The Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, and Latin that is translated as “threshing floor” in English is translated in Kim with twal or “termite mound” which are used to build threshing floors. (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
See also thresh.
translations with a Hebraic voice (Judges 6:36-40)
Some translations specifically reproduce the voice of the Hebrew text of the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible.
English:
Gid’on said to God:
If you wish to deliver Israel by my hand, as you have spoken,
here: I am setting a clipping of wool on the threshing-floor;
if dew is on the clipping alone, but on all the ground [it is] dry, then I will know
that you will deliver Israel by my hand, as you have spoken.
And it was so.
He started-early on the morrow;
he wrung out the clipping
and drained the dew from the clipping —
a bowl full of water.
Then Gid’on said to God:
Do not let your anger flare up against me,
but let me speak just one [more] time:
pray let me make a test only one [more] time with the clipping;
pray let there be dryness on the clipping alone,
but on all the ground let there be dew.
And God did so on that night:
here was dryness on the clipping alone,
but on all the ground there was dew.
Source: Everett Fox 2014
German:
Gidon sprach zu Gott:
Willst du wirklich Befreier für Jissrael werden durch meine Hand, wie du geredet hast:
da breite ich die Wollschur in der Tenne —
wird Tau einzig auf der Schur sein und auf der Erde allumher Trockenheit,
dann werde ich wissen, daß du durch meine Hand Jissrael befreist, wie du geredet hast..
Es geschah, er war anderntags früh auf und rang die Schur aus:
er preßte Tau aus der Schur, eine Schale voll Wassers.
Gidon sprach zu Gott:
Entflamme doch nimmer deinen Zorn wider mich, daß ich nur diesmal noch rede:
ich möchts bloß diesmal noch mit der Schur erproben,
es sei doch Trockenheit einzig an der Schur, und auf der Erde allumher sei Tau!
Gott tat so in jener Nacht,
einzig an der Schur war Trockenheit, und auf der Erde allumher war Tau.
Source: Buber / Rosenzweig 1976
French:
Guid‘ôn dit à l’Elohîms:
« Si tu vas sauver Israël par ma main, comme tu l’as parlé,
eh bien, j’expose moi-même la toison de laine dans l’aire:
si la rosée se trouve sur la toison seule, toute la terre étant sèche,
je saurai que tu sauveras par ma main Israël, comme tu l’as parlé. »
Et c’est ainsi. Il se lève le lendemain de grand matin.
Il presse la toison et exprime la rosée de la toison, un plein bol d’eau.
Guid‘ôn dit à l’Elohîms: « Que ta narine ne brûle pas contre moi !
Je parlerai une seule fois, j’éprouverai donc cette seule fois
avec la toison que le sec soit sur la toison seule,
et que sur toute la terre il y ait de la rosée. »
Elohîms fait ainsi cette nuit-là.
Le sec est sur la toison seule.
Sur toute la terre, c’était la rosée.
Source: Chouraqui 1985
For other verses or sections translated with a Hebraic voice, see here.
save (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.
The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “save” in English is translated in the Shinkaiyaku Bible as o-sukui (お救い), combining “save” (sukui) with the respectful prefix o-. In these cases, kudasaru (くださる) is also attached, a respectful form of a benefactive, emphasizing the respectful notion. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
See also save.
addressing God
Translators of different languages have found different ways with what kind of formality God is addressed. The first example is from a language where God is always addressed distinctly formal whereas the second is one where the opposite choice was made.
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Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.
As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator 2002, p. 210ff. ), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.
In these verses, in which humans address God, the informal, familiar pronoun is used that communicates closeness.
Voinov notes that “in the Tuvan Bible, God is only addressed with the informal pronoun. No exceptions. An interesting thing about this is that I’ve heard new Tuvan believers praying with the formal form to God until they are corrected by other Christians who tell them that God is close to us so we should address him with the informal pronoun. As a result, the informal pronoun is the only one that is used in praying to God among the Tuvan church.”
In Gbaya, “a superior, whether father, uncle, or older brother, mother, aunt, or older sister, president, governor, or chief, is never addressed in the singular unless the speaker intends a deliberate insult. When addressing the superior face to face, the second person plural pronoun ɛ́nɛ́ or ‘you (pl.)’ is used, similar to the French usage of vous.
Accordingly, the translators of the current version of the Gbaya Bible chose to use the plural ɛ́nɛ́ to address God. There are a few exceptions. In Psalms 86:8, 97:9, and 138:1, God is addressed alongside other “gods,” and here the third person pronoun o is used to avoid confusion about who is being addressed. In several New Testament passages (Matthew 21:23, 26:68, 27:40, Mark 11:28, Luke 20:2, 23:37, as well as in Jesus’ interaction with Pilate and Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman at the well) the less courteous form for Jesus is used to indicate ignorance of his position or mocking (source Philip Noss).
In Dutch and Western Frisian translations, however, God is always addressed with the formal pronoun.
Japanese benefactives (goran)
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a benefactive construction as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. Here, goran (ご覧) or “see/behold/look” (itself a combination of “behold/see” [ran] and the honorific prefix go- — see behold / look / see (Japanese honorifics)) is used in combination with kudasaru (くださる), a respectful form of the benefactive kureru (くれる). A benefactive reflects the good will of the giver or the gratitude of a recipient of the favor. To convey this connotation, English translation needs to employ a phrase such as “for me (my sake)” or “for you (your sake).”
(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Honorary "are" construct denoting God (“say”)
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme are (され) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, iw-are-ru (言われる) or “say” is used.
(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
Translation commentary on Judges 6:37
In this verse Gideon seems to be negotiating with the LORD. He wants to carry out an experiment to find out if what the LORD says will really happen. Theologians are divided as to how to interpret Gideon’s attitude and act here. Is he showing his faith or doubting the LORD’s word? It is better if translators can render this episode on a neutral note, so readers and listeners can draw their own conclusions. Gideon first states what he will do and then the conditions under which he will decide whether to believe the LORD. He will carry out his experiment twice, to make sure he is drawing the right conclusion.
Behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor: The word behold (hinneh in Hebrew) calls God’s attention to the request Gideon has been building up to throughout the previous verse. This word may be rendered “Look” or by longer expressions, such as “OK, this is what I am asking,” “This is what I want,” or “LORD, here it is.” Translators should look for natural ways in their language to introduce this special request. I renders an emphatic pronoun in Hebrew. The Hebrew participle translated am laying is an unusual word, here meaning “put” or “place.” The Hebrew word for behold often occurs with participles, and we might say “Look, LORD, I am setting down here…” or “Look, I am laying….”
Fleece refers to the fur of an animal, while the longer expression a fleece of wool makes it clear that this is the fur of a sheep. In some parts of the world, sheep have lots of wool, and when the wool is sheared or shaved away from the skin, it remains largely in one piece since the fibers are intertwined. This whole piece is called a fleece. Because of the oils in the fibers of the wool, such a fleece would repel water. In languages not familiar with sheep and not having a word for wool, translators may speak of “this animal fur/hair.” If wool is known, we could say simply “this wool.” In terms of story development, the fleece is considered a “prop,” that is, a non-living object that plays an important role in the story. In many languages props occur in full noun form and are only rarely referred to by pronouns. Since the word fleece is repeated often in this episode, translators should check to see that references to it are natural and in conformity with storytelling practices in their language.
The threshing floor was generally a flat open place exposed to the wind. Here the wheat or other grain was beaten, then tossed into the air to allow the wind to blow away the chaff. Good News Translation renders the threshing floor as “the ground where we thresh the wheat.” However, translators must be careful not to give the impression that Gideon is giving information to God about what a threshing floor is. A natural way of speaking of this place might be “down here where we beat the grain.” Contemporary English Version has “the stone floor of that threshing-place over there.”
If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground: This first test involves two conditions. They are what linguists call true conditions or “real world conditions.” They do not express doubt as in some conditional clauses (verse 6.36). Nevertheless, Gideon is asking for a supernatural sign to prove that God will deliver Israel through him.
If there is dew on the fleece alone is Gideon’s first condition. Dew is the condensation caused by a change in temperature during the night. In the dry and desert-like land in parts of Israel, dew is what maintains the life of all vegetation. This moisture forms during the night, covering plants and whole surfaces. It remains only for a short time during the early hours of the morning before the sun dries it up. All languages should have a way to express this phenomenon. With this request Gideon is asking for God to make the dew appear only in one spot, on the fleece alone. In other words, Gideon is asking God to go against the law of nature by which, in any given area, dew would be spread everywhere uniformly. We might say “if only the fleece is wet with dew” or “if there is only moisture on the fleece.” Good News Translation adds the phrase “in the morning,” which is not in Hebrew, and does not need to appear, unless it aids in comprehension.
And it is dry on all the ground is Gideon’s second condition. To prove that God is really speaking, Gideon wants not only the fleece to be wet with dew, he also asks that the ground around the fleece stay dry. In many languages the conditional marker if will need to be repeated here: “and if it is dry….” This request contrasts with the previous one, so the Hebrew waw conjunction rendered and may be better translated “but” (Contemporary English Version, New Living Translation). It is dry means the dew has not touched the ground. Some languages will prefer to say “is not wet.” All the ground refers to the parts of the threshing floor that surround the fleece. The word all emphasizes how badly Gideon wants absolute proof. All around the fleece must be dry. Ground renders the key Hebrew term ʾerets that often refers to the Promised Land throughout the Old Testament. Contemporary English Version expresses these two requests as wishes, saying “tomorrow morning let there be dew on the wool, but let the stone floor be dry,” which in some languages will be a good model to follow.
Then I shall know that thou wilt deliver Israel by my hand expresses the consequence of the conditions. If the conditions are fulfilled, then the result is predictable: Gideon will know that God will really use him to save the Israelites. The connector then, which renders the Hebrew waw conjunction, is part of the condition-consequence formula in English, if … then. Translators should use the forms usually accompanying this kind of statement in their language. I shall know means Gideon will then be certain. The Hebrew verb rendered know (yadaʿ) is used in a variety of ways in the Old Testament: God “knows” his people, and as part of his covenant, his people “know” him (see comments on verse 2.10). So the verb know here may imply that Gideon has had some encounter with God. It would be good to preserve this key term and concept here, but if this is not possible, I shall know may be rendered “I will really believe” or “I will be certain.” For thou wilt deliver Israel by my hand, see verse 6.36.
As thou hast said: See the comments on verse 6.36.
Translation models for this verse are:
• Look, I am setting this sheep’s fleece on the ground here where we beat the grain. If [in the morning] only the fleece is wet and if all the ground around it is dry, then I will know for sure that you will use me to save Israel, as you promised.”
• Now, I am going to put this animal hide on the ground where we separate the chaff from the grain. Tomorrow morning, if only the hide is wet and all around it is dry, then I will know you really want to use me to deliver the people of Israel, just like you said.”
Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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