2nd person pronoun with low register (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 second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used anata (あなた) is typically used when the speaker is humbly addressing another person.

In these verses, however, omae (おまえ) is used, a cruder second person pronoun, that Jesus for instance chooses when chiding his disciples. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also first person pronoun with low register and third person pronoun with low register.

sea / lake

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)

Translation commentary on Matthew 23:15

Jesus condemns the scribes and Pharisees exactly as in verse 13: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Translators should use the same expression they did there.

You traverse sea and land gives an indication of the intense missionary activity conducted by the Jews. Jesus does not criticize them for their missionary enthusiasm, but rather because conversion leaves their converts worse off than they were before.

Translators should find some expression in their language to express naturally traverse sea and land; for example, “travel by land and by sea,” “travel great distances,” “travel everywhere,” or “travel over ocean and land.”

Proselyte (Good News Translation “convert”) is the technical term used of a non-Jew who had fully embraced Judaism, even to the point of accepting circumcision. Often Christians know the term “convert” (Good News Translation) or proselyte primarily in the context of someone becoming Christian. Of course here the Pharisees were trying to have people convert to Judaism, so it may be necessary to make that clear. Make a single proselyte may then be “persuade one person to accept your religion” or “persuade one person to worship God in your way.” When he becomes a proselyte can then be “when he believes your way” or “when he accepts your religion.” Or translators may take the approach of Good News Translation: “when you succeed.”

Twice as much a child of hell as yourselves: the phrase a child of (literally “a son of”) translates a Hebrew idiom which means “one characterized by,” “one who belongs to,” or “one deserving of.” Therefore Good News Translation translates “twice as deserving of going to hell”; Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, 1st edition has “so that he doubly deserves punishment in hell.” Both New English Bible and New Jerusalem Bible prefer “twice as fit for hell.” The twice as much means twice as much as the Pharisees and teachers of the Law are. “He deserves punishment in hell twice as much as you yourselves” will express this. The background of this remark is perhaps the observation that converts tend to become more zealous (or more fanatical) than those who converted them. As RSV’s footnote indicates, hell is literally “Gehenna” (see comment at 5.22).

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .