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Joker_vDtoday at 3:57 PM4 repliesview on HN

> After several repetitions of this, Samson decides that being shaved, blinded and crushed will be less exasperating than listening to any more of Delilah's nagging.

A very off-tangent note, but I recently learned that Samson's last words, "ἀποθανέτω ἡ ψυχή μου μετὰ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων"/"moriatur anima mea cum Philisthiim", pretty much have never been translated into English literally; it's always "Let me die with the Philistines" for some reason.


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ivrit-tirvitoday at 4:40 PM

I always look it up in the original Hebrew if I really want to understand, and the difference is sometimes really HUGE (or simply wrong in modern translations).

It's also worth noting that some books of the Hebrew Bible are poetry (Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Song of Songs), which doesn't show at all after translation. Hebrew poetry is unique!

As they say, reading the Bible in translation is like "kissing your spouse through a veil".

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blharrtoday at 4:57 PM

"Let my soul die with the Philistines" being the literal translation?

SegfaultSeagulltoday at 5:40 PM

The Hebrew is תָּמ֣וֹת נַפְשִׁי֮ עִם־פְּלִשְׁתִּים֒, which literally translates to "You shall die, my soul, with the Philistines."

wofotoday at 4:44 PM

I'm curious, what would you be your translation?

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