complete verse (Judges 20:17)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Judges 20:17:

  • Kupsabiny: “The warriors from Israel that were using swords reached to four hundred thousand not counting those of Benjamin.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Not counting the Benjaminites, the Israelites brought together 400,000 sword-bearing men. All of them were soldiers who knew how to fight.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The Israelinhon on-the-other-hand, aside from the tribe of Benjamin, have gathered 400,000 soldiers who were expert in fighting.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “There were 400,000 men from the other Israeli tribes who had swords.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

large numbers in Angguruk Yali

Many languages use a “body part tally system” where body parts function as numerals (see body part tally systems with a description). One such language is Angguruk Yali which uses a system that ends at the number 27. To circumvent this limitation, the Angguruk Yali translators adopted a strategy where a large number is first indicated with an approximation via the traditional system, followed by the exact number according to Arabic numerals. For example, where in 2 Samuel 6:1 it says “thirty thousand” in the English translation, the Angguruk Yali says teng-teng angge 30.000 or “so many rounds [following the body part tally system] 30,000,” likewise, in Acts 27:37 where the number “two hundred seventy-six” is used, the Angguruk Yali translation says teng-teng angge 276 or “so many rounds 276,” or in John 6:10 teng-teng angge 5.000 for “five thousand.”

This strategy is used in all the verses referenced here.

Source: Lourens de Vries in The Bible Translator 1998, p. 409ff.

See also numbers in Ngalum and numbers in Kombai.

Translation commentary on Judges 20:17

And the men of Israel, apart from Benjamin, mustered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: To the audience listening to the story, the Benjaminites seem doomed. Obviously it would be impossible for 26,700 men, no matter how skilled, to hold against an army of 400,000. But many who listened to the story know what is coming, so these details are all the more tantalizing.

The Hebrew waw conjunction rendered And introduces a description of the Israelite forces, comprised of all the tribes except the Benjaminites. Translators should look for an appropriate transition word here. While Good News Translation omits the conjunction, New American Bible‘s “Meanwhile” may be a good solution. The Hebrew phrase rendered apart from is the same one translated “besides” in verse 20.15. Here the narrator specifically excludes the Benjaminites even though they were also Israelites in the broad sense of the term. To make it clear that the men of Israel does not include the Benjaminites, Contemporary English Version says “the other Israelite tribes.” For mustered see verse 20.15. In some languages it may be difficult to write out the number four hundred thousand in words, so translators may use the figure “400,000” (Good News Translation). For men that drew sword, see verse 20.2.

All these were men of war: All these (literally “all this”) repeats the same Hebrew expression translated “every one” in verse 20.16. The narrator said some of the Benjaminite soldiers were “picked” (verse 20.15-16). Here the other Israelite tribes are qualified as men of war, meaning they too were trained soldiers. This clause is independent in Hebrew, but it may be combined with the previous one by saying “… 400,000 warriors, all trained and experienced in battle.”

Translation models for this verse are:

• The rest of Israel, besides the Benjaminites, assembled 400,000 trained and equipped soldiers.

• Opposing the Benjaminites there were four hundred thousand Israelite soldiers trained and armed with swords.

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 .