The term usually translated "the wicked" in English translations of Hebrew scripture is better translated "wrongdoers." This episode explains why and it also explains the implications of this difference - particularly as it relates to Psalm 1. While addressing translation issues to some degree, this episode has a greater focus on the practical lessons of this first part of the poem:

"Cheers for the man who ain't done gone in the counsel of wrongdoers..."

Blog Article: http://www.bdsda.com/2023/08/20/aint-done-gone-in-the-counsel-of-wrongdoers-psalm-1-nabt/

Different Ways to Follow the Podcast: https://www.bdsda.com/2021/08/19/follow-the-trent-wilde-blog-podcast/

Music by Trent Wilde

This explains why a very common Hebrew conjugation is best translated using a feature of certain non-standard varieties of English. Also, we learn how this impacts the meaning of Psalm 1. More specifically, the Hebrew Qatal form is best translated using the "preverbal done" found in English dialects such as African American English and Southern American English. Both Qatal and "preverbal done" convey the perfective aspect. If you don't know what all these terms mean - no worries, their explained in the episode. :)

Blog Article: http://www.bdsda.com/2023/08/20/aint-done-gone-in-the-counsel-of-wrongdoers-psalm-1-nabt/

Perfective Done (Yale Grammatical Diversity Project): https://ygdp.yale.edu/phenomena/perfective-done

If you read Bible translations, you should listen to this. Most translations aren't as good as they could be. You'll learn about some of the key problems and how they can be resolved. The issues include translating male-biased language, maintaining (or failing to maintain) distinctions between words, translation consistency, and dealing with the nuances and complexities of language. All this is explored through taking a detailed look at the first line of "Psalm 1" and its translation in Not A Bible Translation (NABT).

Blog Article: http://www.bdsda.com/2023/08/04/cheers-for-the-man-who-psalm-1-nabt/

00:00 Intro

01:32 "Psalm 1" wasn't originally "Psalm 1"

04:00 Why NABT isn't immutable

10:56 "Cheers" - Maintaining Distinctions Between Words

22:30 Phrase Function

25:50 Root Consistency

29:31 Nuanced View of Consistency in Translation

47:01 "Man" - dealing with male-biased language

58:14 "Who"

1:00:30 Summary