) secure” is emphasized with mitak, an ideophone used to describe the act of standing firmly, with support and energy.

Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. (Source: Philip Noss)

complete verse (2 Samuel 22:34)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Samuel 22:34:

  • Kupsabiny: “He makes my feet strong like that of a deer,
    and guards me that nothing knocks me (makes me stumble).” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “He makes my feet like the feet of a deer.
    And even in the high places, I am able to stand.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “You strengthen my feet like the feet of a deer,
    so-that I can-bear to climb-up the high places.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “When I walk in the mountains,
    you enable me to walk safely, without stumbling
    like a deer runs.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

pronoun for "God"

God transcends gender, but most languages are limited to grammatical gender expressed in pronouns. In the case of English, this is traditionally confined to “he” (or in the forms “his,” “him,” and “himself”), “she” (and “her,” “hers,” and “herself”), and “it” (and “its” and “itself”).

Modern Mandarin Chinese, however, offers another possibility. Here, the third-person singular pronoun is always pronounced the same (tā), but it is written differently according to its gender (他 is “he,” 她 is “she,” and 它/牠 is “it” and their respective derivative forms). In each of these characters, the first (or upper) part defines the gender (man, woman, or thing/animal), while the second element gives the clue to its pronunciation.

In 1930, after a full century with dozens of Chinese translations, Bible translator Wang Yuande (王元德) coined a new “godly” pronoun: 祂. Chinese readers immediately knew how to pronounce it: tā. But they also recognized that the first part of that character, signifying something spiritual, clarified that each person of the Trinity has no gender aside from being God.

While the most important Protestant and Catholic Chinese versions respectively have opted not to use 祂, some Bible translations do and it is widely used in hymnals and other Christian materials. Among the translations that use 祂 to refer to “God” were early versions of Lü Zhenzhong’s (呂振中) version (New Testament: 1946, complete Bible: 1970). R.P. Kramers (in The Bible Translator 1956, p. 152ff. ) explains why later versions of Lü’s translation did not continue with this practice: “This new way of writing ‘He,’ however, has created a minor problem of its own: must this polite form be used whenever Jesus is referred to? Lü follows the rule that, wherever Jesus is referred to as a human being, the normal tā (他) is written; where he is referred to as divine, especially after the ascension, the reverential tā (祂) is used.”

In Kouya, Godié, Northern Grebo, Eastern Krahn, Western Krahn, and Guiberoua Béte, all languages of the Kru family in Western Africa, a different kind of system of pronouns is used (click or tap here to read more):

In that system, one kind of pronoun is used for humans (male and female alike) and others for natural elements, non-liquid masses, and some spiritual entities (one other is used for large animals and another one for miscellaneous items). While in these languages the pronoun for spiritual entities used to be employed when referring to God, this has changed into the use of the human pronoun.

Lynell Zogbo (in The Bible Translator 1989, p. 401ff. ) explains: “From informal discussions with young Christians especially, it would appear that, at least for some people, the experience and/or concepts of Christianity are affecting the choice of pronoun for God. Some people explain that God is no longer ‘far away,’ but is somehow tangible and personal. For these speakers God has shifted over into the human category.”

In Kouya, God (the Father) and Jesus are referred to with the human pronoun ɔ, whereas the Holy Spirit is referred to with a non-human pronoun. (Northern Grebo and Western Krahn make a similar distinction.)

Eddie Arthur, a former Kouya Bible translation consultant, says the following: “We tried to insist that this shouldn’t happen, but the Kouya team members were insistent that the human pronoun for the Spirit would not work.”

In Burmese, the pronoun ko taw (ကိုယ်တော်) is used either as 2nd person (you) or 3rd person (he, him, his) reference. “This term clearly has its root in the religious language in Burmese. No ordinary persons are addressed or known by this pronoun because it is reserved for Buddhist monks, famous religious teachers, and in the case of Christianity, the Trinity.” (Source: Gam Seng Shae in The Bible Translator 2002, p. 202ff. )

In Thai, the pronoun phra`ong (พระองค์) is used, a gender-neutral pronoun which must refer to a previously introduced royal or divine being. Similarly, in Northern Khmer, which is spoken in Thailand, “an honorific divine pronoun” is used for the pronoun referring to the persons of the Trinity (source: David Thomas in The Bible Translator 1993, p. 445 ). In Urak Lawoi’, another language spoken in Thailand, the translation often uses tuhat (ตูฮัด) — “God” — ”as a divine pronoun where Thai has phra’ong even though it’s actually a noun.” (Source for Thai and Urak Lawoi’: Stephen Pattemore)

The English “Contemporary Torah” addresses the question of God and gendered pronouns by mostly avoiding pronouns in the first five books of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament (unless God is referred to as “lord,” “father,” “king,” or “warrior”). It does that by either using passive constructs (“He gave us” vs. “we were given”), by using the adjective “divine” or by using “God” rather than a pronoun.

Some Protestant and Orthodox English Bibles use a referential capitalized spelling when referring to the persons of the Trinity with “He,” “His,” “Him,” or “Himself.” This includes for instance the New American Standard Bible or The Orthodox New Testament, but most translations do not. Two other languages where this is also done (in most Bible translations) are Twents as well as the closely related Indonesian and Malay. In both languages this follows the language usage according to the Qur’an, which in turn predicts that usage (see Soesilo in The Bible Translator 1991, p. 442ff. and The Bible Translator 1997, p. 433ff. ).

See also first person pronoun referring to God.

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Gender of God .

Translation: Chinese

在现代汉语中，第三人称单数代词的读音都是一样的（tā），但是写法并不一样，取决于性别以及是否有生命，即男性为“他”，女性为“她”，动物、植物和无生命事物为“它”（在香港和台湾的汉语使用，动物则为“牠”）。这些字的部首偏旁表明了性别（男人、女人、动物、无生命事物），而另一偏旁通常旁提示发音。

到1930年为止，基督教新教《圣经》经过整整一百年的翻译已经拥有了十几个译本，当时的一位圣经翻译者王元德新造了一个“神圣的”代词“祂”，偏旁“礻”表示神明。一般汉语读者会立即知道这字的发音是tā，而这个偏旁表示属灵的事物，因此他们明白这个字指出，三位一体的所有位格都没有性别之分，而单单是上帝。

然而，最重要的新教圣经译本（1919年的《和合本》）和天主教圣经译本（1968年的《思高圣经》）都没有采用“祂”；虽然如此，许多其他的圣经译本采用了这个字，另外还广泛出现在赞美诗和其他基督信仰的书刊中。（资料来源：Zetzsche）

《吕振中译本》的几个早期版本也使用“祂”来指称“上帝”；这个译本的《新约》于1946年译成，整部《圣经》于1970年完成。克拉默斯（Kramers）指出：“‘他’的这种新写法（即‘祂’）产生了一个小问题，就是在指称耶稣的时候，是否一律使用这个敬语代词？《吕振中译本》遵循的原则是，在称呼耶稣这个人的时候，用一般的‘他’，而在称呼耶稣神性的时候，特别是升天之后的耶稣，则用尊称‘祂’。”

Translator: Simon Wong

Japanese benefactives (-sete)

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-kao (御顔) or “face (of God)” in the referenced verses.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on 2 Samuel 22:33 - 22:34

Both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation start a new sentence here, although, in the parallel in Psa 18.32, Revised Standard Version takes this verse as an added comment on God, following the rhetorical question of the previous verse.

Revised Standard Version uses the past tense of the verbs in verses 33-34, thereby referring to a specific event in the past (also New Revised Standard Version, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, New American Bible). Good News Translation and many other translations use the present tense, indicating habitual action on the part of God. This seems preferable. Interpreters do not agree on how the Hebrew verbs in verses 33-46 should be translated. Revised Standard Version uses the past tense, Good News Translation uses present tense, and Revised English Bible uses both present and future. All of these are possible, but translators should choose one interpretation and be consistent throughout these verses.

On the words This God see verse 31 above.

My strong refuge: compare verses 3 and 31, and see also the similar expression in verse 40. In the Masoretic Text there is no verb before the words my strong refuge; and according to the vowels in the Masoretic Text, my strong refuge is a description of God. However, if the vowels are changed it is possible to read “[God] makes me strong.” This second reading is followed in numerous modern translations such as New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New American Bible, and New Jerusalem Bible, and is supported by the Septuagint and a Hebrew manuscript from Qumran. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament, however, claims that the reading of the Septuagint arose under the influence of the parallel passage in Psa 18. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text.

The verbal phrase made my way safe in verse 33b is in Hebrew “he opened up perfectly my way.” Revised Standard Version is based on the parallel text in Psa 18.32. The Syriac and part of the Septuagint tradition, in agreement with Psa 18.32, also say “he made.” In Hebrew the verbs “he gave [or, he made]” and “he opened up [or, let (prisoners) go free]” are similar in spelling. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives an {A} rating to the Masoretic Text. The language is metaphorical and means that God “has set me free on my way.” Some languages may prefer something like “made me free and put me on the road” or “opened the way for me and delivered me [from harm].”

In verse 34 the idea of feet like hinds’ feet (that is, those of a deer) may mean swiftness (Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, New American Bible, Revised English Bible), “sure-footedness” (see Good News Translation), or agility (Bible en français courant). It is not unreasonable to suppose that it carries all of these ideas at the same time. If these ideas are conveyed by the comparison without making specific the basis of comparison, a more literal rendering will be acceptable. Otherwise it may be necessary to choose one of these characteristics to make the receptor language translation more meaningful.

Where it is possible to maintain the simile, this should be done. However, the translator must make certain that the animal used in the simile is associated with speed and sure-footedness. If no such animal is known for these characteristics, then it will be best to avoid the simile; for example, “he makes my legs able to run fast.”

Secure on the heights can mean victorious in battle. This seems to be the interpretation of Anchor Bible, “made me stand upright.” But most commentators see this expression as continuing the previous idea, meaning to be secure even when on high, dangerous places, or else to be in high places where one is safe from one’s enemies. Where heights are unknown one must use the term for hill and qualify it by “the highest.”

Although nearly all translations say “the heights,” the Masoretic Text appears to say “my heights.” Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} evaluation to the Masoretic Text and recommends the translation “my heights” (so Bible de Jérusalem, 1998 edition). But such a translation makes little sense. It seems better to follow the explanation found in the footnote of New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, that the ending of this noun is not the first person singular suffix but is rather a poetic spelling of the word “heights.” Since the Hebrew noun translated heights can also refer to the back of a person or animal, Fox translates this part of the verse as “Setting his feet like does, on his back he makes me stand.” That is, David proclaims in metaphorical language that God set his own feet firmly in place like that of a female deer and then made David stand on God’s back, where he would be secure. None of the other translations consulted follow the interpretation found in Fox‘s translation, but it is possible.

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 .