Matthew 13:44.
Translating this verse was a nightmare. I chose the Tümpisa language of Death Valley, California.
I have examined this language a number of times in the past, so it was only natural that I use it in a translation. This language I shall probably use again in the future.
A translation of the whole verse is present at the end.
New Jerusalem Bible:
- The kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off in his joy, sells everything he owns and buys the field.
Tümpisa. Muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa naanna sümmisi tüpa tupooŋ katün utü taŋummiŋ utaappüh watsittaitün; u pinnasü utaappüh, kumiakwa’inna, noohinna ekkanaappain atsammüi’anna, sikka sokopitta tümüünna.
the kingdom of Heaven is like = muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa naanna sümmisi
muttukua = power
tukumpana = sky
pinnaŋkwa = behind
naanna = is
sümmisi = like
I could not find a word for kingdom.
My phrase muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa means something like the power behind the sky OR the power behind heaven.
The Lord Yahweh is such that He contains Heaven, for He is too large for Heaven to contain. Indeed, he
treasure hidden in a field = tüpa tupooŋ katün watsittaitün
tüpa = pinenut
tupooŋ = desert
katün = in
watsittaitün = hidden
Naturally, I could not find a word for treasure, though I did find something reasonably close to field, which we will meet later.
So why did I choose pinenuts?
Death Valley in the summertime is simply too hot for human life. Thus, the Panamint spent this time up in the much cooler mountains. Typically, several families would live side by side, though these groups were not permanent. In winter they would travel down to the desert floor, where the hunting and foraging lands would be refreshed.
Another community activity was the Autumn Pinenut Harvest, which preceded their journey downhill. Pinenuts, also called pinyons, are endemic across the western United States and parts of north-west Mexico. They cannot grow lower than about 1,800ft above sea-level due to moisture levels. For context, Death Valley is almost 300ft below sea-level.
Thus, any pinenuts growing in the desert are rare and a powerful portent of things to come.
which a man has found = utü taŋummiŋ utaappüh;
utü = that
taŋummiŋ = a man’s
utaappüh = having found
In this sentence, utü is a DIRECT translation of the English that or which.
Finding this feature in a language outside of Europe is like finding a pinenut below sea-level.
Most of you readers will only ever have my word on this, but having words do double-duty as both Relative and Demonstrative Pronouns is NOT a universal feature – it is a Euro-versal.
Whether this is convergent evolution or an effect of language contact is a question I am unqualified to answer.
he hides it again = u pinnasü watsinna
u = it
pinnasü = again
watsinna = hides
In Tümpisa, u means him/her/it.
u has the alternative forms a and ma.
In Tümpisa, un means his/hers/its.
un has the alternative forms an and man.
In Tümpisa, there is no word meaning he/she/it.
The 3rd Person Singular Pronouns has no presence – it has only absence.
goes off in his joy = kumiakwa’inna
This has three components:
- ku- = with heat/fire/teeth/mouth.
- mia = go.
- –kwain = hither and thither.
- –nna = [Present Tense].
-kwain
This Verbal Suffix indicates random movement. The man is so happy at finding the pinenut at sea-level that his legs are bounding him along like a new-born lamb, that if he tried to stop all at once he would end up
ku- / ko-
This Verbal Prefix means that something was done with heat or fire. In this context, the fire is the joy in this man’s heart.
ku- / ko- / kü-
This Verbal Prefix means that something was done with the mouth or the teeth. This, of course, refers to the fact that he is going “huzzah!” and “yippee!”
For both suffixes, ku- is the basic forms – the others are a product of vowel harmony. In my example, the prefix is ambiguous, and that is why I chose it.
Whether a native Tümpisa speaker would ever accept this phrase is another question entirely.
sells everything he owns = noohinna ekkanaappain atsammüi’anna
noohinna = everything
ekkanaappain = that he owns
atsammüi’anna = sells
Two components build ekkanaappain:
- ekka = that.
- -naappain = thing that [X] has/owns.
Tümpisa has two Suffixes which indicate Possession, these being –pain and –naappain (both of which have variants).
There is a distinction between these two: -pain is Inalienable whilst –naappain is Alienable.
I use –naappain because only those things can be sold.
and buys the field = sikka sokopitta tümüünna
sikka = that
sokopitta = land
tümüünna = buys
sokopitta is the Objective form of sokopin, which means land, earth, dirt or world.
I did not want to use the word tupooŋ again, which is a departure from the original Greek, which uses the word agros (αγρος) both times. I can’t quite explain why I did not want to use it twice.
King James Bible:
- Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.
Tümpisa. Muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa naanna sümmisi tüpa tupooŋ katün utü taŋummiŋ utaappüh watsittaitün; u pinnasü utaappüh, tsao yuwamminna kumiakwa’inna, noohinna ekkanaappain atsammüi’anna, sikka sokopitta tümüünna.
The Gospel of Matthew 13:45
Known also as The Parables of the treasure and the pearl.
New Jerusalem Bible:
NJB. Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls;
Tümpisa: Pinnasü muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa naannaa sümmisi tangummü, nukwummü, piantun tüpanna puhaitü;
the kingdom of heaven = muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa
muttukua = power
tukumpana = heaven
pinnaŋkwa = behind
I discuss this in my translation of Matthew 13:44, but this time I decided to include a diagram:
This comes from Paradiso, the 3rd and final book in Dante’s Divine Comedy. It follows Purgatorio and the most famous (at least in the Anglo-world) Inferno.
Level IX – The Crystalline Heaven or Primum Mobile – is the final stage of physical existence. Above that is Leven X – Empyrean – the abode of God. This is where we would put muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa.
Before moving on, I should like to point out that this model was never meant to be taken as Dante’s literal, empirical view of the Heavens. Within the narrative itself, it is explicitly said that this is a simplification that God has made purely for Dante’s benefit.
Indeed, this is the closest that a living human can come to seeing Heaven with his own eyes and at the same time remain a human.
again … is like = pinnasü naanna sümmisi
pinnasü = again
naanna = is
sümmisi = like
There’s little to say here, except that naanna is optional.
a man, a merchant = tangummü nukwummü
tangummü = man
nukwuppü = merchant
The original Greek says a man, a merchant.
Tümpisa has no word for merchant, so I made one up.
In Greek, the word is emporos (εμπορος), which has two components:
- en (εν) = in/on.
- poros (πορος) = journey.
Thus, the Greek means something like (someone) on a journey.
With this as my guide, I created nukwuppü, which has three components:
- nuwi = walk around/roam/wander.
- ka = in/on/at.
- -ppü = [person].
I then took nuwikappü and simplified it into nukwuppü, because I find the latter more aesthetically pleasing. It also makes the word look older, like it has, in fact, danced on the tongues of many a speaker.
looking for fine pearls = piantun tüpanna puhaitü
piantun = big
tüpanna = pinenut
puhaitü = is looking
In Matthew 13:44, I explain why I localised pearl in a field to pinenuts in the desert.
King James Bible:
- Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:
Tümpisa: Pinnasü muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa naannaa sümmisi tangummü, nukwummü, piantun tüpanna puhaitü;
EXTRA:
Earlier, I created the word nukwuppü as a translation for merchant.
But what if you have two merchants, or three merchants, or even more?
The simplest way is with the relevant number suffixes. For example:
nukwuppüŋku = two merchants
nukwuppümmü = three or more merchants
But there is another possibility.
The first component of nukwuppü is nuwi, which means roam or wander. This can refer to a Singular or Dual Subject, i.e. one person or two people.
The verb niŋka (or yiŋka) has the exact same meaning as nuwi, but refers to either a Dual or Plural Subject, i.e. exactly two or three plus.
Taking a similar route as before, we get:
naŋkappü (or yaŋkappü) = merchants.
This, we get:
nukwuppü = merchant
nukwuppüŋku = two merchants OR
naŋkappüŋku = two merchants
naŋkappü = (three or more) merchants
It is worth noting that as both nuwi and niŋka can refer to exactly two people, we’ll probably always need the Dual Suffix –ŋku in order to specify two people.
Furthermore, you may be wondering what nuwi becomes niŋka.
This process is called Suppletion, where one word gets replaced by a new one in a different context. There is a very common example in English: go becomes went.
Tümpisa has many Verbs that undergo Suppletion in many circumstances.
The Gospel of Matthew 13:46
Known also as The Parables of the treasure and the pearl.
New Jerusalem Bible:
NJB. when he finds one of great value he goes and sells everything he owns and buys it.
Tümpisa. sümüttü noatüpanna utaappüh, ekkanaappain tümeninnuh, u tümüüppühantü.
when he had found one pearl of great price = sümüttü noatüpanna utaappüh
sümüttü = one
noatüpanna = pregnant pinenut
utaappüh = when he had found
Throughout this translation we have translated pearl or treasure as pinenut (tüpa) as a localisation.
went and sold all that he had = ekkanaappain tümeninnuh
ekkanaappain = all that he had
tümeninnuh = he went and sold
I explore ekkanaappain in Matthew 13:45.
tümeninnuh has two components:
- tümeni = sell
- -nnuh = Simulfactive Completive.
What is the Simulfactive Completive?
It means that an action was done either slowly or in stages. You should contrast it with –kwan, the Momentaneous Completive, which means that it happened all in one go.
Two components build tümeninnuh:
- tümeni = sell
- -nnuh = did it one piece at a time.
Of course, it is worth noting that the Greek is ambiguous as to whether the man sold all his possessions either in one go or over a period of time. In English and Greek, this is an additional detail.
Tümpisa, however, has a number of Past Tense Suffixes, most of which make explicit the duration of the activity.
The original Greek verb is piprasko (πιπρασκω), which not only means to sell, but it also means be a slave or be devoted.
and bought it = u tümüüppühantü
u = it
tümüüppühantü = and bought
The meaning of the Parable:
This parable details the process of coming to follow Christ.
You come down from the mountains into the deserts of the Sierra Nevada. Here you find a pinenut, heavy with the seed of future trees and harvests. You sell all of your possessions in order to buy the piece of land on which this pinenut is growing, so that you can devote yourself to cultivating pinenuts.
Of course, pinenuts represent faith – personal and, in time, in community.
(Matthew Chapter 13 also includes the Parable of the Sower, as well as an explanation thereof.)
As Paul says in one of his letters, I forget which, slaves who come to Christ are freed of their earthly bonds, while free men who come to Christ.
Furthermore, Death Valley proper lies to the east of the Panamint Mountain Range. Thus, when they come down they go from the mountains, they mirror the journey of both the setting sun and Death of Christ. They discover the pinenuts, and as the journey east – that of the rising sun and Resurrection – takes them deeper into the US mainland, so too does their submission to Christ bring them deeper into God.
King James Bible:
KJV. Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.
Tümpisa. sümüttü noatüpanna utaappüh, ekkanaappain tümeninnuh, u tümüüppühantü.
My next translation project will come from the 9th Chapter of St. Paul’s 2nd Letter to the Corinthians, beginning with the 6th Verse and ending with the 10th.
This will see the return of a familiar friend, the Manambu language of Papua New Guinea.
New Jerusalem Bible:
- The kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off in his joy, sells everything he owns and buys the field.
- Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls;
- when he finds one of great value he goes and sells everything he owns and buys it.
Tümpisa:
- Muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa naanna sümmisi tüpa tupooŋ katün utü taŋummiŋ utaappüh watsittaitün; u pinnasü utaappüh, kumiakwa’inna, noohinna ekkanaappain atsammüi’anna, sikka sokopitta tümüünna.
- Pinnasü muttukua tukumpana pinnaŋkwa naannaa sümmisi tangummü, nukwummü, piantun tüpanna puhaitü;
- sümüttü noatüpanna utaappüh, ekkanaappain tümeninnuh, u tümüüppühantü
King James Bible:
- Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.
- Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:
- Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.
As an aside, Sunday readings follow a three-year cycle in terms of which Gospel is favoured. 2023 is Year A, which is St. Matthew’s year.
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