The Hebrew and Greek that is translated into English as “the wrath of God” or “God’s anger” has to be referred to in Bengali as judgment, punishment or whatever fits the context. In Bengali culture, anger is by definition bad and can never be predicated of God. (Source: David Clark)
Translations in other languages:
Quetzaltepec Mixe: “translated with a term that not only expresses anger, but also punishment” (source: Robert Bascom)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “the coming punishment of God on mankind” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “God’s fearful/terrible future punishing of people” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “the coming anger/hatred of God” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “the punishment which will come” (source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Bariai: “God’s action of anger comes forth in the open” (source: Bariai Back Translation)
Mairasi: “His anger keeps increasing (until it will definitely arrive)” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御) is used as in mi-ikari (御怒り) or “wrath (of God)” in the referenced verses. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated as “anger” or similar in English in this verse is translated with a variety of solutions (Bratcher / Nida says: “Since anger has so many manifestations and seems to affect so many aspects of personality, it is not strange that expressions used to describe this emotional response are so varied”).
Chichewa: “have a burning heart” (source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation) (see also anger burned in him)
Citak: two different terms, one meaning “angry” and one meaning “offended,” both are actually descriptions of facial expressions. The former can be represented by an angry stretching of the eyes or by an angry frown. The latter is similarly expressed by an offended type of frown with one’s head lowered. (Source: Graham Ogden)
In Akan, a number of metaphors are used, most importantly abufuo, lit. “weedy chest” (the chest is seen as a container that contains the heart but can also metaphorically be filled with other fluids etc.), but also abufuhyeε lit. “hot/burning weedy chest” and anibereε, lit. “reddened eyes.” (Source: Gladys Nyarko Ansah in Kövecses / Benczes / Szelid 2024, p. 21ff.)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Hosea 14:4:
Kupsabiny: “God says, ‘I will remove the sins of my people and love them with one stomach. Never will I be angry with them again.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “I will forgive my people for their going on the wrong road. I will love them freely, From now on I will never be angry with them again. ” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “The LORD said, ‘I will-heal my people of their being-a-transgressor, and I will-love them sincerely. For my anger with them has-gone now.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “God says, ‘I will heal them in-the-future from their disobedience/obstinacy and I will show my sincere love, because my anger toward them has-been-removed.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
English: “Yahweh says, ‘If they say that to me, I will forgive them for having turned away from/abandoned me, and I will love them with all my inner being, because I will have stopped being angry with them.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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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 first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
Although our recommended outline shows 14.1-8 as a unit, Good News Translation inserts the following heading here: “The LORD Promises New Life for Israel.” Several other versions have similar titles, for example, “Assurance of Forgiveness” (New Revised Standard Version) and “The LORD Promises To Forgive” (Contemporary English Version). There is a major shift in perspective at this point. It changes from the Israelites repenting in the preceding verses, to the LORD responding to their words of repentance with promises. Good News Translation and New Living Translation make it clear that he is the speaker here by beginning with the quote frame “The LORD says,” which is not in the Hebrew text. Other translations mark the shift by inserting a blank line and using quotation marks (so New International Version, Bible en français courant). Translators should use a solution that suits their general translation approach.
I will heal their faithlessness: This line follows immediately after the previous verse and its word of motherly “mercy.” For God “healing” the Israelites, see 6.1; 7.1; and 11.3. Here what he heals is the habit of their faithlessness, which is portrayed as a disease that eventually leads to death. The Hebrew noun for faithlessness comes from a root meaning “turn,” and here it refers to the habit of turning away from Yahweh. It forms a wordplay with the Hebrew verb for “return” in verses 1-2, which has the same root. This kind of wordplay is obviously hard to express in most languages. Other renderings for faithlessness are “disloyalty” (New Jerusalem Bible), “infidelity” (Bible en français courant, Bible de Jérusalem), “apostasy” (Revised English Bible, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible), “waywardness” (New International Version), and “defection” (New American Bible). Good News Translation‘s “I will bring my people back to me” moves quite far away from the actual wording of the text and somehow misses the notion of the people’s unfaithfulness.
I will love them freely is perhaps the best way to translate the Hebrew. However, the word for freely is also the word for “freewill offering” (as in Exo 35.29; 36.3). So the image of the “sacrifice of words” in verse 2 continues here in poetic style. It is as if Yahweh will be with them in love as they share that sacrificial meal of words. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh reflects some of this idea of freely, saying “Generously will I take them back in love.” Most translators will need to follow either Revised Standard Version or New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, since it is usually impossible to capture such wordplay in translation.
For my anger has turned from them summarizes the result of Israel’s repentance and their peace offering of words. The Hebrew word ki rendered for is most likely a logical connector here. Good News Translation leaves it implied. The verb turned renders the same Hebrew root as the noun for faithlessness, so there is another wordplay. Good News Translation‘s “no longer am I angry with them” (similarly Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch) uses nonfigurative language, but most translations follow the form of the Hebrew.
A translation model for this verse is:
• The LORD says,
“I will heal them of their infidelity,
I will love them voluntarily.
My anger has turned away from them.
Quoted with permission from Dorn, Louis & van Steenbergen, Gerrit. A Handbook on Hosea. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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