cypress wood

The Hebrew in Genesis 6:14 that is translated “cypress wood” or “gopher wood” in English is translated in the interconfessional Chichewa translation (publ. 1999) with mnjale or “(boards of the) canoe tree,” a tree that grows along the banks of rivers and is used to make boats.

Ernst Wendland (in The Bible Translator 1981, p. 107) explains: “Some might argue that the use of such local substitutes constitutes a misrepresentation of the biblical setting in that they give the impression that the indigenous item was actually found in the Holy Land. That may be true, but difficulties also arise with alternative solutions. Use of a generic term (e.g. ‘good timber’ — Good News Translation) is probably the safest, but this procedure, if overused, produces a dull text due to the lack of descriptive detail. A generic word modified by a descriptive word/phrase is also possible, but it is not very easy sometimes to find an expression that fits neatly into the account. (…) Frequently a generic or qualifying phrase turns out to be rather awkward and tends to upset the smooth flow of the discourse. They are particularly unnatural in dialogue since they can make the speaker (or his addressee) sound as if he doesn’t know his own language properly (e.g., build a ship with the boards of a tree like the mnjale…”). A loanword, unless it is one that is widely circulated in the speech community, is the least satisfactory as a descriptive term. Either its referent lies completely outside the experience of the receptors, or it is strongly associated with life in the twentieth century, hence an obvious anachronism.”

Nephilim

The Hebrew that is translated as “Nephilim” or “giants” in English is translated in Cherokee with the mythological Cherokee figure Judacullah or tsuhlkala. “Judacullah (ᏧᏓᎦᎳ) [is] the giant who taught the Cherokees about hunting, farming, and medicine. Genesis 6:4 describes a time when ‘there were giants in the earth,’ [according to the King James Version] and ‘giants’ is translated as tsunihlkala or Judacullahs, plural! In Cherokee, tsuhlkala is a proper name, so the idea of many populating the land must have been quite striking and creates a uniquely Cherokee reading of this chapter. The use of both dakwa and junihlkala suggests a continuity between the biblical and the Cherokee human experience.” (Source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 47)

complete verse (Genesis 6:14)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 6:14:

  • Kankanaey: “Make (sing.) therefore a large ark (word used in local story of flood) or ship that has many rooms. Sturdy lumber is what you will make-it-with. Then smear-it with sticky-sap on the mutually-opposite-sides (i.e., inside and outside).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “You make a ship of good wood. Make rooms inside of it. And coat it inside and outside with tar.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “So/Therefore you, Noe, [you] make a ship from good wood, and make rooms in it. Then spread tar inside and outside of the ship.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “I want you to make for yourself a large boat from cypress wood. Make rooms inside it. Cover the outside and the inside with tar to make it waterproof/so that water cannot get in and sink the boat.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Genesis 6:14

Verses 14-16 contain eight instructions given by God to Noah for building the boat. Verse 14 deals with three of the instructions.

The first of God’s instructions is a general command: Make yourself an ark. Make is a general word used in Genesis 1 as one of the terms for “create.” The sense is “construct,” or “build.” In many languages a special verb is used for boat construction. In languages in which a special verb refers to hollowing out the interior of a log for a canoe, or making other small craft used on a lake or river, the technical word may not be appropriate when the boat is as large as Noah’s. It is often necessary in such cases to use a more general word such as “make” or “build.” Yourself does not mean for Noah only, since it is for him, his family, and the animals. Yourself is used here to exclude Noah’s fellow men. If necessary we may say “Make for yourself and your family” or “Make for yourselves.”

Ark translates a word of Egyptian origin that means “box,” or “coffin.” The word is used elsewhere in Exo 2.3, 5 of the small basket in which Moses was kept in hiding in the Nile. The English word ark is based on theVulgate translation. (The “ark of the covenant,” which held the tablets of the Law, translates a different Hebrew word.) Most English translations use the word ark in this story; however, Good News Translation says “boat,” and Moffatt has “barge.” “Boat” is a general word that includes many different kinds of water vessels that are smaller than large ships and have some means for steering. There is nothing in God’s instructions about a rudder or any other device that allows a person to apply power to the vessel or to steer it. A “barge” is usually a boat with a flat bottom used on rivers and canals that may or may not have its own power. Another English term that may be considered is “houseboat,” which refers to a boat especially built as a dwelling on water. Except when quoting Revised Standard Version or some other version using ark or its equivalent in other languages, the Handbook will use the regular English word “boat.”

In languages in which the only word for “boat” is something like a dugout canoe or a skin canoe, it may be necessary to use a descriptive phrase, or a loan word and a descriptive statement, and in some cases provide an illustration. Bible en français courant says “Build yourself an ark, a kind of big boat….”

Gopher wood: gopher is a Hebrew word written in English. It is used nowhere else in the Old Testament, and no one knows exactly what kind of wood it may have been. Some scholars think it was cypress, others think it was pine or teak wood. Modern translations vary considerably: New English Bible has “ribs of cypress,” Bible en français courant and New International Version “cypress wood,” Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, New Jerusalem Bible, and Traduction oecuménique de la Bible “resinous wood,” Good News Translation “good timber,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch simply “wood.” Translators may wish to use the name of the local wood used in building boats, if this work is done in their area. Otherwise it will probably be best to use an expression such as “good wood” or “wood for building boats.” Some translations use expressions like “planks of good wood” to refer to timber that is used for construction, since in many languages the same term is used for both “wood” and “tree.”

The second instruction is make rooms in the ark. Rooms (literally “nests”) has been altered by some to give the meaning of “reeds,” that is, something woven out of reeds; for instance New English Bible has “cover it with reeds.” This change is unnecessary, since the idea is clear enough, meaning “cells, compartments.” Hebrew Old Testament Text Project suggests “of nothing but compartments” or “a series of compartments.” The picture given is a long row of stalls or enclosures for the animals. These stalls may sometimes be called “animal rooms” or “divisions for the animals.”

Cover it … with pitch: cover it means to coat it (the boat), that is “apply,” “rub on,” or “smear.” The word pitch is kofer in Hebrew, and perhaps this is a play on words with gofer. It refers to a black, gummy substance used for waterproofing, which is extracted from pine wood. The Hebrew word can also refer to mineral pitches that are obtained from natural asphalt or bitumen deposits. Moses’ basket was waterproofed by smearing it with pitch (Exo 2.3). If the translator does not have a word for tar, pitch, or asphalt, it may be necessary to use a borrowed word or a descriptive phrase, and perhaps to make the purpose of its use clear; for example, “and smear it on the inside and the outside of the boat to keep it from leaking.” Biblia Dios Habla Hoy says “Cover all the cracks of the boat with tar both inside and outside so the water can’t get in.” Some other translations have “Paint it inside and outside with tar.” Having in mind the purpose of this process, some translations in areas where people are familiar with boat-building have used a more technical term that means to fill all the cracks: “Caulk it with gum [pitch] ….”

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 .