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Course 5 · Lesson 7.1

Locating the Hebrew or Greek words behind a verse

10 minute read

Lessons in this course

Course 5 outline

Module 1: What the Languages Are and What This Course Can Do

  1. The languages of the Bible: Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek
  2. What an introduction can and cannot do: no fluency, and why
  3. Biblical Hebrew in brief: history, script and sound
  4. Koine Greek in brief: history, script and sound

Module 2: Hebrew Fundamentals

  1. The Hebrew alphabet, reading right to left, and the vowel points
  2. Roots, nouns, gender, number and the construct chain
  3. Hebrew verbs: perfect, imperfect and the seven stems in outline
  4. A core Hebrew vocabulary and how to learn it

Module 3: Greek Fundamentals

  1. The Greek alphabet, accents and breathing marks
  2. Nouns, cases and the definite article
  3. Greek verbs: tense, aspect, voice and mood in outline
  4. A core Greek vocabulary and how to learn it

Module 4: The Texts: Masoretic, Septuagint and New Testament Manuscripts

  1. The Masoretic Text and the codices that preserve it
  2. The Septuagint and where translators consult it
  3. Greek New Testament manuscripts and printed editions
  4. How variants are recorded in footnotes and critical editions

Module 5: How Translations Are Made

  1. Formal and dynamic equivalence, and the middle positions
  2. Who translates: committees, churches and traditions of translation
  3. Hard cases: idioms, word play, gender and untranslatable words
  4. Reading a translation’s preface to learn its principles

Module 6: Tools for the Reader

  1. Interlinear Bibles: what they show and what they hide
  2. Lexicons and concordances: how to read an entry
  3. How to do a word study, step by step
  4. Common word study errors and how to avoid them

Module 7: Evaluating Translation Differences

  1. Locating the Hebrew or Greek words behind a verse
  2. Types of translation differences: text, grammar, word meaning and style
  3. A worked example from the Old Testament
  4. A worked example from the New Testament
  5. Knowing your limits, and when to ask a specialist

All courses

Program / Course 5: Biblical Languages / Lesson 7.1

What you will learn

  • Follow a clear procedure for finding the original words behind an English verse.
  • Allow for differences in verse numbering between English and Hebrew or Greek Bibles.
  • Match each English phrase to its source words and note words left untranslated or supplied.
  • Record the results in a table that a specialist could check.

The big idea

Before comparing translations, a student needs to know which words the translators were looking at. Locating the source words means finding the right verse in the original text, since numbering differs in places, identifying the edition, and matching English phrases to the Hebrew or Greek words with an interlinear or reverse interlinear. The result is a table of words and notes. It is a starting point for comparison and not a reading of the original, and a specialist should check it.

Key terms

Versification
The division of a text into chapters and verses. It differs between some English, Hebrew, Greek and Latin Bibles.
Base text
The edition of the Hebrew or Greek that a translation follows.
Lemma
The dictionary form of a word.
Supplied word
A word added by translators for clarity that has no matching word in the original. Some Bibles print supplied words in italics.
Alignment
The matching of words in a translation with words in the source text.
Reverse interlinear
An edition that starts from the English and links each English word to its source word.

Background

Every comparison of translations rests on an assumption about the source. If two English versions differ, the cause may be a different Hebrew or Greek text, a different grammatical reading, a different sense given to a word, or a different style. Before sorting differences, a student must see the words themselves, even without reading them.

This lesson sets out a procedure. It is purely a matter of finding and recording. Nothing in it requires reading the languages. It does require care, because the tools can mislead, and because the numbering of verses in the original and in English is not always the same.

Step-by-step explanation

Step 1: Find the right verse

English Bibles and Hebrew Bibles do not always number verses alike. The titles of many Psalms are counted as the first verse in the Hebrew, so that the verses of the psalm are numbered one higher than in English. Psalm 22:16 in English corresponds to Psalm 22:17 in the Hebrew. The English Malachi has four chapters, but the Hebrew Bible has three, so that English Malachi 4:1 to 6 is Hebrew Malachi 3:19 to 24. Joel is divided the other way, with three chapters in English and four in the Hebrew.

The Greek Septuagint numbers the Psalms differently again, so that Psalm 23 in English is Psalm 22 in the Greek, as the previous module showed. In the New Testament the differences are fewer, but a few verses are counted differently in some editions, especially where a disputed verse is omitted or included. Before looking up a verse in an interlinear, check the numbering note in its introduction.

Step 2: Identify the edition

Note which Hebrew or Greek edition the interlinear or tool uses. For the Old Testament it is usually the Leningrad Codex, as in the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. For the New Testament it may be the Nestle Aland text, the received text or the Byzantine text. If the edition differs from the one behind your English translation, some differences you find will be differences of text. Write the name of the edition in the notebook.

Step 3: Match the words

Use an interlinear to see the original words in order, and a reverse interlinear to see which English words correspond to each. Make a table. In one column write the English phrase. In another write the original word in transliteration. Add the dictionary form, the gloss, any code, and a note. Leave a row for words in the original that appear nowhere in the English, and for English words that have no original.

Some matches are not one to one. A single Greek word may be rendered by a phrase, and a Hebrew word with a prefix may correspond to two or three English words, such as and to the. Mark these. Do not expect the order of words to match, since Hebrew often places the verb first and Greek may place a word first for emphasis.

