Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 8:23:
Kupsabiny: “I was appointed even before the world began.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “From the very first, before the world was created, I was caused to exist.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “He willed that I am here already since in the beginning. I was/am already there even the world is/was not (here) yet: the sea, the springs, the mountains, the fields/farms, and even the dusts.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “‘At the very-first, when God had still not yet created everything, he caused- me -to-exist. I was created before the world (lit. I-went-ahead-of to be created than the world).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
“Ages ago I was set up”: “Ages ago” translates another time expression that emphasizes the antiquity of Wisdom. The word rendered “Ages ago” refers to the dim and remote past or future and is often translated as “everlasting.” Here the reference is to the most remote past, that is, “in the most distant past,” or as Good News Translation says, “in the very beginning.” “Set up” may mean “placed in position,” but that is somewhat unlikely and certainly unclear. The Hebrew verb upon which “set up” is based is much disputed. Some believe that the verb root means “to knit” or “to weave,” as used in Job 10.11: “[You] knit me together with bones and sinews.” See also Psa 139.13. Hebrew Old Testament Text Project considers the Hebrew text a “B” and accepts both “I was established” and “I was fashioned” as translations. In any event the language is figurative and continues the thought of “create” in verse 22. Accordingly something like “fashioned” (made) or “woven” is suitable. Good News Translation avoids the poetic image of “woven” and says “I was made,” while Contemporary English Version says “gave life to me.”
“At the first, before the beginning of the earth”: “At the first” renders a term related to “at the beginning” in verse 22. “Beginning of the earth” may need to be adjusted to say, for example, “before God began to create the earth.”
A translation that combines verses 22 and 23 expresses them as follows: “A very long time ago, when God hadn’t made this world yet, at the time he started his work, the first work he did was that he made me.”
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 .
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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.
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme rare (られ) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, tate-rare-ru (立てられる) or “establish/erect” is used.
Notice the three time phrases that are similar in meaning.
23a From everlasting I was established,
23b from the beginning,
23c before the earth began.
8:23a–c
From everlasting…from the beginning, before the earth began: In this and the preceding verse, the writer’s focus is not on the way in which Wisdom came into existence. Instead, the focus is on the long time that she has been in existence.
from the beginning, before the earth began: Other ways to translate from the beginning are:
in the very beginning (New Century Version)
-or-
at the very first (Contemporary English Version)
We are not told when the beginning took place. We only know that it was before the earth began or “before the earth came into being.” The New Living Translation (2004) translates the whole verse as:
I was appointed in ages past, at the very first, before the earth began. (New Living Translation (2004))
8:23a
From everlasting I was established: There are two ways to interpret this verb phrase:
(1) It means “appointed ” or “established.” For example:
From everlasting, I was firmly set (New Jerusalem Bible)
(2) It means “woven together ” or “formed.” For example:
I was formed in earliest times (Revised English Bible)
Both of these interpretations are well supported. You may choose either one.
If you choose interpretation (1), it may be necessary to make explicit that the LORD is the one who did the establishing. You may also need to state what Wisdom was established to be/do. For example:
⌊He⌋ appointed me ⌊to be his companion⌋ a very long time ago
If you choose interpretation (2), other ways to translate “woven together” are to use the verbs “created” or “made.” For example:
I was created in the very beginning (New Century Version)
The Display will follow interpretation (1).
From everlasting: This phrase refers to the distant past.
General Comment on 8:22–23
In some languages, it may be necessary to combine some of the parallel expressions in these verses in order to avoid unacceptable redundancy. Below are two ways to combine and/or reorder these two verses. There is one example of each of the two interpretations:
It was the LORD who caused me to exist and appointed me ⌊as his companion⌋ . He did this very long ago, before he created the world or anything else.
-or-
A very long time ago, at the first, before the LORD had made the world or anything else, he created/made me.
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