4In it stood the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which there were a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant;
Natügu: nzesz’tikr drtwr: “oneness of mind” (source: Brenda Boerger in Beerle-Moor / Voinov, p. 164)
Tagalog: tipan: mutual promising on the part of two persons agreeing to do something (also has a romantic touch and denotes something secretive) (source: G. Henry Waterman in The Bible Translator 1960, p. 24ff. )
Tagbanwa: “initiated-agreement” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Guhu-Samane: “The concept [in Mark 14:24 and Matthew 16:28] is not easy, but the ritual freeing of a fruit and nut preserve does afford some reference. Thus, ‘As they were drinking he said to them, ‘On behalf of many this poro provision [poro is the traditional religion] of my blood is released.’ (…) God is here seen as the great benefactor and man the grateful recipient.” (Source: Ernest Richert in The Bible Translator, 1965, p. 81ff. )
Law (2013, p. 95) writes about how the Ancient GreekSeptuagint‘s translation of the Hebrew berith was used by the New Testament writers as a bridge between the Old and New Testaments (click or tap here to read more):
“Right from the start we witness the influence of the Septuagint on the earliest expressions of the Christian faith. In the New Testament, Jesus speaks of his blood being a kaine diatheke, a ‘new covenant.’ The covenant is elucidated in Hebrews 8:8-12 and other texts, but it was preserved in the words of Jesus with this language in Luke 22:20 when at the Last Supper Jesus said, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. Jesus’s blood was to provide the grounds for the ‘new covenant,’ in contrast to the old one his disciples knew from the Jewish scriptures (e.g., Jeremiah 31:31-34). Thus, the earliest Christians accepted the Jewish Scriptures as prophecies about Jesus and in time began to call the collection the ‘Old Testament’ and the writings about Jesus and early Christianity the ‘New Testament,’ since ‘testament’ was another word for ‘covenant.’ The covenant promises of God (berith in Hebrew) were translated in the Septuagint with the word diatheke. In classical Greek diatheke had meant ‘last will, testament,’ but in the Septuagint it is the chosen equivalent for God’s covenant with his people. The author of Hebrews plays on the double meaning, and when Luke records Jesus’ announcement at the Last Supper that his blood was instituting a ‘new covenant,’ or a ‘new testament,’ he is using the language in an explicit contrast with the old covenant, found in the Jewish scriptures. Soon, the writings that would eventually be chosen to make up the texts about the life and teachings of Jesus and the earliest expression of the Christian faith would be called the New Testament. This very distinction between the Old and New Testaments is based on the Septuagint’s language.”
The Hebrew, Greek, and Latin that is sometimes translated as “ark of the covenant” in English (other English options: “pact chest” [translation by John Goldingay, 2018] or “Coffer of the Covenant” [translation by Everett Fox, 1995]) is translated in various ways:
Mairasi: Anasi Farjora or “Covenant Place” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
In American Sign Language it is translated with a sign that combines “box” and the wings of the cherubim on top of the ark (see Exod 25:18 and following). (Source: Ruth Anna Spooner, Ron Lawer)
“Ark of the covenant” in American Sign Language, source: Deaf Harbor
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “tablets of the covenant” or similar in English is translated by the interconfessional Chichewa translation (publ. 1999) as miyala iŵiri ija yolembedwapo mau a chipangano or “those two stones on which are written the words of the agreement.” (Source: Wendland 1998, p. 110)
The Greek that is translated as “Aaron’s rod” or “Aaron’s stick” in English is translated in Mwera as “Aaron’s walking stick.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Following are a number of back-translations of Hebrews 9:4:
Uma: “In this room there was the incense burning-place table made of gold, and there was also the box called the Promise Box. That box was covered all over with gold, on the outside and the inside. In it, there was the gold bowl containing food called manna, and there was also the Harun’s that budded/had-shoots long ago, and the two flat rocks that had the ten commands from God written on them.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “In this innermost room there was a gold table for burning incense. And there was also a chest covered with gold inside and outside. That chest was called Covenant Chest. There inside that chest there was a gold pot (garul) containing food called ‘manna’. There in that chest was also kept the walking stick of Harun which had sprouted and there were also kept the two stone slabs where God’s commandments were written that he had given to Musa.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And in the inside of it they placed the golden altar where incense was burned. And there they placed the chest that was covered with gold. This chest was a sign of the promise of God. Inside of this chest could be seen the golden jar where the manna food was placed. And there also inside the chest could be seen the walking stick of Aaron that sprouted and the two flat stones where God wrote the Law.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “What was there was the gilded altar (loan altar) on which they burned incense (loan insinso) and the Chest of the Agreement that was overlaid with gold. What was placed-inside there was the golden jar in which was placed manna (Eng. loan), Aaron’s walking-stick which leafed and the two flat stones on which were carved the commands of God.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “There in that room was the burning-place for incense and the Chest of the Initiated-agreement, both of which were covered-around with gold. One of the things contained in that Chest was the container of manna. The container was made of gold. Also contained in that Chest of the Initiated-aggrement was the walking-stick of Aaron which sprouted-new-growth, and those two flat-shaped rocks on which were written the laws of God.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “In there is an altar of gold where incense is burned. And there is a box which is all gold on the outside. It is the box which contains the old agreement which was before. There inside the box is a jar of gold in which is the bread called manna. And in the box is also the staff of Aaron, the one which sprouted. And in the box are the tablets of stone on which are written God’s law, that old agreement which was before.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
The Greek word here translated altar for the burning of incense usually means a censer or incense-holder. But here it must refer to the wooden box overlaid with gold, on which incense was burned twice a day (see Exo 30.1-10). This altar was in fact kept in the outer part of the sanctuary (see Exo 30.6), but it would be wrong to change the statement in Hebrews to agree with the statement in Exodus 30. A literal rendering of the gold altar might suggest that the altar was made entirely of gold, but in reality it was merely overlaid with gold. It may therefore be appropriate to translate the gold altar as “the altar which was covered with gold.”
In some languages incense is referred to as “sweet-smelling resin,” and in a few cases it is “sweet-smelling medicine.” Where there is no specific term or phrase for incense, it may be described as “a sweet-smelling substance” or even “a sweet-smelling powder.”
Covenant Box: Good News Translation and other common language translations rightly use Box in place of the traditional “ark,” which is no longer part of common language, except for Noah’s ark, which was quite different. This Box is described in Exodus 25.10-16. It was called the Covenant Box because it contained various objects, all mentioned in this verse, which were closely linked with the making of the covenant between God and Israel. According to 1 Kings 8.9, “the box” contained nothing but the two stone tablets, but the writer of Hebrews seems to have ignored this text.
In selecting an appropriate term for Box, it is important to choose an expression such as “Chest,” which will refer to a container used in preserving or storing important objects.
There may, however, be some difficulty in relating Covenant to Box. One may use a phrase such as “Box which symbolizes the Covenant,” “Box which points to the Covenant,” “Box which tells about God’s agreement,” or “Box which shows God’s agreement.” Good News Translation fourth edition and containing replaces the clearer Good News Bible third edition “The box contained.” The Greek of Hebrews 9.3-4 cannot mean that the Most Holy Place contained the gold jar, etc.
On the jar, see Exodus 16.33. The gold jar which contained the manna was of a size to hold approximately two liters. The expression gold jar can be translated “jar made of gold.” In some languages there are a number of different terms for jar, depending on its shape, its size, the material of which it is made, and whether or not it has a top. It is impossible to determine precisely the shape of the jar involved, and therefore, if possible, one should select a term having a general meaning.
On Aaron’s stick, see Numbers 17.8-10. Aaron’s stick may be rendered as “Aaron’s walking stick” or “the stick which Aaron used when he walked.” The clause that had sprouted leaves may be rendered in some languages as “from which leaves had come out” or “on which leaves had grown.”
On the stone tablets, see Exodus 25.16 and Deuteronomy 10.3-5. The phrase which Revised Standard Version literally translates “the tables of the covenant” is found in the Septuagint of 1 Kings 8.9, and a similar phrase is found in Deuteronomy 9.9, 11. Several translations expand this phrase to make it clearer for the modern reader; for example, Bijbel in Gewone Taal has “the stone tablets with the law of the covenant.” Two is not in the Greek text; but see Exodus 32.15 and Deuteronomy 10.1. In modern English, “table” usually means a piece of furniture, so Good News Translation uses the diminutive tablets. The Old Testament passages referred to show that they must have been small enough to carry, but large enough for the commandments to be cut into the stone. The two stone tablets may be expressed as “the two tablets which were made out of stone” or “the two slabs of stone.”
With the commandments written on them may be rendered as “with God’s commandments written on them” or “with words about what God had commanded.” It is important in rendering the commandments to use the same type of expression which is used in the Old Testament.
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Letter of the Hebrews. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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