inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Lev 25:20 )

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 translation uses the exclusive pronoun, excluding God. The Adamawa Fulfulde translation uses the inclusive pronoun, including everyone.

complete verse (Leviticus 25:20)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Leviticus 25:20:

  • Kupsabiny: “But if you say, ‘What shall we eat in the every seventh year when we are not allowed to sow or harvest wheat or pluck fruits.’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Without planting anything or harvesting anything, someone might ask what we will be eating in the 7th year.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “You (plur.) do- not -worry what you (plur.) will-eat in the seventh year in-which you (plur.) can- not -plant or can- (not) -harvest.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “But you may ask, ‘If we do not plant or harvest our crops during the seventh year, what will we have to eat?’” (Source: Translation for Translators)

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (Japanese)

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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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).

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

Translation commentary on Leviticus 25:20

And: since what follows is in contrast with the idea of living in the land without any worries, it is perhaps better to use a conjunction that marks this contrast, as in Good News Translation.

If you say: this is a hypothetical situation where someone might wonder how the people would be fed during the Rest Year. It is not so much a question from one person to another, but a kind of “thinking out loud.” New Jerusalem Bible has “In case you should ask….” In many languages it will be more natural to avoid a direct quotation and to begin the verse “But if you are wondering….”

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René and Ellington, John. A Handbook on Leviticus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1990. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .