15And Joshua said to them, “If you are a numerous people, go up to the forest and clear ground there for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you.”
The Hebrew and Greek that is transliterated as “Ephraim” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with the sign for “palm tree” referring to the palm of Deborah in the land of Ephraim (see Judges 4:5. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
The Hebrew, Latin, and Greek that is transliterated as “Joshua” is translated in Swiss-German Sign Language with a sign that depicts a trumpet of rams’ horn, referring to Joshua 6:4 and following.
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joshua 17:15:
Kupsabiny: “Joshua replied to those people, ‘If you are so many, go up into the forest and clear it until there will be a place where you can stay in the country of the Perizzites and that of the Rephaites since the highland of Ephraim is not enough for you.’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “Joshua replied, "If your numbers are so many and if the hill country of Ephraim is [too] small for you, go the forests in the land of the Perizzites and Rephaites and cut trees for yourselves."” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “Josue replied, ‘If you (plur.) (are) so numerous/many and the mountains of Efraim (are) too/[limiting particle] small for you (plur.), [you (plur.)] go to the forest of the Periznon and Refaimnon. There [you (plur.)] clear-out a place for yourselves/[lit. your (plur.) own self].’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “Joshua replied to them, ‘I agree that you do not have enough land in the hilly area of the tribe of Ephraim. So, since you have a lot of people, I will allot more land to you, in the hilly region. But you will have to cut down the trees in the forest and make a place for yourselves in the land where the Periz and Repha people-groups live.’” (Source: Translation for Translators)
It is not clear where the forests in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim are to be located. The Rephaim are the race of giants (see 12.4), usually located east of the Jordan, but also west of the river (see 15.8 Rephaim Valley near Jerusalem).
Since the geographical references are unknown, it will be impossible to indicate in translation the directions in which Joshua told the people to move. It is possible, however, to divide his answer into more than one sentence:
• “It may be true that the hill country of Ephraim is too small for the large number of people in your tribes. Then go into the forests which belong to the Perizzites and the Rephaim, and clear ground for yourselves there.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
Joshua answered them: Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:
Then Joshua said to them -or-
Joshua answered
17:15b
If you have so many people that the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, go to the forest: Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:
If you (plur.) have so many people, go up into the forest -or-
You have many people, so go up into the wooded country
that the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you: Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:
because ⌊you think that⌋ the hill country of Ephraim is not wide enough for you -or-
because the mountain country of Ephraim is too small for all of you to live in
17:15c
and clear for yourself an area in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim: The Hebrew that the Berean Standard Bible translates as clear refers specifically to the act of cutting down trees and removing shrubs in a forest to create a place to live.
the Perizzites: The term Perizzites refers to the Periz people. The Periz people had lived in the land of Canaan for a long time. The Perizzites were mentioned in Joshua 3:10 and 12:8. It is recommended that you translate the name of these people in the same way here.
the Rephaim: The term Rephaim refers to the Repha people. The Repha people had lived in the land of Canaan for a long time. The Rephaim were mentioned in Joshua 12:4 and 13:12. It is recommended that you translate the name of these people in the same way here.
Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:
and clear land for yourselves there, in the country of the Periz people and the Repha people -or-
Cut down the trees to make room for yourselves where the Periz people and the Repha people live
General Comment on verse 17:15
In some languages it may be more natural to reorder the parts of this verse. For example:
15a Joshua answered them, 15b-c “Go up to the forests, take the land that belongs to the Periz people and the Repha people, and make a place to live there 15b if you have so many people that the mountain country of Ephraim is not wide enough for you.
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