24But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me wholeheartedly, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it.
The term that is transliterated as “Caleb” in English is translated in American Sign Language with one variation of the sign for “watch,” a reference to the fact that Caleb was one of the twelve who surveyed the Promised Land. The sign also alludes to watchdogs, a reference to Caleb’s enduring loyalty to God. (Source: Ruth Anna Spooner, Ron Lawer)
“Caleb” in American Sign Language, source: Deaf Harbor
In Spanish Sign Language it is translated with the sign for “spy.” (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Numbers 14:24:
Kupsabiny: “But because my servant Caleb showed thoughts that are different from those people, and he honored/obeyed me completely, I shall lead him to arrive in that country he checked out and it will belong to his grandchildren.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “But my servant Caleb has another spirit. He has trusted me from the depths of his heart. I will bring him to the country that he explored [lit.: started going to] and his descendants will take possession there.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “But Caleb my servant I will-let- him -enter into the land which he explored because his character is different from the others and he obeys me wholeheartedly. His descendants will- also -stay/live in that land.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “But Caleb, who serves me well, is different from the others. He obeys me completely. So I will bring him into that land that he has already seen, and his descendants will inherit/possess some of it.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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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 first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
But my servant Caleb …: But renders well the Hebrew waw conjunction here, since the position of the phrase my servant Caleb at the beginning of this sentence in Hebrew indicates that what will happen to Caleb stands in sharp contrast to what will happen to the other Israelites. Translators should mark this contrast in some way. This is the only time in the whole Bible that Caleb is called my servant. Previously Moses was given this title in 12.7 (see the comments there).
Because he has a different spirit is literally “because a different spirit was with him” (compare New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh with “because he was imbued with a different spirit”). The Hebrew word for spirit is ruach. Here it refers to Caleb’s inner frame of mind or disposition (compare 11.17), which was different from that of other people. Good News Translation renders the first clause of this verse as “But because my servant Caleb has a different attitude,” which seems a rather flat translation. Contemporary English Version expresses its meaning more simply and more clearly than Good News Translation by saying “But my servant Caleb isn’t like the others.” Some languages may have an idiomatic expression that is similar to the Hebrew for he has a different spirit, for example, “he has a different heart” (Chewa).
And has followed me fully is literally “and he has filled after me,” which means Caleb was completely loyal to the LORD (so Alter, page 752). Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation (“and has remained loyal to me”) give dynamic translations of this Hebrew idiom.
I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it: The Hebrew word for descendants is literally “seed” (see 5.28, where it is rendered “children”). Some languages have a similar singular noun with a collective sense. These two clauses give the result of the previous two clauses. God will allow Caleb to enter the land of Canaan, and his descendants will possess part of it because of Caleb’s different frame of mind and loyalty to God. Some languages may prefer to reorder verse 24 as follows:
• But as for my servant Caleb, I will let him enter the land that he explored, and his descendants will possess it, because he is different from the others and is completely loyal to me.
Now, since the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valleys: For Revised Standard Version and New International Version this clause gives the reason why the Israelites have to turn around and go back into the desert. But the Hebrew construction here does not indicate this. It seems more likely that it is an independent clause in Hebrew, so it is better rendered “Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites occupy the valleys” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh; similarly La Nouvelle Bible Segond). Good News Translation and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible connect this clause as subordinate to the preceding verse, which adds to the impact of the promise to Caleb and his descendants. A model that is similar to that in Good News Translation is “even though the Amalekites and the Canaanites now live in the valleys.” For the Amalekites and the Canaanites, and for the valleys where they lived, see the comments on 13.29.
Turn tomorrow is better rendered “Right away tomorrow, turn back” to express correctly the focus here on the Hebrew adverb for tomorrow.
And set out for the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea: God commands the Israelites to go on the way that leads back toward the beginning of their journey through the wilderness. Red Sea, which follows the Septuagint, is the traditional rendering of the Hebrew name here, which is literally “Sea of Reeds” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Bible en français courant, Parole de Vie). Good News Translation says “Gulf of Aqaba” and gives the following Word List entry for Red Sea: “Evidently referred originally to (1) a series of lakes and marshes between the head of the Gulf of Suez and the Mediterranean, the region generally regarded as the site of the events described in Exodus 13, and was also used to designate (2) the Gulf of Suez, (3) the Gulf of Aqaba.” We do not recommend “Gulf of Aqaba” here because that name was not known then, even though geographically it may be more precise. We prefer “Red Sea” or “Reed Sea” (as in the Hebrew text), because unlike “Gulf of Aqaba,” only these renderings express that the Israelites must go on the way that leads back toward the beginning of their journey through the wilderness. A possible model for this clause and the previous one is “turn around tomorrow and travel south through the wilderness, back toward the Red Sea.” Some commentators suggest that there was actually a well-known road called “the Way of the Red/Reed Sea.”
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 .
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