enemy / foe

The Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, Ge’ez, and Latin that is translated as “enemy” or “foe” in English is translated in the Hausa Common Language Bible as “friends of front,” i.e., the person standing opposite you in a battle. (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)

In North Alaskan Inupiatun it is translated with a term that implies that it’s not just someone who hates you, but one who wants to do you harm (Source: Robert Bascom), in Tarok as ukpa ìkum or “companion in war/fighting,” and in Ikwere as nye irno m or “person who hates me” (source for this and one above: Chuck and Karen Tessaro in this newsletter ).

complete verse (Job 13:24)

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

  • Kupsabiny: “Why have you turned your back on me
    and made me become your enemy?” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Why did you hide your face?
    Why did you deal with me as with an enemy?” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Why do- you (sing.) -turn-away from me, and [you (sing.)] consider me your (sing.) enemy?” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Because they are afraid of those things happening to them, they are afraid and worry
    that these things will come to them like the army of a king comes to attack their enemies and cause them to suffer.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

face (of God) (Japanese honorifics)

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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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-kao (御顔) or “face (of God)” in the referenced verses.

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

Honorary "are" construct denoting God ("consider/perceive")

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme are (され) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, minas-are-ru (見なされる) or “consider/perceive” is used.

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

Translation commentary on Job 13:24

Why dost thou hide thy face: in Psalm 27.9; Isaiah 54.8 hide thy face means to be angry, while in Psalm 30.7; 104.29 it has the sense of unfriendliness, as it does here. In other words Job is asking “Why do you refuse to be friendly with me?” or as Good News Translation says, “Why do you avoid me?”

And count me as thy enemy: there are two matters to consider in regard to enemy. First, it may represent an increase of degree over the idea of being “unfriendly” in line a, so that what is avoidance in line a becomes the role of the enemy in line b. Secondly, the author may be making a play on words. The Hebrew term used here for enemy is ʾoyeb. Job’s name in Hebrew is ʾeyob. The idea in the author’s mind may have been to say “Why do you consider me your ʾoyeb? I am ʾeyob.” Line a may be rendered, for example, “God, why are you angry with me,” or idiomatically in some languages, “God, why is your heart hot with me?” “… why do your insides boil when you think of me?” or “Why are you so unfriendly toward me?” In some languages the expression for “my enemy” is “one who hates me.” Thus one may say “Why do you act as if I hate you?” The whole verse may be translated so that the intensification from “unfriendly” to “enemy” is brought out; for example, “Why are you unfriendly toward me and even consider me your enemy?”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, Wiliam. A Handbook on Job. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1992. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .