If integrated into the book of Daniel: 14.33.

Now the prophet Habakkuk was in Judea: Here the translator’s problem is to handle a sudden and unexpected shift in scene smoothly, but a prior question has to be answered. Is the author introducing Habakkuk here as the prophet well known to his audience, or is he unknown to the audience, perhaps even another Habakkuk? If we assume no prior knowledge of the person named Habakkuk here, some wording of this verse as is found in New American Bible is appropriate: “In Judea there was a prophet, Habakkuk.” If we assume knowledge of this Habakkuk, he can simply be introduced here as Revised Standard Version has done. Since the Greek text we are following (Theodotion) seems to think of this person as the canonical prophet, this Handbook will work on that assumption. For a comment on the translation of prophet, see Bar 1.15-18.

The sudden shift occurs when the locale of the narrative suddenly moves to Judea, and the narrator introduces a new and completely unexpected character. Some device should be found to alert the reader that the story is now going to move, and describe something happening to someone else somewhere else, at the same time that Daniel is in the pit with the lions. English has a useful word, “Meanwhile” (Contemporary English Version), or the phrase “In the meantime” could be used. “At that time” in Good News Translation could be improved by saying “At that same time.” Another possibility is “While this was going on.”

Revised Standard Version and Contemporary English Version use the Greek form of the word for Judea. Good News Translation uses the Hebrew form “Judah,” which is used elsewhere in the Old Testament. Good News Translation “in the land of Judah” is explanatory. It would not be building in too much information to say that Habakkuk was “far away in the land of Judah.” This is information the original audience would have known, and therefore the modern audience is entitled to know.

He had boiled pottage is literally “he stewed a stew.” Pottage is something cooked in a pot, so Contemporary English Version has “had made a pot of stew.” Exactly what this dish was is not specified, but it was something boiled and probably contained vegetables and meat.

Had broken bread into a bowl: The Greek word translated bowl can refer to any kind of container of whatever material that is basin shaped and can be used to hold stuff. The author does not say that the stew is in this vessel with the bread, as Good News Translation and some others make it to be. New Jerusalem Bible translates it as “basket,” so that it is clear that the bread is in one container and the stew in another. This makes good sense, and this Handbook suggests this interpretation be followed. The stew and bread were separate, and those eating the meal would dip the bread into the stew. Contemporary English Version follows this interpretation by translating the first half of this verse as follows: “Meanwhile, far away in Judea, the prophet Habakkuk had made a pot of stew and put some pieces of bread into a bowl.” Compare Gen 25.34; Ruth 2.14; Hag 2.12; Mark 14.20; John 13.26.

Was going into the field to take it to the reapers: The author does not tell us why Habakkuk is doing this. Among translations, only New English Bible seems to address this as a problem. It reads “he was on the way to his field, carrying it to the reapers.” The reapers (Good News Translation “the workers who were out in the fields harvesting grain”) were then Habakkuk’s hired workers, and he was bringing them their lunch. This is not a problem that has to be answered in a translation, but if one wants to deal with it, New English Bible‘s suggestion is worth following. This seems more likely than a simple act of kindness shown to some hardworking men. There is nothing casual about it. Habakkuk has gone to the trouble of cooking a meal; this involves fire, fuel, a supply of food to be cut up and cooked, and time.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Shorter Books of the Deuterocanon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2006. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.