2.3.3. Idioms Involving One’s Bosom or Breasts

The human body has always been used to express certain qualities and emotions. It has been the custom, all throughout human history, to hold a cherished loved one to one’s bosom or breast. [Ruth 4:16; Song of Sol. 1:13] That position came to signify favor and intimacy.

18No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him [18, John 1:18].

The intestines or bowels are linked with deep feeling and emotions in both Biblical Hebrew and Greek. This is likely the case because that emotional distress caused abdominal distress. The bad reports regarding the coming disaster upon Israel caused Jeremiah to exclaim “My anguish [“intestines”], my anguish [“intestines”]! I am pained at my very heart.” [1, Jer. 4:19]. When the time of Jerusalem’s destruction came, the abundant sorrow that Jeremiah felt caused excruciating uproar within, causing him to lament, “My very intestines are in a ferment [1. Lam. 1:20; 2:11].

20 Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a darling child? for as often as I speak against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my heart yearned for him [literally, that is why my intestines have become boisterous for him]; I will surely have mercy upon him, said Jehovah [1, Jeremiah 31:20].

The entire Bible from beginning to end uses the body and its parts in an idiomatic figurative sense. There is little doubt that such phrases are colorful and vivid, such as “bowels of compassion.” In many cases it is possible to leave the literal rendering, while others would only cause major confusion. Regardless, most literal translations either give the sense of the meaning either in the main text, or in a footnote.

Conclusions

The approaches and analyses presented in the SECTION II are an answer that in Bible translation, every effort should be made to maintain the literal wording of idioms, unless it will adversely affect the understanding of the message for the modern-day reader. The dynamic equivalent translations attempted to modernize the idiom in the receptor language translation, English in this case, and substitute it in place of the Hebrew idiom. This process is one option, but one can see that even with the use of more modern terms, the meaning is still the same, though perhaps easier for some readers to understand. But it is best to stay with what was written as the translator may alter the meaning of God’s Word by choosing to replace ancient idioms with modern-day language. One must realize that languages aside from the original can distort the idiom intact.

Bibliograhy

1. American Standard Version. – Thomas Nelson & Sons, 1901. – p. 68.

2. Barnwell K. Bible Translation : An Introductory Course in Translation Principles / Katherine Barnwell. – Kenya : SIL International, 1975. – p. 264.

3. Barnwell K. Bible Translation : An Introductory Course in Translation Principles / Katherine Barnwell. – Dallas, TX. : SIL International – 1986. – p. 19.

4. Bible in Basic English / [ed. Hook S.H.]. – Cambridge University Press, 1965. – p. 1000.

5. Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words / [Mounce, D. William]. – Grand Rapids, MI : Zondervan, 2006. – p. 1069.

6. Cottrell P. Linguistics and Biblical Interpretation / Peter Cottrell, Turner Maxwell. – Downers Grove : InterVarsity Press, 1989. – p. 345.

7. Duvall S. Grasping God's Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible / Scott Duvall, Daniel Hays. – Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 2001. – 2005 p.

8. English Standard Version Bible. – Crossway Bibles, 2001. – p. 768.

9. Everaert M. Idioms. Structural and psychological perspectives / Martin Everaert. – Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1995. – p. 323.

10. Grudem W. Translating Truth : The Case for Essentially Literal Bible Translation / Wayne Grudem, Leland Ryken, John C Collins and others. – Wheaton : Crossway Books, 2005. – p. 160.

11. Holman Christian Standard Bible. – Holman Bible Publishers, 2004. – p. 1152.

12. Ifill T. Seeking the Nature of Idioms : A Study in Idiomatic Structure / T. Ifill. – Haverford College, 2002. – p. 30.

13. Institute of the Bible translation. Linguistic, historical-cultural aspects and theology. Proceedings of the conference. – Moscow : Institute of the Bible translation, 1994.

14. Kaiser W. Introduction to Biblical Hermeneutics : The Search for Meaning / Walter Kaiser, Moises Silva. – Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 1994. – p. 2007.

15. Klein W. Introduction to Biblical Interpretation / William Klein, Craig L. Blomberg, Robert L. Jr. Hubbard. – Nashville : Thomas Nelson Inc., 2004. – p. 516.

16. Knappe G. Idioms and Fixed Expressions in English Language Study before 1800 / Gabriele Knappe. – Peter Lang, 2004. – p. 664.

17. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English / [compilers S. Wehmeier, C. Mclntosh, J. Turnbull, M. Ashby]. – NY. : Oxford University Press, 2005. – p. 1540.

18. New American Standard Bible. – Anaheim, California : Foundation Publications, 1998. – p. 945.

19. New English Bible with the Apocrypha. – Oxford and Cambridge University Press, 1970. – p. 896.

20. New International Version. – US. : Zondervan, 1978. p. – p. 1142.

21. Nida, E. A. Towards a Science of Translating. / Eugene A. Nida. – Leiden : Brill, 1964. – p. 159.

22. Nida E. A. Theory and Practice of Translaion Leiden / Eugene Albert Nida, Charles Russel Taber]. – Leiden : Brill, 1974. – p. 216.

23. Ocborne, Grant R. The Hermeneutical Spiral / R. Grant Ocborne. – Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 1991. – p. 2006.

24. Random House Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary. – New York City: Random House, 2009. – p. 2256.

25. Revised Standard Version of the Bible. – NY. : Thomas & Sons, 1946. – p. 1904.

26. Rotherham J. Brayant. Translation of New Testament. Emphasized Bible / Joseph Brayant Rotherham. – Cincinnati : Standard Publishing Co., 1916. – p. 268.

27. Ryken L. The Word of God in English / Leland Ryken. – Wheaton : Crossway Books, 2002. – p. 336.

28. Saeed, J. I. Semantics / John Saeed. – Oxford : Blackwell, 2003. – p. 413.

29. Snell-Hornby M. Handbuch Translation / Mary Shnell-Hornby, Gerald Hönig and others. – Stauffenburg Verlag, 2006. – p. 434.

30. Stein R. Basic Guide to Interpreting the Bible : Playing by the Rules / Robert Stein. – Grand Rapids : Baker Books, 1994. – p. 200.

31. Thomas R. L. Evangelical Hermeneutics / Robert L. Thomas – Grand Rapids : Kregel Publications, 2002. – p. 266.

32. Timothy M. W. Jeremiah & Lamentations, College Press NIV commentary / M. Timothy Willis. - Joplin, Mo. : College Press Pub. Co., 2002. – p. 253 – 55.

33. Understanding English Bible Translation : The Case for an Essentially Literal Approach. – Wheaton, IL : Crossway Books, 2009. – p. 80.

34. Venuti L. The Translation Studies Reader / Lawrence Venuti. – London: Routledge, 2000. – p. 524.

35. Virkler H. Hermeneutics: Principles and Processes of Biblical Interpretation / Virkler Henry, Karelynne Gerber Ayayo. – Grand Rapids, MI : Baker Academic, 1981. – p. 2007.

36. Mounce W.D., Mounce's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words / William D. Mounce. – Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 2006. – p. 1031.

37. World English Bible / [ed. Micheal Paul Johnson]. – Rainbow Missions, 2000. p. – 64.

38. http://www.epicinternational.org/getinvolved.html.

39. www.usingenglish.com.reference/idioms.