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:

joy

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The Greek, Latin and Hebrew that is translated with “joy” or “gladness” in English is translated with various associations of “sweetness” or taste: Bambara has “the spirit is made sweet,” Kpelle translates as “sweet heart,” and Tzeltal as “the good taste of one’s heart,” Uduk uses the phrase “good to the stomach,” Baoulé “a song in the stomach,” Mískito “the liver is wide open” (“happily letting the pleasures flooding in upon it”) (source: Nida 1952), Mairasi says “good liver” (source: Enggavoter 2004), Noongar has koort-kwabba-djil or “heart very good” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang), and Chicahuaxtla Triqui “refreshed heart” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.).

See also Seat of the Mind for traditional views of “ways of knowing, thinking, and feeling,” happiness / joy, and exceeding joy.

Translation commentary on 2 Esdras 13:13

Then many people came to him: This clause is usually interpreted to refer to the Jews bringing some of the Gentiles to the Messiah. Good News Bible has “All sorts of people came.” The Revised Standard Version footnote here deals with a translational issue, so it may be omitted.

Some of whom were joyful and some sorrowful: The joyful people are perhaps the Jews and the sorrowful are the Gentiles.

Some of them were bound: Compare Isa 45.14. Bound refers to having “their hands and feet tied” (Good News Bible). This clause may be rendered “People had tied the hands and feet of some of them.”

And some were bringing others as offerings: This clause is not really clear in Latin, but in light of Isa 66.20, Revised Standard Version and Good News Bible seem to interpret it correctly.

We recommend Good News Bible as a model for this verse.

Then in great fear I awoke: Ezra woke up because he was terrified by the dream.

And I besought the Most High, and said: This quote frame introduces Ezra’s prayer to God in verses 14-20a. For the Most High, see the comments on 2 Esd 3.3.

Contemporary English Version provides the following helpful model for the last half of verse 13:

• I was terrified when I woke up. And I prayed to God Most High:….

Another possible one is:

• Then I woke up, and was afraid. I prayed to God Most High, saying….

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Esdras. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.