As in 1.5-16, Good News Translation‘s list layout is recommended here unless the target language has a natural idiomatic way to deal with lists such as this one. The list layout in Bible en français courant does not have headings, but every line in Bible en français courant‘s list ends with “from the tribe of…” to serve as a generic marker of the specific names that precede.

So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD: Moses sent a spy from each tribe, just as the LORD commanded him to do. For the wilderness of Paran, see 10.12. According to the command of the LORD is literally “upon the mouth of the LORD” (see 3.16 for this figurative expression). Good News Translation renders this phrase simply as “obeyed.” But it is also possible to render it as a separate sentence without reducing it to one verb by saying “Moses did as the LORD commanded him” (New Living Translation) or “Moses obeyed the command of the LORD.” In some languages it will be more natural to translate literally here, saying “at the mouth of the LORD” or “upon the word of the LORD.”

All of them men who were heads of the people of Israel: Good News Translation renders heads as “leaders.” The men listed here were not all the leaders of the Israelites. They are not the same men as those listed in 1.5-16 and in chapter 7, who were presumably older and not so well suited for an exploratory mission into strange territory. It is unclear why Good News Translation has omitted of the people of Israel, except perhaps to avoid repetition.

And these were their names … These were the names of the men …: In some languages the demonstrative pronouns these in verse 4 and These in verse 16 may have to be translated differently. Verse 4 introduces the list, while verse 16 refers back to it. But the reference to names marks the beginning and the end of the list and therefore should be kept if possible. The Hebrew has no verbs in these clauses, so a rendering such as “These are their names … These are the names of the men…” (New International Version) is also possible.

From the tribe of Reuben, Shammu-a the son of Zaccur: Shammu-a was chosen from the tribe of Reuben (see 1.5). The hyphen is not needed in this name, so Good News Translation says “Shammua.”

From the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori: Shaphat was chosen from the tribe of Simeon (see 1.6).

From the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh: Caleb was chosen from the tribe of Judah (see 1.7). Caleb gave a different report than the other spies (see verse 30).

From the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph: Igal was chosen from the tribe of Issachar (see 1.8).

From the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun: Hoshea was chosen from the tribe of Ephraim (see 1.10). Moses called him Joshua (see the comments below). For his father Nun, see 11.28.

From the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu: Palti was chosen from the tribe of Benjamin (see 1.11).

From the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi: Gaddiel was chosen from the tribe of Zebulun (see 1.9).

From the tribe of Joseph (that is from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi: Gaddi was chosen from the tribe of Manasseh (see 1.10). It is somewhat puzzling in verse 11 that only the tribe of Manasseh is mentioned in direct connection with Manasseh’s father Joseph. Verse 8 refers to Ephraim, Manasseh’s brother, but does not mention Joseph. In its list Good News Translation mentions only “Manasseh,” omitting the phrase the tribe of Joseph, but there is no evidence for this omission in ancient biblical manuscripts. De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling renders from the tribe of Joseph (that is from the tribe of Manasseh) as “from the descendants of Joseph of the tribe of Manasseh,” and Bible en français courant says “from the tribe of Manasseh, son of Joseph.”

From the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli: Ammiel was chosen from the tribe of Dan (see 1.12).

From the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael: Sethur was chosen from the tribe of Asher (see 1.13).

From the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi: Nahbi was chosen from the tribe of Naphtali (see 1.15).

From the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi: Geuel was chosen from the tribe of Gad (see 1.14).

Whom Moses sent to spy out the land: See verse 2.

And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua: This rendering may give the wrong impression that only Moses called him Joshua, while others continued to call him Hoshea. Good News Translation avoids this potential misunderstanding by translating “He changed the name of Hoshea son of Nun to Joshua.” The names Hoshea and Joshua both come from the same Hebrew root, meaning “to save, deliver [from danger].” So what was the point of changing this name? Unlike the name Hoshea (hosheaʿ in Hebrew), the name Joshua (yehoshuaʿ) includes the Hebrew letter for “y,” so that the name refers to YHWH, the LORD, as the God of the covenant who saves his people. Bijbel in Gewone Taal includes the meanings of the names in its translation, saying “The name of Hoshea: Help, Moses changed to Joshua: The Lord helps.” This model shows the reference to the LORD in the second name more explicitly. Even though Joshua has already been mentioned in 11.28 (and a number of times in Exodus), now is the first time that the text mentions this change of names. It is probably significant that this is mentioned at the end of the list and just before the spies were sent out to explore the land of Canaan. (Jewish medieval commentators noted this. Rashi suggested that Moses changed the name at this point as a prayer that the LORD would save Joshua from the spies’ rebellion later in the narrative.) We advise translators to follow Bijbel in Gewone Taal here by including the meanings of the names (which can also be put in parentheses). Alternatively, the meanings of the names can be mentioned in a footnote.

Quoted with permission from de Regt, Lénart J. and Wendland, Ernst R. A Handbook on Numbers. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .