reconcile, reconciliation

The Greek terms that are translated as “reconcile” and “reconciliation” in English are translated in various ways. Nida (1952, pp. 140) says this:

“The North Alaskan Inupiatun describe reconciliation in the simple terms of ‘making friends again.’ That is to say, ‘God was in Christ making friends again with the world.’ The Uduk in the Sudan express this same truth, but in the rather interesting phrase ‘meet, snapping fingers together again.’ This expression is derived from the Uduk’s practice of snapping fingers together when they meet each other. Instead of shaking hands, they extend their thumbs and middle fingers and snap fingers together, but only friends will do this. Men who have something against each other refuse to acknowledge each other in this way. And so it is that the natural man is an enemy of God; he refuses to snap fingers with God, but God has come to reconcile man to Himself and through Jesus Christ has brought man into fellowship with Himself. Man and God may now meet ‘to snap fingers together again.’

“The Tai Dam of Indo-China employ quite a different figure of speech. They say that reconciliation consists in ‘rubbing off the corners.’ This does not refer to social acceptability, but to rubbing off the corners so that two objects, meant for each other, will fit together. Man is regarded as being incapable of fitting into the plan and fellowship of God because of the sin which has deformed him and which stands out as an ugly growth on his personality. The corners of iniquity must be rubbed off so that man may be reconciled to God and made to fit into God’s eternal plan for the world.”

Other translations include:

  • “our hearts become good toward him” in Tzeltal
  • “he makes us his friends again” in Huehuetla Tepehua
  • “we are brought close to him” in Highland Totonac
  • “he is no longer angry with us” in Sayula Popoluca
  • “being put in a state of well-being with God” in Yatzachi Zapotec
  • “opposition to God was healed” in Chol (source for this and above: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • “man has-a-good-relationship/is-in-harmony-again with God” in Muna (source: René van den Berg)
  • “have become friends of God” in Western Bukidnon Manobo (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • “brought together with God” in Tenango Otomi (source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
  • “receive Deo’s action of peace which came to us” in Bariai (source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • “be at peace with Great Above One” in Mairasi (source: Enggavoter 2004)

Translation commentary on 1 Esdras 4:31

At this the king would gaze at her with mouth agape: For this idiomatic expression see the comments on verses 18-19. The king is so taken in by Apame’s playful teasing that, even though he has been insulted, he just stares at her, fascinated. This clause may be rendered “When she does this, the king looks at her with his mouth wide open [or, his jaw hanging open].”

If she smiles at him, he laughs; if she loses her temper with him, he flatters her, that she may be reconciled to him: He takes his cues from her. He laughs if she smiles, and if she starts pouting, he tries to get her to smile for him. She loses her temper is probably a bit strong for the context. The root meaning of the Greek verb here is “to become bitter,” and in this context it means no more than that she pouts like a child—the kind of behavior that would make the king be nice to her and say nice things to get her to smile again.

Here is an alternative model for this verse:

• When she did this, the king just stared at her with his jaw hanging open. When she smiles at him, he laughs. If she pouts [or, sulks], he talks to her sweetly to get her to be pleasant again.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Esdras. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.