complete verse (Job 39:16)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Job 39:16:

  • Kupsabiny: “(It/She) has no concern/care for (her/its) children,
    she treats them as if (they) were not hers
    and (she) does not think about the pain (she) had when (she) laid (them).” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Without being concerned that her own labor had been in vain,
    she deals harshly with her children as if they were not her children at all.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “She is cruel toward her chicks, as-if these/it were not hers. She does- not -worry if her efforts/hard-work/toils/labors will-become without value.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Ostriches act cruelly towards their chicks;
    they act as though the chicks belonged to some other ostrich.
    They are not concerned if their chicks die,
    and so the laying of the eggs was in vain.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Job 39:16

She deals cruelly with her young echoes the thought of Lamentations 4.3 cited in the discussion of verse 13. Deals cruelly translates a verb found in Isaiah 63.17, where it is used to describe “hardening of the heart.” “She is cruel,” “she acts harshly,” “she is hard-hearted,” all express the thought in English. Her young is literally “her children,” and this Hebrew word may refer to either eggs or chicks of a bird, or both, in Deuteronomy 22.6, 7. Revised Standard Version assumes the eggs have hatched, which is not stated in the Hebrew. New English Bible has “chicks.” Good News Translation “She acts as if…” does not focus on the harsh treatment but on her indifference. Bible en français courant says “She is a very hard (-hearted) mother to her little ones.” As if they were not hers describes further the indifference or cruel attitude of the mother ostrich. In translation this clause may often have to be stated as a separate sentence, very much as Good News Translation‘s first line, or, for example, “She acts as if they belonged to someone else.”

Labor alludes to laying the eggs. In vain means “wasted, useless.” Yet she has no fear is better expressed as “she has no concern” or “she is indifferent.” New English Bible translates the line “not caring if her labour is wasted,” and this is essentially the meaning of Good News Translation. So the ostrich’s young may hatch out or may not. The mother ostrich is not concerned about the effort of it all. Verse 16 may also be translated, for example, as “She is a hard-hearted mother to her little ones; she treats them as if they belonged to someone else, and it does not matter to her that laying her eggs was wasted effort.”

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 .