burnt-offering

The Hebrew olah (עֹלָה) originally means “that which goes up (in smoke).” English Bibles often translates it as “burnt-offering” or “whole burnt-offering,” focusing on the aspect of the complete burning of the offering.

The Greek Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate Bibles translate it as holokautōma / holocautōsis (ὁλοκαύτωμα / ὁλοκαύτωσις) and holocaustum, respectively, meaning “wholly burnt.” While a form of this term is widely used in many Romance languages (Spanish: holocaustos, French: holocaustes, Italian: olocausti, Portuguese: holocaustos) and originally also in the Catholic tradition of English Bible translations, it is largely not used in English anymore today (the preface of the revised edition of the Catholic New American Bible of 2011: “There have been changes in vocabulary; for example, the term ‘holocaust’ is now normally reserved for the sacrilegious attempt to destroy the Jewish people by the Third Reich.”)

Since translation into Georgian was traditionally done on the basis of the Greek Septuagint, a transliteration of holokautōma was used as well, which was changed to a translation with the meaning of “burnt offering” when the Old Testament was retranslated in the 1980’s on the basis of the Hebrew text.

In the Koongo (Ki-manianga) translation by the Alliance Biblique de la R.D. Congo (publ. in 2015) olah is translated as “kill and offer sacrifice” (source: Anicet Bassilua) and in Elhomwe as “fire offering.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

The English translation of Everett Fox uses offering-up (similarly, the German translation by Buber-Rosenzweig has Darhöhung and the French translation by Chouraqui montée).

See also offering (qorban).

festival of Tabernacles

For translations of the Greek, Ge’ez, and Hebrew that is translated in English as “festival of Tabernacles” see here.

complete verse (Ezra 3:4)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Ezra 3:4:

  • Kupsabiny: “And following how it was written in the law of Moses, (they) ate/celebrate the Feast of Shelters. They did/offered all the whole-burnt sacrifices as it ought to be done for each day of that ceremony.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “In accordance with the law, they celebrated the Festival of Shelters. They offered the burnt offerings in accordance with the numbers prescribed for each day of Festival.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “They also celebrated the Feast of Erecting/[lit. Causing-to-Stand] Hut according to what-was-written in the Law of Moises. And they offered burnt offerings, that were-necessary to be offered in each day of this feast.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Even though they were afraid of the people who were already living in that area, they rebuilt the altar at the same place where the previous altar had been. Before they started to lay the foundation of Yahweh’s temple, the priests started to burn sacrifices to Yahweh on the altar. They offered sacrifices every morning and every evening. Fifteen days after they started to offer these sacrifices, the people celebrated the Festival of Living in Temporary Shelters, as Moses had commanded them to do in the laws that God gave to him. Each day the priests offered the sacrifices that were required for that day. In addition, they presented the regular burned offerings and the offerings that were required for the New Moon Festivals and the other festivals that they celebrated each year to honor Yahweh. They also brought other offerings only because they desired to bring them, not because they were required to bring them.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Ezra 3:4

The feast of booths is the harvest festival that was celebrated for eight days in the seventh month (see above at verse 1). Revised Standard Version calls it a feast perhaps because this was an occasion when sacrifices were made that were eaten by the people. A festival refers to a celebration that may last for several days. This was originally an agricultural festival at the harvest of fruit and grapes and was one of three annual festivals (see Exo 23.14-17; 34.22-23; Deut 16.13-17). Later it was associated with the exodus from Egypt. During this festival the people lived in temporary huts made of tree branches. In this way they remembered the time that their ancestors lived in booths during their wanderings in the desert (Lev 23.43). The instructions for the observance of the festival are in Lev 23.33-36, 39-43; Num 29.12-38; and Deut 16.13-17. A variety of translations are found for the name of this festival: “Festival of Shelters” (Good News Translation), “pilgrim-feast of Tabernacles” (New English Bible), “festival of Tabernacles” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “festival of Huts” (Bible en français courant, Osty-Trinquet), “foliage hut festival” (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch), “festival of Tents” (Bible de Jérusalem), and “festival of Cabins” (La Sainte Bible: La version Etablie par les moines de Maredsous). For booths translators may use a word that refers to temporary shelters such as are made for short-term habitation during traditional hunting or fishing expeditions. The same term should be used here that is used for this festival elsewhere in the Old Testament.

They kept … as it is written: “To keep a feast” means to hold a festival, to carry it out, or to celebrate it (Good News Translation). The importance of following the regulations for the festival as they were written is underscored by the repeated expression of the same meaning through the words translated according to the ordinance and as each day required.

The daily burnt offerings were offered by number, meaning they offered the required number for each day, day after day. The number is not specified here, but in Num 29.12-38 the number of animals to be sacrificed each day is indicated. On the first day of the festival thirteen young bulls were to be sacrificed; on each following day one less bull was to be sacrificed until the seventh day when it was to be seven bulls. Then on the eighth day only one bull was to be sacrificed. On each of the eight days of the festival, two male sheep and fourteen male lambs were to be sacrificed.

According to the ordinance: The Hebrew word mishpat, which Revised Standard Version renders ordinance, here means what was prescribed in the Law of Moses regarding the festival and the sacrifices.

As each day required: The days did not require sacrifices, as a literal understanding of Revised Standard Version might imply, but rather the Law of Moses “prescribed” (Revised English Bible) sacrifices for each day.

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Ezra. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Ezra 3:4

3:4a They also celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles in accordance with what is written,

Then they celebrated the Festival of Huts just as ⌊the Law⌋ said to.
-or-
They did exactly what ⌊Moses⌋ had written ⌊in the Law⌋. Namely, they celebrated the Feast of Temporary Shelters

3:4b and they offered burnt offerings daily based on the number prescribed for each day.

During the festival they gave/offered the number of completely burnt sacrifices that were required ⌊by/in the Law⌋ for each day.
-or-
by entirely burning the exact number of animals/sacrifices that the Law wanted them to burn on each day ⌊of the feast⌋.

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