chéngfá (punishing; penalizing 惩罚 懲罰) ← Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”
Appendix A2 of the English New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (Study Edition), entitled “Features of This Revision”, discusses vocabulary changes that have been made in the current revision, words that have been translated differently than before. As noted in various entries in the excellent resource Referenced Theo. Expressions (RTE), Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) correspondingly discusses words that have been translated differently in the current revision of the Mandarin NWT Bible, compared to how they had been translated before.
Since we base what we say in Jehovah’s service on his Word the Bible, the vocabulary used in it—and the way those vocabulary words are translated—should be reflected in how we speak in our ministry, at our meetings, etc. So, it is beneficial for us Mandarin field language learners to be familiar with the latest thinking from the organization on how Bible terms should be translated into Mandarin.
‘Punishing’ Differently in Mandarin
As Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) points out, this current version builds on the previous version’s efforts to avoid expressions that could easily be associated with false religious concepts.
One example that it points to is that in scriptures such as Psalm 103:10 (English, Mandarin), “bàoyìng (bào·yìng retribution · responding 报应 報應)” has been changed to “chéngfá (punishing; penalizing 惩罚 懲罰)”:
Is It Karma?
So, what’s the deal with “bàoyìng (bào·yìng retribution · responding 报应 報應)”? The entries for “bàoyìng (bào·yìng retribution · responding 报应 報應)” in a couple of the dictionaries that are available to be installed in the Pleco app give us some clues. First, consider the entry for this expression in the Referenced Theo. Expressions (RTE) Chinese-English dictionary:
retribution (old translation); Insight article heading in Watchtower Library 2011 CHS. NWT-2019’s Appendix A2 notes 报应 changed to 应得的惩罚 or similar, to avoid conveying false-religious concepts (in this case perhaps the Buddhist concept of karma, see 因果报应, although that is not stated).
In partial confirmation, the CC-CEDICT dictionary contains these definitions for “bàoyìng (bào·yìng retribution · responding 报应 報應)”:
1 (Buddhism) divine retribution
2 karma
For reference, Wikipedia provides this summary regarding karma:
Karma…in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences.[source] In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called the principle of karma, wherein intent and actions of an individual (cause) influence the future of that individual (effect):[source] Good intent and good deeds contribute to good karma and happier rebirths, while bad intent and bad deeds contribute to bad karma and bad rebirths.[source][source]
The concept of karma is closely associated with the idea of rebirth in many schools of Indian religions (particularly Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism),[source] as well as Taoism.[source] In these schools, karma in the present affects one’s future in the current life, as well as the nature and quality of future lives—one’s saṃsāra.[source][source] This concept has also been adopted in Western popular culture, in which the events which happen after a person’s actions may be considered natural consequences.
Indeed, we definitely would not want people to think that any part of God’s Word the Bible is referring to the false religious concept of karma!
