angry

The Hebrew, Greek and Latin that is translated as “(was or became) angry” in English is translated in Kwere as “saw anger.” In Kwere, emotions are always paired with sensory verbs (seeing or smelling or hearing). (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

In Bariai it is “to have grumbling interiors” (source: Bariai Back Translation).

See also anger and feel (terror, pain, suffering, anxiety).

complete verse (Nehemiah 5:6)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Nehemiah 5:6:

  • Kupsabiny: “But/And when I heard those people’s complaint, I became very angry.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “When I heard their complaints I became very angry.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “I was very angry when I heard these things that they were complaining about.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Nehemiah 5:6

I was very angry: Nehemiah reacted to the suffering of the people at the hands of their own leaders. He became very angry (see Neh 4.7) because of what they told him.

When I heard their outcry and these words: Nehemiah repeats the idea of outcry from verse 1, though he uses a different word in Hebrew. Here the emphasis is on a cry of desperation (also Neh 9.9). In the pattern of near synonyms, he makes reference to the words of their cry. Good News Translation telescopes outcry and words into the single word “complaints.” Contemporary English Version retains two ideas but avoids the uncommon word outcry by saying “their complaints and their charges” (also Bible en français courant).

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Nehemiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .