gentiles

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The Greek that is often translated as “gentiles” (or “nations”) in English is often translated as a “local equivalent of ‘foreigners,'” such as “the people of other lands” (Guerrero Amuzgo), “people of other towns” (Tzeltal), “people of other languages” (San Miguel El Grande Mixtec), “strange peoples” (Navajo) (this and above, see Bratcher / Nida), “outsiders” (Ekari), “people of foreign lands” (Kannada), “non-Jews” (North Alaskan Inupiatun), “people being-in-darkness” (a figurative expression for people lacking cultural or religious insight) (Toraja-Sa’dan) (source for this and three above Reiling / Swellengrebel), “from different places all people” (Martu Wangka) (source: Carl Gross).

Tzeltal translates it as “people in all different towns,” Chicahuaxtla Triqui as “the people who live all over the world,” Highland Totonac as “all the outsider people,” Sayula Popoluca as “(people) in every land” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), Chichimeca-Jonaz as “foreign people who are not Jews,” Sierra de Juárez Zapotec as “people of other nations” (source of this and one above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.), Highland Totonac as “outsider people” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), Uma as “people who are not the descendants of Israel” (source: Uma Back Translation), and Yakan as “the other tribes” (source: Yakan Back Translation).

See also nations.

Translation commentary on 1 Maccabees 2:44

They organized an army: The word army may suggest too formal an organization. “Fighting force” might be a better expression to describe this group. The whole clause may be rendered “They formed themselves into a fighting force” or “… a group capable of fighting.”

And struck down sinners in their anger and lawless men in their wrath: Sinners and lawless men refer to the same group, so Good News Bible combines these expressions, saying “renegade Jews.” They are the Hellenizers of 1Macc 1.11-15 (compare 1Macc 1.34). Mattathias’ rebel band is prepared to defend the Torah not only against the Gentile enemy, but against Jews who were willing to violate the Torah in an attempt to appear cosmopolitan and stylish or simply to save their lives. An alternative model for this part of the verse is “and angrily struck out against [or, vented their anger against] those sinful Jews who had disregarded the Law [of Moses].”

The survivors fled to the Gentiles for safety may be expressed as “Those who could escape them [or, Mattathias’ armed men] fled to the Gentiles for protection.”

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.