complete verse (1 Chronicles 11:29)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 1 Chronicles 11:29:

  • Kupsabiny: “Sibbekai who came from Husha, Ilai who came from Ahohi,” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Sibbecai the Hushahite, Ilai the Ahohite,” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Sibbecai of/from-Husha,
    Ilai of/from-Ahoa,” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Sibbecai, from Hushah’s clan;
    Ilai from Ahoh’s clan;” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 11:29

Sibbecai the Hushathite (verse 29) is mentioned again in 1 Chr 20.4. According to 2 Sam 23.27, Sibbecai was called “Mebunnai.” The difference in names is due to a scribe’s confusing the Hebrew letters equivalent to “s” and “c” (Sibbecai) with “m” and “n” (Mebunnai). Hushah was a town in Judah, about 6 kilometers (3.5 miles) southwest of Bethlehem.

Ilai the Ahohite (verse 29): Ilai is called “Zalmon” in 2 Sam 23.28. But the two names are sufficiently different to be retained in translation. However, the differences between Ilai and “Zalmon” are not as great in Hebrew as in English. Perhaps the text originally had the name “Zilai,” which is a diminutive form of “Zalmon.” Then a scribe may have misread the initial letter and mistakenly wrote Ilai instead of “Zilai.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .