The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “remember” in English is translated in Mairasi as “it is (or: place it) in your liver’s crack” (source: Enggavoter 2004) and in Noongar as barrang-dwangka, literally “ear-hold” (source: Portions of the Holy Bible in the Nyunga language of Australia, 2018).
The Greek and Hebrew that are translated as “worry” or “anxious” in English are translated in Navajo (Dinė) as “my mind is killing me.” (Source: Nida 1952, p. 24)
Nida (1952, p. 124) also gives other examples:
“The Piro in Peru use almost the same idiom when they say that a worried man is ‘one who is hard chased.’ The worried person is like a pursued animal in the forest trying to elude the hunter. The impenetrable jungle of the future, the failing strength, and the exhaustion of doubt all press hard upon the soul. And one’s heart seems to fail and even disappear. This is the very phrase employed by the Tzeltal Indians in the rugged mountains of southern Mexico. They describe ‘worry’ by the words ‘their hearts are gone.'”
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Isaiah 57:11:
Kupsabiny: “Who is that one that you are afraid of and fear so that you did lies and did not remember/think of me? Do you not honor me because I have kept quiet so long as if I do not see anything?” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “Whom did you fear that you spoke lies [lit. untrue matters] to me, and why did you not remember me and keep me in [your] heart? What! [was it] because I have remained silent for so long that you did not fear me?” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “The LORD says, ‘Who are these little-gods/false-gods whom you (plur.) feared that you (plur.) lied to me? You (plur.) have-forgotten me and do- not -pay-attention to me. What is the reason why you (plur.) no-longer respect me? Is it because I seemed have-been-silent for a long period/[lit. inside] of time?” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
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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.
Good News Translation opens this subsection with “The LORD says.” This is a valid option since it is clear from the first person pronouns that he is speaking.
Whom did you dread and fear…?: For languages that need to specify whether the interrogative pronoun Whom is singular or plural, we recommend singular even though Good News Translation assumes it is plural. God does not provide the answer for this question, but he is referring to a god other than himself, probably Molech. The Hebrew verb for fear has the sense of “awe and respect” (see the comments on 25.3), but in combination with the verb for dread there is also the idea of genuine fear. Translators may combine these two verbs by using an adverb to emphasize the fear; for example, Revised English Bible begins this question with “Whom do you fear so much…?” For languages that prefer to render this rhetorical question as a strong statement, a possible model is “You certainly feared this god [or, those gods] very much….”
So that you lied is the first result of their fear. Although the basic sense of the Hebrew verb rendered lied is “to tell a lie,” here the meaning seems better expressed by terms that relate to people being unfaithful to Yahweh. They were acting deceptively, because they were using traditional Israelite forms of worship when actually worshiping foreign gods (verses 3-6). For this line New International Version has “that you have been false to me,” and New Jerusalem Bible says “that you should betray me.” Bible en français courant renders the first two lines as “Who would frighten you so much that you would deceive me to the point that…?”
And did not remember me, did not give me a thought: These two synonymous parallel lines give the other result of fearing the idols. Yahweh accuses the idol worshipers of not giving any thought to him because of their wayward rituals. This criticism is emphasized in the Hebrew text by placing the object pronoun me at the beginning of these two lines. Translators may express this emphasis by saying “and I was not the one you…” or “and it wasn’t I that you….” For remember see the comments on 43.18. Did not give me a thought is literally “you did not put [me] on your heart,” which repeats the expression used in verse 1 (see the comments there).
Have I not held my peace, even for a long time…? is another rhetorical question (see the second example below, which renders it as a strong statement). This line says Yahweh has not spoken out or acted against the practice of the idol worshipers for a long time. The reason for this is not given. The Hebrew verb rendered held … peace refers to being silent or being inactive (see the comments on 42.14). The Hebrew verb form here (participle) conveys the sense of an ongoing situation. Yahweh has been silent even for a long time (literally “from ever before”). New Revised Standard Version emends this phrase in Masoretic Text to read “and closed my eyes.” Revised English Bible is similar with “and look away,” and so is New American Bible with “and unseeing.” However, we agree with Hebrew Old Testament Text Project that translators should follow Masoretic Text here.
And so you do not fear me is the result of Yahweh’s long period of silence. The people have abandoned their awe and worship of him. In the Hebrew text this line also begins with the pronoun me, so there is emphasis on it. The verb fear, which occurred near the beginning of this verse, closes it.
For the translation of this verse consider the following examples:
• Whom did you dread and fear so much
that you were unfaithful to me,
and you did not recall what I had done for you,
nor did you reflect on it?
Is it not because I have kept silent for so long
that you no longer are in awe of me?
• Who was the one you feared so much
that you lied to me,
refusing to reflect on what I had done for you
or meditate on it?
It is because I have remained silent for so long
that you fear me no longer.
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 .
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