“And these wineskins which we filled were new, and behold, they are split open; and these clothes of ours and our sandals are worn out from the very long journey.” Joshua 9:13 NASB Very long journey – Have you ever considered that the syntax of a language might reflect the thinking of the speakers of that language? As…
Lord, do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor discipline me in Your wrath. Psalm 6:1 NASB In Your Anger – Quite often Hebrew syntax is radically different than the translations provided in English. We shouldn’t be surprised. The arrangement of words according to linguistic rules differs from one language to another, even in languages with…
And the men of Ai struck and killed about thirty-six of their men, and pursued them from the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them on the mountainside; and the hearts of the people melted and became like water. Joshua 7:5 NASB Struck and killed – You know the story. Joshua sends out his army…
And Joshua had charged the people, saying, “You shall not shout and you shall not let your voice be heard, and no word shall come out of your mouths until the moment I say to you, “Shout,’ and then you shall shout.” Joshua 6:10 Robert Alter And Joshua had charged the people, saying – One…
But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us . . . Titus 3:4-5a NASB Kindness – Syntax, syntax, syntax. You see, the Greek sentence doesn’t actually read the same way as the English translation. In Greek, the literal reading is: “When but the kindness and love…
My strength and song is God, and this is my deliverance; This is my God, I will enshrine Him, My father’s God, I will exalt Him. Exodus 15:2 Aryeh Kaplan Is God – The NASB translates the opening of Moses’ song like this: “The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.” The…
She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has witnessed against me and the Almighty has afflicted me?” Ruth 1:20-21 Lord…
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, . . . Hebrews 1:1 Prophets/ Portions/ Ways – In the introduction to A Reader’s Hebrew Bible, Bryan Smith makes the point that there is a considerable difference between a gloss and a translation. A gloss…
