Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Deuteronomy 32:41:
Kupsabiny: “‘I will sharpen my sword so it shines and start to judge my people. I will punish my enemies and pay them back for their sins.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “When I sharpen my shining sword, and when I hold it in my hand for the sake of justice, I will take revenge upon my enemies, and I will repay those who hate me.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “I will-sharpen my shining/flashing sword and I will-use it to punish. I will-take-vengeance on my enemies and (I) will-cause-to-pay-back those who have-reject on me.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “that when I sharpen my sword, as I prepare to punish people, I will get revenge on my enemies; I will pay back those who hate me.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
If I whet my glittering sword: this makes for an awkward statement. It is better to say, as New Revised Standard Version does, “When I whet…,” or to follow New International Version, “When I sharpen my flashing sword.” Or it is possible to make this a statement, as Bible en français courant does: “I sharpen and polish my sword.” In cultures where swords are unknown, but other kinds of knives are used, there are many ways to express sword; for example, “a large long knife,” “a large knife like a machete,” or “a weapon called a ‘sword.’”
My hand takes hold on judgment: this can mean “when I get ready to judge [or, punish],” or else “When I seize the instrument of judgment,” that is, my … sword.
Everything considered, it seems best to take this verse as the very oath, or vow, that God makes:
• I will sharpen [and polish] my sword,
I will grasp [or, seize] it to enforce justice.
I will take revenge on my enemies,
I will repay those who hate me.
For vengeance see verse 35.
Requite: in this context the verb means to pay back, to punish the enemies as they deserve.
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 .
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.