desert / wilderness

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The Greek, Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Latin that is translated as “desert” or “wilderness” in English is translated in a number of ways:

  • Mairasi: “a place where noisiness is cut off (or: stops)” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Muna: pandaso bhalano pr “big barren-field” (source: René van den Berg)
  • Wantoat: “cold windy place where no one lives” (source: John Beekman in Notes on Translation, March 1965, p. 2-20)
  • Balinese: “barren field” (source: J.L. Swellengrebel in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 75ff. )
  • Wantoat: “uninhabited place” (source: Holzhausen 1991, p. 38)
  • Umiray Dumaget Agta: “where no people dwell” (source: Larson 1998, p. 98)
  • Shipibo-Conibo: “where no house is” (source: James Lauriault in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 32ff. )
  • Amri Karbi: “waterless region/place” (source: Philippova 2021, p. 368)
  • Ocotlán Zapotec: “large empty place” (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • Pa’o Karen: “jungle” (denoting a place without any towns, villages and tilled fields) (source: Gordon Luce in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 153f. )
  • Low German translation by Johannes Jessen, publ. 1933, republ. 2006: “steppe”
  • Yakan: “the lonely place” (source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “a land where no people lived” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “the place with no inhabitants” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Cherokee: inage or “far away downstream” (source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 16)
  • Matumbi uses various term: lubele (desert, sandy place without water) — used in John 11:54, lupu’ngu’ti (a place where no people live, can be a scrub land, a forest, or a savanna) — used in Mark 1:3 et al.), and mwitu (a forest, a place where wild animals live) — used in Mark 1:13 et al.) (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
  • Chichewa Contemporary translation (2002/2016): chipululu: a place uninhabited by people with thick forest and bush (source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Adioukrou: loj or “savannah” — “land that is not village, nor forest, nor field (source: Hill 2006)
  • Morelos Nahuatl: “where nobody lives”

    • Isthmus Mixe: “dry country” (source for this and one above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)

Note that in Luke 15:4, usually a term is used that denotes pastoral land, such as “eating/grazing-place,” in Tagbanwa (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation).

See also wilderness and desolate wilderness.

Judah, Judea

The name that is transliterated as “Judah” or “Judea” in English (referring to the son of Jacob, the tribe, and the territory) means “thanksgiving” or “praise.”

It is translated in Spanish Sign Language as “lion” (referring to Genesis 49:9 and Revelation 5:5). This sign for lion is reserved for regions and kingdoms. (Source: John Elwode in The Bible Translator 2008, p. 78ff. and Steve Parkhurst)


“Judah” and “Judea” in Spanish Sign Language, source: Sociedad Bíblica de España

For more information on translations of proper names with sign language see Sign Language Bible Translations Have Something to Say to Hearing Christians .

See also Judah, Judah (son of Jacob) , and Tribe of Judah .

complete verse (Joel 3:19)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joel 3:19:

  • Kupsabiny: “Egypt will become a deserted place,
    Edom will become a desert
    because they fought against the people of Judah
    and killed people who did not have sin/mistake.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “But he country of Egypt will be in desolation
    and Edom will be turned into a desert where no plant will grow,
    because of the atrocities they have done to the people living in Judah,
    because they shed innocent blood.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “‘Egipto will-become a desolate place and Edom will-become a desert because they treated- the people of Juda -with-great-harshness/cruelty; they have-killed the innocent ones.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “As for Egipto and Edom, they will become places with no inhabitants and with no usefulness because of their having killed those-from-Juda who had no sin.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “The armies of Egypt and Edom attacked the people of Judah
    and killed many people who had not done anything that was wrong.
    So now those countries will become deserts,” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Joel 3:19

Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation both place a stanza break before this verse. The last three verses of the book show the contrast between the fate of Judah and that of its enemies.

Egypt shall become a desolation and Edom a desolate wilderness: The Egyptians had attacked the land of Judah, as described in 1 Kgs 14.25-26; 2 Kgs 23.29; and Obadiah’s prophecy tells of an attack by the Edomites. The Egyptians and the Edomites were Judah’s historic enemies. The country of Egypt was southwest of Judah, and the country of Edom was southeast of the Dead Sea.

The Hebrew expressions for desolation and desolate wilderness refer to places where no one lives and nothing grows. For desolate wilderness, see the comments on 2.3. The prophetic threat is that no one will live in Egypt and Edom where now there are cities and people. For these two lines Good News Translation has “Egypt will become a desert, and Edom a ruined waste,” and Bible en français courant says “Egypt shall be depopulated, the country of Edom reduced to a desert.” Contemporary English Version combines these two lines into one since desolation and desolate wilderness are close in meaning: “Now their countries will become a barren desert.” Other languages may want to do this also.

For the violence done to the people of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land is literally “because of the violence to the people of Judah, whose innocent blood they shed in their land.” These two lines give the reason why Egypt and Edom will become desolate. It is because they treated Judah violently by killing its innocent people. The first logical connector for is appropriate here at the beginning of these lines, but the second logical connector because does not express the Hebrew correctly. The Hebrew word rendered because introduces a relative clause, so the last line is better rendered “whose innocent blood they shed in their country” (New Jerusalem Bible). Violence refers to harming people physically and wrongly, when they have not deserved it. To shed innocent blood is to murder someone who does not deserve to be killed. Good News Translation expresses these lines as “because they attacked the land of Judah and killed its innocent people.” “The land of Judah” is literally their land, but Good News Translation names the country explicitly for clarity. However, the pronoun their could refer to the Egyptians and Edomites, implying that the people of Judah were killed in Egypt and Edom. Living Bible expresses this sense by rendering in their land as “in those nations” (similarly Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch [1982]).

Quoted with permission from de Blois, Kees & Dorn, Louis. A Handbook on Joel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joel 3:19

3:19a Egypt will become desolate,

But Egypt will be barren,
-or-

⌊The country/land of⌋ Egypt will become a desert,

3:19b and Edom a desert wasteland,

and Edom will be a terrible/horrifying wasteland,
-or-
and ⌊the country/land of⌋ Edom will become an awful/appalling wilderness.

3:19c because of the violence done to the people of Judah,

because they were brutal/cruel to the people of Judah,
-or-
For its ⌊soldiers/army⌋ attacked the land of Judah,

3:19d in whose land they shed innocent blood.

⌊and in their/Judah⌋ land they killed innocent people.
-or-
killing its people, although they had done no wrong.

3:19c–d (combined)

because they ⌊entered/attacked⌋ the land of Judah and killed people there who were guilty of no crime/wrong.

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Commentaire sur la traduction de Joël 3.19

La différence entre le contenu des versets Joël 4.18 et Joël 4.19 est frappante. Alors que Joël 4.18 décrit les signes de bénédictions promises à Juda, Joël 4.19 accentue les souffrances prévues pour l’Égypte et Edom. Pour ces ennemis historiques de leur voisin, Juda, c’est la « désolation », un terme qui décrit le sort réservé à ces deux endroits : là où il n’y a aucune vie, là où rien ne pousse.

l’Égypte deviendra une terre dévastée, Edom un désert dévasté : Egypte et Edom sont tous les deux considérés comme les ennemis d’Israël. La punition de ces deux endroits est terrible.

l’Égypte est l’ennemi traditionnel d’Israël. C’est là que les Israélites ont passé quatre cents ans en esclavage. Edom est aussi un ennemi d’Israël, mais la relation est encore plus douloureuse, car Edom est un autre nom pour Esaü, le frère de Jacob. Dieu a choisi Jacob et l’a béni, alors qu’Esaü est rejeté (Gen 25–26). Depuis ce jour, il y a inimitié entre les descendants des deux frères.

Dans ce verset, les deux vers sont parallèles dans la forme et dans le sens, mais il y a une progression d’un vers à l’autre, car la punition d’Edom semble plus forte que celle de l’Égypte : « Égypte deviendra une désolation, et Edom un désert de désolation ». La Bible en français courant exprime la progression en disant « L’Égypte sera dépeuplée, le pays d’Édom réduit en désert ». Dans le deuxième vers, il y a une ellipse du verbe deviendra qui sera rendu explicite dans plusieurs langues.

une terre dévastée : il s’agit d’un seul mot. Le mot hébreu, par ses sons (שְׁמָמָה šemâmâh), évoque la ruine, la destruction, la désolation. Dans certaines langues, un idéophone sera approprié dans ce contexte.

un désert dévasté : pour désert, voir Joël 1.7. Si possible le même mot ou idéophone peut paraître ici, comme en hébreu.

A cause de la violence faite aux fils de Juda : ils ont répandu du sang innocent dans leur pays. La raison de leur punition est expliquée ici. Ces deux ennemis ont fait la guerre contre les fils de Juda et versé le sang des innocents.

A cause de la violence faite aux fils de Juda rend une proposition plus courte en hébreu mais dans la majorité des langues, il va falloir rendre le texte plus explicite. La Parole de Vie rend bien le sens : « ils ont fait violence aux habitants de Juda ».

ils ont répandu du sang innocent dans leur pays veut dire qu’ils ont versé le sang des gens innocents. En d’autres mots, ils ont massacré la population civile de Juda, ce qui leur vaut cette punition extrême. Le prophète utilise des expressions très poétiques et les traducteurs devraient essayer d’imiter ce style si possible.

dans leur pays se réfère au territoire de Juda.

Source: Aroga Bessong, Dieudonné P.; Somé, Joachim & Zogbo, Lynell. Joël – Manuel de traduction – Commentaire linguistique et exégétique de la Bible. Alliance biblique universelle, 2010.