complete verse (Psalm 41:6)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Psalm 41:6:

  • Chichewa Contempary Chichewa translation, 2002/2016:
    “When someone comes to see me,
    he speaks deceitfully, while his heart is gathering insulting (things);
    then he goes out and announces outside.” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Newari:
    “Claiming to be my friends, even those who come to care for me
    only gather and take away bad reports about me,
    and spread them for anyone to hear.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon:
    “When they visit me, they are-pretending that their intentions are-good,
    but they only gather bad stories about me.
    And when- they -go-out they gossip these to others.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Eastern Bru:
    “People who come to meet me, they have two gall bladders. They come because they want to hear others speak badly about me, then they keep it wrapped up in their hearts. And they recount again wrong things for others to hear, so those things are spread abroad everywhere.” (Source: Bru Back Translation)
  • Laarim:
    “Then when any person come to see me,
    he comes and tell lies, really his heart gathers gossip,
    and he goes and gossip about me with people in all places.” (Source: Laarim Back Translation)
  • Nyakyusa-Ngonde (back-translation into Swahili):
    “Ambaye kama amekuja kuniona,
    anasema habari za ovyo.
    Anakusanya habari mbaya,
    anatawanya habari hizo nje.” (Source: Nyakyusa Back Translation)
  • English:
    “When my enemies come to me, they falsely say that they are concerned about me.
    They listen to bad news about me/my health.
    Then they go away and tell everywhere what is happening to me.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Psalm 41:6 - 41:7

Continuing the description of his plight, the psalmist relates how his enemies, hypocrites all, come to see him. But they are really not concerned about him; their pious statements of sympathy and concern are false. All they want to do is find out bad news about him and then leave and spread it everywhere (verse 6).

Empty words seems to mean that their apparent care for the psalmist is false, and what they say does not come from a genuine concern for his welfare. New Jerusalem Bible translates “their talk is hollow.” Utter empty words may sometimes be rendered as “talk without good words” or “talk foolish words.” The Good News Translation expression “not sincere” can sometimes be translated positively as “double-hearted people” or “people with two tongues.”

Line b his heart gathers is a bit strange. Some (see Anderson) take “his heart” with the preceding words, “his heart speaks hypocrisy.” “Heart” has a variety of meanings; it can denote feeling or thinking, the interior character (as contrasted with the exterior behavior), or even stand for the whole person (as it seems to here). New Jerusalem Bible translates line b “his mind stores up evil things,” which may be followed; or else Biblia Dios Habla Hoy “they keep in mind all the bad things.” Good News Translation‘s “Gather bad news” must often be recast, since news in many languages is not something which can be said to be gathered. Accordingly one may often translate “they listen for bad news” or “they learn bad news.”

All who hate me is another reference to the psalmist’s enemies.

In verse 7b the meaning may be they imagine the worst for me, or as the Good News Translation footnote has, “they make evil plans to harm me” (so Weiser, Dahood). The Hebrew verb may mean “imagine” or “plan” (see 35.4d, which is quite similar to this passage). Biblia Dios Habla Hoy takes the worst to mean that the enemies make the worst of the psalmist’s situation, “they think I am suffering because of my guilt.” They imagine the worst for me may sometimes be recast as “in their hearts they think up the worst things that can happen to me.”

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 .