sell

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “sell” in English is translated in Noongar as wort-bangal or “away-barter.” Note that “buy” is translated as bangal-barranga or “get-barter.” (Source: Bardip Ruth-Ang 2020)

See also buy and buying / selling.

complete verse (Exodus 21:35)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Exodus 21:35:

  • Kupsabiny: “And if someone’s bull knocks another person’s bull to death, the one which knocked the other has to be sold and those two people divide the money and also the meat from the dead bull.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “If a man’s ox injures another, and it dies, the two owners shall sell the live ox and divide the price between them and each shall also own half of the dead ox.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “‘If a bull/cow of a man kills the bull/cow of his/her fellow-being, the two of them are-to-sell the cow that is alive and divide the amount of-this. They should- also -divide-in-half the meat of the dead bull.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Bariai: “‘And if a man’s bulmakao strikes the bulmakao of another man so that it dies, the two of them will let the living bulmakao go to people so that they buy it. And when it’s done then they [will] distribute that money together with the bulmakao who died between the two of them.” (Source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • Opo: “If cow of a man butts (recip.) with cow of another, and the one die, that which lives, let them sell it out, divide its price [body], and that which died, let them divide its flesh [body].” (Source: Opo Back Translation)
  • English: “If someone’s bull hurts another person’s bull with the result that it dies, the owners of both bulls must sell the bull that is living, and they must divide between them the money that they receive for it. They must also divide between them the meat of the animal that died.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Exod 21:35

When is “And if,” using the word ki (see verse 2). When one man’s ox hurts another’s is literally “And if a bull of a man injures the bull of his fellow.” The word for hurts is the same word used in verse 22 for hurting a pregnant woman. Here, of course, it refers to serious injury. So that it dies means that the bull is killed by the injury. Good News Translation simply has “If one man’s bull kills another man’s bull.”

Then they shall sell the live ox refers to the two owners, even though the “live bull” (Good News Translation) had belonged to only one man. The owner of the dead bull must also participate in the sale of the live animal. And divide the price of it is literally “and they will divide its silver,” meaning “the money” received from the sale of the “live bull.” So Good News Translation has “and divide the money.” And the dead beast also they shall divide is literally “and also the dead they will divide.” This means, of course, that they will “divide up the meat from the dead animal” (Good News Translation). The word for divide does not necessarily mean to divide into two equal parts, but here the context suggests just that. So New American Bible and Contemporary English Version add the word “equally” since this is a safe assumption.

Quoted with permission from Osborn, Noel D. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Exodus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1999. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .