“In each of these verses there are no less than four different words for locust: gazam, ‘arbeh, yeleq, and chasil. Most commentators accept that this refers to locusts in four different stages of development. These would presumably be the swarming adult locust, the resident adult locust, the wingless hopper, and the crawling nymph.
“The Good News Bible rendering ‘Swarm after swarm of locusts settled on the crops; what one swarm left, the next swarm devoured’ conveys the general idea, but is technically inaccurate in that not all the Hebrew words necessarily refer to swarming locusts. A more precise translation would be:
“What the swarming locusts left, the resident locusts ate;
What the resident locusts left, the young crawling locusts ate;
And what the young hopping locusts left, the young crawling locusts ate.” (Source: Hope 2003, p. 207)
Earlier English translations have tried to translate this verse by using different species:
That which the palmerworm hath left, the locust hath eaten: and that which the locust hath left, the bruchus hath eaten: and that which the bruchus hath left, the mildew hath destroyed. (Douay-Rheims)
That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten. (King James Version)
“It is interesting to note that most of the [East African] translations examined give specific local names for the types of stages of locusts referred to in 1:4. (…) The East African region has for many years experienced the scourge of locust devastation of crops and vegetation. The locust is therefore well known in this region and local languages obviously reflect the people’s knowledge. (…) Because locusts are so well known, verse 1:4 is indeed more dynamic in these languages than in English, and probably reflects the poetic nature of the original which English may not.”
Lingala for instance uses the different species hamhinzo, makonko, makololo, makelele for the different locusts. (Source: Maleme Taam-Ambey in The Bible Translator 1985, p. 216)
The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated in English as “locust” is translated in Ayutla Mixtec as “insect like flying ants” because locusts are not known locally (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.), and in Pa’o Karen as “grashopper” (source: Gordon Luce in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 153f. ).
In connection with John the Baptist (Matthew 3:4 and Mark 1:6) in is translated in Shuar as “edible grasshoppers” (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.), and in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) as geröstete Heuschrecken or “roasted locusts.” (Note that “Heuschrecken” literally means “the bane/horror of hay”).
The locust is the most important insect in the Bible, being mentioned many more times than any other insect. Although there are nine Hebrew words in the Bible which refer to locusts, the most common one is ’arbeh. The equivalent in Greek is akris, and in Latin it is locusta. These words certainly refer to the locust rather than to the grasshopper. All locusts and grasshoppers belong to the family Acrididae, which is a family within the order Orthoptera, or “straight-winged” insects. Many species are found in the land of Israel and Egypt, but the most important are the Migratory Locust Locusta migratoria, the Desert Locust Schistocerca gregaria, and the Moroccan Locust Dociostaurus moroccanus. All three species are an important local food and are probably all called ’arbeh in the Bible.
Grasshoppers and locusts are both six-legged, winged insects that are characterized by the fact that their third pair of legs is elongated and adapted to hopping. The lower portion of these legs has a row of spikes that are used both for making sounds and as a means of defense. The front wings are narrow, straight, and stiff. When not being used to fly, they function as a cover for thin, membrane-like hind wings, which are much larger and colored, and which are folded together like a Chinese fan. When the locust or grasshopper flies, it hops into the air spreading out its wings as it does so. It flies with a slight clattering sound, made by the stiff front wings striking each other.
Locusts differ from grasshoppers mainly in that they form swarms at certain periods and migrate to new areas, which they colonize. At other times they live either solitary or in small groups. Their reproduction rate varies with the climatic conditions. Eggs are laid in the soil in small packets, and hatching is related to the degree of humidity. In dry periods only a few hatch, but in periods of good rainfall they suddenly hatch out in exceptionally large numbers.
Unlike most other insects, locusts do not go through stages in which they exist as larvae or caterpillars. They emerge from the eggs as nymphs, which are simply tiny wingless locusts with undeveloped hopper legs. The nymphs, which can only crawl around, feed on green vegetation, consuming many times their own body weight each day. As they grow bigger and develop, they shed their skins. Their hopping legs develop before their wings, so that they pass through a stage when they can hop but not fly. At this stage, when they are referred to as “hoppers”, they exist in less dense masses than as nymphs, having spread out a little, but since they are now eating even more than before, they can still cause considerable damage to crops. Once they develop into adults they can both hop and fly. If the climatic conditions are right and exceptionally large numbers have developed to this stage, they completely devastate the vegetation where they have been developing. When this happens they begin to congregate in preparation for swarming. In other words they come together and migrate as a group to greener pastures, flying together in large swarms. At this congregating stage, during the migration and immediately after it, they present a major threat to crops and other vegetation, on which they feed unceasingly.
A locust swarm may consist of billions of locusts. A report of a single swarm in 1889 estimated for that swarm to cover 5,500 square kilometers (about 2,000 square miles). Certainly even in recent times swarms have been known large enough to blot out the sun like a large black cloud. The clattering of wings as the locusts approach is a sound hard to forget. Where the swarm lands, even temporarily, every green bush or clump of grass in sight is attacked by the locusts, and the sound of them munching on the leaves is clearly audible, sometimes for hours. Afterwards, hardly a single green leaf or blade of grass can be seen, and many bushes even have the bark eaten off, leaving them bare.
Against such enormous numbers ancient peoples felt absolutely helpless. There was no way they could stop the destruction. The lighting of grass fires helped only in a very small way. Ironically it is when locusts swarm like this that they can be easily caught in large numbers for eating. They are often caught in blankets, fishing nets, and baskets. The lower part of the hopping legs is snapped off, and they are cooked by toasting, grilling, frying, or broiling. In some places they are also eaten raw. When toasted and salted they taste a little like salted peanuts.
Some commentators have pointed out that the plague of locusts in Egypt probably provided the Israelites with food in the Arabian and Sinai deserts, since this is the usual migration route of locusts in that part of the world.
Following is a summary of the development cycle of the major locust species: Nymphs, which can only crawl, develop to a hopping stage; the hoppers develop wings and become adult locusts; if climatic conditions are right, these adults gather into swarms and migrate to new locations; the females lay eggs, and the whole cycle is repeated. There are thus four discernible phases: nymphs, hoppers, resident adults, and swarming or migrating adults. It is possible that chasil refers to the crawling nymph, yeleq to the juvenile hopper, ’arbeh to the resident adult, and gazam to the swarming adult. However, this is far from proven, as the words seem to be used almost interchangeably when referring to locust plagues.
Crickets and katydids: Crickets are a nocturnal relative of the locusts and grasshoppers. Some types have wings, others do not. They are usually black or brown, with shorter rounder bodies, and they shelter during the day under rocks or logs, or, in the case of the so-called mole crickets, in holes that they dig. At night they make characteristic high-pitched chirping sounds, which carry a surprisingly long way. Each species makes a slightly different sound. Like locusts and grasshoppers they feed on vegetation, usually leaves.
Katydids are similar to crickets but are usually green and have wings. They are active at night, when they make cricket-like chirping sounds, but settle during the day underneath leaves in trees. Their wings are leaf-shaped, and with their green color they have excellent camouflage. Some katydids eat other insects.
Both crickets and katydids have extremely long feelers.
Given their large numbers and swarming characteristics, it is small wonder that locusts were a symbol of a vast attacking army against which there was no defense. They were also a symbol of divine punishment.
The Migratory Locust Locusta migratoria is found in many parts of the world, except North America. In these areas it should be easy to find a local word. However, in some countries with high rainfall this and other species of locust do not swarm in the same way that they do in the Middle East and the drier parts of Africa. In these countries it may be necessary in some contexts to use a phrase such as “swarms of locusts” rather than simply “locusts”. In areas where locusts are not known, a phrase like “large/giant grasshopper” can usually be substituted.
The Hebrew words gev, gov and govay are related to a verb meaning “to swarm” or “to gather together”, and thus the reference is almost certainly to the locust.
The word tselatsal (Deuteronomy 28:42; Isaiah 18:1) represents the sound of insects’ wings, and the reference is most likely to the sound made by a swarm of locusts. The English versions that have “whirring” or “buzzing” make some attempt at reflecting this, but “buzzing” is inadequate as a description of the sound such a swarm makes. “Clattering”, “chirping”, “whirring”, or “fluttering” comes closest in English to representing the sound represented by the Hebrew word.
In many Bantu languages in Africa, and in other languages where ideophones occur which express the sound of thousands of whirring wings, such ideophones are a good equivalent. Elsewhere a noun phrase, modified by an adverbial expression similar to the English, can be used.
In most contexts the word chagav seems to mean “grasshopper”, the exception being 2 Chronicles 7:13, where the reference is to locusts. In the two passages where the grasshopper symbolizes something small and insignificant (Numbers 13:33 and Isaiah 40:22), it may not be possible to capture the right inference by translating literally. In such cases the translator is free to use some other insect that is symbolic of small size and insignificance in the local culture, such as “ant”, “louse”, “flea”, and others. In cases where no insect name carries this symbolism, the name of an animal with the correct connotations can be used; for example, “mouse” or “squirrel”.
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joel 1:4:
Kupsabiny: “Locusts threw themselves onto the crops. One finished the food that the other had left.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “What the cutting locusts left; the swarming locusts have eaten. What the swarming locusts left, the hopping locusts have eaten, and what the hopping locusts left, the destroying locusts have eaten.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “One-after-another/[lit. follow-follow], the swarm/[lit. large-group] of locusts attacked. The remaining plants that were- not -finished-up by one swarm/[lit. large-group] (of locust) were- again -eaten by the next swarm/[lit. large-group] until the plants were-finished-up.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “The locusts have replaced-one-another in destroying the plants. What the ones-that-preceded left-behind, those-that-took-their-place finished-off (lit. used-up).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
This verse gives a simple but powerful description of the plague of locusts. Translators may wish to make it a separate stanza, as in Revised Standard Version.
The text is not very specific about when the locust plague occurred, but it probably happened in the recent past. Some languages use different past tenses depending on whether an event took place earlier in the day, a few days ago, in the weeks past, or years back. If a translator has to be more specific than the original text, it is safe to assume that the disaster took place in the preceding weeks or months.
What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten is literally “The remainder of the cutting locust, the swarming locust has eaten.” In some languages it may be better to reorder this sentence by saying “The swarming locust has eaten what the cutting locust left.” The next four lines may be reordered in the same way since they are parallel to these two lines.
The Hebrew words rendered cutting locust, swarming locust, hopping locust, and destroying locust are the names of four different kinds of locusts. These names probably refer to different stages of the locust as it develops. The names are used in a way that connects one line with the next one, as the previous name is repeated and the next name introduced. This rhetorical device helps to emphasize the idea of complete destruction, as the locusts increase and the crops decrease. The locust is sometimes called “grasshopper,” since it belongs to the same family of insects. Locusts have very long and strong hind legs that enable these insects to jump great distances. They have one pair of hard, straight wings which cover a second pair of wings that, when uncovered, are used in flying. It is only the last, adult stage of the locust that can fly. Its food is primarily green, leafy vegetation, although if that is gone, it will also eat twigs and even bark that is tender. Because Joel’s names for the stages of the locusts cannot be identified exactly, and because the verse emphasizes the succession of one destructive attack after another, Good News Translation expresses this succession by rendering the verse as follows: “Swarm after swarm of locusts settled on the crops; what one swarm left, the next swarm devoured.” In this way Good News Translation avoids giving the insects names that may not correspond to the meaning of the Hebrew names and that may be misleading. However, All Creatures Great and Small points out that Good News Translation‘s rendering “is technically inaccurate in that not all the Hebrew words necessarily refer to swarming locusts.” It offers the following model for verse 4 as more precise:
What the swarming locusts left, the resident locusts ate;
What the resident locusts left, the young hopping locusts ate;
And what the young hopping locusts left, the young crawling locusts ate.
It is not known how much time elapsed between each swarm of locusts. They could have occurred just a few days or weeks apart, or they could have been separated by a longer period, each swarm devouring a separate harvest. However, since it is likely that the names represent various stages in the development of one generation of locusts, the time between each stage probably was not very long.
In many African languages it is possible to use terms for different species of locusts, although some do not seem to come in swarms. As a result the focus might shift to the different species, while the text emphasizes the gradual destruction of all the crops by the invading swarms. Translators will probably do best by using the most generic term for locusts in their language consistently, and by following the Good News Translation idea of the successions of the swarms of locusts devouring everything.
It is possible that, in situations where locust invasions are common, languages may have different terms for “locust” reflecting the various stages of development of the insect as in the Hebrew. In such cases translators may be able to use the terms of their own language and at the same time stay closer to the Hebrew form.
If translators use one generic term for “locust,” De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling provides a possible model: “What the first locust left, the second one chewed off, what the second one left over, the third one mowed down, and what was left after the third one, the fourth one cleaned up.” If they use only one term, they may have to give up some of the Hebrew parallelism. However, they can compensate for the loss of parallelism to some extent by stating explicitly that “everything was devoured” (Bijbel in Gewone Taal; similarly Contemporary English Version). What is most important to communicate to the readers is that gradually the entire harvest was destroyed by these creatures.
Quoted with permission from de Blois, Kees & Dorn, Louis. A Handbook on Joel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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