complete verse (Numbers 31:2)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Numbers 31:2:

  • Kupsabiny: “‘Punish the people of Midian, because they caused the Israelites to worship idols. When you have finished that, you shall die.’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Take revenge for the Israelites on the Midianties! After that you will die and gather with your ancestors.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “‘Take-revenge on the Midianhon because of what they did to the Israelinhon. After you (sing.) have-done that, you (sing.) will- now -die.’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “‘Before you die, tell the Israeli people that they should pay back/get revenge on the Midian people-group for what they did to you.’” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Numbers 31:2

Avenge the people of Israel on the Midianites is literally “Avenge the vengeance of the people of Israel from the Midianites,” which is an emphatic construction in Hebrew since the Hebrew words for “Avenge” and “vengeance” come from the same root. A possible way to reflect this emphasis would be to begin this clause with “Be sure to….” The basic meaning of the Hebrew verb here is “take revenge” or “vindicate against” (so Ashley, page 591). In some languages the verb “Punish” (Good News Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch) will express the meaning more clearly. In other languages there may be several verbs available to express the notion of “vengeance,” one with a positive connotation and the other with a negative connotation. If so, translators should choose the former one here. The Hebrew phrase for “from the Midianites” has the nuance of retribution in this context (so Levine, page 450). Good News Translation explicitly states this nuance by rendering the whole clause as “Punish the Midianites for what they did to the people of Israel.” For Midianites see 10.29.

Afterward you shall be gathered to your people: See the comments on 20.24 and 27.13 for this idiomatic expression that refers to death. New International Readers Version has “After that, you will join the members of your family who have already died,” and Good News Translation says simply “After you have done that, you will die.”

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 .