complete verse (Ezekiel 44:14)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Ezekiel 44:14:

  • Kupsabiny: “I will appoint those people to do only the word of preparing and sweeping my House.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “I will- just -make them as helpers in all the work in the temple.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “But I will still put them in charge of the work in the temple and allow them to do all the work that needs to be done there.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

1st person pronoun referring to God (Japanese)

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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.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also pronoun for “God”.

Translation commentary on Ezekiel 44:14

Yet I will appoint them to keep charge of the temple, to do all its service and all that is to be done in it: Once again, despite the punishment, God promises to give the Levites important roles in the new Temple. This verse is in some ways a summary of verse 11 (see the comments there). I will appoint them to keep charge of the temple probably refers to the Levites’ role as gatekeepers. To do all its service and all that is to be done in it refers to doing all “the menial work that is to be done in the Temple” (Good News Translation). New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh says “to perform all its chores, everything that needs to be done in it,” Contemporary English Version has “all the hard work that must be done in the temple” (similarly Revised English Bible), and New Living Translation translates “taking charge of the maintenance work and performing general duties” (similarly Complete Jewish Bible).

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .