early morning

In Gbaya, the notion of early morning is emphasized with the ideophone sút as in the referenced verses.

Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. (Source: Philip Noss)

The Fall of Jericho

Artwork by Sister Marie Claire , SMMI (1937–2018) from Bengaluru, India.

For more information about images by Sister Marie Claire and ways to purchase them as lithographs, see here .

For other images of Sister Marie Claire paintings in TIPs, see here.

complete verse (Joshua 6:15)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joshua 6:15:

  • Kupsabiny: “And/But on the seventh day the people got up very early and went round that city seven times.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “On the seventh day they got up early in the morning and in the same way walked around the city seven times. It was only on that day that they walked around the city seven times.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “On the seventh day, they rose-up when yet dawn and went-around the city seven times, also in the same way. That was the only day that they went-around the city seven times.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “On the seventh day, they got up at dawn, and they all marched around the city the same way that they had done before, but this time they marched around the city seven times.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Joshua 6:15

It is specified that everyone rose at daybreak of the seventh day for the day’s activities (as in verse 12; see also 3.1); that day they marched around Jericho seven times. Although Good News Translation has once again considerably shortened the text from that of the Hebrew (see Revised Standard Version), it is possible to make it even shorter. The verse may be translated. “On the seventh day they got up at daybreak and marched around the city in the same way. Only on this day they marched around it seven times.”

In the same way translates the Hebrew “according to this manner (or, rule)”; they followed the pattern described in verses 8-9.

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 .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 6:15

Paragraph 6:15–21

6:15a

Then on the seventh day, they got up at dawn: This verse connects to the previous verse with a Hebrew phrase that the Berean Standard Bible indicates this with the word Then. The Hebrew phrase is literally “and it was.” It marks the next event in the storyline. If it is natural in your language to indicate the next event in the storyline here, then you should do so.

they: The pronoun they includes Joshua, the priests, and the army who walked around the town.

6:15b

and marched around the city seven times in the same manner: They walked around the town in the same order as they did on the previous days. On this day they walked around the town seven times.

6:15c

That was the only day they circled the city seven times: The information that they walked seven times around the town on the seventh day is repeated for emphasis. This indicates that this day was different than the preceding days.

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