וַיִּקָּרְא֣וּ סֹפְרֵֽי־הַמֶּ֣לֶךְ בָּֽעֵת־הַ֠הִיא בַּחֹ֨דֶשׁ הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֜י הוּא־חֹ֣דֶשׁ סִיוָ֗ן בִּשְׁלוֹשָׁ֣ה וְעֶשְׂרִים֮ בּוֹ֒ וַיִּכָּתֵ֣ב כְּֽכָל־אֲשֶׁר־צִוָּ֣ה מָרְדֳּכַ֣י אֶל־הַיְּהוּדִ֡ים וְאֶ֣ל הָאֲחַשְׁדַּרְפְּנִֽים־וְהַפַּחוֹת֩ וְשָׂרֵ֨י הַמְּדִינ֜וֹת אֲשֶׁ֣ר ׀ מֵהֹ֣דּוּ וְעַד־כּ֗וּשׁ שֶׁ֣בַע וְעֶשְׂרִ֤ים וּמֵאָה֙ מְדִינָ֔ה מְדִינָ֤ה וּמְדִינָה֙ כִּכְתָבָ֔הּ וְעַ֥ם וָעָ֖ם כִּלְשֹׁנ֑וֹ וְאֶ֨ל־הַיְּהוּדִ֔ים כִּכְתָבָ֖ם וְכִלְשׁוֹנָֽם׃
9The king’s secretaries were summoned at that time, in the third month, which is the month of Sivan, on the twenty-third day, and an edict was written, according to all that Mordecai commanded, to the Jews and to the satraps and the governors and the officials of the provinces from India to Cush, one hundred twenty-seven provinces, to every province in its own script and to every people in its own language, and also to the Jews in their script and their language.
The Hebrew and Greek that is transliterated as “Mordecai” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with a sign depicting the tearing of clothes, referring to Esther 4:1. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
“Mordecai” in Spanish Sign Language, source: Sociedad Bíblica de España
(Click or tap here to see details)
Faye Edgerton retells how the term in Navajo was determined:
“[This term was] easily expressed in the language of Biblical culture, which had kings and noblemen with their brilliant trappings and their position of honor and praise. But leadership among the Navajos is not accompanied by any such titles or distinctions of dress. Those most respected, especially in earlier days, were their headmen, who were the leaders in raids, and the shaman, who was able to serve the people by appealing for them to the gods, or by exorcising evil spirits. Neither of these made any outward show. Neither held his position by political intrigue or heredity. If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior. If the shaman failed many times in his healing ceremonies, it was considered that he was making mistakes in the chants, or had lost favor with the gods, and another was sought. The term Navajos use for headman is derived from a verb meaning ‘to move the head from side to side as in making an oration.’ The headman must be a good orator, able to move the people to go to war, or to follow him in any important decision. This word is naat’áanii which now means ‘one who rules or bosses.’ It is employed now for a foreman or boss of any kind of labor, as well as for the chairman of the tribal council. So in order to show that the king is not just a common boss but the highest ruler, the word ‘aláahgo, which expresses the superlative degree, was put before naat’áanii, and so ‘aláahgo naat’áanii ‘anyone-more-than-being around-he-moves-his-head-the-one-who’ means ‘the highest ruler.’ Naat’áanii was used for governor as the context usually shows that the person was a ruler of a country or associated with kings.”
(Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. )
Esther 8.9 is the longest verse in The Writings, the third major division of the Hebrew Bible. Good News Translation restructures the extended Hebrew sentence into three separate sentences. The first sentence specifies the time, the second explains what Mordecai did, and the third describes the letters. This verse is similar to 3.12, but it also repeats details from 1.1 and 1.22 (see 1.1, 22 and 3.12 for comments that need not be repeated here). The author’s use of repetition from earlier verses should be seen as a deliberate stylistic device. Therefore translators should not feel obliged to vary the style and the wording merely because something appears to be repetitive.
The writing of the edict by Mordecai took place on the twenty-third day of Sivan, that is, two months and ten days after Haman’s decree in 3.12-14. Sivan was the third month in the Babylonian calendar and corresponds to May–June (see the calendar illustration, page 97). This means that the events of 4.1–8.2 fit into a period of two months and ten days. Regarding the seventy-day period between the writing of the two decrees by Haman and Mordecai, the writer does not indicate that seventy has any special significance. Possibly he intended for the postexilic Jewish readers to see an allusion to the seventy years of exile (see Jer 25.11-12; 29.10), that is, Haman’s decree leads them into danger (the equivalent of exile), while Mordecai’s decree leads them out of danger.
The twenty-third day: for comment on writing numbers, see 1.1-2 above.
Although Revised Standard Version refers to an edict, the original text does not give a name to what was written. The text can also be translated “all that Mordecai said concerning the Jews was written….”
Concerning the Jews may be translated “to the Jews” (so Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible, and most translations), as the end of the verse makes clear. However, some interpreters think that the end of the verse is redundant if the writer has already said at the beginning of the verse that the edict was written “to the Jews.” Translators may follow the interpretation used in the translation they have adopted as a base. The alternative may be put in a footnote.
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Noss, Philip A. A Handbook on Esther (The Hebrew Text). (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
No comments yet.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.