Step 4: A worked example, Psalm 23:1

The King James Version of Psalm 23:1 reads The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. The Hebrew begins with the divine name, YHWH, followed by a word for my shepherd, ro’i, which has the ending for my. There is no word for is in the Hebrew, since Hebrew does not require a verb to be in such a sentence. The second half has a verb, lo echsar, which means I will not lack. A reverse interlinear shows that the English phrase I shall not want corresponds to the two Hebrew words not and I will lack. The ordinary modern sense of want, as desire, differs from the older sense of lack, and a modern reader might read it wrongly.

From this the student records three observations: the word is has no counterpart in the Hebrew; the divine name is rendered by LORD in capitals; and the verb is an imperfect form that some translations render as a future and others as a present. Each of these is a point to carry into the comparison.

Step 5: Record what you cannot tell

At the foot of the table write the questions that the tool cannot answer. Which grammatical form is each verb? What does each noun’s case contribute? Does the word have other senses? Does a manuscript variant exist? These questions belong to the next lessons. Naming them keeps the student from overreaching.

  1. Do the verse numbers in my English Bible and my interlinear match?
  2. Which edition of the Hebrew or Greek does the tool follow?
  3. Which English words correspond to which original words?
  4. Which original words are not translated?
  5. Which English words are supplied?
  6. What questions does my table leave open?

Examples

A numbering difference

A student searches for Psalm 51:1 in a Hebrew interlinear and finds the verse about mercy. In the English it is verse 1 of the psalm proper, but in the Hebrew the title counts as verses 1 and 2, so the verse about mercy is verse 3. The student learns to check the numbering before comparing.

A supplied word

In many English versions, words printed in italics were added by the translators. In the King James Version, italic words were supplied to complete the sense. A student who sees italics knows that the English contains words the Hebrew or Greek does not have.

Two Greek words for one English word

A reverse interlinear shows that the English word love in one passage stands for two different Greek words. The student records both and flags the passage for further study, without drawing a conclusion from the difference.

Different perspectives

Catholic

Catholic Bibles often follow the numbering of the Greek and Latin traditions for the Psalms and give the Hebrew numbering in brackets. The Catholic student should look at both numbers.

Orthodox

Orthodox usage follows the Septuagint numbering of the Psalms in worship, and Orthodox books give the English numbering in addition where they are published for English readers.

Protestant

Protestant Bibles generally follow the Hebrew numbering of the Psalms, with a few differences in verse division. Protestant tools such as concordances and interlinears use this numbering.

Jewish

Jewish Bibles number verses in the Hebrew way, which differs from English in the cases mentioned above. Jewish English translations often note both.

Scholarly

Scholars use the Hebrew numbering in technical work, sometimes giving the English in brackets. They call attention to the difficulty of alignment, which is an area of active development in digital tools.

Why it matters

Careful comparison starts with the facts about the source. A student who has located the words cannot be misled by a false match, and has a record that others can check. The table is also an honest statement of what was done.

Common misunderstandings

Misunderstanding: The verse numbers are the same in every Bible.

Correction: They are not. The Psalms and a few other books differ between the Hebrew, Greek and English traditions.

Misunderstanding: Every English word has a matching original word.

Correction: Translators add words for clarity, and some original words are left untranslated. A table should show both.

Misunderstanding: Locating the words means I have understood the verse.

Correction: It means the student has found the evidence. Understanding requires grammar, word meaning and context, which later lessons address.

Misunderstanding: Any interlinear shows the text my translation used.

Correction: Interlinears follow particular editions. If the edition differs, apparent differences may be differences of text.

Knowledge check

Why should a student check verse numbering before using an interlinear?

Hebrew, Greek and English Bibles do not always number verses alike. Psalm titles are counted as verses in the Hebrew, so numbers shift by one or two, and the Greek Psalms are numbered differently again. Without checking, a student may compare the wrong verse and draw false conclusions.

What should a table of source words contain?

The English phrase, the original word in transliteration, its dictionary form, the gloss, any grammatical code and notes. It should include rows for original words not translated and for English words supplied by the translators. It should also list the questions the tool cannot answer.

What does Psalm 23:1 show about alignment?

The English word is has no counterpart in the Hebrew, which needs no verb in such a sentence. The divine name is rendered by LORD, and the English I shall not want corresponds to two Hebrew words meaning not and I will lack. The matching is not word for word.

Why should the edition of the source text be noted?

Different editions of the Hebrew or Greek read differently in places. If the edition behind the tool differs from the one behind a translation, some differences will be differences of text. Naming the edition helps a student sort the differences correctly.

Think it through

  1. What might go wrong if you compared the wrong verse?
  2. Why is it useful to make a record that someone else could check?
  3. How would you explain to a friend that not every English word has an original?
  4. What does it mean to be honest about what a tool cannot tell you?

Independent assignment

A table of source words

In your own notebook, write 350 to 500 words, with a table. Choose a verse of one or two lines, such as Psalm 23:1 or John 3:16. Check the numbering and the edition. Make a table with the English phrase, the original word in transliteration, its dictionary form, the gloss and a note. Mark untranslated and supplied words. List three questions the table leaves open. Do not send this to anyone.

Further study