serve

The Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek that is typically translated in English as “serve,” “minister,” “walk with,” or “service” is translated in Igede as myị ẹrụ or “agree with message (of the one you’re serving).” (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)

In Quetzaltepec Mixe, “serve” is translated as “obey.” (Source: Robert Bascom)

complete verse (Judges 2:13)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Judges 2:13:

  • Kupsabiny: “Those people of Israel left God and went/started to worship Baal and Ashtaroth.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “They abandoned the worship of the LORD [and] worshiped Baal and the goddess Ashtaroth.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “because they rejected him and served Baal and Ashtoret.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “They did things that Yahweh said were very evil. They worshiped idols that represented the god Baal and the goddess Astarte. They worshiped the various gods that the people-groups around them worshiped. They stopped worshiping Yahweh, the God their ancestors worshiped, the one who had brought their ancestors out of Egypt. That caused Yahweh to be very angry.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Judges 2:13

This verse repeats much of what has already been said, adding the name of another Canaanite deity whom the Israelites also worshiped, Ashtaroth. However, this repetition serves a purpose. It communicates the narrator’s dismay and indignation at the Israelites’ unfaithfulness to the LORD, in view of evoking the same emotions in the audience.

They forsook the LORD: See the discussion at verse 2.12. While this clause begins with the Hebrew waw conjunction, most versions omit it, since this is not new but repetitive information.

And they served the Baals and the Ashtaroth: For served see verse 2.11. The Hebrew word for Baals is singular here. New Revised Standard Version, New International Version, and New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh are closer to the text by using the singular “Baal.”

Ashtaroth was Baal’s female companion, also known as Astarte and Ashtoreth. The name Ashtaroth is actually the Hebrew plural form of the name Ashtoreth. Like Baal, this goddess was associated with fertility and was known as a giver of life. In ancient statues and drawings, she often has a horn-like headdress and sometimes carries a lotus flower or papyrus plant along with a snake. Along with Baal, this name should be put in the glossary.

Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .