What’s Up with Bible Translations?

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Judges 5

I'm reading Young's Literal Translation (YLT) and the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV).

This is known as the Song of Deborah. By the time I read the second verse, I was confused.

YLT: 2 `For freeing freemen in Israel, For a people willingly offering themselves Bless ye Jehovah.

NRSV: 2  “When locks are long in Israel, when the people offer themselves willingly—bless the Lord!

"When locks are long?" What does that even mean? And how could the translation be so very different from "For freeing freemen?"

And what about this?

YLT: 6 In the days of Shamgar son of Anath -- In the days of Jael -- The ways have ceased, And those going in the paths go [in] crooked ways.7 Villages ceased in Israel -- they ceased, Till that I arose -- Deborah, That I arose, a mother in Israel.

NRSV: 6 In the days of Shamgar son of Anath, in the days of Jael, caravans ceased, and travelers kept to the byways. 7 The peasantry prospered in Israel; they grew fat on plunder, because you arose, Deborah, arose as a mother in Israel.

I can see why the NRSV is more apparent in meaning than the YLT in verse 6. Verse 7, however, says something else. The YLT says "villages ceased," as if they were empty or metaphorically lifeless until Deborah arose. The NRSV says that after Deborah arose, the peasantry prospered. Those are two very different meanings. How could the same source material lead to such different results?

Was it different source material?

There's verse 9:

YLT: 9 My heart [is] to the lawgivers of Israel.

NRSV: 9 My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel.

The YLT implies, perhaps, prophets and judges. The NRSV implies military generals.

In verse 10 the YLT says "meditate" on it, and the NRSV says "sing of it."

Robert Young, the translator of Young's Literal Translation, wrote in 1862 that he wanted an English translation that tried to "speak, or reason," as the original writers and not "as if they were Englishmen of the nineteenth century." He may have made errors, but I'm not aware of another Bible that attempts this, and that's why I read from it.

I also use the New Revised Standard Version to make sense of what is incomprehensible in Young's often archaic English.

But Judges 5 has me wondering, "what's up with that?"

James Leroy Wilson writes Daily Miracles (subscribe), The Daily Bible Chapter (subscribe), JL Cells (subscribe), and The MVP Chase (subscribe). Thanks for your subscriptions and support! You may contact James for your writing, editing, and research needs: jamesleroywilson-at-gmail.com.

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