Jonathan rent his garments and put dust on his head: Tearing (rending) one’s clothing and throwing dust on one’s head were traditional signs of distress or grief (see 1Macc 2.14). Good News Bible attempts to express this by saying “Jonathan was humiliated, so he tore….” He was not only humiliated, but also distressed. We may say “Jonathan was so distressed [or, desperate] that he tore his clothes, and threw dust on his head.”

And prayed: It would be helpful to separate this reference to Jonathan’s prayer from the previous statement. The author is not claiming that Jonathan was so distressed that he actually prayed. His prayer was a turning point, so it better to say “But he prayed.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Maccabees. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.