lyre

The musical instrument that is most often translated as “lyre” or “lute” in English is translated in the following ways:

  • Chichewa Contempary Chichewa translation, 2002/2016: pangwe (a musical instrument that is made from a hollow tube filled with pellets or small stones to create a rain-like sound) or “five stringed instrument” (source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “guitar” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “sitar ” (source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Adilabad Gondi: chondka (source: Adilabad Gondi Back-Translation)
  • Nyakyusa-Ngonde: marimba (source: Nyakyusa-Ngonde back translation)

In the UBS Helps for Translators‘ Human-made Things in the Bible (original title: The Works of Their Hands: Man-made Things in the Bible) it says the following:

Description: The lyre consisted of a sound box out of the ends or sides of which projected two arms. The arms supported a crosspiece. Strings descended from the crosspiece over the sound box. As with the nevel, the number of strings could vary. Their varying thickness and tension gave the instrument a range of notes. The lyre was normally made of wood. The strings were made of animal intestines (perhaps from sheep).

Usage: The strings were normally plucked with the fingers. The kinor in particular is frequently depicted as an instrument that accompanied singing.

Job 21:12: For the stringed instrument (kinor in Hebrew) accompanying the tambourine, French Common Language Version has “guitar” and the French La Bible de Jérusalem has “zither,” which seems to be an instrument used in 1 Samuel 10:5. The first line of this verse may also be rendered “The children sing as people play the tambourine and the lyre.” In some languages these instruments will be a local drum and a stringed instrument; the latter may be a guitar. If no instruments can be found to render any of the instruments in this verse, the translator may have to express the whole verse differently; for example, “The children dance and sing and make joyful sounds/music.”

The identity of the instrument called sabka’ in Aramaic in Daniel (Hebrew) is uncertain. NRSVue renders it “trigon,” which is a small triangular lyre-type instrument with four strings. Probably trigon is technically correct, but it is unknown to the average English reader. Good News Translation has attempted to find a better-known equivalent with “zither,” but the zither has far too many strings (over thirty). Some translations use “lyre” for sabka’ and render the Aramaic word qathros before it as “zither”. Revised English Bible has “triangle,” but most readers will wrongly identify that as a percussion instrument. Common English Version avoids the problem by rendering only the first three instruments in the list and grouping the last three together, including sabka’ as follows: “Trumpets, flutes, harps, and all other kinds of musical instruments.”

Lyre (source: Knowles, revised by Bass (c) British and Foreign Bible Society 1994)

Quoted with permission.

complete verse (1 Chronicles 15:21)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 1 Chronicles 15:21:

  • Kupsabiny: “Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, Jeiel and Azaziah.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, Jeiel and Azaziah were chosen to play the melody called Shiminith on the lute.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The ones-who-were-entrusted to play the harps in a low tune were Matitia, Elifelehu, Miknea, Obed Edom, Jiel, and Azazia.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, Jeiel and Azaziah played harps.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 25:9 - 25:31

The twenty-four names listed here correspond to the sons listed in verses 2-4 (although see the comments on 1 Chr 25.3). The family of Asaph received duty in groups 1, 3, 5, and 7; the family of Jeduthun received duty in groups 2, 4, 8, 10, 12, and 14; and the family of Heman received duty in groups 6, 9, 11, 13, and 15-24.

Verses 9-31 are one long sentence in the Hebrew and contain much repetition. The form of the Hebrew is not repeated in Good News Translation, since the repetition creates a tedious style in English. Good News Translation combines and restructures these verses by beginning with “These 288 men were divided according to families into twenty-four groups of twelve, with a leader in charge of each group. This is the order in which they were on duty…” (similarly Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje). Good News Translation then simply numbers and lists the names of the twenty-four leaders. Compared to the format of Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation allows the reader to see immediately the names of the twenty-four leaders. Translators will need to consider what form will be most helpful in their language. Bible en français courant combines and restructures these verses in a different way as follows:

Here is the list of the leaders of the groups designated by lot: …
[The list of 24 names is then given in Bible en français courant.]
Each leader formed with other members of his family a group of twelve.

Another good model is Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, which reads:

9-31 They were divided into twenty-four groups. Each group corresponded to one family and was made up of 12 persons. This is the list of the heads of the groups, in the order determined by lot: … [Then the list of names follows in Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente in two columns.]

The first lot fell for Asaph to Joseph (verse 9): According to verse 2, Joseph may have been a son of Asaph. The words Asaph to Joseph most likely mean “Joseph of the family of Asaph” (Good News Translation; similarly New American Bible) or “Joseph of the Asaph clan” (New Living Translation). Other ways of expressing this same meaning include “the Asaphite, Joseph” (New Jerusalem Bible) and “Joseph, an Asaphite” (Moffatt).

Some interpreters think that the name Asaph is the result of a scribal error in which the following name, Joseph, was copied twice. (In Hebrew the two names Asaph and Joseph are more similar in spelling than in English.) Omitting the name Asaph brings the first group into agreement with the following groups, which mention one name only. Some translations correct the Hebrew text by omitting the name Asaph (so Revised English Bible, Einheitsübersetzung). But the textual evidence is solid for including the name Asaph here, and it should be included in translation.

Some translations add the words “his sons and his brothers, twelve” in verse 9 after the name Joseph in order to make this verse parallel with the following verses (so New International Version, New Living Translation, Revised English Bible, New American Bible, La Bible Pléiade, Knoppers). These words may have been accidentally omitted by a scribe. But the textual evidence is also solid for the Masoretic Text here. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text. In any case, this information is implied in the Masoretic Text after the name Joseph.

Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation differ on the names at group numbers 4, 7, 11, 13, and 15 because Good News Translation has harmonized the spellings with the forms of the names used earlier in the chapter. Izri (verse 11) is called “Zeri” in Good News Translation (also New Living Translation), which harmonizes with the same person’s name in verse 3, where it is spelled “Zeri.”:12-14 Jesharelah (verse 14) is called “Asharelah” in Good News Translation (also New Living Translation, Revised English Bible), which harmonizes the spelling with the name in verse 2:15-18 Azarel (verse 18) is called “Uzziel” in Good News Translation (also New Living Translation), which harmonizes the spelling with the name in verse 4:19-20 Shuba-el (verse 20) may be spelled “Shebuel” as in verse 4 (so Good News Translation),:21-22 and Jeremoth (verse 22) may be spelled “Jerimoth” as in verse 4 (so Good News Translation, New Living Translation, New Century Version). Rather than harmonize the spellings within the text, translators may choose to follow the model of Bible en français courant, which maintains the different spellings but then indicates in footnotes which names refer to the same persons.

Revised Standard Version and many other versions hyphenate the name Romamti-ezer (verse 31) because of the probable meaning of the name, which is “I will exalt [my] helper.”

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 .