Translation commentary on Psalm 26:9 - 26:10

Sweep … away in verse 9 translates a verb meaning to gather, to take away. So Biblia Dios Habla Hoy “Do not take away my life.” Or the translation can be “Don’t treat me as you treat sinners.”

The expression Sweep me not away with sinners will be a problem in languages in which it will not be natural to speak of sweeping away people as though they were dirt. However, the figurative expression may be kept by adding a simile; for example, “do not sweep me away with sinners like a woman sweeps her house.” With sinners implies “together with sinners,” and this component may have to be added to avoid unnecessary ambiguity.

In line a the Hebrew for me is “my nefesh,” which is parallel to my life in line b.

Bloodthirsty men may mean “people who are ready to murder,” that is, violent people (New Jerusalem Bible); or, as Good News Translation has it, “murderers” (also Bible en français courant, New Jerusalem Bible). Good News Translation has introduced a verb, “spare,” in verse 9b, otherwise the ellipsis may cause difficulty in understanding. One may also say “do not let me die like men who kill others will die” or “do not take away my life like you will take away the lives of murderers.”

In whose hands are evil devices: “people who are ready to commit crimes,” or perhaps “people who are skilled at committing crimes.” In verse 10b whose right hands are full of bribes does not make clear whether this refers to those who offer bribes or those who take them; perhaps the taking of bribes is what is in focus here (see 15.5b). New Jerusalem Bible translates the verse “who have schemes at their fingertips, and hands full of bribes.” Bribes are often spoken of as “secret money,” “hidden money,” or “money for closing the eyes.”

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 .

imperatives (kudasai / Japanese honorifics)

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 show different degree of politeness is through the choice of an imperative construction as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017.

In these verses, the honorific form kudasai (ください) reflects that the action is called for as a favor for the sake of the beneficiary. This polite kudasai imperative form is often translated as “please” in English. While English employs pure imperatives in most imperative constructions (“Do this!”), Japanese chooses the polite kudasai (“Do this, please.”).

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )