Sabbath

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “Sabbath” in English is rendered as “day we rest” in Tzotzil, in Mairasi as “Jew’s Rest Day,” in Quiotepec Chinantec as “day when people of Israel rested,” in Shilluk as “day of God,” in Obolo as Usen Mbuban or “Holy Day,” and in Mandarin Chinese as ānxírì (安息日) or “rest day” (literally: “peace – rest – day”).

(Sources: Tzotzil: Marion Cowan in Notes on Translation with Drill, p. 169ff; Mairasi: Enggavoter 2004; Quiotepec Chinantec: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.; Shilluk: Nida 1964, p. 237; Obolo: Enene Enene; Chinese: Jost Zetzsche)

In the old Khmer version as well as in the first new translation this term was rendered as “day of rest” (Thngai Chhup Somrak / ​ថ្ងៃ​ឈប់​សំរាក). Considered inadequate to convey its religious meaning (not only about cessation of work, but also in honor of Yahweh as the Creator), the committee for the Today’s Khmer Version (publ. 2005) decided to keep the Hebrew word and use its transliterated form Thgnai Sabath (​ថ្ងៃ​សប្ប័ទ). “The Buddhist word Thngai Seil ‘day of merits’ used by some Catholics was once under consideration but was rejected because it did not receive unanimous support.” (Source: Joseph Hong in The Bible Translator 1996, p. 233ff.)

In Spanish, the translation is either día de reposo (“day of rest”) or sábado (usually: “Saturday,” derived from the Greek and Hebrew original. Nida (1947, p. 239f.) explains that problem for Spanish and other languages in its sphere of influence: “In translation ‘Sabbath’ into various aboriginal languages of Latin America, a considerable number of translators have used the Spanish sábado, ‘Saturday,’ because it is derived from the Hebrew sabbath and seems to correspond to English usage as well. The difficulty is that sábado means only ‘Saturday’ for most people. There is no religious significance about this word as the is with ‘Sabbath’ in English. Accordingly the [readers] cannot understand the significance of the persecution of Jesus because he worked on ‘Saturday.’ It has been found quite advantageous to use the translation ‘day of rest,’ for this accurately translated the Hebrew meaning of the term and resolves the problem in connection with the prohibitions placed upon some types of activities.”

In French Sign Language it is translated with a sign that depicts closing of the blinds of a store:


“Sabbath” in French Sign Language (source: La Bible en langue des signes française )

Translation commentary on 2 Kings 4:23

Why will you go to him today?: Obviously the woman did not tell her husband that their son was dead. And he apparently did not suspect that there was any connection between his son’s earlier headache and the proposed visit to Elisha. In some languages the question will be better put as “Why do you want to go to him today?”

It is neither new moon nor sabbath: These two popular times of religious celebration are mentioned together in several of the prophets (Isa 1.13; 66.23; Hos 2.11; Amos 8.5; see also Exo 16.23; 20.9-11; Lev 23.3). As indicated in the footnote of Good News Translation, these two holy days were thought to be the most appropriate times for consulting a prophet. The woman’s husband is therefore surprised that she wants to go to see Elisha at a time that has no particular religious significance. Both Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version reverse the order of these two festivals in the response of the husband. This is perhaps because the Sabbath is better known to most readers than the New Moon Festival, which was celebrated on the day of each new moon.

The Hebrew noun rendered sabbath comes from the Hebrew word meaning “to rest” or “to stop working.” Most modern translations use the traditional word sabbath or “Sabbath.” Some translations, however, say “day of rest” (1995 edition of Reina-Valera revisada), and this may be a more meaningful rendering. If translators transliterate the word sabbath, a footnote and a note in the glossary should be included.

It will be well is literally “Peace.” This word is frequently used as a greeting when meeting someone (Jdg 19.20; 1 Sam 25.6) and sometimes as a way of saying goodbye (Jdg 18.6). But in such cases the word is usually accompanied by a pronoun. The basic meaning of the term involves welfare and security. In this context it is taken to mean “everything will be all right,” indicating to the woman’s husband that there was nothing to worry about in spite of the fact that she was going to the prophet at an unusual time. In 2 Sam 18.28 and 2 Kgs 5.22, the same term is translated “All is well.” The Good News Translation rendering “Never mind” may sound impolite if translated into other languages, and that does not seem to be the intended sense of the Hebrew word here. A translation such as “Don’t worry” (Bible en français courant, Parole de Vie) expresses the meaning better.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .