The Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as a form of “save” in English is translated in Shipibo-Conibo with a phrase that means literally “make to live,” which combines the meaning of “to rescue” and “to deliver from danger,” but also the concept of “to heal” or “restore to health.”
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Kings 19:34:
Kupsabiny: “It is like that because I shall defend this city because of my honor and my servant David.’ ’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “For my own sake and for the sake of my servant David, I will defend this city and deliver it.’"” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “I will-protect and save this city for my honor and because of my promise to David my servant.’ ’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “I will defend this city and prevent it from being destroyed. I will do this for the sake of my own reputation and because of what I promised to King David, who served me well.’ ’” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
For: Here the Hebrew text has only the common conjunction, which is omitted by a number of modern versions (Good News Translation, New International Version, Revised English Bible, New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). In this context the conjunction seems to introduce the cause of what is stated in verses 32-33, so it is correctly rendered For.
I will defend this city to save it: God defends Jerusalem so that pagan people will not capture it. He acts in order to deliver and preserve the city. The Hebrew verb translated defend has the basic meaning of “enclose [in order to protect].” The Hebrew noun for “shield” comes from this same root, and for this reason some translations say “I shall shield this city to deliver it” (Revised English Bible; similarly New American Bible).
For my own sake: By saving the city of Jerusalem from being overrun by the Assyrian forces, Yahweh was protecting his own honor. The idea that Yahweh acts to preserve his reputation is found rather frequently in the Old Testament (see, for example, Psa 23.3; 25.11; 106.8; Isa 43.25; 48.11; Jer 14.7, 21).
And for the sake of my servant David: Since David was no longer living at the time this statement was made, some languages may require that the idea be stated in a different way. Some may say “because of what I promised to David who served me faithfully.” Compare 1 Kgs 11.12-13 and 2 Sam 7.8-16.
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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