complete verse (Leviticus 16:29)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Leviticus 16:29:

  • Kupsabiny: “This is a law that you (plur.) must keep always: On the tenth day of the seventh month, abstain from food and do not do any work and also the foreigners who live among you must not do any work.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “This is your law forever. Every year on the 10th day of the 7th month, you must fast. And you must refrain from work. The foreign people who are with you must also do like this.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “These are the regulations/[lit. what-is-to-be-followed] to-be-performed/[lit. to-be-done] by the Israelinhon and the foreigners living together-with them, which they will-follow forever/[lit. until whenever]. On the tenth day of the seventh month they must fast and not work, just-like the Day for-Resting. For that is the day on-which the ceremony to redeem them from their sins so-that is-to-be-performed/[lit. is-to-be-done] they will-become clean before/[lit. in front-of] the LORD.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “‘On October/the month after the dry season ends, on the day that I have appointed, you all must fast/abstain from eating food and not do any work. This is a rule/law that will never end. It must be obeyed by you people who have been Israelis all your lives, and also by foreigners who are living among you.” (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 Leviticus 16:29

A statute to you for ever: this indicates that the set of rules given are to be considered permanent. See 3.17, where the same words are translated “a perpetual statute” in Revised Standard Version. Compare also 10.9.

The seventh month, on the tenth day: translators should consider whether it is more natural in their own language to follow the Revised Standard Version order (month, day) or the Good News Translation order (day, month). In those languages where the seventh month will be understood as meaning July, something must be done to help the reader understand that the Jewish system was quite different from that of the receptor language. Probably the best way to do this is to prepare a table showing the different calendar systems used in the Old Testament, compared with the system or systems known to the reader. This should be included at the beginning or end of the translation and not as a footnote to the text here. Both Jerusalem Bible (page 477) and New Jerusalem Bible (page 2076) have such a table in their “Supplements” at the end of the book.

Afflict yourselves: literally “afflict your souls.” This is often taken to mean “fasting,” as in Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible, and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, but it may have been a more general self-denial that included abstaining from all food, drink, sex, wearing sandals, and even bathing. This interpretation is implied in the translations “deny yourselves” (New International Version) and “practice self-denial” (New Jerusalem Bible). Many languages, however, do not allow such a general statement without saying precisely what the person is to deny himself. It is probably better to translate “fast” or “eat nothing,” and if necessary a note may be added to explain that the word may have a broader meaning. In those parts of the world where Muslim influence is strong, translators must take special care to avoid the giving the impression that “fasting” means only to abstain from food and drink during daylight hours. Biblical fasting does not correspond to this Muslim concept. In some cases it will be necessary to clarify this in a footnote or a glossary explanation, since there may be only one word available in the language, but one that will almost certainly convey the wrong idea.

Do no work: this requirement is generally associated with the Sabbath (see 23.3 and Exo 20.8-10) or with different feast days (Lev 23.7, 21, 25, 28, 35-36). As several of these passages indicate, abstaining from work has a double goal: it allows for physical rest, and it makes people available for serving God. The translator should be careful to avoid an expression that will place the emphasis only on physical rest.

The native: this is a collective singular, but all the Israelites are obviously intended. In some languages the word for native may be understood as a member of one particular language group. This may be avoided by saying explicitly “you Israelites” or something similar.

The stranger who sojourns among you: this is another collective singular referring to any and all foreigners who happened to be among the people of Israel. As in the case of native above, the word stranger may be understood as any person who is not a member of the receptor-language group. If this is the case, it may be necessary to say “any non-Israelites living among you” or “any other people (or, tribes) living among you.”

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René and Ellington, John. A Handbook on Leviticus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1990. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .