grain

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated in English as “grain” (or: “corn”) is translated in Kui as “(unthreshed) rice.” Helen Evans (in The Bible Translator 1954, p. 40ff. ) explains: “Padddy [unthreshed rice] is the main crop of the country and rice the staple diet of the people, besides which [grain] is unknown and there is no word for it, and it seemed to us that paddy and rice in the mind of the Kui people stood for all that corn meant to the Jews.” “Paddy” is also the translation in Pa’o Karen (source: Gordon Luce in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 153f. ).

Other translations include: “wheat” (Teutila Cuicatec), “corn” (Lalana Chinantec), “things to eat” (Morelos Nahuatl), “grass corn” (wheat) (Chichimeca-Jonaz) (source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.), “millet” (Lambya) (source: project-specific notes in Paratext), “food” (Nyamwezi) (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)or ntimumma lujia / “seeds for food” (Lokạạ — “since Lokạạ does not have specific terms for maize and rice that can be described as grains”) (source: J.A. Naudé, C.L. Miller Naudé, J.O. Obono in Acta Theologica 43/2, 2023, p. 129ff. )

reed

There are two general types of reed in Israel, the Common Reed Phragmites australis and the Giant Reed Arundo donax, and it is impossible to say which one is intended in a given biblical context.

The English word “cane” comes from the Hebrew word qaneh. Qaneh is the most general Hebrew word of the many referring to reeds and rushes. Like the English word “reed,” it may refer to a specific type of reed or be a general name for several kinds of water plant. This word is also used to refer to the stalk of grain in Pharaoh’s dream (Genesis 41:5, Genesis 41:22), to the shaft and branches of the golden lampstand in the Tabernacle (Exodus 25:31 et al.), to the beam of a scale (Isaiah 46:6), to the upper arm of a person (Job 31:22), to a measuring stick (Ezekiel 40:3 et al.), and to aromatic cane (Song of Songs 4:14 et al.).

The Greek word kalamos is also used to refer to a measuring stick (Revelation 11:1 et al.) and to a pen (3 John 1:13 and 3 Maccabees 4:20).

The common reed is a tall grass with stiff, sharply-pointed leaves and a plume-like flower head that reaches to more than 2 meters (7 feet). It grows in lakes and streams, the roots creeping across the bottom of the lake to produce new leaves and stalks.

The giant reed is similar to the common reed but tends to grow not in the water but on the river banks. Its majestic plumes can reach up to 5 meters (17 feet) in height on hollow stalks that look like bamboo.

Reeds of both kinds were used for baskets, mats, flutes, pens, arrows, and roof-coverings. Isaiah 42:3 says that the Messiah will be gentle with weak people (“a bruised reed he will not break”), in contrast to the typical iron-fisted tyrants of the day. The Pharaoh is likened to an undependable reed staff in 2 Kings 18:21 et al. In 1 Kings 14:15 Israel is compared to a reed shaking in the water.

The common reed of the Mediterranean area has relatives in Europe, India, Japan, and North America. It is thought to be the only species of the genus Phragmites (although some botanists divide it into three species). It is very important for conservationists, because it provides habitat for many kinds of animals and birds. In North America the weaker native type is being overtaken by more robust types from Europe, which are now threatening other kinds of marsh plants. In Japan people eat the young shoots of reeds. Native Americans used to eat the seeds.

Translators living near lakes and rivers will be able to find an equivalent, if not a relative, of the reed. Others can be generic and use “grass” or a phrase such as “tall grass growing in the water.”

Common reed, photo by Rob Koops

Source: Each According to its Kind: Plants and Trees in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

In Newari it is translated as “bamboo.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)

complete verse (Genesis 41:5)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 41:5:

  • Kankanaey: “When he again slept, he dreamed again, and he reportedly saw seven heads-of-grain on a single stalk/base whose fruit was well-formed (used of plumb, heavy grains).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “He went to sleep again and had another dream. In the dream he saw one stalk of a plant bearing seven seven good full heads of grain.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The king fell-asleep again and he dreamed again. In his dream he saw seven good/full/healthy heads-of-grain which come-out-from a single stem.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “The king went to sleep again, and he had another dream. This time he saw seven heads of grain that were full of kernels of grain and ripe, and all growing on one stalk.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Genesis 41:5

In the second dream seven sickly objects again eat seven healthy objects.

And: as this is a sequence of events, it may be best to say something equivalent to “Then,” “After that,” or “Later.”

Dreamed a second time: that is, “had a second dream,” “had another dream,” “dreamed again,” or “dreamed a second time.” Following the same pattern as in verse 1, some translations say “… dreamed again, and his second dream was like this:….”

Behold, seven ears of grain … stalk: unlike the first dream, in which there is a setting (the king is looking down on the river from the bank), the second dream has no setting. Translators may find it is necessary to provide a setting by saying, for example, “This time he dreamed he was looking at a stalk of grain.”

Seven ears of grain: King James Version and British edition Good News Translation “ears of corn” may give the impression to some that the reference is to maize. However, what the king sees in his dream is a stalk of grain, perhaps wheat, with heads full of grains growing out of the stalk. Ears or “heads of grain” refers to the clusters of ripe grain at the head of the stalk. In some languages the tender clusters of grains are called “eyes of grain,” and when they are ripe are called “heads of grain.” In rice-growing areas the heads of grain may be applied to the stalk of rice.

Plump and good: plump, which means “well rounded” or “filled out,” translates the Hebrew word for “fat” used in Gen 41.2. Good News Translation says “full and ripe.” Translators should use expressions that are used to describe well-developed and ripe grains (or ears) growing on a stalk of grain, or rice.

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .