Points Regarding Translation

Points Regarding Translation—for the Scholar in You

1. Genesis 3:15 - in the promise that a descendant of the woman will defeat the serpent, the Hebrew text says that “he (the seed) will crush your head.” The gender is masculine: “he will crush your head.”  The margin of the Latin Bible has the following note in Latin: “Hebrew has the masculine Latin pronoun ipsum (He).”

2. Matthew 6:11 – in the Vulgate of the Lord’s Prayer, for the familiar line “Give us today our daily bread” the Vulgate translation has "give us our supersubstantial bread. This word was used by Jerome to convey the idea that the bread is “beyond the substance” of bread, encouraging the doctrine of transubstantiation. However, in Erasmus’ Latin version that is printed beside the Vulgate it reads “panem nostrum quotidianu” (our “daily” bread), which is closer to the Greek.

3. Mark 1:15 - “repent and believe the Gospel” The Vulgate has "do penance and believe” Erasmus, however, does not use the Latin word for “do penance” but translates it as ”come to your senses and believe” – a much better translation of the Greek verb metanoeite, “change your mind” or simply “repent.”

4. Luke 1:28 - “Greetings, favored one.” The Vulgate has “Hail O one full of grace,” incorporated into the Ave Maria prayer, “Hail Mary, full of grace ....” Erasmus, however, has the translation “Hail, one who has been graced, the Lord is with you.” This is an accurate translation of the Greek χαῖρε, κεχαριτωμένη (chaire kecharitomenay).