garden

The Hebrew, Ge’ez, and Greek that is translated into English as “garden” is translated into Naskapi with a word that means “a place for things to grow.”

Doug Lockhart (in Word Alive 2013 ) explains: “‘Garden’ was another term that had no Naskapi equivalent. ‘There are no gardens here,’ Bill [Jancewicz, a translation consultant] explains. ‘So what word do you use for ‘Garden of Eden,’ and have it communicate something logical in Naskapi? We finally came up with a word that means ‘a place for things to grow,’ like a park.'”

See also gardener.

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Eden .

Translation commentary on Susanna 1:20

If integrated into the book of Daniel: 13.20.

Good News Translation does not translate the Greek word rendered Look (which is equivalent to the Hebrew word often rendered “Behold” in the Old Testament). It is often better untranslated, but here the translator should consider some term appropriate to the situation. Two men have burst in on this woman and are about to make a lewd proposition. If they begin with a short utterance, what is it? “Look” is all right in English, although “Look here now” might be more realistic.

No one sees us: The Greek verb in this clause is present tense. An alternative rendering is “no one is looking at us.” Good News Translation‘s future tense (“no one will see us”) is also possible in this context. Translators will have to decide which is more fitting in their own situation.

We are in love with you; so give your consent, and lie with us: We are in love with you completely misses the meaning in Greek. New Revised Standard Version and New English Bible are better with “We are burning with desire for you.” Good News Translation, however, skillfully restructures this clause and the following two clauses to get the crudeness of the proposition in without being obscene. “We are burning” translates the first clause. “To have sex with you” corresponds to lie with us. Literally this clause is “be with us”; the same expression “be with” will be used in the next verse. “Give us what we want” is an especially good rendering; rather than allowing Susanna any room or initiative (give your consent), it focuses completely on what the two men want.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Shorter Books of the Deuterocanon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2006. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.