addressing God

Translators of different languages have found different ways with what kind of formality God is addressed. The first example is from a language where God is always addressed distinctly formal whereas the second is one where the opposite choice was made.

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Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.

As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator 2002, p. 210ff.), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.

In these verses, in which humans address God, the informal, familiar pronoun is used that communicates closeness.

Voinov notes that “in the Tuvan Bible, God is only addressed with the informal pronoun. No exceptions. An interesting thing about this is that I’ve heard new Tuvan believers praying with the formal form to God until they are corrected by other Christians who tell them that God is close to us so we should address him with the informal pronoun. As a result, the informal pronoun is the only one that is used in praying to God among the Tuvan church.”

In Gbaya, “a superior, whether father, uncle, or older brother, mother, aunt, or older sister, president, governor, or chief, is never addressed in the singular unless the speaker intends a deliberate insult. When addressing the superior face to face, the second person plural pronoun ɛ́nɛ́ or ‘you (pl.)’ is used, similar to the French usage of vous.

Accordingly, the translators of the current version of the Gbaya Bible chose to use the plural ɛ́nɛ́ to address God. There are a few exceptions. In Psalms 86:8, 97:9, and 138:1, God is addressed alongside other “gods,” and here the third person pronoun o is used to avoid confusion about who is being addressed. In several New Testament passages (Matthew 21:23, 26:68, 27:40, Mark 11:28, Luke 20:2, 23:37, as well as in Jesus’ interaction with Pilate and Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman at the well) the less courteous form for Jesus is used to indicate ignorance of his position or mocking (source Philip Noss).

In Dutch and Western Frisian translations, however, God is always addressed with the formal pronoun.

See also female second person singular pronoun in Psalms.

Translation commentary on Psalm 21:3 - 21:4

It is not certain precisely what thou dost meet him refers to; some take it to mean at the time of the king’s return from battle. More than likely it is a way of saying that, in answer to the king’s prayer, Yahweh gave him goodly blessings, that is, fine or special blessings, not only for him personally but for his people as well. In the sense that God gives blessings to the king, line a may be rendered “You, God, received the king and gave him good gifts” or “You, God, welcomed the king and gave him good things.”

Line b of verse 3 refers clearly to the day the king was crowned; some, however, take the words to mean a new proclamation of the king’s sovereignty (see 1 Sam 11.13-15). Revised Standard Version (also Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, New Jerusalem Bible) translates verse 3 with the English present tense of the verbs, and Good News Translation (also New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible) with the past tense. The past tense in English seems better here, referring to a specific event. The present tense implies continuous or repeated action.

In verse 4 life means not just longevity as such, but a long and prosperous reign; and what the LORD gave the king was not immortality, but “a long and lasting life” (see also Biblia Dios Habla Hoy). Some, however, like Dahood, think this means eternal life, or else it means children, through whom the king would continue to live. Anderson refers to the language of the royal court, in which petition was made that the king live “forever” (see 1 Kgs 1.31; Neh 2.3; Dan 2.4); see also Psalm 23.6. Life must often be recast as a verb phrase. Furthermore the expression He asked life of thee must often be rendered as a causative; for example, “He asked that you make him to live,” or idiomatically, “He asked that you make his eyes see well for many many years.”

The heightening which is evident in verse 4 can be rendered, for example, “He asked you for life, and you gave it to him, indeed, you gave him a very long and lasting life” or “He asked for life…, you gave him even more than that, you gave him….”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .