Journal: Conspectus
Volume: CONSPECTUS 40:1 (Oct 2025)
Article: The Hermeneutical Dimension Of Bible Translation—A Study Of Rendering Ruth 1 In Two Bantu Languages Of South-Eastern Africa
Author: Ernst R. Wendland

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The Hermeneutical Dimension Of Bible Translation—A Study Of Rendering Ruth 1 In Two Bantu Languages Of South-Eastern Africa

Ernst R. Wendland

Stellenbosch University

About The Author

Ernst R. Wendland earned an M.A. (Linguistics) and a Ph.D. (African Languages & Literature) at the University of Wisconsin, USA, and an M.S.T. at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary. A former instructor at Lusaka Lutheran Seminary (1968–2022) and UBS Translation Consultant in Zambia, he still serves (since 1999) as Professor Extraordinary in the Department of Ancient Studies at Stellenbosch University and as a graduate Adjunct Professor at South African Theological Seminary and Dallas International University.

Email: [email protected].

This article: https://www.sats.ac.za/conspectus/hermeneutical-dimension-bible-translation https://doi.org/10.54725/conspectus.2025.2.3

Abstract

Bible translation is an inherently hermeneutical act because meaning must be construed across two languages and cultures—the biblical source and a contemporary receptor community. I argue that Bible translation constitutes a distinctive intercultural-translational paradigm of hermeneutics in its own right, and that robust, evangelical hermeneutics essentially requires mother-tongue participation to surface and resolve culture-bound interpretive challenges. This study highlights how local receptor norms pertaining to language and culture can subtly reframe meaning and shows why careful, exegetically-based contextualization—rather than transculturation—is necessary. The study proceeds in three stages: First, a concise overview is given of hermeneutics from an evangelical perspective. Second, a synthesis of core translation principles as applied to hermeneutics is supplied. Third, a practical comparative case study of Ruth 1 in two Bantu languages (Chichewa and Citonga) is supplied, one that draws on discourse-linguistic and literary-rhetorical analysis coupled with rigorous audience-checking procedures. This offers a worked example of hermeneutics-in-action that strengthens both interpretive discipline and communicative fidelity. The conclusion distills implications for African translation teams: prioritize trained mother-tongue reviewers, design supportive paratext to pre-empt predictable misreadings, and utilize repeated testing to align exegetical intent with

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receptor apprehension. In sum, translation is not an afterthought to biblical hermeneutics but its crucible.

Keywords

hermeneutics, Bible translation principles, Chichewa, Citonga, ...