sin

The Hebrew and Greek that is typically translated as “sin” in English has a wide variety of translations.

The Greek ἁμαρτάνω (hamartanō) carries the original verbatim meaning of “miss the mark” and likewise, many translations contain the “connotation of moral responsibility.”

  • Loma: “leaving the road” (which “implies a definite standard, the transgression of which is sin”)
  • Navajo (Dinė): “that which is off to the side” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Toraja-Sa’dan: kasalan, originally meaning “transgression of a religious or moral rule” and in the context of the Bible “transgression of God’s commandments” (source: H. van der Veen in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 21ff. )
  • Kaingang: “break God’s word”
  • Bariai: “bad behavior” (source: Bariai Back Translation)
  • Sandawe: “miss the mark” (like the original meaning of the Greek term) (source for this and above: Ursula Wiesemann in Holzhausen / Riderer 2010, p. 36ff., 43)

In Shipibo-Conibo the term is hocha. Nida (1952, p. 149) tells the story of its choosing: “In some instances a native expression for sin includes many connotations, and its full meaning must be completely understood before one ever attempts to use it. This was true, for example, of the term hocha first proposed by Shipibo-Conibo natives as an equivalent for ‘sin.’ The term seemed quite all right until one day the translator heard a girl say after having broken a little pottery jar that she was guilty of ‘hocha.’ Breaking such a little jar scarcely seemed to be sin. However, the Shipibos insisted that hocha was really sin, and they explained more fully the meaning of the word. It could be used of breaking a jar, but only if the jar belonged to someone else. Hocha was nothing more nor less than destroying the possessions of another, but the meaning did not stop with purely material possessions. In their belief God owns the world and all that is in it. Anyone who destroys the work and plan of God is guilty of hocha. Hence the murderer is of all men most guilty of hocha, for he has destroyed God’s most important possession in the world, namely, man. Any destructive and malevolent spirit is hocha, for it is antagonistic and harmful to God’s creation. Rather than being a feeble word for some accidental event, this word for sin turned out to be exceedingly rich in meaning and laid a foundation for the full presentation of the redemptive act of God.”

In Warao it is translated as “bad obojona.” Obojona is a term that “includes the concepts of consciousness, will, attitude, attention and a few other miscellaneous notions.” (Source: Henry Osborn in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 74ff. ). See other occurrences of Obojona in the Warao New Testament.

Martin Ehrensvärd, one of the translators for the Danish Bibelen 2020, comments on the translation of this term: “We would explain terms, such that e.g. sin often became ‘doing what God does not want’ or ‘breaking God’s law’, ‘letting God down’, ‘disrespecting God’, ‘doing evil’, ‘acting stupidly’, ‘becoming guilty’. Now why couldn’t we just use the word sin? Well, sin in contemporary Danish, outside of the church, is mostly used about things such as delicious but unhealthy foods. Exquisite cakes and chocolates are what a sin is today.” (Source: Ehrensvärd in HIPHIL Novum 8/2023, p. 81ff. )

See also sinner.

Translation commentary on Proverbs 19:2

This saying warns against hasty, thoughtless acts.

“It is not good for a man to be without knowledge”: This verse, like 18.9, begins in Hebrew with a word meaning “also” or “even.” The line says literally “Also without knowledge the soul [is] not good.” “The soul” (Hebrew nefesh) is translated “a man” by Revised Standard Version. This part of the line may be translated as “without knowledge in the soul,” that is, “without thinking, pondering, reflecting” (on what a person is about to do). Some interpreters understand the subject to be “desire” or “zeal.” Good News Translation has “Enthusiasm.” New Revised Standard Version says “Desire without knowledge is not good.” “Not good” probably has the same sense as in 16.29, that is, “ruin” or “destruction.” The failure of a person to reflect or ponder before acting parallels “makes haste” in line 2.

“And he who makes haste with his feet misses his way”: Revised Standard Version translates the Hebrew literally. However, this part of the saying is not about mere running with the feet but rather about doing things hastily, being in a rush or hurry. “Misses his way” renders the Hebrew verb that is primarily used as “to sin” and used in 8.36 in the sense of “missing the goal” or “going wrong.” The sense here is to make mistakes, to err. Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translates the whole saying “Eagerness without thought is not good; much rushing causes errors.” An example of a more extensive restructuring is “When a person hurries to try and do something, but doesn’t understand how to do it, that is no good. A person who always hurries will get nothing but trouble.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Proverbs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

complete verse (Proverbs 19:2)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 19:2:

  • Kupsabiny: “It is not good for a person to rush into things/words without thinking,
    and/or rush quickly and then fall into fire.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “It’s not enough to have zeal
    without insight,
    work done in haste will be ruined.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “(It is) not good that you (sing.) are zealous you (sing.) do- not -have -knowledge. (It is) not also good for you (sing.) to-be-hasty for you (sing.) could- easily -do wrong.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “The resolve/persistence of a person is of-no-use if he knows nothing. The one who is-in-a-hurry, he easily gets-lost.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “Being enthusiastic but not thinking carefully about what we are about to do is not good;
    doing things hastily can cause us a lot of trouble.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 19:2

19:2

The two lines in this verse imply similar advice. Together these lines describe the bad consequences of acting too quickly without thinking. It is not good for a person to do this, because he will go astray.

2a Even zeal is no good without knowledge,

2b and he who hurries his footsteps misses the mark.

Some versions follow the order of the Hebrew more literally. For example:

2a
Desire without knowledge is not good,

2b and one who moves too hurriedly misses the way. (New Revised Standard Version)

It is implied by the parallelism that a person who acts hastily does not gain the knowledge that he needs. He acts in response to his zeal or desire without first thinking of a good or sensible way to accomplish his goals.

19:2a

Even zeal is no good without knowledge: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as zeal has many meanings. Often it refers to a person’s “soul” or “life.” In this context, there are two main ways to interpret this word:

(1) The word refers to a strong desire or eagerness to do something. For example:

Where knowledge is wanting, zeal is not good. (New Jerusalem Bible)

(2) The word refers to a person. For example:

It is not good for a man to be without knowledge. (Revised Standard Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most versions and scholars. The idea of “zeal” or “desire” makes a better parallel with the idea of acting hastily in the second line.

Even zeal is no good: This phrase is probably a figure of speech (deliberate understatement) that means “bad” or “dangerous.” For example:

It is dangerous to have zeal (NET Bible)

Some other ways to translate 19:2a are:

Enthusiasm without knowledge is not good (Good News Translation)
-or-
If a person strongly desires to do something and acts without thinking, the result will be bad/failure.

19:2b

and he who hurries his footsteps misses the mark: In Hebrew, this clause is more literally “and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way” (English Standard Version). This clause is a metaphor. In this metaphor, a person who acts hastily is compared to a person who hurries along a path and misses the right way. Similarly, someone who is in a hurry to do something makes mistakes and wrong decisions.

The phrase “with his feet” is a figure of speech. In this figure of speech, the feet represent the entire person.

misses the mark: The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as misses the mark is often translated as “sin.” Here in the context of hurrying to do something, it refers to making an error or a wrong choice.

Some ways to translate this metaphor are:

• Keep some of the figurative language. For example:

and he who hurries his footsteps errs (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
If you are too eager, you will miss the road. (Contemporary English Version)

• Translate the meaning without using figures of speech. For example:

A person in a hurry makes mistakes. (God’s Word)
-or-
and the one who acts hastily makes poor choices (NET Bible)
-or-
impatience will get you into trouble (Good News Translation)

General Comment on 19:2a–b

In some languages, it may be more natural to combine and/or reorder some of the parallel parts. For example:

If a person is in a hurry and does not think about the right way to accomplish his desires, the result will be failure.

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