inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Rom. 9:10)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, translators typically select the inclusive form (including the reader of the letter).

Source: SIL International Translation Department (1999)

complete verse (Romans 9:10)

Following are a number of back-translations of Romans 9:10:

  • Uma: “And not only that, in the account of Esau and Yakub more clearly we see how God chooses people to be his portion. Esau and Yakub were twins who were given birth to by Ribka. Their father was just one [i.e., they had the same father], his name was Ishak, our grandfather of long ago.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Not only this. As for Rebeka, she had two male children, Esaw and Yakub. They had one (the same) father, Isahak, our (excl.) ancestor.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And that’s not all, because that child of his, Isaac, when he was already old he became the father by means of his wife Rebecca, of two sons who were twins, that is Jacob and Esau.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “It’s not only that which shows the way God chooses, because there is also what happened to the twins who were Rebecca’s children who were sired by Isaac our ancestor.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “The years passed and the son named Isaac grew and then married Rebecca. Rebecca had twin children.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Romans 9:10

Paul’s intention in verse 9-13 is to show the absolute freedom of God’s choice.

And this is not all may be equivalent in some languages to a mere conjunctive adverb or phrase, such as “moreover,” “therefore,” or “in addition to this.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Romans. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1973. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .