untranslatable verses

The Swedish Bibel 2000 declared the 69 Old Testament verses referenced herein as “untranslatable.” Typically, other Bible translations translate those verses and mention in footnotes that the translation is uncertain or give alternate readings. Christer Åsberg, the Translation Secretary with the Swedish Bible Society at that time, explains why the Swedish Bible Society decided to not translate these verses at all (in The Bible Translator 2007, p. 1ff. ):

“In the new Swedish translation (SB) of 2000, [some verses are] not translated at all; [they are] indicated with three hyphens inside square brackets [- - -] [with a] reference to the appendix, where in the article ‘Text’ one will find a paragraph with roughly the following content:

In some cases the text is unintelligible and the variant readings differing to such an extent, that it is quite impossible to attain a reasonable certainty of what is meant, although some isolated word may occur, whose meaning it is possible to understand.

“If Bible translators find the Hebrew text untranslatable, what kind of text is it that they have produced in the translation into their own language? When a footnote says ‘The Hebrew is not understandable,’ what then is the printed text a translation of? And if the translators prefer to do without footnotes, are they then really released from the responsibility of informing their readers that the text they read is just mere guesswork?

“To leave a blank space in a Bible text seems to be an offensive act for many. (. . . ) To admit that a piece of Holy Scripture makes no sense at all may have been unimaginable in times past. In our enlightened era, an overprotective concern for the readers’ trust in the word of God is apparently a decisive factor when a translator tries to translate against all odds. The verdict ‘untranslatable’ is much more frequent in scholarly commentaries on different Bible books written by and for experts than in the translations or footnotes of the same books designed for common readers.

“Another reason (. . .) is a professional, and very human, reluctance to admit a failure. Also, many Bible translators lack translational experience of other literary genres and other classical texts where this kind of capitulation is a part of the daily run of things. They may have an innate or subconscious feeling that the Bible has unique qualities not only as a religious document but also as a linguistic and literary artifact. Completeness is felt to be proof of perfection. Some translators, and not so few of their clients, are unfamiliar with a scholarly approach to philological and exegetical matters. In some cases their background have made them immune to a kind of interpretative approximation common in older translations, confessional commentaries, and sermons. Therefore, their tolerance towards lexical, grammatical, and syntactical anomalies tends to be comparatively great.

“It is very hard to discern and to define the boundary between something that is extremely difficult and something that is quite impossible. I am convinced that all Bible translators in their heart of hearts will admit that there actually are some definitely untranslatable passages in the Bible, but are there a dozen of them or a score? Are there fifty or a hundred? Not even a group of recognized experts would probably pick out the same ten most obvious cases. (. . .)

“Conclusions:

  1. There are untranslatable passages in the Bible.
  2. How many they are is impossible to say—except for the translation team that decides which passages are untranslatable.
  3. An untranslatable passage cannot and should therefore not be translated.
  4. The lacuna should be marked in a consistent way.
  5. The translating team should stipulate their criteria for untranslatability as early as possible.
  6. It is an ethical imperative that the readers be comprehensively informed.
  7. Untranslatability has been and can be displayed in many different ways.
  8. An explanatory note should not confuse linguistic untranslatability with other kinds of textual or translational difficulties.
  9. The information given should make it clear that the translators’ recognition of untranslatability is a token of respect for the Bible, not a proof of depreciation.
  10. You shall not fear the void, but the fear of the void.”

With thanks to Mikael Winninge, Director of Translation, Swedish Bible Society

complete verse (Isaiah 25:11)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Isaiah 25:11:

  • Kupsabiny: “They will stretch their hands like when they beat water (swim),
    but they shall be pulled down even if they try to defend themselves.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Just as a swimmer spreads out [his] hands to swim,
    he will [also] spread out his own hands like that.
    [And] even if they guide their hands quickly,
    God will bring down their pride.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “They will-try to escape from that situation like a man flapping in the water. But even if they are good in swimming, the LORD will- still -drown them; the LORD will-bring- them -down from their being-proud.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Klao: “And the Moabite people will try to save themselves, but God will take away the pride and skill of the Moabites.” (“the image of swimming is removed for greater naturalness in the language”) (source: Don Slager)

Translation commentary on Isaiah 25:11

The challenge in this verse is to decide on the identity of the participants; in the Hebrew they are referred to by pronouns. Literally, the verse reads “And it/he will spread out its/his hands in the midst of it/him, just as the swimmer will spread [his hands] to swim; and it/he will bring low its/his haughtiness with the movements of its/his hands.” To whom do these pronouns refer? A second question is how the action of swimming can illustrate someone’s demise. A third but related question has to do with the meaning of “spreading out the hands.” Is it to escape, to protect oneself, or to pray? Revised Standard Version reflects the majority view for the identity of the participants. In the first half of the verse the pronouns he and his refer to Moab while the pronoun it presumably refers to the dung-pit; in the second half of the verse the pronoun his also refers to Moab, and the LORD is the actor. Good News Translation also follows this view. This verse pictures Moab sinking down in the dung-pit, and spreading its hands like a swimmer, trying to stay afloat or to ask for help.

And he will spread out his hands in the midst of it: The pronoun he may be rendered “Moab” for clarity. Good News Translation uses the pronoun “They,” referring back to “the people of Moab” in the previous verse. As we noted above, spread out his hands can describe an action with several possible meanings. Often it signifies prayer or supplication (see 1.15; 1 Kgs 8.22) and we may assume that this is the sense here also. The Moabites will appeal to Yahweh to save them from trouble. The word hands keeps its literal sense here since the physical action of spreading them is compared with the movements of a swimmer. Hands may be rendered “arms.” Where spread out his hands has no meaning, translators may add “in prayer/supplication.” The phrase in the midst of it refers to the dung-pit. While the Moabites are in the pit, they appeal to Yahweh for help or deliverance. This phrase may be left implied (so Good News Translation) or rendered simply “there” (Bible en français courant).

As a swimmer spreads his hands out to swim: This simile is very unusual; it only occurs here in the Old Testament. There is no immediate connection between swimming and supplication; it is simply a graphic comparison between raising one’s arms in supplication and extending one’s arms when swimming. It is also possible, however, that the poet is being sarcastic and mocking when he compares Moab’s gestures of supplication with those of a swimmer—in a pit of manure!

But the LORD will lay low his pride together with the skill of his hands: Revised Standard Version explicitly identifies the subject of the verb lay low as the LORD (similarly Good News Translation), but some scholars consider the subject to be Moab. In the Hebrew text no subject is identified. New Revised Standard Version and Revised English Bible render the verb as a passive, thereby avoiding the need to identify a subject, but this is not strictly correct grammatically. For the whole verse Revised English Bible has “In it Moab will spread out his hands as a swimmer spreads his hands to swim, but his pride will be sunk with every stroke of his hands.” Since there are many examples in these prophecies where it is Yahweh who deals with a nations’ pride, we may assume that he is the unnamed subject of the action here too. Although the Moabites appeal to Yahweh, he will lay low their pride, that is, “humble” them.

A minor exegetical problem concerns the Hebrew preposition translated together with. New Revised Standard Version reflects the view of some scholars that it means “despite” here, as in Neh 5.18 (where Revised Standard Version uses “with”). For the whole clause it has “their pride will be laid low despite the struggle of their hands.” That is to say, the Moabites’ pride sinks despite their efforts to keep afloat. According to Revised Standard Version, the LORD humiliates both their pride and their efforts to stay afloat (similarly Good News Translation). Either interpretation is acceptable here.

The final challenge for the translators of this verse is the meaning of the Hebrew word rendered skill. Its root and its meaning are uncertain. We can agree with a majority of scholars that it probably refers to a skill or “cleverness” of the hands. Many versions take together with the skill of his hands to mean that Moab’s swimming movements may be quite clever, but nevertheless cannot save it. New International Version reflects this by rendering the whole clause as “God will bring down their pride despite the cleverness of their hands.” For the skill of his hands, Bible en français courant simply has “his movements,” which is acceptable here. For the whole clause it says “But despite his movements, the Lord brings his pride low.” It also includes a footnote to indicate that the meaning of the Hebrew here is uncertain, which is helpful.

For the translation of this verse we suggest the following models:

• The Moabites will stretch out their hands in supplication
like swimmers stretching out their hands when swimming.
But Yahweh will humble them,
along with the movements of their hands.

• Moab, like someone who is swimming,
will stretch out its hands in supplication,
but Yahweh will humiliate it
and what its hands have done.

• Moab, like someone who is swimming, will stretch out his hands,
but he will sink low in it,
despite his skill [or, movements].

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 .