In a 1979 article in The Bible Translator, Harold Fehderau developed a basic theoretical outline for what subsequently became common practice in many Bible translation projects—consulting both a formal “base” translation and a functional “model” translation in the language(s) of wider communication in the region. The starting point for this approach is the fact that most translation projects worldwide did not (and still do not) work directly with the source languages, but rather work(ed) with the biblical text by way of a single intermediate translation in the language(s) of wider communication within the local context. The clear advantage of this practice is that translators will by definition be translating from the text they are best able to understand, which presumably gives them the best chance to represent the original text well. But there are pitfalls to this method, some of which Fehderau alluded to in his article. One such pitfall will now be examined, from a consultant visit to the Tojolabal translation project being carried out in southern Mexico.

In order to gain a better understanding of the situation in Russia with regard to biblical canon and biblical text, particularly in the Russian Orthodox Church, this article reflects on the notion of non-canonical books, the role of tradition and its roots in the development of the canon in early Eastern Christianity, as well as the Russian Orthodox Church’s acceptance of multiple authoritative versions of biblical books. This is followed by a brief discussion of the Slavonic Bible and the Russian Synodal Translation, particularly their sometimes hybrid textual base. The article closes with some thoughts on what this complex situation might mean for Bible translation projects in Orthodox contexts in Russia.

Scholarship devoted to the manner in which the vocative singular has been translated from ancient Greek texts to modern English is lacking. The address toward a man in the vocative singular, ἄνθρωπε, while rare in the New Testament, is often translated as “man” within the context of a rebuke and appears to be accurately translated. However, when a woman is addressed as γύναι, the general interpretation of its Greek usage in the New Testament is that it is an address of respect, while its frequent translation into English as “woman” does not capture this aspect. Non-biblical Greek literature contemporary to the New Testament uses this address in the same way, with the implication of respect. More research is needed to determine how the meaning of this term can be accurately expressed in English.

In order to render a verb consistently within the syntactic pattern in which it occurs, it is necessary to take into account the presence of a direct object (one, multiple, or none), the possibility of an idiomatic expression involving the direct object, the lexical characteristics of the elements in the construction, and the presence and particular function of prepositions in relation to the verb. Lexicons often provide a broad range of meanings for a single verb, but because a pattern might be affected by the combination with other elements, it is not always clear under which conditions a specific significance is applicable. Exegetes and translators sometimes take the liberty of choosing rather freely from the offered dictionary glosses, apparently not being sufficiently aware that elements present in the context could pose restrictions on the choice of rendering. Using examples containing the Hebrew verbs עשׂה, נשׂא, and שׂים, the significance of the specific patterns in which these verbs occur is explored. Variety in the translations of these verbs is presented and analyzed. The insights inform a procedure for identifying the signification of Hebrew verbs in which a series of questions guides one to a consistent rendering of the pattern in which the verb occurs.

In the Hebrew Bible, Yahweh is often depicted as a divine warrior, executing vengeance against his enemies. Some of these texts employ the image of Yahweh as a dragon-like creature who pours forth smoke from his nostrils and fire from his mouth. This article surveys the background of this metaphor by describing deities and monsters that breathe fire in the literature of ancient Greece, Egypt, and Mesopotamia, as well as the dragon-like Leviathan in Job (41.10-13 [Eng. 18-21]). Against this background, the article examines the two texts that most clearly exhibit the metaphor (2 Sam 22.9 // Ps 18.9 [Eng. 8]; Isa 30.27-33) and considers its implications for the translation of ’ap in these and other passages (Isa 42.25; Deut 32.22; Num 11.1). Although the LXX and modern translations uniformly render ’ap as “anger” in most of these passages, this article argues that it is more consonant with the dragon metaphor to translate the term as “nose” or “nostrils” (i.e., “the burning of his nostrils”).

This article suggests that כלח is a compound word; the contraction of כֺּל + לֵחַ, “all vigor.” This meaning aptly applies to both occurrences of כלח, if in 30.2b one reads חֵילָמוֹ instead of עָלֵימוֹ.

In the accounts of Peter’s vision of a sheet full of animals descending from the sky in Acts 10.9-16 and 11.5-10, a voice comes to him that is usually translated, “What God has made clean, you must not consider defiled,” or with words very similar to these. In fact, there is probably a kind of hyperbole in the second clause, and in a translation that seeks to represent the Greek closely it is much better to translate, “What God has made clean, you must not defile!”

Many understand Jonah 2.9 (8) as the author’s condemnation of idol worship. In this article I suggest that the author is providing advice for life that comes out of the threat of drowning seen within both the poetic prayer (Jonah 2.3-10) and the preceding narrative (Jonah 1.1–2.2). A preferred translation is: “Those continuing to hold on to empty breaths forsake their Faithful Love.” Disagreements over the translation of this verse center on four issues: (1) the initial pi‘el verb; (2) the construct phrase הבלי־שׁוא; (3) the semantics of חסד; and (4) the relationship between חסד and its 3mp suffix.