16the waters flowing from above stood still, rising up in a single heap far off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, while those flowing toward the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea, were wholly cut off. Then the people crossed over opposite Jericho.
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joshua 3:16:
Kupsabiny: “the water piled up. The water stood/stopped on the upper side. The water stopped to become a wall where it was called Adam, a village which was near Zarethan. But/and the water which was on the lower side, that (water) flowed away so that the bottom dried. It flowed into the Lake of Arabah which is the Lake of Salt. Then, the people crossed at Jericho going to the other side.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “The water stopped flowing, From there quite a distance upriver in a town called Adam near Zarethan because the water was gathering there, there was no more water flowing into the dead sea. So the people crossed over from opposite Jericho.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “immediately the water stopped flowing. The water stopped in one place which was-called Adam — a town near Zaretan. There-was-no water that flowed towards the Dead Sea, so the people were-able-to-cross-over-(to) a place near Jerico.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “the water stopped flowing. The water piled up far upstream, at a town named Adam, near Zarethan. The water stopped flowing down to the Dead Sea. So the people were able to cross the river near Jericho.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
The various Greek, Aramaic, Ge’ez, and Latin and Hebrew terms that are translated as “sea,” “ocean,” or “lake” in English are all translated in Chichewa with one term: nyanja. Malawi, where Chichewa is spoken, has a lot of lakes but does not share a border with the ocean. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
The Hebrew text defines Adam as a “city,” and Good News Translation translates this part of the verse at Adam, the city beside Zarethan. In restructuring, however, it may be simpler not to follow the appositional form of Good News Translation; for example, “at the city of Adam, which is beside Zarethan” (see Revised Standard Version). In translation it may also be necessary to mark Zarethan as a city. In languages which differentiate sharply between “city,” “town,” and “village,” it is certainly inaccurate to speak of either of these places as a “city.” Probably “town” is closer to the meaning, though a generic expression such as “place” may even be better.
In verse 14 the people left the camp (Hebrew “their tents”), following behind the priests. The miracle occurred just as the priests stepped into the river: the water stopped flowing at Adam, which was far upstream.In verse 16 one form of the Masoretic text and some Hebrew manuscripts have “at Adam”; another form of the Masoretic text and the versions have “from Adam.” In terms of translation the difference in meaning is not significant; what is meant is that no water flowed downstream from Adam, since the flow was stopped there. Adam is about 30 kilometers north of Jericho; Zarethan is usually located about 20 kilometers farther north, but as Soggin points out, this makes it difficult to explain the events. In any case, The Hebrew text says that Adam was “beside, close to, near” Zarethan. It has been suggested by W. F. Albright (see reference in Bright) that the text is meant to say that the flow was blocked at Adam and the water backed up as far upstream as Zarethan.
The waters “stopped (stood) … (and) rose up in one heap” (verse 16); the same expression is used in verse 13.Commentators point out that there are substantiated reports of one occasion (in December 1267) when a landslide of the walls of the Jordan (which are of soft limestone) blocked the flow of the river for 16 hours; on another occasion (July 11, 1927) an earthquake interrupted the flow of the water for 21 1/2 hours. Here also one may render “stood up (or, piled up) like waters behind a dam.”
The flow … was completely cut off may be stated as an active clause: “No more water flowed downstream to the Dead Sea” or “The river completely stopped flowing downstream to the Dead Sea.” Since the Lord caused this to happen, it may be translated, “The LORD cut off the flow….”
The Dead Sea is in Hebrew called “the sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea” (Revised Standard Version). “Arabah” designates the extensive geological depression, a rift, in which the Jordan River and the Dead Sea are located, and which extends farther south. It is called “Salt Sea” because of the heavy concentration of minerals left by the evaporating water; no water flows out of the Dead Sea.
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 .
the flowing water: The phrase the flowing water was first used in verse 3:13d. You should translate it the same way in both places.
Here is another way to translate this phrase:
the water that was flowing down toward them
stood still: The Hebrew verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as stood still can also be translated “stopped moving.” It indicates that the river water stopped flowing down from above. This corresponds to the event described in verse 3:13c.
Here is another way to translate this verb:
stopped flowing
It backed up: The clause It backed up is similar in meaning to the clause “will stand up in a heap” in verse 3:13d. In this verse the narrator used a different verb, but you may be able to use the same verb in both verses.
Here is another way to translate this phrase:
It rose up like a dam (God’s Word) -or-
it piled up
3:16b
far upstream: Here is another way to translate this phrase:
a long distance away -or-
far off (Revised Standard Version)
Adam: The town of Adam was about 18 miles north of Jericho.
a city in the area of Zarethan: The location of the town of Zarethan is uncertain.
city: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as city refers to a permanent settlement of houses with a wall around it for protection. These cities were not large places. The largest of the cities mentioned in Joshua may have had a population of two or three thousand people. Most of them were much smaller.
The Hebrew language does not distinguish between “city” and “town.” It does distinguish between a city/town and a village. Because they were small cities, some English versions translate the Hebrew word as “town” rather than city. In these Notes we follow those versions and use the word “town.”
Consider the word in your language that is appropriate for a small permanent settlement with a wall around it.
Here is another way to translate this part of the verse:
at the town of Adam, which was near the town of Zarethan
3:16c
while the water flowing: The phrase while the water flowing refers to the water that continued to flow downstream from where the people crossed.
toward the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea): The names Sea of the Arabah and Salt Sea both refer to the same lake. This is the lake that the Jordan River flows into. This lake is very salty and no fish can live in it. In Hebrew it is usually called the Salt Sea. In English it is called the Dead Sea.
The name Sea of the Arabah refers to its location. The Hebrew term Arabah refers to the valley of the Jordan River.
In English this lake is called the Dead Sea. If your language has a name other than Salt Sea there are two ways you can translate it.
• Translate it literally as Salt Sea. For example:
Salt Sea (English Standard Version)
• Translate it with its common name in your language. For example:
Dead Sea (New Living Translation (2004))
If you translate it literally you may want to have a footnote. For example:
FOOTNOTE: This refers to the lake that in our language we call the Dead Sea
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
the Dead Sea (the sea of the Jordan River valley) -or-
the Salt Sea (the sea near the Arabah)
was completely cut off: The Hebrew verb phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as completely cut off is more literally “they were complete, they were cut off.” The water downstream from the Israelites was separated from the heap of water that was upstream. No more water flowed downstream to the Dead Sea.
Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:
no more water flowed down to the Salt Sea (also called the sea of the Arabah) -or-
the water flowing down to the Dead Sea completely stopped
3:16d
So the people crossed over: The clause the people crossed over indicates that the Israelites crossed the river.
opposite Jericho:Jericho was a town on the west side of the Jordan River. Here is another way to translate this phrase:
near the town of Jericho
Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:
The people crossed the river opposite Jericho -or-
⌊When the water was all gone⌋ , the Israelites crossed the Jordan River near Jericho
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