A Look at the Psalms
The Psalms have played a significant role in personal and corporate Christian worship. One of my current interests is reading the psalms--as devotional literature, as literature of grief and hope, and even as poetry. I'm not reading them as a translator or exegete: any interptretation is phenomenological, resting on the interaction between the text and the reader.
Now I say this but I'm not attempting an unguided reading. My companions through the Psalms are Walter Brueggemann's Spirituality of the Psalms and Denise Dombrowski Hopkins' Journey Through the Psalms. As I gain any insights from these texts, I'll add them.
Because I'm also looking at the language of the Psalms, I'm interested in comparing various translations--not vis-a-vis their linguistic integrity as much as their poetic power, and even simply as examples of how literature in translation can be so malleable.
Take, for example, the well known 23rd Psalm--probably the only Psalm most believers know that they know. (There may be snippets of language from the Psaltery that they are familiar with, but unknowingly so.) Here's the translation from the King James Bible:
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
(Ps 23:1-4, KJV)
Sound familiar? Thought so.
Now let's look at it in other translations.
Next up we have the translation from the Bay Psalm Book--printed in 1640, the first book printed in the United States:
The Lord to me a shepherd is; want therefore shall not I:
He in the folds of tender grass, doth cause me down to lie:
To waters calm me gently leads restore my soul doth he:
He doth in paths of righteousness for his name's sake lead me.
Yea, in valley of death's shade I walk, none I'll fear:
Because thou art with me, thy rod, and staff comfort me.
The cadence seems forced and doesn't sound very smooth or natural. To my ears at least, it is not very successful. It is good if you want a crowd to drone in rhythmic unison but not really care about content. And, to the ears of contemporary readers, a bit too resonant of Yoda grammar.
The KJV and the Bay Psalm Book are examples from the 17th century. Let's look now at five examples of more recent translations, two of them in "contemporary" English.
I'm rather partial to the New Jerusalem Bible (1985) for its readability. (Blame it on my RC upbringing.) How does this translation treat the 23rd Psalm?
Yahweh is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
In grassy meadows he lets me lie.
By tranquil streams he leads me
to restore my spirit.
He guides me in the paths of saving justice
as befits his name.
Even were I to walk in a ravine as dark as death,
I should fear no danger, for you are at my side.
Your staff and your crook are there to sooth me.
Not entirely poetic, and maybe even blandly prosaic--but still quite direct, and even effective as a statement of faith and assurance.
Now let's take a look at the Jewish Publication Society's (JPS) translation, also from 1985.
The Lord is my shepherd;
I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me to water in places of repose;
He renews my life;
He guides me in right paths
as befits His name.
Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness,
I fear no harm, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff--they comfort me.
Very simple--and to me, lovely. Not overdone, a solid, faithful utterance in a subtle rhythm. (Read it aloud. Pause. You'll see it too.)
Now, what about the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), the translation typically preferred by academics? How does it sound?
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff— they comfort me.
Not bad, not great. It sounds, to me, like a watered down KJV--an attempt to maintain the language of familiarity.
Finally, we'll look at two translations into contemporary English. First we'll start with Eugene Peterson's "The Message":
God, my shepherd!
I don't need a thing.
You have bedded me down in lush meadows,
you find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.
Even when the way goes through Death Valley,
I'm not afraid
when you walk at my side.
Your trusty shepherd's crook
makes me feel secure.
It certainly adds a nuance or two that makes the psalm less like a series of metaphors and more like utterances of what God has done. But otherwise...its a bit blah. I don't mind this translation, particularly if you need or want to read more dry parts of the Bible, but keep away for anything poetic. (Sorry, Eugene.)
Finally: a look at Jim Cotter's Psalms for a Pilgrim People, which is not so much a translation as a rewording.
Dear God, you sustain me and feed me:
Like a shepherd you guide me.
You lead me to an oasis of green,
to lie down by restful waters.
Quenching my thirst, you restore my life:
renewed and refreshed, I follow you,
a journey on the narrowest of paths.
You keep me true to your name.
Even when cliffs loom out of the mist,
My step is steady because of my trust.
Even when I go through the deepest valley,
With the shadow of darkness and death,
I will fear no evil or harm.
For you are with me to give me your strength,
Your crook, your staff, at my side.
Wow. I really like that. Poetic in its own right, a translation of ideas more than literal words, what the author calls an "unfolding" and an "amendment". I'm not sure I would use it for regular corporate worship, when I think people should learn the language of the Psalms through a conventional translation--but quite useful for special occasions, and also something I like for personal worship.
Now I say this but I'm not attempting an unguided reading. My companions through the Psalms are Walter Brueggemann's Spirituality of the Psalms and Denise Dombrowski Hopkins' Journey Through the Psalms. As I gain any insights from these texts, I'll add them.
Because I'm also looking at the language of the Psalms, I'm interested in comparing various translations--not vis-a-vis their linguistic integrity as much as their poetic power, and even simply as examples of how literature in translation can be so malleable.
Take, for example, the well known 23rd Psalm--probably the only Psalm most believers know that they know. (There may be snippets of language from the Psaltery that they are familiar with, but unknowingly so.) Here's the translation from the King James Bible:
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
(Ps 23:1-4, KJV)
Sound familiar? Thought so.
Now let's look at it in other translations.
Next up we have the translation from the Bay Psalm Book--printed in 1640, the first book printed in the United States:
The Lord to me a shepherd is; want therefore shall not I:
He in the folds of tender grass, doth cause me down to lie:
To waters calm me gently leads restore my soul doth he:
He doth in paths of righteousness for his name's sake lead me.
Yea, in valley of death's shade I walk, none I'll fear:
Because thou art with me, thy rod, and staff comfort me.
The cadence seems forced and doesn't sound very smooth or natural. To my ears at least, it is not very successful. It is good if you want a crowd to drone in rhythmic unison but not really care about content. And, to the ears of contemporary readers, a bit too resonant of Yoda grammar.
The KJV and the Bay Psalm Book are examples from the 17th century. Let's look now at five examples of more recent translations, two of them in "contemporary" English.
I'm rather partial to the New Jerusalem Bible (1985) for its readability. (Blame it on my RC upbringing.) How does this translation treat the 23rd Psalm?
Yahweh is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
In grassy meadows he lets me lie.
By tranquil streams he leads me
to restore my spirit.
He guides me in the paths of saving justice
as befits his name.
Even were I to walk in a ravine as dark as death,
I should fear no danger, for you are at my side.
Your staff and your crook are there to sooth me.
Not entirely poetic, and maybe even blandly prosaic--but still quite direct, and even effective as a statement of faith and assurance.
Now let's take a look at the Jewish Publication Society's (JPS) translation, also from 1985.
The Lord is my shepherd;
I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me to water in places of repose;
He renews my life;
He guides me in right paths
as befits His name.
Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness,
I fear no harm, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff--they comfort me.
Very simple--and to me, lovely. Not overdone, a solid, faithful utterance in a subtle rhythm. (Read it aloud. Pause. You'll see it too.)
Now, what about the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), the translation typically preferred by academics? How does it sound?
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff— they comfort me.
Not bad, not great. It sounds, to me, like a watered down KJV--an attempt to maintain the language of familiarity.
Finally, we'll look at two translations into contemporary English. First we'll start with Eugene Peterson's "The Message":
God, my shepherd!
I don't need a thing.
You have bedded me down in lush meadows,
you find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.
Even when the way goes through Death Valley,
I'm not afraid
when you walk at my side.
Your trusty shepherd's crook
makes me feel secure.
It certainly adds a nuance or two that makes the psalm less like a series of metaphors and more like utterances of what God has done. But otherwise...its a bit blah. I don't mind this translation, particularly if you need or want to read more dry parts of the Bible, but keep away for anything poetic. (Sorry, Eugene.)
Finally: a look at Jim Cotter's Psalms for a Pilgrim People, which is not so much a translation as a rewording.
Dear God, you sustain me and feed me:
Like a shepherd you guide me.
You lead me to an oasis of green,
to lie down by restful waters.
Quenching my thirst, you restore my life:
renewed and refreshed, I follow you,
a journey on the narrowest of paths.
You keep me true to your name.
Even when cliffs loom out of the mist,
My step is steady because of my trust.
Even when I go through the deepest valley,
With the shadow of darkness and death,
I will fear no evil or harm.
For you are with me to give me your strength,
Your crook, your staff, at my side.
Wow. I really like that. Poetic in its own right, a translation of ideas more than literal words, what the author calls an "unfolding" and an "amendment". I'm not sure I would use it for regular corporate worship, when I think people should learn the language of the Psalms through a conventional translation--but quite useful for special occasions, and also something I like for personal worship.
posted by Peregrinato at 5/15/2004 11:34:00 pm
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