Most High

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The Hebrew, Aramaic, Latin, or Greek that is translated as “(God) the Most High” or “Most High God” in English is translated in various way:

  • Eastern Highland Otomi: “he the completely glorified God”
  • San Mateo del Mar Huave: “Father God who is high in heaven”
  • Teutila Cuicatec: “God who has such tremendous authority”
  • Chichimeca-Jonaz: “he who is the native of the highest place”
  • Palantla Chinantec: “the Big God Himself”
  • Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac: “God who has authority over all”
  • Estado de México Otomi: “most exalted God”
  • Isthmus Mixe: “God who is in heaven”
  • Teutila Cuicatec: “God who has a great rule” (source for this and above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
  • Sa’a: “God, the Surpassing One” (source: Carl Gross)
  • Elhomwe: Mulluku Muullupalli or “God the Great” (source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Chichewa: Wammwambamwamba: A name of God. While this word is difficult to translate into English, its sense implies that God is highly above everything in his power and greatness. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Tobit 4:10 - 4:11

For almsgiving delivers from death and keeps you from going into the Darkness: Good News Translation reverses the order of verses 10 and 11 and combines the verse numbers; but since the subject matter of verse 10 follows from verse 9, one order is as logical as the other. The connector For is included in Good News Translation‘s “Do this,” which may be expanded to “If you give alms to the poor.” Death and Darkness refer to the same place, namely “the dark world of the dead” (Good News Translation). The repetition of the thought reflects the Semitic taste for parallel constructions in proverbs. If the use of parallel constructions will result in unnatural style in a language, translators should consider combining the two clauses as follows: “If you give alms to the poor, you will be kept from going down into the dark world of the dead” or “Giving alms to the poor will keep you from going down into….”

Indeed almsgiving … is an excellent offering: Indeed stresses again the importance of giving to the poor. Another way to translate it is: “Let me repeat, giving to the poor….” When someone gives alms, it is not only giving something to the poor, but making an appropriate offering to God, one “that pleases God in heaven” (Good News Translation; compare Sir 35.2).

The Most High may also be expressed as “God who is above [or, greater than] all other gods.” See 1.13.

An alternative translation model for verse 11 is:

• Indeed, giving alms to the poor is one of the best offerings you can give to God Most High.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Tobit. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.