sandal (illustration)

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “sandal” in English is illustrated for use in Bible translations in East Africa by Pioneer Bible Translators like this:

Image owned by PBT and Jonathan McDaniel and licensed with the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.

See also untie sandals.

sandal / shoe

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “sandal” or “shoe” similar in English is translated in Noongar as djena-bwoka or “feet kangaroo skin” (source: Bardip Ruth-Ang 2020) and in Mairasi as “foot thing” (source: Enggavoter 2004).

Click or tap here to see a short video clip about sandals (source: Bible Lands 2012)

See also cloth.

inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Josh 9:13)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, the Jarai and the Adamawa Fulfulde translation both use the exclusive pronoun, excluding Joshua.

complete verse (Joshua 9:13)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joshua 9:13:

  • Kupsabiny: “Please look at these wineskins. They were new when they were filled with beer but they are destroyed. Our clothes and shoes are torn because of this very long journey.’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “When we filled these wine skins, they were new. But look! Now they have become cracked. Because the way was long our shoes and clothing have become old and worn out."” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “These leather/[lit. skin] containers (were) still new when we (excl.) filled them with wine, but look-(at) (them), (they are) already torn/ripped. Our (excl.) clothes and sandals have-became-worn-out/[lit. have-become-old] because of a very long journey.’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Look at our leather wine bags. They were new when we filled them with wine before we left, but now they are cracked and old. Our clothes and our sandals are worn out from traveling on the long road to come here.’” (Source: Translation for Translators)

behold / look / see (Japanese honorifics)

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Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God or a person or persons to be greatly honored, the honorific prefix go- (御 or ご) can be used, as in go-ran (ご覧), a combination of “behold / see” (ran) and the honorific prefix go-.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also Japanese benefactives (goran).

Translation commentary on Joshua 9:12 - 9:13

Look at our bread translates “Here is our bread” (Revised Standard Version), a Hebraism for calling attention to the bread.

The second sentence of verse 12 (When we left home … it was still warm) may be inverted and made shorter, since and started out to meet you was mentioned in the previous verse: “It was still warm when we left home with it.”

But look translates a Hebraism (Revised Standard Version “behold”) used as an attention getter. It is possible to translate accurately without using a word to express it in the text. In fact, for some languages But look! Now … may result in overemphasis, which would have negative effects.

Similarly, verse 13 may be translated, “The same is true of these wineskins. When we filled them they were new, but now they are torn….”

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 9:13

9:13a

These wineskins were new when we filled them: The term wineskins refers to the leather bags or pouches in which people carried their wine. Translate it the same way you did in 9:4.

but look: The word look calls attention to something important and emphasizes it. Use whatever means is appropriate in your language to show importance or emphasis.

they are cracked: The clause they are cracked means that the wineskins were so old that there were cracks in the leather.

9:13b

And these clothes: The word clothes refers to the clothes the men were wearing.

and sandals are worn out from our very long journey: The phrase worn out from our very long journey emphasizes that the Gibeonites have come a long way and that they do not live near the Israelites.

sandals: The sandals that people wore in those times were open, with a sole under the foot and straps around the top. In some languages it may be more natural to call them:

shoes

General Comment on 9:11–13

When the Gibeonites said this they were telling lies to the Israelites. They were trying to deceive them. Translate this in a way that sounds like people who are telling convincing lies.

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