complete verse (Leviticus 19:6)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Leviticus 19:6:

  • Kupsabiny: “You (plur.) must eat the meat of that sacrifice on the day you present it or the following day, but/and anything that has stayed to the third day that is fit to be burned.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “On the very day that you offer it, [you] must eat [it]. The next day it is also OK to eat [it]. But if anything is left on the third day [lit.: on the day after], it must be burned in the fire.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “You (plur.) are-to-eat this meat on the day of your (plur.) offering/sacrifice or on the next day. But if there-is leftover meat until the third day this is-to- now -be-burnt.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “The meat should be eaten on the day that you sacrifice it, but you are permitted to eat some of it on the next day. Anything that remains until the third/next day must be completely burned.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Leviticus 19:6 - 19:7

See 7.16-18.

It: this, of course, refers to the meat of the animal offered as a fellowship offering.

Shall be eaten: instead of the passive form, some languages will require “someone must eat it…” or “people may eat it….”

And: this conjunction may be better translated as “but” or “however” in many languages, since it marks the contrast between the period when the meat may be eaten and the time beyond that period—when it is forbidden to eat it.

An abomination: see 7.18 as well as 18.17, 22, 27.

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 .