snail

In Gbaya, the notion of a snail (that slimily stretches out of its shell to go somewhere) is emphasized with the ideophone lɔti̧ɔ̧ɔ̧.

Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. (Source: Philip Noss)

complete verse (Psalm 58:8)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Psalm 58:8:

  • Chichewa Contempary Chichewa translation, 2002/2016:
    “Let them be like a snail that melts when it is moving;
    like a dead child not yet born, they should not see the sun.” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Newari:
    “May they disappear like snails going along the path.
    And may they be like a child who dies at birth
    and does not get to see the light of the sun.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon:
    “Let/[wish particle] them be like a snail that melts while crawling,
    or like a child that was-born dead, who does-not see light.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Laarim:
    “May they stay like snail which leave water which melts to disappear.
    Let them stay like small child that was born already dead,
    who does not see the light.” (Source: Laarim Back Translation)
  • Nyakyusa-Ngonde (back-translation into Swahili):
    “Watoweke kama vile konokono ambaye anayeyuka,
    wawe kama vile mtoto ambaye amezaliwa amekufa,
    ambaye hajaliona hata mara moja jua.” (Source: Nyakyusa Back Translation)
  • English:
    “Cause them to become like snails that disappear in the slime;
    cause them to be like babies that are born dead!” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Psalm 58:8 - 58:9

The two similes in verse 8 are also reasonably clear, but it should be noted: (1) Snail translates a word found only here in the Old Testament; some take it to mean “beeswax,” and others “worm.” G. R. Driver takes the word to be synonymous with “abortion” in line b (see New English Bible “like an abortive birth which melts away”); most translate as do Good News Translation and Revised Standard Version. It seems that it was thought, from the trail of slime left by a snail, that the snail gradually dissolves, and finally there is nothing left but the empty snail shell. (2) The verb translated dissolves also occurs only here in the Old Testament, but its meaning is reasonably certain.

The simile in verse 8b is clear enough; see Job 3.16; Ecclesiastes 6.3 for the same figure. The untimely birth: a more normal way in English to say this would be either “a stillborn child” or “an aborted fetus.”

The difficulty, not to say the impossibility, of translating verse 9 can be demonstrated by the fact that Dahood does not provide a translation of it and confesses: “The Hebrew of this verse is unintelligible to me.” He rightly scores Revised Standard Version for not giving any indication of the impossibility of making sense of the Masoretic text. It would be of little practical use to list the many ways in which the text has been handled. No two translations agree completely, and all (including even New International Version) have textual footnotes. Whatever course a translator takes, a note should indicate that the Hebrew makes little sense. Notice how two translations in English have rendered the same Hebrew text: New Jerusalem Bible “Before the thorns grow into a bramble, may He whirl them away alive in fury”; New English Bible “All unawares, may they be rooted up like a thorn-bush, like weeds which a man angrily clears away!”; and one other suggested version, “Before their pots feel the heat of the thorns, whether green or dry, may God sweep them away.”8-9 Hebrew Old Testament Text Project (“A” decision) says the Masoretic text is difficult and can be interpreted in two ways: (1) “before your kettles were aware of the thorn, the stormwind wipes away, be it green or dry!”; (2) “before your thorns rise to a bush: while it is (still) green, the stormwind wipes it away (as if it were) dried!”

Good News Translation translates an emended text which mostly follows G. R. Driver’s reconstruction in “Studies in the Vocabulary of the O.T. V,” Journal of Theological Studies 34 (1933), page 44; see also Anderson.

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 .