complete verse (Isaiah 15:8)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Isaiah 15:8:

  • Kupsabiny: “There is heard shouting at all the borders of Moab,
    the shouting is heard at Eglaim and Beerelim.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “The echo of their suffering has reached the border of Moab,
    the sound of their weeping [has reached] Eglaim,
    and their lamentation has reached Beer-elim.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Their crying can-be-heard in the border of Moab until Eglaim and Beer Elim.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Throughout the country of Moab, people will be crying;
    people as far away as Eglaim in the south and Beer-Elim in the north will hear them wailing.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Isaiah 15:8

For translates the Hebrew particle ki. It is emphatic here, so it may be rendered “Truly” or “Indeed.” Compare New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh “Ah!”

A cry has gone round the land of Moab pictures the entire nation of Moab crying out for help. Cry is the same term used in verse 5. Gone round renders the Hebrew verb used in Josh 6.3 to describe the people of Israel encircling the town of Jericho after crossing the Jordan.

The wailing reaches to Eglaim, the wailing reaches to Beer-elim: These two parallel lines emphasize the extent of the wailing of the people—no part of the country could fail to hear it. The exact location of these two Moabite towns is unknown, but Eglaim was probably in the south and Beer-elim in the north. It may help to begin these lines with the word “even” to indicate that these towns were at opposite ends of the country (see the first example below). Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch hints at the thought that these two towns are faraway places by saying “The cry of lament is going around everywhere in Moab, it can be heard as far as Eglaim and Beer-Elim.”

For the translation of this verse we can say:

• Truly, the cry for help fills the land of Moab; even the people of Eglaim and Beerelim could hear the wailing.

• Indeed, throughout the land of Moab the cry for help can be heard; the wailing is heard as far as Eglaim, it is heard as far as Beerelim.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Sterk, Jan. A Handbook on Isaiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .