inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Lam 5:5)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, the Jarai and the Adamawa Fulfulde translation both use the exclusive pronoun.

complete verse (Lamentations 5:5)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Lamentations 5:5:

  • Kupsabiny: “We are being greatly pursued
    and we are broken without any rest.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Those who pursue us are near our heels,
    We are very tired, there is no rest for us.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “We are-made-to-work as-if an animal being-yoked. And we never allowed-to-rest.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “It is as though those who pursue us are at our heels;
    we are exhausted, but they do not allow us to rest.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Lamentations 5:5

As the Revised Standard Version footnote shows, the words With a yoke are not found in the Hebrew text, which says literally “Upon our necks we are pursued….” The poet probably communicated clearly by sound and context that he was speaking of a yoke. The word translated “upon” is similar in form to the Hebrew word meaning yoke, and scholars believe that one of these two words, “upon” or “yoke,” may have been accidentally dropped. One ancient Greek translation has a word meaning yoke, and so Revised Standard Version, New English Bible, and others translate With a yoke on our necks …. Good News Translation also has assumed that the original sentence included the Hebrew word for yoke, and has therefore translated “Driven hard like donkeys or camels.”

Some translations take on our necks to mean “follow in hot pursuit,” and so New Jerusalem Bible has “We are hotly pursued.” New International Version has “Those who pursue us are at our heels.” Bible en français courant says “Our pursuers are on our backs.” It is also possible that the expression may refer to the ancient practice of a victor placing his foot on the neck of an enemy to symbolize complete submission (see Joshua 10.24 for instance). Translators may follow this suggestion or any of the above models of New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, Bible en français courant, or Revised Standard Version. For translation suggestions regarding yoke see 1.14.

The phrase translated we are weary may also mean “We work hard” or, as Moffatt says, “We toil.” In some languages it may be necessary to make clear that the enemy is the one causing these conditions; for example, “The enemy is hotly pursuing us; we are tired, but they do not let us rest.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on Lamentations. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1992. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .