complete verse (Joshua 4:22)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joshua 4:22:

  • Kupsabiny: “tell (plur.) them, ‘The people of Israel crossed the river Jordan on dry ground.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “at that time you are to speak to them like this, ‘The Israelites crossed the Jordan river on dry ground.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “[you (plur.)] tell them that the Israelinhon walked on the dry ground when they crossed-over the River of Jordan.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “tell them, ‘We Israeli people crossed the Jordan River as though we were crossing on dry ground.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (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 formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).

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

Translation commentary on Joshua 4:21 - 4:24

Verses 21-24 repeat in an expanded form the instructions contained in 4.6-7. In verse 21 the Hebrew has “When in the future your children ask their fathers,” which Good News Translation renders when your children ask you. This would apply, of course, to all succeeding generations. In verse 23 is the explicit comparison with what the Lord did at the Sea of Reeds. At the end of verse 23 the Hebrew has “just as the LORD your God dried up the Sea of Reeds for us until we crossed over.” (It should be noted that Good News Translation omits “until we crossed over” as being redundant; however, it should be included in translation.) The adult generation that departed from Egypt had died during the forty years of wandering in the wilderness, but the younger generation, of course, had survived (see 5.4-7, below).

In some languages it will be more natural to shift what these stones mean (verse 21) to direct discourse: “ ‘What do these stones mean?’ ” (see Revised Standard Version). This will involve a quotation within a direct quotation, but for many readers this will be easier to handle than an indirect quotation within a direct quotation, especially when the first indirect quotation is followed by a second indirect quotation containing a lengthy answer to the first: you will tell them … just as he dried up the Red Sea for us. So the following restructuring may be used:

• “In the future, your children will ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ Tell them, ‘These stones are to remind us of the time when we crossed the Jordan on dry ground. The LORD our God dried up the water of the Jordan River for us until we had crossed, just as he dried up the Sea of Reeds for our ancestors until they crossed.’…. ”

Because of this introduces the twofold result of the instruction. It does so in the form of a confession of faith: all the Gentiles will know of the Lord’s mighty power (literally “the hand of the LORD is mighty”), and the Israelites will honorThe Masoretic text has “you will fear”; but by a change in vowels the Hebrew becomes “they (that is, the Gentiles) will fear”; so Gray, Bright; RV New English Bible Bible de Jérusalem. (or be in awe of, respect, revere; see verse 14 for the same verb) him forever. In place of beginning the verse with Because of this, it may be more appropriate to translate “Teach your children these things so that….”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .