complete verse (Jeremiah 13:24)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Jeremiah 13:24:

  • Kupsabiny: “I will scatter you like chaff
    which the wind from the open/outstretched land is taking.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The LORD said, I will-scatter you (plur.) like a chaff blown by the wind from the desert. This is your (plur.) fate that I have-willed for you (plur.), because you (plur.) have-forgotten me, and you (plur.) trusted in not true gods.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)

1st person pronoun referring to God (Japanese)

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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.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also pronoun for “God”.

Translation commentary on Jeremiah 13:24

The pronoun I needs to be identified as “The LORD” (Good News Translation). Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch accomplishes this by introducing verse 23 with “The Lord says….”

Although the Hebrew text has “them” (Revised Standard Version footnote), it is possible to shift to the second person pronoun you on translational grounds. This is done in New Jerusalem Bible, Good News Translation, New International Version, and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch; Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, and Revised Standard Version provide a footnote.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Jeremiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2003. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .