inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Ps 132:6)

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 translation uses the exclusive pronoun. The Adamawa Fulfulde translation uses the inclusive pronoun.

complete verse (Psalm 132:6)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Psalm 132:6:

  • Chichewa Contempary Chichewa translation, 2002/2016:
    “Truly, we heard about the Box of the Agreement at Ephrathah,
    we found it in the gardens of Jaar:” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Newari:
    “We heard about the Ark of the Covenant
    in Ephrathah,
    and we found it in the fields of Jaar.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon:
    “When we (excl.) (were) in Efrata we (excl.) heard where the Box of the Agreement (is),
    and we (excl.) have-found this in the field of Jaar.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Laarim:
    “We heard it in Ephrathah,
    we found in the gardens of Jaar and we said that,” (Source: Laarim Back Translation)
  • Nyakyusa-Ngonde (back-translation into Swahili):
    “‘Huko katika Efrata tuliyasikia ya sanduku la agano,
    tuliliona katika mashamba ya Yearimu.” (Source: Nyakyusa Back Translation)
  • English:
    “In Bethlehem we heard news about the sacred chest.
    We went and found it in the fields of Jearim city, and we took it to Jerusalem.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Psalm 132:6 - 132:7

These verses speak of the transfer of the Covenant Box from Kiriath Jearim to Jerusalem (see 1 Sam 7.1-2; 2 Sam 6.2-15; 1 Chr 13.5-8). Ephrathah seems to have been the older name of Bethlehem (see Ruth 1.1-2; Micah 5.2); Kiriath Jearim (here called the fields of Jaar) was a town some fourteen kilometers northwest of Jerusalem, where the Covenant Box stayed for some twenty years, after having been returned by the Philistines, who had captured it in battle (1 Sam 4.1–6.16). King James Version “fields of the wood” is a possible translation of the Hebrew phrase; most modern scholars are convinced that the Hebrew phrase is a variant for Kiriath Jearim (which means “the city of woods”).

For the sake of intelligibility Good News Translation has introduced “Covenant Box” in verse 6a from its first mention in verse 8b; the Hebrew text in verse 6a is simply “we heard about it.” This is not to be understood to mean that it was only on that specific occasion when David and his men were in Bethlehem that they heard about the Covenant Box for the first time; it means that when they decided to return the Box to Jerusalem, they got the news about where the Box was while they were in Bethlehem (David’s birthplace). An American Translation, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, and Bible en français courant translate “We heard that it was in Ephrathah,” but this makes for difficulties, since Ephrathah (on the supposition that it is Bethlehem) was not near Kiriath Jearim. Delitzsch takes Ephrathah to be the name of the district to which Kiriath Jearim belonged. Bible en français courant says that Ephrathah here does not mean Bethlehem, but is another Ephrathah, which was a short distance from Bethel. Others say that Ephrathah here means Ephraim, and take the meaning of verse 6a to be “We heard that it was in Shiloh.” It seems best to translate as Good News Translation has done; Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “In Ephrathah we received the news about the Covenant Box of the Lord, and we found it in the vicinity of Jaar.” Good News Translation‘s “Covenant Box” may sometimes be rendered “the box that held God’s agreement with the people” or “the box that held the written pact between God and the people.” If transliteration of these place names must be avoided, for example, to avoid confusion with other words in the receptor language, the translator may follow the King James Version translation, or New Jerusalem Bible “Forest-Fields.”

In verse 7 the scene shifts to Jerusalem: the Covenant Box has been installed in the tent that David prepared for it (2 Chr 1.4); some, however, take his dwelling place in verse 7a (the same Hebrew word used in verse 5b) to be the place in Kiriath Jearim where the Covenant Box was (see Toombs). Others take it to be the Temple in Jerusalem (Taylor, Weiser, Anderson), so that the words are spoken by the worshipers as they sing the psalm in the festival. This is probably correct. In verse 7b his footstool is a reference to the Covenant Box (see 99.5). The Hebrew verb translated worship can mean “to bow down in subservience before someone,” and hence Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch‘s rendering “we throw ourselves at his feet.” In languages where this picture has the appropriate meaning, it should be used. If not, it is best to follow Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation. Footstool may have to be replaced by another image, unless it very clearly is associated with the throne or place where the ruler sits.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .