8“Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and your brother Aaron, and command the rock before their eyes to yield its water. Thus you shall bring water out of the rock for them; thus you shall provide drink for the congregation and their livestock.”
The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “brother” in English is translated in Kwere as sekulu, in Elhomwe as mbalaawo´, and in Mandarin Chinese as gēgē (哥哥), all “older brother.”
Note that Kwere also uses lumbu — “older sibling” in some cases. (Source for Kwere and Elhomwe: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext; Chinese: Jost Zetzsche)
In Lama it is translated as “older or younger brother.” (Source: Neal Brinneman)
Hand colored stencil print on washi by Sadao Watanabe (1997).
Image taken with permission from the SadaoHanga Catalogue where you can find many more images and information about Sadao Watanabe. For other images of Sadao Watanabe art works in TIPs, see here.
Following is an artwork by Sister Marie Claire , SMMI (1937–2018) from Bengaluru, India:
For more information about images by Sister Marie Claire and ways to purchase them as lithographs, see here . For other images of Sister Marie Claire paintings in TIPs, see here.
The following is a stained glass window in the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Chiang Mai, Thailand:
Photo by Jost Zetzsche
Stained glass is not just highly decorative, it’s a medium which has been used to express important religious messages for centuries. Literacy was not widespread in the medieval and Renaissance periods and the Church used stained glass and other artworks to teach the central beliefs of Christianity. In Gothic churches, the windows were filled with extensive narrative scenes in stained glass — like huge and colorful picture storybooks — in which worshipers could ‘read’ the stories of Christ and the saints and learn what was required for their religious salvation. (Source: Victoria and Albert Museum )
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Numbers 20:8:
Kupsabiny: “‘Take that (walking) stick which is in front of the Box and then you and Aaron are to get up and gather the community in one place and then tell (a/the) rock to give water while people are watching. That rock will pour out water which you (sing.) can give to the people and their animals to drink.’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “You and your elder brother Aaron must take this rod and go and assemble the community. In their presence give a command to this rock and water will come out. From this rock you will bring out water for them. In this way you will give water to the community and to their cattle. ” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “‘Take the staff/cane and you (plur.) with your (sing.) sibling/[male-brother] Aaron gather the whole community. And while they are-looking, command the rock/stone to pour-out-(some-water), and it will-pour-out. In this way you (plur.) can-give water to the people so-that you (plur.) can-cause- them -to-drink and their animals.’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “‘You and Aaron must take Aaron’s walking stick with you and gather all the people together. While the people are watching, command that water will flow out of that large rock over there. Water for the people will flow from it; all they and all their livestock will have enough water to drink.’” (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 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).
Take the rod: For the Hebrew word rendered rod, see the comments on 17.2. New Revised Standard Version and De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling say “staff.” The Hebrew text says “the staff,” not “your [Moses’] staff.” So whose staff is this? It is Aaron’s staff, which was kept in front of the Covenant Box in the Tent of Meeting (see 17.10). Verse 9 says it was “before the LORD,” that is, in the Tent of Meeting. Good News Translation makes this explicit already in this verse by saying “the stick that is in front of the Covenant Box” (similarly Bijbel in Gewone Taal). A number of commentators agree that Aaron’s staff is the staff in view here (so Noordtzij, page 176; Ashley, page 382). Why was this staff needed? It was this staff that served as a visual reminder of the Israelites’ rebelliousness (see 17.10; so Rashbam) and the divine punishment that results from such behavior. It is less likely that this staff is Moses’ staff, which Moses used earlier to strike a rock for water (see Exo 17.5-6). Some commentators believe Moses’ staff is in view here (so Levine, page 489; Milgrom, page 165). Contemporary English Version‘s model is based on this interpretation, which renders Take your rod as “Moses, get your walking stick.” Other translations that follow this interpretation are Revised English Bible, Bible en français courant, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, which say “Take your staff.” Support for this interpretation comes from verse 11, which refers to “his [Moses’] staff” (New Revised Standard Version), although this phrase could mean merely that the staff was currently being carried by Moses.
And assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother: The Hebrew verb for assemble is the same one translated “assembled” in verse 2, but the context is different. Here God tells Moses and Aaron to call the Israelite community together in one place. This verb comes from the same root as the noun rendered “assembly” in verse 4. For the Hebrew noun rendered congregation (ʿedah), see verse 1. Good News Translation translates this clause as “and then you and Aaron assemble the whole community,” so Good News Translation does not involve Aaron in getting the staff. Revised English Bible does the same by beginning verse 8 with “Take your staff, and then with your brother Aaron assemble the community” (similarly Parole de Vie). Alternatively and less likely, New Living Translation has Aaron involved in getting the staff as well, saying “You and Aaron must take the staff and assemble the entire community” (similarly New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh).
And tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water: Good News Translation begins a new sentence at this point, which may be advisable in many languages to avoid a complex, overly long construction. The Hebrew verb for tell is plural, so God gives this instruction to Moses and Aaron, which may be made clear by beginning this clause with “Both of you must command….” (The other verbs in this verse are in the singular, referring to Moses.) No reason is given why Moses and Aaron have to speak to the rock, and not strike it (as was the case in Exo 17.6). Good News Translation renders the rock as “that rock over there” (similarly New Living Translation) in order to bring out the force of the definite article in Hebrew. The rock in view here must have been a prominent or well-known feature of the landscape. Good News Translation leaves before their eyes implicit, but it may be kept by saying “while everyone is watching” (New International Readers Version).
So you shall bring water out of the rock for them; so you shall give drink to the congregation and their cattle: The Hebrew pronouns for you are singular, referring to Moses. For the Hebrew word rendered cattle (beʿir), see verse 4. New International Readers Version provides a helpful model for these two clauses, saying “You will bring water out of the rock for the community. Then they and their livestock can drink it.”
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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