steadfast love

The Hebrew that is translated as “steadfast love,” “lovingkindness” (Goldingay 2018: “commitment”) or similar in English is translated in a number of ways:

  • Vidunda: “love of enduring” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Bura-Pabir: “love which cannot be-changed” (hyirkur na a palidzi wa)
  • Hausa Common Language Bible “his love without changing” (kaunarsa marar canjawa) (source for this and above: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
  • Elhomwe: “love that does not finish” (echikondi yoohisintheya) (source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Nyamwezi: chelu, combining “love,” “faithfulness,” “loyalty,” and “kindness” (source: James Lundeen)
  • Newari: dayāmāyā (दयामाया), a compound word made from two Sanskrit-derived terms: dayā (दया) or “compassion, mercy, kindness” and māyā (माया) or “love, affection” (source: Newari Back Translation)

In Pijin tinghevi long or “think heavy about” is used. “The Pijin expression ‘think heavy about’ is very much within the domain of committed relationships. The relationship between father and child, husband and wife, God and His people. There is a very strong element of ‘loyalty’ in this expression.” (Source: Bob Carter)

In Latvian the term žēlastība is used both for “steadfast love” and grace.

In a number of languages, the terms for for “steadfast love” and mercy are used interchangeably.

mercy

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The Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, Ge’ez, and Latin terms that are typically translated as “mercy” (or “compassion” or “kindness”) in English are translated in various ways. Bratcher / Nida classify them in (1) those based on the quality of heart, or other psychological center, (2) those which introduce the concept of weeping or extreme sorrow, (3) those which involve willingness to look upon and recognize the condition of others, or (4) those which involve a variety of intense feelings.

While the English mercy originates from the Latin merces, originally “price paid,” Romance languages (Italian, Spanish, Corsican, Catalan, Friulian) and other Germanic languages (German, Swedish, Danish — Barmherzigkeit, barmhärtighet and barmhjertighed, respectively) tend to follow the Latin misericordia, lit. “misery-heart.”

Here are some other (back-) translations:

See also steadfast love and Seat of the Mind / Seat of Emotions.

complete verse (Job 37:13)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Job 37:13:

  • Kupsabiny: “God makes it rain in the land,
    (he/it) is able to punish people,
    or (he/it) brings blessings to people.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “God causes rain to come from the sky to wet the earth.
    God causes rain to come [either] to punish man or, on the other hand, to show compassion.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “God sends-down heavy rain to give water to the ground, or to discipline the people, or to show his love.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Have you ever told the dawn to spread out over the whole earth,
    with the result that wicked people run away from the light?” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Honorary "are" construct denoting God ("do/make")

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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 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, s-are-ru (される) or “do/make” is used.

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

Translation commentary on Job 37:13

Whether for correction, or for his land, or for love is translated in numerous ways. This verse does not consist of two parallel lines, but is a single statement in which the main clause comes at the end, as in Revised Standard Version. Correction and love are easily paired as far as meaning is concerned, but land does not seem to fit. Correction translates the Hebrew “whip,” a symbol of punishment. Love translates the Hebrew chesed, meaning “constant love, loyalty,” and Good News Translation renders it here as “favor.” Hebrew Old Testament Text Project makes three recommendations for translating this line. The first is the same as Revised Standard Version. The second is “whether for correction, if it concerns his land, whether for a favor, he will bring it about.” The third is “whether for a tribe, or for his land, or for a favor, he will make it happen.” Pope suggests changing for his land to get “grace,” but this makes “favor” redundant. Dhorme says that a verb is required in the first half of the verse. Accordingly he redivides the two words translated or for his land, and with a slight change in the Hebrew gets “God accomplished his will.” This provides a parallelism, “Whether it be for punishment that he accomplishes his will, whether it be for mercy that he brings it to pass.”

Good News Translation‘s translation depends on the understanding of the main clause in Revised Standard Version, he causes it to happen. Good News Translation follows an observation made by Dhorme that the Targum translations saw here three different kinds of rain, and so Good News Translation has taken this phrase to mean “God sends rain,” and the poorly fitting for his land is taken as the general statement of purpose to be followed by the two specific purposes. Good News Translation then translates “God sends rain to water the earth; he may send it to punish men, or to show them his favor.” Bible en français courant interprets he causes it to happen to mean the same as Dhorme’s suggested change, and translates “God carries out his will on earth, either to punish or to show his goodness,” and adds a note, “Probable meaning of an uncertain text.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates “He sends rain to moisten the earth. Sometimes he sends it to punish people and sometimes as a sign of his goodness.” It is not possible to make a reasonably clear translation of this verse without some textual or other adjustments, and Good News Translation, Bible en français courant, or Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch are suitable models to follow.

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 .