messenger

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “messenger” in English is translated in Noongar as moort yana-waangki or “person walk-talk” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).

complete verse (Nehemiah 6:3)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Nehemiah 6:3:

  • Kupsabiny: “So I sent to those people a word saying, ‘I am doing some very hard work! I cannot stop it and come to meet with you.’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Therefore I sent messengers to tell them that, ‘What I am doing now is important, so I can- not -go there. I can- not -stop the work in-order just to go there.’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “therefore I sent (someone) to make-known to them this answer of mine, ‘What I am doing is valuable, therefore it is not possible that I go-down. I do not want the work to stop because of my going to meet you.’” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “So I sent messengers to them, to tell them, ‘I am doing an important work, and I cannot go down there. Why should I stop doing this work just to go down to talk with you?/I do not want to stop doing this work just to go down to talk with you.’” (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 Nehemiah 6:3

I sent messengers to them, saying: Nehemiah sent people back to Sanballat and Geshem with his answer that is recorded in the form of direct quotation.

I am doing a great work: Nehemiah did not directly turn down the invitation but said that he was too busy. His excuse was the “important work” (Good News Translation) of rebuilding the wall that his enemies wanted to stop by having him come to meet them. In the Hebrew text the object a great work is placed before the verb. This reinforces the fact that Nehemiah was claiming to be too busy. A possible translation model is “The work I am doing is so important that….”

I cannot come down: The Hebrew verb rendered come down may mean either “go down” or “come down.” In most languages it will be necessary to choose the one meaning or the other, as is the case in English. The choice of verb will indicate the speaker’s perspective, whether the speaker is locating himself down with the people to whom Nehemiah is sending his reply, or is locating himself with Nehemiah. Revised Standard Version has chosen the former, while Good News Translation has chosen the latter. The notion of coming or going down refers to descending to a lower geographical location or going away from Jerusalem, not to climbing down off the wall. Translators should use whichever verb is more natural in their language.

Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?: This is a rhetorical question to which Nehemiah does not expect an answer (so Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible). It has been translated in the form of a statement by Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version, which has “I can’t afford to slow down the work just to visit with you.”

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 .