sin

The Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Greek that is typically translated as “sin” in English has a wide variety of translations.

The Greek ἁμαρτάνω (hamartanō) carries the original verbatim meaning of “miss the mark” and likewise, many translations contain the “connotation of moral responsibility.”

  • Loma: “leaving the road” (which “implies a definite standard, the transgression of which is sin”)
  • Navajo (Dinė): “that which is off to the side” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Toraja-Sa’dan: kasalan, originally meaning “transgression of a religious or moral rule” and in the context of the Bible “transgression of God’s commandments” (source: H. van der Veen in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 21ff. )
  • Kaingang: “break God’s word”
  • Bariai: “bad behavior” (source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • Sandawe: “miss the mark” (like the original meaning of the Greek term) (source for this and above: Ursula Wiesemann in Holzhausen / Riderer 2010, p. 36ff., 43)
  • Nias: horö, originally a term primarily used for sexual sin. (Source: Hummel / Telaumbanua 2007, p. 256)
  • Mauwake: “heavy” (compare forgiveness as “take away one’s heaviness”) (source: Kwan Poh San in this article )

In Shipibo-Conibo the term is hocha. Nida (1952, p. 149) tells the story of its choosing: “In some instances a native expression for sin includes many connotations, and its full meaning must be completely understood before one ever attempts to use it. This was true, for example, of the term hocha first proposed by Shipibo-Conibo natives as an equivalent for ‘sin.’ The term seemed quite all right until one day the translator heard a girl say after having broken a little pottery jar that she was guilty of ‘hocha.’ Breaking such a little jar scarcely seemed to be sin. However, the Shipibos insisted that hocha was really sin, and they explained more fully the meaning of the word. It could be used of breaking a jar, but only if the jar belonged to someone else. Hocha was nothing more nor less than destroying the possessions of another, but the meaning did not stop with purely material possessions. In their belief God owns the world and all that is in it. Anyone who destroys the work and plan of God is guilty of hocha. Hence the murderer is of all men most guilty of hocha, for he has destroyed God’s most important possession in the world, namely, man. Any destructive and malevolent spirit is hocha, for it is antagonistic and harmful to God’s creation. Rather than being a feeble word for some accidental event, this word for sin turned out to be exceedingly rich in meaning and laid a foundation for the full presentation of the redemptive act of God.”

In Warao it is translated as “bad obojona.” Obojona is a term that “includes the concepts of consciousness, will, attitude, attention and a few other miscellaneous notions.” (Source: Henry Osborn in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 74ff. ). See other occurrences of Obojona in the Warao New Testament.

Martin Ehrensvärd, one of the translators for the Danish Bibelen 2020, comments on the translation of this term: “We would explain terms, such that e.g. sin often became ‘doing what God does not want’ or ‘breaking God’s law’, ‘letting God down’, ‘disrespecting God’, ‘doing evil’, ‘acting stupidly’, ‘becoming guilty’. Now why couldn’t we just use the word sin? Well, sin in contemporary Danish, outside of the church, is mostly used about things such as delicious but unhealthy foods. Exquisite cakes and chocolates are what a sin is today.” (Source: Ehrensvärd in HIPHIL Novum 8/2023, p. 81ff. )

See also sinner.

Translation commentary on Proverbs 21:4

There are a number of difficulties in this verse. In general terms it is a warning against the arrogance and conceit of wicked people. It is a single statement that continues through the two lines of the verse.

“Haughty eyes and a proud heart”: The two qualities or attitudes here are literally “lifting up of eyes,” that is, “haughtiness” or “pride,” and “extensive of heart,” which is an idiomatic expression for “arrogance.” A number of versions reproduce the literal form of the expressions; examples of those that render the sense of the idioms are “conceit and arrogance” (Good News Translation) and “are proud and arrogant” (Contemporary English Version).

“The lamp of the wicked, are sin”: This line continues the statement begun in the first line. There are three problems to deal with in understanding the expression “the lamp of the wicked”.

(1) What is the meaning of the term translated “lamp” (nir in Hebrew)? The term nir can mean “plowing” or “fallow ground,” as it does in 13.23; or it can mean “lamp.” King James Version renders it “plowing” here, but most other versions that render it literally have “lamp.” The answer to the next question, however, may suggest that the term does not have to be rendered literally.
(2) What does the whole expression mean? Whether we understand “lamp” or “plowing,” the expression as a whole is figurative. If we understand “plowing,” this may be taken as an agricultural picture of the preparation for life or the way of living of the wicked person. If we understand nir as “lamp,” then the sense may be something like “the light that guides the life of the wicked person.” Contemporary English Version provides examples of both possibilities with “sin is the only crop they produce” in the text, and “sin is the only light they ever follow” in a footnote.
(3) How does this expression relate to the two expressions in the previous line? “The lamp” may be taken as summing up the first line, “their whole arrogant style of life,” which is labeled as “sin”. The punctuation of New Revised Standard Version, which places the expression “the lamp of the wicked” between dashes, shows that it takes this view. Revised English Bible “these sins brand the wicked” has a similar understanding.

(4) On the other hand, the expression may be taken as a third quality or attitude in addition to those in the first line. On this view the expression would be equivalent to something like “and all their outlook”; this would give a progression in the description of their values, from “pride and arrogance” to everything about the way they think or act.

There is more support among translations for the first of these two views, that is, taking “lamp” as summarizing or commenting on line 1. An example of a rendering that expresses it is, “People who do evil are big in the head and always arrogant, so sin fills up their life.”

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 .

complete verse (Proverbs 21:4)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 21:4:

  • Kupsabiny: “The wicked boast of themselves and are angry with people.
    But what they focus on is only evil/sin.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Proud eyes, an arrogant heart,
    and the evil work of defamation are sin.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Boasting and thinking-of-oneself-high are sin. You (sing.) will-recognize wicked people by that behavior.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Bad people, they are proud (lit. raise their bodies), but there-is-no outcome of their lives except (lit. if not) sin.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “Being proud and arrogant is like a lamp that guides wicked people;
    being proud and arrogant characterizes wicked people’s whole behavior/everything that wicked people do.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 21:4

21:4

This proverb uses three figures of speech to describe the pride of a wicked person.

4a Haughty eyes and a proud heart

4b —the guides of the wicked—are sin!

The overall meaning is that pride is sinful. It also results in a wicked person doing sinful things.

21:4a

Haughty eyes and a proud heart: In Hebrew, these two phrases are literally “height of eyes” and “wide of heart.” Both phrases are figures of speech. Here they represent the attitudes of a wicked person.

Haughty eyes: This phrase indicates a haughty and arrogant attitude. It refers to a person who looks down on others.

a proud heart: This phrase can indicate either arrogance/pride or strong ambition. It refers to a person who is overly confident in his own abilities. He also has a strong desire for greater wealth and power.

Some other ways to translate these figures of speech are:

• Keep the figures of speech or use words that are related to the words “eyes” and “heart.” For example:

A conceited look and an arrogant attitude (God’s Word)
-or-
Proud looks, proud thoughts (New Century Version)

• Translate the meaning without using figures of speech. For example:

proud and arrogant (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
look down on other people and long to be more important

21:4b

the guides of the wicked: This phrase is a metaphor that further describes the preceding phrases “haughty eyes” and “a proud heart.” There are several ways to understand the variants of the Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as guides. The notes will discuss only the two main interpretations:

(1) The Hebrew word means “lamp.” A lamp shows a person where to go. In the same way, it is implied that a wicked person’s sinful, proud attitudes lead him to commit sinful deeds. For example:

Haughty eyes and a proud heart—the lamp of the wicked—are sin. (New Revised Standard Version)

(2) The Hebrew word means “uncultivated ground.” Normally, uncultivated ground produces only weeds. In the same way, a wicked person’s pride produces sin. For example:

Haughty eyes and a proud heart—the unplowed field of the wicked—produce sin. (New International Version (2011))

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). The LXX, Vulgate, and Targum all understood the Hebrew word to mean “lamp” rather than “uncultivated ground.” The major lexicons also prefer this interpretation.

However, there is good support for both interpretations. So it is recommended that you mention interpretation (2) in a footnote. For example:

In Hebrew, the word that means “lamp” can also mean “uncultivated ground.” So another meaning for this verse is: “The arrogance and pride of a wicked person are like uncultivated/unplowed ground where weeds grow. Their proud attitudes produce sinful deeds.”

are sin: In Hebrew, there is no verb. The Berean Standard Bible and most versions that follow interpretation (1) supply a verb such as are or “is.” The New International Version (2011) supplies the verb “produce.” In some languages, it may be more meaningful to use a phrase such as “produces sin” or “leads to sin,” regardless of the interpretation chosen.

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