angel

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The Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic that is translated as “angel” in English versions is translated in many ways:

  • Pintupi-Luritja: ngaṉka ngurrara: “one who belongs in the sky” (source: Ken Hansen quoted in Steven 1984a, p. 116.)
  • Tetela, Kpelle, Balinese, and Mandarin Chinese: “heavenly messenger”
  • Shilluk / Igede: “spirit messenger”
  • Mashco Piro: “messenger of God”
  • Batak Toba: “envoy, messenger”
  • Navajo: “holy servant” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida 1961; Igede: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
  • Central Mazahua: “God’s worker” (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.)
  • Saramaccan: basia u Masa Gaangadu köndë or “messenger from God’s country” (source: Jabini 2015, p. 86)
  • Mairasi: atatnyev nyaa or “sent-one” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Shipibo-Conibo: “word bringer” (source: James Lauriault in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 32ff. )
  • Apali: “God’s one with talk from the head” (“basically God’s messenger since head refers to any leader’s talk”) (source: Martha Wade)
  • Michoacán Nahuatl: “clean helper of God” (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
  • Noongar: Hdjin-djin-kwabba or “spirit good” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Wè Northern (Wɛɛ): Kea ‘a “sooa or “the Lord’s soldier” (also: “God’s soldier” or “his soldier”) (source: Drew Maust)
  • Iwaidja: “a man sent with a message” (Sam Freney explains the genesis of this term [in this article): “For example, in Darwin last year, as we were working on a new translation of Luke 2:6–12 in Iwaidja, a Northern Territory language, the translators had written ‘angel’ as ‘a man with eagle wings’. Even before getting to the question of whether this was an accurate term (or one that imported some other information in), the word for ‘eagle’ started getting discussed. One of the translators had her teenage granddaughter with her, and this word didn’t mean anything to her at all. She’d never heard of it, as it was an archaic term that younger people didn’t use anymore. They ended up changing the translation of ‘angel’ to something like ‘a man sent with a message’, which is both more accurate and clear.”)

See also angel (Acts 12:15) and this devotion on YouVersion .

complete verse (Revelation 8:12)

Following are a number of back-translations of Revelation 8:12:

  • Uma: “The fourth angel blew his trumpet, suddenly there was something that hid one third of the sun, moon and stars, with the result that one third of their shining no longer shone. So there were times that the sun did not shine during the day. So also at night, there were times the moon and stars did not shine.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Then the fourth angel blew (the thing) like a tabuli’ that had been given to him. When he blew it, immediately one part of the sun and of the moon and of the stars became dark. Two parts did not. Therefore in one day it was dark in the world for four hours and also at night for four hours the moon and the stars did not give light.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet. A third part of the sun was struck, and a third part of the moon, and a third part of the stars. Because of this the shining of a third part of the stars was taken away, and for a third part of the time each day it was very dark. And it was the same way for a third part of the time of every night.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “After-that the fourth angel also blew-his-horn, and a third of the sun, moon and stars were struck so that a third of their light ceased. Therefore it-was-dark a third of the day and a third of the night.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “When the fourth angel also blew his horn, the third part of the sun, moon and stars was struck. That’s why a third part of their light disappeared. The third part of daytime became dark and also nothing gave light for the third part of night-time.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “The fourth angel blew the trumpet. A part of the sun became dark then, but it didn’t come to half of the sun that darkened. Like this was darkened part of the moon. And there was darkened part of the stars. In the daytime four hours were in darkness upon earth. In the nighttime four hours didn’t have even any stars show.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Revelation 8:12

At the blowing of the fourth trumpet, the sun, the moon, and the stars lost a third of their light. This suggests the plague of darkness in Egypt (Exo 10.21-23; see also Isa 13.10; Joel 2.31; Amos 8.9). The text seems to say that they shone only at two thirds of their normal intensity; but as the conclusion of the verse makes clear, it means that they shone only two thirds of the time. One third of the daytime was completely dark, for the sun stopped shining; likewise for one third of the night the moon and the stars stopped shining.

Was struck: only here in the New Testament is this verb used; it suggests some force that hit the sun, moon, and stars and made them stop shining for one third of the time. In certain languages that do not use the passive, this phrase may be rendered as “suffered hit (or, strike),” but in others one must say, for example, “Something struck….”

And likewise a third of the night: the Greek text says simply “and the night likewise”; as the context makes clear, this means that during the night, as during the day, there was complete darkness for one third of the time. For the translation of a third, see Rev. 8.7 of this chapter.

Something like the following can serve as a model for this verse:

• Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet. The sun, the moon, and the stars were all damaged (or, struck), so that they did not shine for one third of the time. There was no sunlight during one third of the daytime, and during one third of the night the moon and the stars did not shine.

Or:

• And something struck and damaged one-third of the sun, the moon and the stars. The sun did not shine (or, give light) for one third of the daytime, and the moon and the stars did not shine for one third of the night.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .