The now commonly-used English idiom “God forbid” was first coined in 1560 in the Geneva Bible. (Source: Crystal 2010, p. 273)
For other idioms in English that were coined by Bible translation, see here.
peace (inner peace)
The Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Greek that is usually translated into English as “peace,” when referring to one’s inner peace, is (back-) translated with a variety of idioms and phrases:
- “a song in the body” (Baoulé — see also joy)
- “heart coolness” (Eastern Maninkakan / Moronene) / “inner coolness” (Binumarien) (source for Moronene: David Andersen; Binumarien: Oates 1995, p. 249)
- “coolness” (Pular / Kutu) (source for Kutu: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
- “sit down in the heart” (South Bolivian Quechua) / “my heart sits down” (Northern Grebo)
- “rest the heart” (Central Mazahua) / “rest within” (Lacandon) (source: Nida 1952, p. 40 and 128ff.) / “wait well in your heart” (Yatzachi Zapotec) (source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
- “quietness of heart” (Chol)
- “kobe (= the abdominal region, including the heart) quiet” (Warao) (source: Henry Osborn in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 74ff. )
- “have a quiet mind” (Ngäbere)
- “heart will lie quietly” (Isthmus Zapotec)
- “live quietly” (Central Tarahumara) (source for this and above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
- “quiet goodness” (Kekchí)
- “goodness of life” (Uma) (source: Uma Back Translation)
- “strength of heart” (Highland Puebla Nahuatl)
- “leaning on the liver” (Kare)
- “sweet insides” (Shilluk)
- “evenness” (Toraja-Sa’dan)
- “having your hearts feel oneness for one another” (Tzeltal)
- “have one heart” (Miskito)
- “well-arranged soul” (Mashco Piro)
- “completeness” (Highland Puebla Nahuatl) (source for this and two above: Nida 1952, p. 128ff.)
- “stomach flat in” (“one’s stomach sticks out when one is upset”) (Kimyal) (source: Young 2022)
- “joy in heart” (Eastern Highland Otomi) (source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
- “have security in your heart” (Highland Totonac) (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
- “smooth interior” (Bariai) (source: Bariai Back Translation)
- tangnefedd — “an internal condition that makes external peace (heddwch) possible” (Welsh) (source: Rosa Hunt in Journal of European Baptist Studies 1/23 (2023), p. 1ff. ) (source for all non-attributed translations: Bratcher / Nida)
In American Sign Language it is signed with a compound sign consisting of “become” and “silent.” (Source: Yates 2011, p. 52)
“Peace” in American Sign Language (source )
See also peace (absence of strife) and this devotion on YouVersion and this one on Bible Gateway .
Judah, Judea
The name that is transliterated as “Judah” or “Judea” in English (referring to the son of Jacob, the tribe, and the territory) is translated in Spanish Sign Language as “lion” (referring to Genesis 49:9 and Revelation 5:5). This sign for lion is reserved for regions and kingdoms. (Source: John Elwode in The Bible Translator 2008, p. 78ff. and Steve Parkhurst)
“Judah” and “Judea” in Spanish Sign Language, source: Sociedad Bíblica de España
For more information on translations of proper names with sign language see Sign Language Bible Translations Have Something to Say to Hearing Christians .
See also Judah, Judah (son of Jacob) , and Tribe of Judah .
complete verse (Genesis 44:17)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 44:17:
- Kankanaey: “Jose said then, ‘No absolutely not! Is that indeed what I would do? Only the one who took the cup will be my slave. As for the others by-contrast, nothing will happen to them. You can go-home to your father.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
- Newari: “Joseph said — ‘From me, such things will not happen. The one with whom the cup was found, only he will become my servant. You all go back to your father’s place.'” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
- Hiligaynon: “But Jose said, ‘I can- not -do that. He alone whom the cup was-found with-him will-become my slave. And you (pl.) can-go-home now to your (pl.) father without hindrance.'” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
- English: “But Joseph replied, ‘No, I could never do anything like that. Only the man in whose sack the cup was found will become my slave. The rest of you can return to your father peacefully.'” (Source: Translation for Translators)
2nd person pronoun with low register (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 second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used anata (あなた) is typically used when the speaker is humbly addressing another person.
In these verses, however, omae (おまえ) is used, a cruder second person pronoun, that Jesus for instance chooses when chiding his disciples. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
See also first person pronoun with low register and third person pronoun with low register.
Translation commentary on Genesis 44:17
But he said: the speaker in verse 17 is Joseph.
Far be it from me that I should do so!: see verse 7 for this kind of expression. Joseph refuses Judah’s offer and insists that he will make only Benjamin his slave. In this way he forces the brothers to think again about how the family is shattered by the loss of only one brother—in the past himself, and now again himself in the person of Benjamin. In many languages it is natural to begin this speech with “No! I can’t do that.”
Only the man in whose hand the cup was found shall be my slave: see verse 20.
But as for you, go up in peace to your father: Joseph’s release of the brothers as stated here is with irony. He knows that for them to return without Benjamin will be the opposite of peace. Joseph is addressing all the brothers, not just Judah. This must be expressed as “the rest of you,” since one brother, Benjamin, is to stay as a slave. Go up is used in the Hebrew to indicate going from Egypt to Canaan; translations may reflect simple travel without mentioning direction, as in Good News Translation, or mention movement toward the higher, hilly country of Canaan, or else mention the direction as “northeastward” toward Hebron. In peace means to go safely or, as Biblia Dios Habla Hoy says, “no one will bother you.” See Good News Translation.
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 .
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