Honorary "rare" construct denoting God (“answer”)

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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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme rare (られ) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, kotae-rare-ru (答えられる) or “answer” is used.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on Psalm 99:6 - 99:7

Moses is not elsewhere called a priest, but the plain meaning of the Hebrew text here is “Moses and Aaron (were) among his priests.” Some commentators explain that when Moses interceded on behalf of the people, he was acting as priest. The three great figures in Israel’s history, Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, are listed to recall the times of crisis, when God answered their cries for help. In verse 6b called on his name means that they prayed, and here it refers specifically to intercessory prayer on behalf of the people (see 1 Sam 7.8-9; 12.18).

In verse 7 He spoke to them has as its natural antecedent the three men in verse 6; but since there is no record of God’s speaking to Samuel from the pillar of cloud, some would take them to mean the people as a whole. This is possible but not very probable. For Moses and the pillar of cloud, see Exodus 33.9; for Aaron see Numbers 12.5. Revised Standard Version‘s in the pillar of cloud, if translated literally, in some languages will mean that the people were inside the pillar, too. Good News Translation‘s “from the pillar of cloud” must sometimes be rendered “from the pillar of cloud where God was.” For testimonies see 19.7, and for statutes see 18.22. In some languages it will not be possible to give both testimonies and statutes; these may have to be reduced to one.

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 .