refuge / shelter

The Hebrew that is translated as “shelter” or “refuge” or similar in English is translated in Vidunda as “place to run to.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

female second person singular pronoun in Psalms

In Garifuna the second person singular pronoun (“you” in English) has two forms. One is used in women’s speech and one in men’s speech. In the Garifuna Bible the form used in men’s speech is typically used, except when it’s clear that a woman is quoted or in Psalms where the women on the translation team insisted that the form used in women’s speech (buguya) would be used throughout the whole book.

Ronald Ross (in Omanson 2001, p. 375f.) tells the story: “Throughout most of the translation, [the distinctions between the different forms of the pronouns] presented no problem. Whenever the speaker in the text was perceived as a man, the male speech forms were used; and when a woman was speaking, the female speech forms were used. True, the women members of the translation team did object on occasion to the use of the male forms when the author (and narrator) of a book was unknown and the men translators had used the male speech forms as the default. Serious discord arose, however, during the translation of the Psalms because of their highly devotional nature and because throughout the book the psalmist is addressing God. The male translators had, predictably, used the male form to address God, and the male form to refer to the psalmist, even though women speakers of Garifuna never use those forms to address anyone. The women contended that they could not as women read the Psalms meaningfully if God and the psalmist were always addressed as if the readers were men. The men, of course, turned the argument around, claiming that neither could they read the Psalms comfortably if the reader was assumed to be a woman.

“Initially there seemed to be no way out of this impasse. However a solution was found in the ongoing evolution of the language. There is a strong propensity for male speech and female speech to merge in favor of the latter, so the few remaining male forms are gradually dying out. Moreover, male children learn female speech from their mothers and only shift to the male speech forms when they reach adolescence to avoid sounding effeminate. However they use the female form buguya when addressing their parents throughout life. So the women wielded two arguments: First, the general development of the language favored the increasing use of the female forms. Secondly, the female forms are less strange to the men than the male forms are to the women, because the men habitually use them during early childhood and continue to use them to address their parents even in adulthood. Therefore, the female pronominal forms prevailed and were adopted throughout the book of Psalms, though the male forms remained the default forms in the rest of the translation.”

See also female first person singular pronoun in Psalms and addressing God.

addressing God

Translators of different languages have found different ways with what kind of formality God is addressed. The first example is from a language where God is always addressed distinctly formal whereas the second is one where the opposite choice was made.

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Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.

As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator 2002, p. 210ff.), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.

In these verses, in which humans address God, the informal, familiar pronoun is used that communicates closeness.

Voinov notes that “in the Tuvan Bible, God is only addressed with the informal pronoun. No exceptions. An interesting thing about this is that I’ve heard new Tuvan believers praying with the formal form to God until they are corrected by other Christians who tell them that God is close to us so we should address him with the informal pronoun. As a result, the informal pronoun is the only one that is used in praying to God among the Tuvan church.”

In Gbaya, “a superior, whether father, uncle, or older brother, mother, aunt, or older sister, president, governor, or chief, is never addressed in the singular unless the speaker intends a deliberate insult. When addressing the superior face to face, the second person plural pronoun ɛ́nɛ́ or ‘you (pl.)’ is used, similar to the French usage of vous.

Accordingly, the translators of the current version of the Gbaya Bible chose to use the plural ɛ́nɛ́ to address God. There are a few exceptions. In Psalms 86:8, 97:9, and 138:1, God is addressed alongside other “gods,” and here the third person pronoun o is used to avoid confusion about who is being addressed. In several New Testament passages (Matthew 21:23, 26:68, 27:40, Mark 11:28, Luke 20:2, 23:37, as well as in Jesus’ interaction with Pilate and Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman at the well) the less courteous form for Jesus is used to indicate ignorance of his position or mocking (source Philip Noss).

In Dutch and Western Frisian translations, however, God is always addressed with the formal pronoun.

See also female second person singular pronoun in Psalms.

Translation commentary on Psalm 142:5 - 142:7

As in the first strophe the psalmist again pleads for Yahweh’s protection and promises to praise him publicly if he answers his prayer. Verse 5a expresses the same thought as verse 1a. In verse 5b-c Good News Translation has not reproduced the form of the Hebrew text, in which the psalmist quotes himself (see Revised Standard Version). A translator should feel free to follow the form of the Hebrew, if that represents a natural way to quote or refer to one’s thoughts, ideas, or prayers. For the language of verse 5b, see 46.1 and comments; and for the language of verse 5c, see 16.5; 119.57. Instead of “you are all I want” as the translation of “portion, share,” the meaning can be “all I need” or “all I have” (New Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy). The phrase the land of the living means “in this life” (see 27.13; 52.5), as Good News Translation and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translate. Bible en français courant has “in this land where we live.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “you give me all I need in life” as a translation of verse 5c.

In verse 6b for I am brought very low, see 79.8c; 116.6b. New International Version has “I am in desperate need,” and New Jerusalem Bible “I am miserably weak.” For the language of verse 6c-d, see 18.17. Revised Standard Version connects verse 6c-d to verse 7 rather than to verse 6a-b. No other translation consulted does this.

In verse 7 the word translated prison (Revised Standard Version and most other translations) occurs elsewhere only in Isaiah 24.22; 42.7. It is probable that here the word is used figuratively of distress, troubles, difficulties. It is possible, however, that the word is used literally, and that the psalmist was a prisoner. Dahood takes it to mean Sheol, the world of the dead. If the translator follows Good News Translation‘s “distress” or prison, in some languages the request will be “untie me from the troubles that hold me” and “untie me from this house of iron,” or “… house of captives.” In verse 7a me translates “my nefesh” (see 3.2). For I may give thanks to thy name, see 5.11.

The verb translated surround is taken by some to mean “to place a wreath on, to crown” (so New English Bible “shall crown me with garlands”). Cohen takes the language to mean “because of me the righteous will crown themselves,” that is, will celebrate, will rejoice triumphantly. Good News Translation takes The righteous will surround me to mean “in the assembly of your people,” that is, in public worship in the Temple, where the psalmist will go to praise Yahweh for having answered his prayer for help. No other translation consulted is this specific; most are like Bible en français courant “in the circle of those who are faithful,” indicating an informal gathering of the psalmist’s friends. So a translation can read “May the righteous join with me in praise, because….” Good News Translation connects line c with line b (so Bible en français courant, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). The language of the last line of verse 7 is similar to that in 13.6b; 116.7b.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .