The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “love” in English is typically translated in Hakka Chinese as thung-siak / 痛惜 or “pain-love” when it refers to God’s love.
The same term is used for a variety of Hebrew terms that cover a range of English translations that refer to God as the agent, including “love,” “compassion,” and “mercy.”
Paul McLean explains: “[Thung-siak / 痛惜] has been used for many years in a popular Hakka-Christian mountain song based on John 3:16. The translation team decided that for this and other reasons it would be a good rendering here. It helps point to the fact that God’s ‘love’ is a compassionate (cum passio, with suffering) love.”
The Hebrew and Greek that is transliterated as “Ephraim” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with the sign for “palm tree” referring to the palm of Deborah in the land of Ephraim (see Judges 4:5. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Hosea 1:18:
Kankanaey: “When that is finished, I will-make-an-agreement-with all wild animals and birds on the earth so that they do not harm my people. I will also remove bows/arrows and swords and I will-cause-to-stop wars in their towns/countries so that their lives will become-peaceful.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Hosea 11:8:
Kupsabiny: “But how can I be refusing you, oh Ephraim? How can I discard you, oh Israel? How can I punish you like I punished the city of Admah, and/or like I punished the city of Zeboyim? My stomach does not accept me to do like that because the love I have for you (plur.) is strong/heavy.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “O Ephraim, how can I abandon you? O Israel, how can I hand you over into the hands of the wicked? How can I wipe you out like Admah? How can I destroy you like Zeboiim? My heart is completely torn up within me. My heart is full of compassion. ” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “‘Those- (who) -come-from-Israel, I can- not -reject you (plur.) or just leave (you) alone. I can- not -completely destroy you (plur.) like what I did to the towns of Admah/[Adma] and Zeboim. My feeling can- not -endure that I will-do this to you (plur.). I pity you (plur.) so much.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “‘Israel, am I perhaps able-to-endure handing- you (sing.) -over to your (sing.) enemies? Am I perhaps able-to-endure abandoning you (sing.)? Can I actually (RQ implies no) destroy you (sing.) like Adma and Zeboiim (marker indicates these are place names)? Here-now I repent. I-now-realize I am not able-to-do-it because of my extreme mercy/kindness.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
English: “You people of Israel, I certainly do not want to abandon you and allow your enemies to capture you. I do not want to act toward you like I acted toward Admah and Zeboiim, cities that I completely destroyed when I destroyed Sodom. I have changed my mind about punishing you; my desire to pity you has increased.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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.
After all the words of warning, threatening warfare and destruction on Israel, verses 8-9 are a statement of God’s continuing love for Israel, a total shift from the preceding verses. In translation this shift can be marked by a blank line (Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation) or a new paragraph (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch).
How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I treat you like Zeboiim?: These four questions are rhetorical. The first and the third questions use the same Hebrew verb, which can mean “give,” “put” or “set,” depending upon the context. Revised Standard Version translates it give … up and make.
How can I give you up, O Ephraim? and How can I hand you over, O Israel? are parallel ways of saying the same thing. Yahweh owns, loves and protects Israel, yet it would be right for him to give Israel over to its enemies as a punishment. So he asks how he can force himself to do this. Give you up and hand you over refer to delivering them to someone else. Revised English Bible says “hand you over … surrender you.” However, the verb “surrender” implies that God has lost the battle and must therefore give up his people. The Hebrew verbs here do not carry this meaning unless the context calls for it, but they are simply verbs for giving, even as a gift. Good News Translation‘s “abandon” is not really accurate. It is not stated to whom God will give them, but we can assume it will be Israel’s enemies.
For the synonymous names Ephraim and Israel, Good News Translation uses only “Israel” (see comments on 4.17 and 5.3). We recommend keeping both names.
How can I make you like Admah? and How I can I treat you like Zeboiim? are two more parallel questions. Admah and Zeboiim were cities near the east side of the Dead Sea. Abraham had rescued them in his battle with Chedorlaomer (Gen 14), but we learn from Deut 29.23 that they were later included in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19). Together these cities have come to symbolize wickedness and subsequent destruction as a result of God’s wrath. The unspoken answer to these rhetorical questions is “I could not so destroy you.”
My heart recoils within me: In Hebrew thought the heart is the location of the intellect and the will, as well as the location of desires and emotions. Recoils renders a Hebrew verb meaning “overturn” or “change.” So this line in Hebrew can be interpreted in two ways. First, it may be an expression of deep emotions, as in Revised Standard Version. It shows God’s inner feelings of discomfort if he had to destroy Israel. God in his love draws back from such a complete and permanent destruction. Good News Translation follows this interpretation by saying “My heart will not let me do it!” Second, it may describe God’s change of mind, as in New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh’s “I have had a change of heart,” and New International Version‘s “My heart is changed within me.” This second option matches well with the final line, which then gives the grounds for the change of mind. Whichever interpretation translators follow, translators should use an appropriate expression for heart. Not all cultures use this word when referring to the emotions or the mind.
My compassion grows warm and tender: The Hebrew noun for compassion comes from a root that means “have sympathy” or “be sorry.” Grows warm and tender renders one verb in Hebrew. This verb literally means “to become hot.” Here it expresses deep love and tenderness (compare Gen 43.30 and 1 Kgs 3.26, where it is rendered “yearned”). The Hebrew text also has a word meaning “all” or “together,” so New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh renders this line as “All My tenderness is stirred.” Good News Translation is a little more clear with “My love for you is too strong”—too strong, of course, to give Israel up to permanent destruction.
A translation model for this verse is:
• How can I give you up, Ephraim,
deliver you up, Israel?
How can I give you up like Admah,
treat you like Zeboiim?
I have had a change of heart,
all my compassion for you is burning.
Quoted with permission from Dorn, Louis & van Steenbergen, Gerrit. A Handbook on Hosea. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
This paragraph contrasts with the previous one. The previous paragraph promises that the nation of Israel will be taken into exile in Assyria. This paragraph tells about the time after that exile. In these verses, the LORD promises that he will not completely destroy them. Rather, in the future he will bring them back to their land.
11:8a–d
Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:
8a How could I give you up, O Ephraim ?
8b How could I surrender you, O Israel ?
8c How could I make youlike Admah ?
8d How could I treat youlike Zeboiim ?
These lines show the LORD’s emotional anguish due to the coming destruction and captivity of Israel. They also indicate that the LORD is the one who decides the fate of Israel.
The lines are probably rhetorical questions with an implied answer of, “I cannot!” See the general comment for other ways to translate these lines.
11:8a–b
How: In rhetorical questions, this Hebrew question word can indicate emotions such as despair, amazement, or horror. Here it is an exclamation that indicates grief or anguish.
could I give you up…could I surrender you: In both these phrases, the LORD asks himself if he can give Israel to their enemy, Assyria, to destroy them.
Ephraim…Israel: Both names refer to the people of Israel.
11:8c–d
How could I make you like Admah? How could I treat you like Zeboiim?: In both questions, the LORD asks himself if he can destroy Israel as he destroyed these two cities. In some languages, it may be helpful to make explicit that these two clauses are about destruction. For example:
How can I destroy you like Admah or demolish you like Zeboiim? (New Living Translation (2004))
How: See comment above on How.
could I make you like…could I treat you like: In this context, the Hebrew words for make you and treat you have similar meanings. Here they both mean “do to you.”
Admah…Zeboiim: The LORD completely destroyed these two cities along with Sodom and Gomorrah because of their extreme wickedness. See Deuteronomy 29:23.
General Comment on 11:8a–d
In some languages, it may be more natural to use statements instead of rhetorical questions or use some of each. It also may be more natural to combine some of the parallel parts. For example, the Contemporary English Version has statements for the first two parallel lines. It has kept the third and fourth lines as rhetorical questions but has combined them.
Israel, I can’t let you go. I can’t give you up. How could I possibly destroy you as I did the towns of Admah and Zeboiim?
11:8e–f
Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:
8e My heartis turned within Me;
8f My compassionis stirred !
11:8e
My heart: The Hebrews considered the heart to be the center of thought and knowledge. Some languages use a different body organ, such as the liver, to signify attitudes and thoughts. Use an expression that is natural in your language for this purpose.
is turned: In Hebrew, there are two main interpretations of this phrase:
(1) The phrase means “to change one’s mind/plan.” For example:
I have changed my mind (God’s Word)
(2) The word means “to be in distress.” For example:
My heart is torn within me (New Living Translation (2004))
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). It fits better with following context of 11:9 in which the LORD describes what he no longer plans to do. It also allows the second interpretation. His change of heart is based on his strong compassion for his people.
Here are some other ways to translate this verse part:
My heart will not let me do it! (Good News Translation) -or-
A change of heart moves me (Revised English Bible)
within Me: In this context, the Hebrew word indicates the location where the decisions/emotions take place.
11:8f
There Hebrew is a word here which means “together.” Here it gives emphasis to the intensity of the emotion that the LORD feels. Some versions leave this word implicit. Some others indicate this intensity in a different way. The Berean Standard Bible indicates the intensity with the exclamation point at the end of the sentence. For example:
I am deeply moved. (God’s Word)
Indicate the intensity of emotion in a natural way in your language.
compassion: The Hebrew word refers to an emotion of compassion and pity. It describes a desire to bring comfort.
stirred!: In Hebrew, this word is literally “grow warm.” Hebrew uses the word “warm” or “hot” to describe strong feelings. For example:
my compassion grows warm and tender (New Revised Standard Version)
Here are some other ways to translate this word:
My compassion overflows (New Living Translation (2004)) -or-
my love for you stirs up my pity (New Century Version)
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.