complete verse (Ezekiel 23:9)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Ezekiel 23:9:

  • Kupsabiny: “So, I handed her over to those her friends in Assyria whom she so strongly desired.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “‘Therefore I handed- her -over to the hand of her lovers who came-from-Asiria whom she really chased.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “So I allowed the Assyrian soldiers, whom she wanted to have sex with, to capture her.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

1st person pronoun referring to God (Japanese)

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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.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also pronoun for “God”.

Translation commentary on Ezekiel 23:9

Verses 10-11 describe God’s punishment of Oholah, the northern kingdom of Israel.

Therefore I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted means God handed Oholah over to her Assyrian lovers whom she loved so much (see Ezek 23.5). Hands (literally “hand”) is a metaphor for “power” or “control.” Translators may render this verse as follows:

• So I handed her over to the power of her lovers, the Assyrians whom [or, the ones] she lusted after.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .