Passover Sacrifice

The following is an 1880 stained glass window from the Pfarrkirche Hl. Petrus & Paulus, Andelsbuch, Austria:

Source: Art in the Christian Tradition , a project of the Vanderbilt University Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. Original source: Wikimedia

Stained glass is not just highly decorative, it’s a medium which has been used to express important religious messages for centuries. Literacy was not widespread in the medieval and Renaissance periods and the Church used stained glass and other artworks to teach the central beliefs of Christianity. In Gothic churches, the windows were filled with extensive narrative scenes in stained glass — like huge and colorful picture storybooks — in which worshipers could ‘read’ the stories of Christ and the saints and learn what was required for their religious salvation. (Source: Victoria and Albert Museum )

Aaron

The name that is transliterated as “Aaron” in English means “light,” “a mountain of strength,” “to be high.” (Source: Cornwall / Smith 1997 )

In Catalan Sign Language and Spanish Sign Language it is translated as “stones on chest plate” (according to Exodus 28:15-30) (Source: John Elwode in The Bible Translator 2008, p. 78ff. )


“Aaron” in Spanish Sign Language, source: Sociedad Bíblica de España

In Colombian Sign Language, Honduras Sign Language, and American Sign Language, the chest plate is outlined (in ASL it is outlined using the letter “A”):


“Aaron” in ASL (source )

For more information on translations of proper names with sign language see Sign Language Bible Translations Have Something to Say to Hearing Christians .

See also Moses, more information on Aaron , and this lectionary in The Christian Century .

The Paschal Lamb

Artwork by Sister Marie Claire , SMMI (1937–2018) from Bengaluru, India.

For more information about images by Sister Marie Claire and ways to purchase them as lithographs, see here .

For other images of Sister Marie Claire paintings in TIPs, see here.

complete verse (Exodus 1:21)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Exodus 12:1:

  • Kupsabiny: “And/But when Moses and Aaron were still in Egypt, God said that,” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Then the LORD said to Moises and to Aaron there in Egipto,” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Bariai: “Moses and Aron were living in Isip still when the Chief spoke to the two of them like this,” (Source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • Opo: “And The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt” (Source: Opo Back Translation)
  • English: “Yahweh said to Aaron and Moses/me there in Egypt,” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Moses

The name that is transliterated as “Moses” in English means “taken out of the water,” “saved out of the water,” “a son.” (Source: Cornwall / Smith 1997 ). See also Translation commentary on Exodus 2:10.

It is translated in Spanish Sign Language and Polish Sign Language with a sign in accordance with the depiction of Moses in the famous statue by Michelangelo (see here ). (Source: John Elwode in The Bible Translator 2008, p. 78ff. )


“Moses” in Spanish Sign Language, source: Sociedad Bíblica de España

American Sign Language also uses the sign depicting the horns but also has a number of alternative signs (see here ).

In French Sign Language, a similar sign is used, but it is interpreted as “radiance” (see below) and it culminates in a sign for “10,” signifying the 10 commandments:


“Moses” in French Sign Language (source )

The horns that are visible in Michelangelo’s statue are based on a passage in the Latin Vulgate translation (and many Catholic Bible translations that were translated through the 1950ies with that version as the source text). Jerome, the translator, had worked from a Hebrew text without the niqquds, the diacritical marks that signify the vowels in Hebrew and had interpreted the term קרו (k-r-n) in Exodus 34:29 as קֶ֫רֶן — keren “horned,” rather than קָרַו — karan “radiance” (describing the radiance of Moses’ head as he descends from Mount Sinai).

In Swiss-German Sign Language (and Hungarian Sign Language) it is translated with a sign depicting holding a staff. This refers to a number of times where Moses’s staff is used in the context of miracles, including the parting of the sea (see Exodus 14:16), striking of the rock for water (see Exodus 17:5 and following), or the battle with Amalek (see Exodus 17:9 and following).


“Moses” in Swiss-German Sign Language, source: DSGS-Lexikon biblischer Begriffe , © CGG Schweiz

In Vietnamese (Hanoi) Sign Language it is translated with the sign that depicts the eye make up he would have worn as the adopted son of an Egyptian princess. (Source: The Vietnamese Sign Language translation team, VSLBT)


“Moses” in Vietnamese Sign Language, source: SooSL

In Korean Sign Language it is translated with the sign that depicts the arms held up by Moses to assure the Israelites victory over the Amalekites (see Exodus 17:11).


“Moses” in Korean Sign Language, source: Korean Sign Language Bible House

In Estonian Sign Language Moses is depicted with a big beard. (Source: Liina Paales in Folklore 47, 2011, p. 43ff. )


“Moses” in Estonian Sign Language, source: Glossary of the EKNK Toompea kogudus

For more information on translations of proper names with sign language see Sign Language Bible Translations Have Something to Say to Hearing Christians .

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Moses .

Translation commentary on Exod 12:1 - 12:2

Although the verse begins with the Hebrew conjunction waw, only a few translations try to retain it (King James Version, American Standard Version, New American Standard Bible). The LORD said to Moses and Aaron introduces instructional material into the narrative. (See the introductory remarks above.) In the land of Egypt simply means “in Egypt” (Good News Translation). Even this may seem unnecessary, but it emphasizes that the following instructions are to be understood within the Egyptian setting.

This month refers to the time when the events of chapter 12 took place. It became the first month in the Hebrew calendar, which begins with the new moon appearing during the second half of March or the first half of April. It is not yet named, so translators should not give it a name here. But in 13.4 and 23.15 it is called “Abib.” Much later the Babylonian name “Nisan” was used (see Est 3.7). The Hebrew word for month also means “new moon,” and this will be the natural form in many languages. Shall be is not in the Hebrew (literally “this month for you”), but “is” or “is to be” should be understood here. This is the announcement of a new calendar for the Israelites. For you is plural. Shall be for you may therefore be expressed as “You [plural] must reckon as” and placed at the beginning of the sentence. (See the model at the end of the discussion below.) New Revised Standard Version has “shall mark for you.” The beginning of months is literally the “head of months.”

It shall be the first month of the year for you repeats almost the same words for emphasis. Good News Translation has combined the two clauses into one, but New American Bible rewords the verse so that it does not sound monotonous: “This month shall stand at the head of your calendar; you shall reckon it the first month of the year.” A simpler model is the following: “You [plural] must reckon this month [or, new moon] as the first month of the year.” Also possible is “You must consider this month to be….”

Quoted with permission from Osborn, Noel D. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Exodus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1999. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .