witness

The Hebrew, Ge’ez, and and Greek that is translated as “witness” in English is translated in these ways:

  • “truly have seen” in Highland Popoluca
  • “telling the truth regarding something” in Eastern Highland Otomi
  • “know something” in Lalana Chinantec
  • “verily know something to be the truth” in San Mateo del Mar Huave
  • “we ourselves saw this” in Desano
  • “tell the truth about something” in Eastern Highland Otomi
  • “know something is true because of seeing it” in Teutila Cuicatec (source for this and above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
  • “ones who will confirm that these-things that you have seen are true” in Kankanaey (source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • “ones who are to testify about these things, because it all happened before your eyes” in Tagbanwa (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Proverbs 19:5

“A false witness will not go unpunished”: For “A false witness” see 6.19. “Will not go unpunished”, as in 6.29, means “he will not be acquitted in court” or “he will surely be punished.” See Good News Translation.

“And he who utters lies will not escape”: This line has essentially the same meaning as the previous line. “Utters lies” is literally “breathes lies.” The negative “will not escape” is parallel with “will not go unpunished” in line 1, and may need to be expressed, for example, “will not go free,” “will not be released,” or positively “will be condemned.” Contemporary English Version combines “will not go unpunished” and “will not escape” by saying “Dishonest witnesses and liars won’t escape punishment.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Proverbs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

survive / escape / save

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “survive,” “escape,” “save,” or similar in English is translated in the Contemporary Chichewa translation (2002/2016) in these verses with pulumuka, describing someone whose life was in danger but who has freed himself or herself. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

complete verse (Proverbs 19:5)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 19:5:

  • Kupsabiny: “A person who lies in the council (court) will be punished.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “It is not true that those who give false witness
    will not be punished,
    and it is not true that those who tell lies
    will be able to escape.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “A lying witness will-be-punished, and whoever lies can- not -escape from the punishment.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “The one who is a habitual-liar and testifies what is not true will not be-able-to-escape punishment.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “Those who tell lies in court will surely be punished ;
    they will not escape it.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 19:5

19:5

Notice the parallel parts that are almost identical in meaning:

5a
A false witness will not go unpunished,

5b and one who utters lies will not escape.

The context of this proverb is a court or other legal setting. Both lines are a warning that a witness who tells lies will certainly be punished.

19:5a–b

A false witness…one who utters lies: The first of these parallel phrases refers to a witness who tells lies when he testifies in court. The second phrase is literally “he who breathes lies.” By itself, it could refer to anyone who tells lies. But here, the parallel phrase and the legal context indicate that this phrase also refers to a witness who tells lies in court. Some other ways to translate these parallel phrases are:

A false witness…he who testifies lies (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
-or-
A false witness…the perjurer (Revised English Bible)
-or-
A witness who lies…liars (New Century Version)

will not go unpunished…will not escape: Both of these phrases indicate that the lying witness will not be acquitted of the crime of perjury. They will not avoid punishment. Another way to translate these parallel phrases is:

will not escape punishment…will not go free (Revised English Bible)

In some languages, it may be more natural to use positive statements rather than negative ones. For example:

will be condemned…will surely be punished

General Comment on 19:5a–b

In some languages, it may be more natural to combine and/or reorder some of the parallel parts. For example:

If you tell lies in court, you will be punished—there will be no escape. (Good News Translation)

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