gazelle

Both the Hebrew and Greek names are probably general terms for gazelle. At least two types of gazelle the Dorcas Gazelle Gazella dorcas and the Palestine or Arabian Gazelle Gazella arabica were found in the Middle East. They are still to be found in secluded areas.

Gazelles are small to medium sized plains antelopes, inhabiting savannah plains and semideserts. Both sexes have horns, except for the female impala, which is without horns. The horns of the gazelle species mentioned above are lyre-shaped about 25-50 centimeters (10-20 inches) in length. Gazelles are reddish brown with almost white underparts. They are long-legged and graceful and are expert jumpers. They live in small herds of up to about thirty. Females become sexually active at one year and bear young every year. This high rate of reproduction ensures their survival. They feed on both grass and the leaves of acacia and other bushes.

A breeding herd consists of one dominant breeding male and a group of females. The other males are chased from the herd when they become sexually active and they then form bachelor herds. These bachelor herds are the prime target for human and animal hunters since they provide a convenient source of meat while leaving the breeding cycle intact. In biblical times gazelles were trapped in nets or snares or were shot with bows and arrows.

The gazelle was seen as the cleanest of game animals since it met all the requirements of the Law concerning cloven hooves and cud-chewing. It was also a symbol of speed grace and beauty (the Hebrew root means beauty) and of female sexuality and fertility.

Where a language distinguishes between male and female animals, tsvi should be translated by the male form and tsviyah by the female form.

In East Africa where gazelles are well-known, a generic word for gazelles or the specific word for one of the smaller gazelles, such as the Thompson’s Gazelle Gazella thompsonii, is suitable. Elsewhere in Africa where the impala is known, the word for this antelope can be used.

Elsewhere, the word for a small antelope or deer that lives in herds can be used for the references that are literal, and the word for some swift, graceful antelope or deer can be used in the contexts where speed, grace, or beauty are being symbolized. As usual, in areas where gazelles, antelopes, and deer are unknown, a transliteration from the dominant international language or from the Hebrew original can be used. In such cases a description should be given in the glossary.

Gazella dorcas, Wikimedia Commons

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

complete verse (2 Samuel 2:18)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Samuel 2:18:

  • Kupsabiny: “At that place there was Joab, Abishai, and Asahel, the three sons of Zeruiah. Asahel could run swiftly like a gazelle which is in the field.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “The three sons of Zeruiah, Joab, Abishai and Asahel were there. Asahel was one who could run as fast as a deer in a field.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The three children of Zeruya who were Joab, Abishai, and Asahel (were) companions in the battle. Asahel runs fast like a deer, and he chased Abner without looking-behind.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Zeruiah’s three sons were there on that day: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel was able to run very fast; he could run as fast as a wild gazelle/antelope.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on 2 Samuel 2:18

The three sons … were there: some languages may be forced to say either “all three sons,” implying that she had no others, or “three of the sons of Zeruiah,” implying that she did have other sons who were not present during the battle. Since there is no evidence that Zeruiah had other sons, it may be better to say “all three of Zeruiah’s sons were there.”

Sons of Zeruiah: in verse 13 only one of Zeruiah’s sons, Joab, is mentioned. Here his two brothers, Abishai (see 1 Sam 26.6) and Asahel, are also introduced because the next few verses center on what happened to Asahel. Although Knox uses spellings for the names in the passage that are different from the spellings in Revised Standard Version, he does provide another possible model with the following structure: “Two sons of Sarvia [Zeruiah] besides Joab were fighting, Abisai [Abishai] and Asael [Asahel] ….”

Swift of foot: the expression swift of foot (also found in Amos 2.15) is a way of saying that a person was able to run very fast.

A wild gazelle: or more literally “as one of the gazelles which are in the field” (An American Translation). A gazelle is a kind of antelope. The kind found in Palestine were about two feet (60 cm) tall at the shoulders and about three feet (1 meter) long. They had ringed horns about one foot (30 cm) long and were fast and graceful. Instead of using the adjective wild, which seems to focus on the fact that the animal is untamed, many interpreters feel that what was intended was rather a reference to the speed of a gazelle “in an open field” (New American Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy). A similar expression occurs in 1 Chr 12.8.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .