Sacred Names, Sacred Choices: Ethical Dimensions in Translating Divine Names in the Hebrew Bible

This paper aims to highlight some ethical considerations in the translation of divine names and titles in the Hebrew Bible. Divine names and titles frequently pose a challenge to Bible translators in many parts of the world. The problem has been approached from diverse perspectives and scientific disciplines, such as linguistics, translation studies, theology, and missiology. In this paper, an ethical approach to the translation of divine names and titles is explored, based on Werner’s (2014) ethical aspects of the translation of sacred text, viz. emic (inwardly oriented), etic (outwardly directed), and mediating (balancing). The interplay between these aspects and the FOBAI translation principles (2017) is also considered. I draw heavily throughout on my research for three articles in the Key Terms of the Old Testament project (yhwh, ʾāḏôn/ʾăḏōnāy, and ʾēl/ʾĕlōhîm/ʾĕlôah). After providing a brief overview of the history and the main strategies usually involved in translating biblical names and titles of God, the emic, etic, and mediating ethical aspects involved in these choices are highlighted. Some questions are proposed to help Bible translators decide on translation equivalents that are not only linguistically and theologically sound but also ethically acceptable.