torn apart

In Gbaya, the notion of being “torn apart” is emphasized with mútú-mútú, an ideophone used to describes the act of being torn apart, destroyed.

Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. (Source: Philip Noss)

complete verse (Isaiah 24:12)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Isaiah 24:12:

  • Kupsabiny: “The gates of the city shall be demolished
    the city is destroyed to become a deserted place.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “The city has been destroyed,
    Its main gate has collapsed and has been destroyed.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The city will-remain in ruined, whose doors are broken.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “The high walls around the cities in Moab will be torn down;
    they will be demolished and fall into the dust/dirt.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Isaiah 24:12

The “sh” sound in Hebrew occurs four times in this verse. This alliteration emphasizes the destruction of the cities referred to here.

Desolation is left in the city: Desolation refers to a wasteland; see the comments on “desolate” at 1.7. This is all that remains after the destruction of the earth. Is left repeats the verb used in verse 6. As in verse 10, the city refers to all the cities on earth, so Contemporary English Version renders this line as “Cities are destroyed.”

The gates are battered into ruins is literally “and ruins the battered gate.” The verb is left is implied here from the previous line. The gates are the gates of the cities (see the comments at 3.26). They have been battered into ruins, that is, smashed completely.

Translation examples for this verse are:

• What remains of the cities is a wasteland,
and of their battered gates, ruins.

• A wasteland is all that is left of the cities,
and their broken gates lie in ruins.

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 .