sin

The Hebrew and Greek that is typically translated as “sin” in English has a wide variety of translations.

The Greek ἁμαρτάνω (hamartanō) carries the original verbatim meaning of “miss the mark.” Likewise, many translations contain the “connotation of moral responsibility.” Loma has (for certain types of sin) “leaving the road” (which “implies a definite standard, the transgression of which is sin”) or Navajo uses “that which is off to the side.” (Source: Bratcher / Nida). In Toraja-Sa’dan the translation is kasalan, which originally meant “transgression of a religious or moral rule” and has shifted its meaning in the context of the Bible to “transgression of God’s commandments.” (Source: H. van der Veen in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 21ff. ).

In Shipibo-Conibo the term is hocha. Nida (1952, p. 149) tells the story of its choosing: “In some instances a native expression for sin includes many connotations, and its full meaning must be completely understood before one ever attempts to use it. This was true, for example, of the term hocha first proposed by Shipibo-Conibo natives as an equivalent for ‘sin.’ The term seemed quite all right until one day the translator heard a girl say after having broken a little pottery jar that she was guilty of ‘hocha.’ Breaking such a little jar scarcely seemed to be sin. However, the Shipibos insisted that hocha was really sin, and they explained more fully the meaning of the word. It could be used of breaking a jar, but only if the jar belonged to someone else. Hocha was nothing more nor less than destroying the possessions of another, but the meaning did not stop with purely material possessions. In their belief God owns the world and all that is in it. Anyone who destroys the work and plan of God is guilty of hocha. Hence the murderer is of all men most guilty of hocha, for he has destroyed God’s most important possession in the world, namely, man. Any destructive and malevolent spirit is hocha, for it is antagonistic and harmful to God’s creation. Rather than being a feeble word for some accidental event, this word for sin turned out to be exceedingly rich in meaning and laid a foundation for the full presentation of the redemptive act of God.”

In Kaingang, the translation is “break God’s word” and in Sandawe the original meaning of the Greek term (see above) is perfectly reflected with “miss the mark.” (Source: Ursula Wiesemann in Holzhausen / Riderer 2010, p. 36ff., 43)

In Warao it is translated as “bad obojona.” Obojona is a term that “includes the concepts of consciousness, will, attitude, attention and a few other miscellaneous notions.” (Source: Henry Osborn in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 74ff. ). See other occurrences of Obojona in the Warao New Testament.

Martin Ehrensvärd, one of the translators for the Danish Bibelen 2020, comments on the translation of this term: “We would explain terms, such that e.g. sin often became ‘doing what God does not want’ or ‘breaking God’s law’, ‘letting God down’, ‘disrespecting God’, ‘doing evil’, ‘acting stupidly’, ‘becoming guilty’. Now why couldn’t we just use the word sin? Well, sin in contemporary Danish, outside of the church, is mostly used about things such as delicious but unhealthy foods. Exquisite cakes and chocolates are what a sin is today.” (Source: Ehrensvärd in HIPHIL Novum 8/2023, p. 81ff. )

See also sinner.

Translation commentary on Proverbs 20:9

According to Scott, this verse is linked to the previous verse; that is, in the presence of a king who can see everything that is evil, nobody who is guilty can claim to be innocent. But more likely this is an independent saying that makes a convincing comment about the sinfulness of the human race.

“Who can say. . .?”: This introduces a rhetorical question to which the answer is “No one”; “There is nobody who can claim to be. . ..” This may be the sort of rhetorical question that is used and understood in many languages, and so it may be rendered more or less literally. Both Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version vary it slightly: “Can anyone really say. . .?”

““I have made my heart clean””: “Clean” is used here in the sense of moral purity. The verb translated “made . . . clean” is a causative form in Hebrew, which can also mean “kept . . . pure” (New International Version). The verb may also be translated in terms of the present state of affairs: “My heart is clean” (Scott), “My thoughts are pure” (Contemporary English Version). In English the word “heart” is mostly used in the context of emotions or affections and not in the context of morality; the more natural way to express the sense of this line is to say “I have a clear conscience” (Revised English Bible). Good News Translation uses this same expression, but makes a change to indirect speech: “. . . say that his conscience is clear.”

““I am pure from my sin””: The meaning of “I am pure” is very similar to that of “I have made clean” in the first line. The term is commonly used to refer to being made clean in a ceremonial sense, so it may mean that the person did sin in the past but has now been made pure. (The first line may be taken to mean this also.) Along with Revised Standard Version, translations that express this sense are, for example, “I am purified of my sin” (New Jerusalem Bible), “has gotten rid of his sin” (Good News Translation), and “my sins are gone” (Contemporary English Version). Translations that leave the matter of past sin open in this line are, for example, “I am free of offense” (Scott) and “I am clean and without sin” (New International Version).

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Proverbs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .