bear child / give birth

The Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Greek that is translated as “bear (a child)” or “give birth to” is translated in Mairasi as “go to the forest,” reflecting the traditional place of childbirth for Mairasi women. (Source: Enggavoter 2004)

In Spanish it is translated as dar a luz, literally “to give to light.” Likewise, in Portuguese (dar à luz) and Italian (dare alla luce). (Source: Mark Terwilliger)

See also in childbirth / travail and birth.

feel (terror / pain / suffering / anxiety / thirst)

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “feel (terror, pain, suffering, anxiety, thirst)” or similar in English is translated in the Contemporary Chichewa translation (2002/2016) in association with the verb kumva or “hear,” “as if the feeling is heard in the ear.”

In Psalm 115:7 the stand-alone “feel” is also translated as “hear.” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

See also angry

complete verse (Isaiah 66:7)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Isaiah 66:7:

  • Kupsabiny: “My city gives birth
    before (she) goes into labor.
    (She) bore a boy child
    without having felt pain.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “‘Before she goes into labor,
    she gives birth;
    before the pains come upon her,
    she delivers a son.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The LORD still says, ‘Jerusalem will-be like someone-who-is-about-to-give-birth who is not even in labor yet she already gave-birth.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Isaiah 66:7

This verse begins with a sudden reference to a woman giving birth. The next verse makes it clear that this is a metaphor for Zion/Jerusalem. Revised English Bible makes it explicit here by beginning with “Without birth-pains Zion has given birth…,” and so does Good News Translation with “My holy city is like a woman….” Some translators will find these versions good models to follow, but in the present arrangement of the text there is a deliberate delay in mentioning the identity of the woman. It is done to build tension.

Before she was in labor she gave birth refers to a woman who gives birth before she feels any labor pains. The point of this hyperbole is to stress that the birth of the new nation of Judah will be painless and quick. God’s powerful action will make this possible. These two lines may be rendered “A woman gave birth suddenly without going into labor.” Good News Translation is similar, but it combines these lines with the next two.

Before her pain came upon her she was delivered of a son is parallel and synonymous with the previous two lines. The Hebrew noun for pain usually refers to the pain of childbirth, as it does here (see the comments on 26.17, where it is rendered “pangs”). She was delivered of a son is literally “she caused to slip out a male person.” The Hebrew verb used here suggests a very easy birth. In this context the Hebrew word for “male person” probably means “child” (Good News Translation). In the next verse it is clear that this word is a metaphor for the nation of Judah.

Translation examples for this verse are:

• “Before a woman was in labor, she gave birth;
before her labor pains began, she bore a child.

• “A woman gave birth without going into labor,
she bore a child without any labor pains.

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 .