Tag: Referenced Theo. Expressions

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Theocratic

shénshèng lìliang

shénshèng lìliang ((shén·shèng godly · holy 神圣 神聖) (lì·liang force · quantity 力量) → [holy spirit]) ← 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.

A Force, Not a Person

For a long time, going back to when we only had the old Héhé Běn ((Hé·hé Harmonious · {Closed → [United]} 和合) (Běn {Root or Stem} → [Edition] 本) → [Union Version (Chinese Bible)]) Chinese Bible to use (the Mandarin New World Translation began to be available starting in about 1995), we in the Mandarin field had been using “shènglíng (shèng·líng holy · spirit 圣灵 聖靈)” or perhaps “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · God → [God] 上帝) de (’s 的) líng (spirit 灵 靈/霛)” to refer to the holy spirit. However, when the nwt version of the Mandarin New World Translation Bible came out recently, it was soon noticed that it instead uses this week’s MEotW, “shénshèng lìliang ((shén·shèng godly · holy 神圣 神聖) (lì·liang force · quantity 力量) → [holy spirit])”, to refer to the holy spirit.

Why was this change made? Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) explains that in Mandarin, when the word “líng (spirit 灵 靈/霛)” is used as a noun, it generally means a spirit person. Of course, we know that the holy spirit is actually the invisible active force that God uses to accomplish his will. However, since a “xiélíng (xié·líng evil; wicked · spirit [→ [demon]] 邪灵 邪靈)” is a wicked spirit person, new readers may then erroneously assume that “shènglíng (shèng·líng holy · spirit 圣灵 聖靈)” correspondingly refers to a holy spirit person, or to a person in the so-called Holy Trinity. So, to avoid such potential misunderstandings, the current version of the Mandarin NWT Bible uses “shénshèng lìliang ((shén·shèng godly · holy 神圣 神聖) (lì·liang force · quantity 力量) → [holy spirit])” instead of “shènglíng (shèng·líng holy · spirit 圣灵 聖靈)” or “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · God → [God] 上帝) de (’s 的) líng (spirit 灵 靈/霛)”, etc. to refer to the holy spirit.—Chū’āijíjì (Chū’·āijí·jì {Going Out from} · Egypt · Record → [Exodus] 出埃及记 出埃及記) 31:3; Shǐtú Xíngzhuàn ((Shǐ·tú Sent · Disciples’ → [Apostles’] 使徒) (Xíng·zhuàn Doings · Biography 行传 行傳) → [Acts]) 2:17.

Exodus 31:3 (WOL CHS+Pinyin Parallel Translations)

Categories
Theocratic

héxié

héxié ({[is] harmonious} 和谐 和諧) ← 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.

Peace and Harmony in 1 Corinthians 14:33

Note that the current English version of the New World Translation Bible (Study Edition) uses the word “peace” at 1 Corinthians 14:33, and that the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) in that verse correspondingly uses this week’s MEotW, “héxié ({[is] harmonious} 和谐 和諧)”:

1 Corinthians 14:33 (WOL English - CHS+Pinyin Comparison)

Why doesn’t the Mandarin translation use good old “píng’ān (píng’·ān {[is] flat, level, even → [[is] peaceful]} · {[is] safe, secure} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to things being smooth and stable, safe and secure, free of danger) 平安)” or “hépíng (peace | {[is] peaceful} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict) 和平)” to translate “peace” in this verse? Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) explains that “píng’ān (píng’·ān {[is] flat, level, even → [[is] peaceful]} · {[is] safe, secure} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to things being smooth and stable, safe and secure, free of danger) 平安)” mainly refers to things being smooth and stable, safe and secure, free of danger, and that “hépíng (peace | {[is] peaceful} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict) 和平)” mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict. These are are specific aspects of peace that don’t necessarily apply in every context.

We can see that those who translated the current Mandarin NWT Bible felt that the context of 1 Corinthians 14:33, which discusses who should speak when during meetings for spiritual encouragement, calls for “héxié ({[is] harmonious} 和谐 和諧)” to be used in this verse to translate the Greek word ei·reʹne, since the harmony that “héxié ({[is] harmonious} 和谐 和諧)” refers to contrasts well with the dissonance and disorder that would result if a meeting degenerated into a free-for-all of people speaking whenever and however they pleased.

“Harmony” and “Harmony”

You may recall that a past MEotW pointed out that the current Mandarin NWT Bible sometimes also uses “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)” in some places to also basically refer to “harmony”. Is there any difference between “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)” and “héxié ({[is] harmonious} 和谐 和諧)”?

Some comparing of a few different dictionaries seems to show that the main meanings of these words are similar, although there are different shades of meaning in the morphemes used—the “mù ({[is] peaceful; harmonious; amicable; friendly; amiable} 睦)” in “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)” has possible meanings involving being friendly and amicable, whereas the “xié ({[is] harmonious; in accord; | [is] humorous | agree; settle} 谐 諧)” in “héxié ({[is] harmonious} 和谐 和諧)” has possible meanings involving being in accord or in agreement.

Categories
Theocratic

hémù

hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦) ← 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.

Peace Is Multifaceted

One of the matters that Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) discusses is how several translations sometimes use the terms “píng’ān (píng’·ān {[is] flat, level, even → [[is] peaceful]} · {[is] safe, secure} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to things being smooth and stable, safe and secure, free of danger) 平安)” and “hépíng (peace | {[is] peaceful} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict) 和平)” in ways that don’t really fit the context, considering the relatively narrow meanings of these terms.

A previous MEotW post discussed why “ānníng ({being peaceful}; {being tranquil} 安宁 安寧)” was selected to be used in Galatians 5:22 in the current version of the Mandarin NWT Bible, when the previous major revision used “hépíng (peace | {[is] peaceful} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict) 和平)” there. Now, we will consider a couple of examples of how this week’s MEotW, “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)”, is used in the current version of the Mandarin NWT Bible.

Peace and Harmony in Romans 3:17

First, note how the Parallel Translations (Yìběn (Yì·běn Translated · {Roots → [Editions]} → [Translations] 译本 譯本) Duìzhào (Duì·zhào {Facing → [Comparing]} · {Illuminating → [Comparing/Contrasting]} → [Comparing/Contrasting] 对照 對照) in Mandarin) feature of the Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY shows us that in Romans 3:17, the current version of the Mandarin NWT Bible uses “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)” to replace “píng’ān (píng’·ān {[is] flat, level, even → [[is] peaceful]} · {[is] safe, secure} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to things being smooth and stable, safe and secure, free of danger) 平安)”:

Romans 3:17 (WOL CHS+Pinyin Parallel Translations)

Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) explains that “píng’ān (píng’·ān {[is] flat, level, even → [[is] peaceful]} · {[is] safe, secure} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to things being smooth and stable, safe and secure, free of danger) 平安)” mainly refers to things being smooth and stable, safe and secure, free of danger. In contrast, “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)” refers more specifically to being harmonious, making for peaceful relations with God and our fellow humans.

Peace and Harmony in Ephesians 2:14

Next, note that in Ephesians 2:14, the current version of the Mandarin NWT Bible uses “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)” to replace “hépíng (peace | {[is] peaceful} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict) 和平)”:

Ephesians 2:14 (WOL CHS+Pinyin Parallel Translations)

Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) explains that “hépíng (peace | {[is] peaceful} (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict) 和平)” mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict. In contrast, “hémù ({[is] harmonious} 和睦)” is used here in a more positive and precise way to refer to the peaceful harmony and unity that the Christ makes possible for “shuāngfāng (shuāng·fāng (the) two · {directions → [parties]} 双方 雙方)”, “the two groups”, Jews and non-Jews.