complete Psalm 24

The following is a complete back-translation of Psalm 24 from Nyaneka:

1 Earth and-what is-in-it is the Lord God’s,
world and-things all which-are-in it.
2 Lord world this he-built on-seas
it-is-carried established on-streams of-water.
3 On-the-mountain of-Lord God who can go-up?
In-sanctuary who can stand?
4 It-is-that-one that-one who-have-cleansed hands
and-who-has good heart,
that-one who-does-not-give life his to-idols
who-does-not swear to-idols.
5 This-one will-receive from-Lord God good blessing
with-righteousness the-salvation of-him from-God.
6 The-generation who seek-him like-this will-live,
those who-adore the-God of-Jacob.
7 Open the-gates, heavy-doors of-heads,
the-gates eternal
so-that King who-is-glorified can-enter.
8 King who-is-glorified is-who? \
Lord God, powerful of-force
Lord powerful in-war.
9 Open the-gates, heavy-doors of-heads,
the-gates eternal
so-that King who-is-glorified can-enter.
10 King who-is-glorified is-who?
Lord God of-the-host of-war,
this-one [is] King who-is-glorified.

Source: Christopher S. Tachick in Wendland / Zogbo 2019, p. 84ff.

king

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Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:

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  • Piro: “a great one”
  • Highland Totonac: “the big boss”
  • Huichol: “the one who commanded” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Ekari: “the one who holds the country” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • Una: weik sienyi: “big headman” (source: Kroneman 2004, p. 407)
  • Pass Valley Yali: “Big Man” (source: Daud Soesilo)
  • Ninia Yali: “big brother with the uplifted name” (source: Daud Soesilio in Noss 2007, p. 175)
  • Nyamwezi: mutemi: generic word for ruler, by specifying the city or nation it becomes clear what kind of ruler (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Ghomála’: Fo (“The word Fo refers to the paramount ruler in the kingdoms of West Cameroon. He holds administrative, political, and religious power over his own people, who are divided into two categories: princes (descendants of royalty) and servants (everyone else).” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn))

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. )

Translation commentary on Psalm 24:7

In verse 7 the pilgrims demand that the Temple gates be opened to admit entrance to the LORD, who is probably represented by the Covenant Box, which is being carried in by Levites. (In 2 Sam 6.2 the Covenant Box bears the name of the LORD Almighty; and in 1 Sam 4.21, when the Covenant Box is captured by the Philistines, God’s glory departs from Israel.) From inside the Temple the priests (verse 8a) ask who demands entry, to which the procession replies (verse 8b-c).

The poetic language, your heads, O gates … O ancient doors, refers to the Temple gates. It is not certain what the word heads means, if indeed it refers poetically to some part of the gates; New American Bible takes it to mean “the lintels,” the horizontal pieces above the gates; Jerusalem Bible “arches.” Gates in line a and doors in line b are two different ways of speaking of the same thing, that is, the Temple gates. Some translations therefore combine the two and have only “Open wide, eternal gates!” or something similar (see Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy). Commentators suggest that the meaning is that the gates are too small for such a great king, the LORD, to enter, and so they are commanded to raise their lintels in order to make room for the king to enter. Most translations have the idea of “raising” or “lifting up,” but Good News Translation has used the more natural expressions “Fling wide … open,” which are directed not to the gates themselves but to the Levites in the Temple who were responsible for opening them. It should be noted that the Hebrew expression “lift up the head” can mean “rejoice.” The translator must decide if the gates are to be opened or if they are to rejoice. In many languages the decision will be made in favor of the former, since inanimate objects such as gates do not rejoice.

The ancient doors points to the fact that Jerusalem was already an ancient city when David captured it. Some, however, take the word to mean “eternal,” reflecting the idea that the gates of the sanctuary were the earthly counterpart of the heavenly dwelling of God, and that when the earthly gates were opened the heavenly gates also opened.

The King of glory (verses 7c, 8a) is the majestic, mighty, victorious king. For glory as an attribute of kings, see comments on 21.5. In languages where “glory” means life in heaven, the genitive phrase King of glory may suggest that the title means “King of heaven.” But of glory has the force of an adjective, “glorious.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “mightiest king … mighty king.”

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 .