The Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Greek that is translated as “tabernacle” in English is translated in San Blas Kuna as “house of prayer that can be carried.” (Source: Ronald Ross)
In Bandi it is translated as “holy sitting place.” The “sitting place for the Bandi is where you live.” Therefore the tabernacle is the place where God lived. (Source: Becky Grossmann in this newsletter )
In Vidunda it is translated as “God’s tent” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext) and in Tibetan as gur mchog (གུར་མཆོག) or “perfect tent” (source: gSungrab website )
In American Sign Language it is translated with with a sign for “tent” combined with a sign referring to the outer court surrounding the tent (see Exodus 27:9 and following). (Source: Ruth Anna Spooner, Ron Lawer)
“Tabernacle” in American Sign Language, source: Deaf Harbor
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Exodus 40:18:
Kupsabiny: “The things which the frames stand on were placed down, the frames were prepared and fitted/joined with the runners and the pillars/posts were fixed into the things they stand on.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “The Tent of Meeting was set up like this- he put the bases where they should be, erected the planks, inserted the crossbars and erected the pillars.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “This is how Moises set-up the Tent: He put/set/put-up the bases of-it, the frames, the crossbars, and the posts.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Bariai: “And Moses together with the workers erected God’s shelter as follows: They placed the post-bases, and when it was done, then they put together the wall bones pieces, and then they put the fastening-bands onto it, and when it was done, then they lifted up the posts and then erected [them].” (Source: Bariai Back Translation)
Opo: “As Moses had said to them, they erect tent: they put its planting-hole, put erecting-poles, nail-together crossbeam on it, erect its hanging wood.” (Source: Opo Back Translation)
English: “Following Moses’/my instructions, they set up the Sacred Tent and its bases, set up the frames, attached the crossbars, and put up the posts for the curtains.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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:
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 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).
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
Moses erected the tabernacle uses the same verb as in verses 2 and 17. The third person singular is used throughout this section, meaning that Moses supervised all the work of setting up the tabernacle. It should not be thought that Moses did all of this by himself while the people stood and watched. This would have been impossible. So in many languages one may express this as “Moses had them erect the tabernacle.”
He laid its bases, literally “he gave [or, put] its bases,” may be rendered as “Moses put down its bases” (Good News Translation) or “he put the bases in place” (New International Version). (See 26.19.) And set up its frames, literally “and he placed its frames,” may be rendered as “erected the frames” (New International Version) or “inserted the frames” (Revised English Bible). (See 26.15.) And put in its poles, literally “and he gave [or, put] its bars,” may be rendered as “attached its crossbars” (Good News Translation), “inserted its bars” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), or “its crossbars were inserted.” (See 26.26.) And raised up its pillars, literally “and he caused its pillars to stand up,” may be rendered as “put up its posts” (Good News Translation) or “set up its columns” (New American Bible). Contemporary English Version puts all of this into the passive voice, “The posts, stands, and framework were put in place.”
And he spread the tent over the tabernacle is literally “and he spread out the ʾohel upon the mishkan.” This uses the same expression as 26.7 and 36.14, so it refers to the eleven curtains of goats’ hair that had been fastened together (see 36.8-10) and spread out over the ten linen curtains of the mishkan (see 36.8). We must assume that the linen curtains were already spread out upon the framework, although this step is not listed.
And put the covering of the tent over it, literally “and he placed the covering of the ʾohel upon it from above,” refers to the third layer made of “tanned rams’ skins” (26.14), and possibly the fourth layer as well, which was made of tachash skins. Here we must think of the covering as having two layers, but it should not affect the translation. (See the discussion of the problem at 26.14.)
As the LORD had commanded Moses is the same formula used repeatedly in chapter 39. (See the comment at 39.1.) It is again used seven times in this chapter. (See the introductory comment to chapter 39.) Because this is describing what Moses did, it is more natural to say “as Yahweh had commanded him.” New American Bible has “as the LORD had commanded him” here and in all the following instances. Contemporary English Version has “These things were done exactly as the LORD had commanded Moses,” with the implicit meaning that Moses had others do the work. Good News Translation simply omits Moses entirely, “just as the LORD had commanded.”
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 .
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