Hearer

The person who reads or listens to something. A translator should work with his hearers in mind, sensitive to the vocabulary and language constructions which they understand.

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Hebraism

Same as Semiticism.

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Hebrew Bible

The collection of books regarded as the Jewish Scriptures. The Hebrew Bible became the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.

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Hellenistic Greek

The dialect of Greek in which the New Testament was originally written. It is often called Koine (common) Greek. This dialect evolved from Classical Greek.

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Hendiadys

Hendiadys is a grammatical structure in which two nouns linked by "and" (Greek kai) have a subordinate relationship, rather than a coordinate relationship usually found with "and" (kai). In hendiadys the two nouns represent a single modified concept, rather than two separate concepts found in coordinate structures. It is important that translators of the Bible recognize hendiadys, so that its composite meaning will be properly translated to the target language, not simply its original "and" form. Most target languages, including English, usually require that some construction other than coordination be used to adequately translate the meaning of an original hendiadys. Often the corresponding target language construction will be a noun modified by an adjective or relative clause.

There are several examples of hendiadys in the New Testament, recognized as hendiadys by a number of Bible scholars (e.g., for the following verses, variously, Turner, Blass and DeBrunner, Arndt and Gingrich, Bullinger, Hendriksen, Vincent, Bruce, Black), and translated as hendiadys in some Bible versions. Following are some of these examples:

Matt. 4.16 "the region and shadow of death" is left as a coordinate structure (non-hendiadys meaning in English) in KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV, NASB, ISV, and NET. It is translated with the meaning of a hendiadys in LB ("the land of death"), TEV ("the dark land of death"), NIV ("the land of the shadow of death"), REB ("the land of death's dark shadow"), NJB ("a country of shadow dark as death"), NAB ("a land overshadowed by death"), NCV ("a place covered with the shadows of death"), CEV ("the shadow of death"), and GW ("a land overshadowed by death").

Luke 2.47 "his understanding and answers" is left as a coordinate structure (non-hendiadys meaning in English) in KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV, NIV, NAB, NJB, LB, REB, NCV, CEV, GW, ISV, and NET. It is translated with the meaning of hendiadys in TEV ("his intelligent answers").

Luke 21.15 "a mouth and wisdom" (KJV, NKJV, RSV) is also left as a coordinate structure (non-hendiadys meaning in English) in NRSV, NASB, NJB, LB, NLT, GW, and ISV. It is not translated as simple coordination in NET ("the words along with the wisdom"), but this is not clearly hendiadys translation either. It is translated with the meaning of hendiadys as "the wisdom to know what to say" (TEV, CEV), NAB ("a wisdom in speaking"), and in NCV ("the wisdom to say things").

Acts 23.6 "of the hope and resurrection of the dead" is left as a coordinate structure (non-hendiadys meaning in English) in KJV, NKJV, RSV, and NASB. It is translated with the meaning of hendiadys as "the hope of the resurrection of the dead" (NRSV, ISV, NET), and in NIV ("my hope in the resurrection of the dead"), REB ("our hope of the resurrection of the dead"), NJB ("our hope in the resurrection of the dead"), NAB ("for hope in the resurrection of the dead"), LB ("I believe in the resurrection of the dead"), NLT ("expect that the dead will come back to life"), TEV ("the hope I have that the dead will rise to life"), CEV ("I believe that the dead will be raised to life"), NCV ("I believe that people will rise from the dead"), and GW ("expect that the dead will come back to life").

Col. 2.8 "philosophy and vain deceit" is left as a coordinate structure (non-hendiadys meaning in English) in KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV, NASB, NLT, and ISV. The following versions recognize the hendiadys as referring to a single concept and modify that concept with conjoined adjectives: NIV ("hollow and deceptive philosophy"), REB ("hollow and delusive speculations"), NCV ("false and empty teaching"), and GW ("shallow and misleading philosophy"). It is also translated with the meaning of hendiadys in TEV ("the worthless deceit of human wisdom"), CEV ("senseless arguments"), NJB ("the empty lure of a 'philosophy'), NAB ("an empty, seductive philosophy"), and NET ("an empty, deceitful philosophy").

2 Tim. 1.10 "life and immortality" is left as a coordinate structure (non-hendiadys meaning in English) in KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV, NASB, Wms, Bar, Wuest, NIV, NAB, JB, NJB, REB, ISV, and NET. It is translated with the meaning of hendiadys as "everlasting life" (LB, NLT), and in Phi ("the life that is eternal"), TEV ("immortal life"), CEV ("life that never ends"), NCV ("life that cannot be destroyed"), and GW ("eternal life").

Another webpage on hendiadys is:

See Doublet which is closely related to hendiadys.

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Hermeneutics

Hermeneutics is the science of the interpretation of literature. In this glossary, we are particularly interested in Biblical hermeneutics. Biblical hermeneutics is concerned with developing reliable rules (or principles) to interpret the Bible. Before the Bible can be accurately translated, we must determine what it means. To do so we must use credible principles.

Some excellent textbooks have been written on hermeneutics, including:

See these other webpages on hermeneutics:

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Historical anachronism

Redundant term with the same meaning as Anachronism.

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Hortatory

Hortatory discourse attempts to persuade someone to do something.

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Hyperbole

Hyperbole is exaggeration for emphasis or effect, not meant to be taken literallly. The original meaning of hyperbole must be maintained in translation, even if a particular hyperbole cannot be expressed with a hyperbolic form in the target language. Examples of hyperbole are boldfaced in the following verses:

NKJV John 3.52 And what he has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.

NKJV Mark 1.33 And the whole city was gathered together at the door.

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