The name that is transliterated as “Jerusalem” in English is signed in French Sign Language with a sign that depicts worshiping at the Western Wall in Jerusalem:
While a similar sign is also used in British Sign Language, another, more neutral sign that combines the sign “J” and the signs for “place” is used as well. (Source: Anna Smith)
“Jerusalem” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Ezra 4:24:
Kupsabiny: “Therefore, the work of the House of God in Jerusalem stopped to/until the second year when Darius was ruling Persia.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “In this way the work of the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem was stopped. That work was stopped until the 2nd year of the reign of Darius, King of Persia.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “The building/[lit. cause-to-stand] of the temple of God in Jerusalem was-stopped until the second year of Darius’ reign in Persia.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “The result was that the Jews stopped rebuilding the temple. They did not do any more work to rebuild the temple until Darius became the King of Persia.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Ge’ez, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:
Ninia Yali: “big brother with the uplifted name” (source: Daud Soesilio in Noss 2007, p. 175)
Nyamwezi: mutemi: generic word for ruler, by specifying the city or nation it becomes clear what kind of ruler (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Ghomála’: Fo (“The word Fo refers to the paramount ruler in the kingdoms of West Cameroon. He holds administrative, political, and religious power over his own people, who are divided into two categories: princes (descendants of royalty) and servants (everyone else).” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn))
Faye Edgerton retells how the term in Navajo (Dinė) was determined:
“[This term was] easily expressed in the language of Biblical culture, which had kings and noblemen with their brilliant trappings and their position of honor and praise. But leadership among the Navajos is not accompanied by any such titles or distinctions of dress. Those most respected, especially in earlier days, were their headmen, who were the leaders in raids, and the shaman, who was able to serve the people by appealing for them to the gods, or by exorcising evil spirits. Neither of these made any outward show. Neither held his position by political intrigue or heredity. If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior. If the shaman failed many times in his healing ceremonies, it was considered that he was making mistakes in the chants, or had lost favor with the gods, and another was sought. The term Navajos use for headman is derived from a verb meaning ‘to move the head from side to side as in making an oration.’ The headman must be a good orator, able to move the people to go to war, or to follow him in any important decision. This word is naat’áanii which now means ‘one who rules or bosses.’ It is employed now for a foreman or boss of any kind of labor, as well as for the chairman of the tribal council. So in order to show that the king is not just a common boss but the highest ruler, the word ‘aláahgo, which expresses the superlative degree, was put before naat’áanii, and so ‘aláahgo naat’áanii ‘anyone-more-than-being around-he-moves-his-head-the-one-who’ means ‘the highest ruler.’ Naat’áanii was used for governor as the context usually shows that the person was a ruler of a country or associated with kings.”
The work on the temple stopped and then God used prophets and a letter from Tattenai to restart it
4:24a Thus the construction of the house of God in Jerusalem ceased,
¶ So the work of ⌊building⌋ the temple in Jerusalem stopped.⌊⌋ -or-
¶ ⌊From the time that opposition started when Cyrus was king,⌋ the Jews stopped rebuilding the house of God in Jerusalem.
4:24b and it remained at a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
It remained like that until the second year of the reign of King/Chief Darius of Persia. -or-
No work on the house of God was done ⌊for many years⌋. ⌊Later,⌋ Darius ⌊became⌋ the king/ruler of Persia. In the second year that he ruled, they started the work again.
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