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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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God or a person or persons to be greatly honored, the honorific prefix go- (御 or ご) can be used, as in go-ran (ご覧), a combination of “behold / see” (ran) and the honorific prefix go-.
The verse begins with a motive clause for … to explain why the young man wants her to come outside with him. It is springtime, and this is, of course, the traditional time for lovers in many cultures. Lo translates the same Hebrew word lying behind the interjection “behold” in the previous verses; it calls the young woman’s attention to the fact that spring is here. In some languages a conjunction expressing reason may not be required.
New Jerusalem Bible renders the Hebrew particle (lo in Revised Standard Version) by “now,” though this hardly seems strong enough: “For now the winter is past.” It is better to find a word that draws attention to the situation. In English “look!” is quite acceptable: “[Just] Look! Winter is past!”
The winter is past indicates that it is now spring, when life is renewed in a new cycle. It symbolizes the traditional time for love. The Hebrew term for winter is another word in the Song that only occurs once in the Old Testament.
In combination with the next phrase, the rain is over and gone, we can fix the time of the year as April-May. Winter in Israel is characterized by strong, cold rains. The special Hebrew term used here for rain applies more to heavy than to light rain. In areas where there is no cold winter-time leading into spring, the translator will have to find an appropriate term. What is in focus here is that the wet, rainy time is over; the sun has begun to shine, so the two lovers can go outside and enjoy the countryside. It is also the time when everything is green and the flowers are blooming. In many cases we may be able to say “the rainy season is over” or “the season of cold, wet weather is over.”
In English the singular form rain can refer to the rain that falls on any one occasion. Here the sense is rather of a period or season of rain, so a plural form “rains” may prove better.
By using the double expression over and gone, the young man stresses that there is no reason why she cannot join him in the fields. We may look for some emphatic way to express this: “Winter’s finally over” or “Winter’s completely over.” In languages with serial verbs, two verbs can be joined together to mark the finality of the season, something along the lines of “The rain stopped finish.” In languages where there are not many expressions for the weather, the two lines may have to be rendered as one. On the other hand, the translator may want to introduce two parallel lines with approximately the same meaning:
• Look, the rains have stopped!
The rainy season is over.
We can also express the same idea negatively:
• Look, winter is over!
There’s no more rain!
Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Zogbo, Lynell. A Handbook on the Book of Song of Songs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1998. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
In these verses the man spoke about the beautiful season of springtime after the cold time ended. The plants were growing again and were fruitful. He implied to the woman that it was also the season for their love to grow. It was the “time of singing,” and he wanted her to come with him.
Notice that 2:13d is exactly the same as 2:10b, making 2:10–13 a chiasm that emphasizes the man’s invitation. Translate 2:10b and 2:13d in the same way in your language.
2:11
The two parts of this verse are parallel to each other. In some languages it may be more natural to combine 2:11a and 2:11b. See the General Comment on 2:11 at the end of the notes for 2:11b for an example.
2:11a
For now the winter is past: In this verse the man began to talk about the weather to persuade the woman to come out with him. He implied that in winter she might not want to come out. The winter is the cold time, when many plants die or stop blooming. Animals try to find a covered place to hide from the cold weather. That cold time was over.
Some other ways to translate For now the winter is past are:
for the cold season/time is already over -or-
Look, the cold/bad weather is gone!
For now: The phrase For now introduces the man’s statements in 2:11–13c in an emphatic way. The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as now indicates that what comes after it is especially important or interesting. Some other ways to translate the phrase are:
for lo (Revised Standard Version) -or-
For see (New Jerusalem Bible)
In some languages it is not necessary to have a word like For because it is already clear that in 2:11–13 the man gave reasons why the woman should come away with him. Here is another way to translate this:
Look! The winter is past. (God’s Word)
In other languages it may also not be natural to use extra emphasis. Here is another way to translate this:
Winter is past (Contemporary English Version)
Translate the invitation in a way that is natural and poetic in your language.
winter: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as winter is used only here in the OT. In Palestine, winter is a cold and rainy season of the year, which extends from October to March. Some other ways to translate winter are:
wintertime -or-
rainy season
2:11b
the rain is over and gone: The clause the rain is over and gone has a similar meaning to “the winter is past” in 2:11a. In Palestine the heavy rains occurred in winter. The man implied that if the woman comes out with him now, she will enjoy nice weather. Another way to translate the clause is:
the rains have stopped (Good News Translation) -or-
the winter rains are over and gone (NET Bible)
Translate the clause in a way that will appeal to a woman in your culture.
is over and gone: In Hebrew the phrase is over and gone is more literally “⌊it⌋ has passed away, ⌊it⌋ has gone.” Using two verbs adds emphasis to the change of season. The man implied that there was no rain now, so it was fine weather for the woman to join him outside.
In some languages it may be more natural to add emphasis in a different way. For example:
the rains are completely gone. -or-
the rainy time has ended.
General Comment on 2:11
The two clauses in this verse have almost the same meaning. In some languages it may be more natural to combine the clauses. For example:
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