the poor

The Hebrew that is translated as “the poor” in English is translated in Chichewa as “people without power.” In Chichewa context this refers to those who are in the lower class in terms of both social status and political influence in a community. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

In Cherokee it is translated as “those who are not doing well.” “The concept of poverty was unknown to Cherokee prior to European arrival due to the sharing of resources among clan members and the shared and welfare tradition known as gadugi (ᎦᏚᎩ). In contrast, the concepts of rich and poor play a large role in the world and message or the New Testament (…) This phrase (‘those who are not doing well’), still used today for ‘poor,’ speaks to a more general understanding of well-being than the presence of monetary resources.” (Source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 45)

See also poor (Ps. 41:1).

complete verse (Deuteronomy 24:12)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Deuteronomy 24:12:

  • Kupsabiny: “If the person is poor and he gives you the cloth/clothes he covers himself with, you must not stay with that cloth taken as surety until the night.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “If your neighbor is poor and gives you his shawl as security for a loan, do not keep the shawl overnight.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “If the man is poor and what he had-guaranted you (plur.) was a cloth-as-a-covering, do- not -let- it -remains-until-morning with you (plur.). Return it to him before the sun set so-that he can-use it for sleeping, and he even will-thank you (plur.). The LORD your (plur.) God will-regard it as a righteous deed.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “But if he is poor, do not keep that cloak all night.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Deuteronomy 24:12

You shall not sleep in his pledge: as the context makes clear (verse 13), the object given in pledge is the poor man’s cloak, that is, the long outer garment with which he covered himself as he slept. Without it he would be cold. The lender, therefore, is not to keep the man’s garment after sundown, but is to return it to its owner. Contemporary English Version makes it clear that the man is so poor that the long outer garment (cloak, or coat) is the only thing he can give as a guarantee: “Suppose someone is so poor that a coat is the only thing that can be offered as a guarantee on a loan.”

The literal translation of Revised Standard Version does not make it immediately clear that, in this context, the object given in pledge is the man’s garment. It is better to supply that information immediately in verse 10, as Good News Translation does: “the garment he is going to give you as security.” New Revised Standard Version translates verse 12 as follows: “you shall not sleep in the garment given you as* the pledge,” with the following footnote: “Heb lacks the garment given you as.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .