16For they are unreservedly given to me from among the Israelites; I have taken them for myself, in place of all that open the womb, the firstborn of all the Israelites.
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “firstborn” in English is translated in a number of ways:
“he/she that opens the gown” in Batak Toba (because formerly a woman stopped wearing a gown and started using a bodice after the birth of her first child)
“he/she that damages the stalk (i.e. the body)” in Uab Meto (source for this and above: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
“oldest child” in Isthmus Zapotec (source for this and one above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
“firstborn child, who was a boy” in Elhomwe (to make clear, without ambiguity, that Mary did not have daughters before) (source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
In Bawm Chin, the term can imply the existence of younger siblings, so a translation is needed that brings out the fact that Jesus is superior to all else, not just the first of a series. (Source: David Clark)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Numbers 8:16:
Kupsabiny: “It is like that because the clan of Levi has been given to be mine completely from the people of Israel. I have taken those people to be mine in place of all the firstborns of Israel.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “They have been dedicated to me from among the Israelites. I have taken them in place of all the first-born Israelites who come first from the womb.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “They are the Israelinhon that were-set-apart for myself only in exchange/in-place of all the first-born male of the Israelinhon.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “They will belong to me. They will work for me as substitutes for the firstborn males of all the Israelis, who also belong to me.” (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.
Verses 16-18 repeat much of 3.12-13. These verses are also somewhat repetitive in themselves. For this reason Good News Translation omits part of the first half of verse 17. However, repetition in biblical Hebrew normally serves a pragmatic purpose in the discourse (for example, emphasis and emotion), so that function should be identified and reproduced in a translation, if possible.
For they are wholly given to me from among the people of Israel: This clause gives the reason for purifying and offering the Levites to the LORD (see the comments on the previous verse). It is because they belong to him out of all the Israelites. For the Hebrew expression rendered wholly given, see the comments on 3.9. As there, the Hebrew is literally “given given.” Good News Translation does not seem to express the emphasis in the Hebrew here. De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling reflects it by rendering this clause as “They are assigned to be given totally to me,” and so does Revised English Bible with “for out of all the Israelites they are assigned and dedicated to me.” In Chewa an emphasizing term meaning “Indeed” is used at the beginning of this clause.
Instead of all that open the womb, the first-born of all the people of Israel, I have taken them for myself: Instead of may be rendered more precisely as “in place of” (Good News Translation) or “as substitutes for.” That open the womb renders a technical Hebrew expression that has the same meaning as first-born (see 3.12). Good News Translation combines these two expressions, saying “first-born sons.” Good News Translation adds the idea of “sons” to clarify that female children are not in view here. Other languages may find this addition helpful. A literal rendering of I have taken them for myself may be misleading or unclear. If so, Good News Translation‘s model may be helpful: “they belong to me alone.” Contemporary English Version seems to omit this clause as being redundant, but this should not be done not unless the emphasizing function of the repetition here can be expressed in another way.
For all the first-born among the people of Israel are mine, both of man and of beast: See the comments on 3.13. For renders the Hebrew particle ki, which introduces and emphasizes why the LORD took the Levites in place of the Israelites’ firstborn sons. Bible en français courant and Parole de Vie translate it correctly as an emphatic marker here, saying “Indeed.”
On the day that I slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt: See the comments on 3.13.
I consecrated them for myself, and I have taken the Levites instead of all the first-born among the people of Israel: For I consecrated them for myself, see 3.13. The pronoun them does not refer to the Egyptians’ firstborn sons, but to the Israelites’ firstborn sons, which Good News Translation makes explicit. There is a problem with the rendering and I have taken and certainly with Good News Translation‘s model “I am now taking.” The Hebrew verb form rendered have taken expresses that this action follows chronologically the action of the previous verb, which is translated consecrated. In many languages both verbs should be translated with the same (past or perfect) tense; for example, Bijbel: Vertaling in opdracht van het Nederlandsch Bijbelgenootschap renders these two clauses as “I consecrated them for myself, 18 and I took the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the Israelites” (similarly Luther). Verse 18 in Hebrew is connected much more closely to verse 17 than Good News Translation indicates. Verses 17b-18 express a contrast between the Levites and the firstborn male Israelites. New Revised Standard Version expresses this contrast clearly by saying “I consecrated them for myself, 18 but I have taken the Levites in place of all the firstborn among the Israelites.” An even better model is “I consecrated all the firstborn sons among the Israelites for myself, 18 but I took the Levites in their place” (similarly Revised English Bible).
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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