14Moreover, the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem and had brought into the temple of Babylon, these King Cyrus took out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor.
The term that is transliterated as “Nebuchadnezzar” in English is translated in American Sign Language with the signs for “king” and one signifying a wavy beard, referring to the common way of wearing a beard in Mesopotamia (see here ). (Source: Ruth Anna Spooner, Ron Lawer)
“Nebuchadnezzar” in American Sign Language, source: Deaf Harbor
In Spanish Sign Language it is translated with a sign depicting “idol in my image,” referring to Daniel 3:1. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
The name that is transliterated as “Jerusalem” in English is signed in French Sign Language with a sign that depicts worshiping at the Western Wall in Jerusalem:
While a similar sign is also used in British Sign Language, another, more neutral sign that combines the sign “J” and the signs for “place” is used as well. (Source: Anna Smith)
“Jerusalem” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Ezra 5:14:
Kupsabiny: “He also said that the things of gold and silver which Nebuchadnezzar had removed from the House of God in Jerusalem and taken to the house of his gods/idols he worshipped in Babylon should be brought out. King Cyrus gave those things to someone who was called Sheshbazzar who he had made in charge/governor.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “[He] also returned to a person named Sheshbazzar the gold and silver utensils of the temple of God which Nebuchadnezzar had brought from the temple of Jerusalem to the temple of Babylon. "King Cyrus appointed Sheshbazzar as governor.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “He also returned the gold and silver articles/things of the temple of God. These articles were-taken before by Nebucadnesar from the temple of Jerusalem and had-placed in the temple of Babilonia. King Cyrus hand-over these articles to Sheshbazar whom he chose to be governor of Juda.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “Cyrus returned to the Jewish leaders all the gold and silver cups that had been taken from the temple in Jerusalem and which had been put in the temple in Babylon. Those cups were given to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom King Cyrus had appointed to be the governor in Judah.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:
Ninia Yali: “big brother with the uplifted name” (source: Daud Soesilio in Noss 2007, p. 175)
Nyamwezi: mutemi: generic word for ruler, by specifying the city or nation it becomes clear what kind of ruler (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Ghomála’: Fo (“The word Fo refers to the paramount ruler in the kingdoms of West Cameroon. He holds administrative, political, and religious power over his own people, who are divided into two categories: princes (descendants of royalty) and servants (everyone else).” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn))
Faye Edgerton retells how the term in Navajo (Dinė) was determined:
“[This term was] easily expressed in the language of Biblical culture, which had kings and noblemen with their brilliant trappings and their position of honor and praise. But leadership among the Navajos is not accompanied by any such titles or distinctions of dress. Those most respected, especially in earlier days, were their headmen, who were the leaders in raids, and the shaman, who was able to serve the people by appealing for them to the gods, or by exorcising evil spirits. Neither of these made any outward show. Neither held his position by political intrigue or heredity. If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior. If the shaman failed many times in his healing ceremonies, it was considered that he was making mistakes in the chants, or had lost favor with the gods, and another was sought. The term Navajos use for headman is derived from a verb meaning ‘to move the head from side to side as in making an oration.’ The headman must be a good orator, able to move the people to go to war, or to follow him in any important decision. This word is naat’áanii which now means ‘one who rules or bosses.’ It is employed now for a foreman or boss of any kind of labor, as well as for the chairman of the tribal council. So in order to show that the king is not just a common boss but the highest ruler, the word ‘aláahgo, which expresses the superlative degree, was put before naat’áanii, and so ‘aláahgo naat’áanii ‘anyone-more-than-being around-he-moves-his-head-the-one-who’ means ‘the highest ruler.’ Naat’áanii was used for governor as the context usually shows that the person was a ruler of a country or associated with kings.”
This verse is a repetition of Ezra 1.7-8 with the change of a few details. One difference is that here the phrase house of God is used and there it was “house of the LORD.” Both texts clearly establish the contrast between the temple in Jerusalem and the temple of Babylon. The vessels that King Nebuchadnezzar had brought from God’s Temple into the temple of his god were now removed from that temple by King Cyrus, who “gave them” or “delivered them” to Sheshbazzar.
In 1.8 Sheshbazzar was called “the prince of Judah,” but here he is “appointed governor of Judah” (Good News Translation). Although Good News Translation translates both terms as “governor” in the two verses, it is preferable to maintain the distinction of the text. The term used here for governor is the same as that used for the Persian governors (see verse 3).
Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Ezra. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.