OET interlinear JDG 18:19

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / doublet

Be quiet! Put your hand over your mouth

(Some words not found in UHB: and=they_said to=him/it keep_quiet put hand,your on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in mouth,your and,come with,us and,be to/for=us as,father and,as,priest ?,better be,you priest to,house (a)_man one(ms) or be,you priest to,tribe and,for,clan in/on/at/with,Israel )

The terms Be quiet and Put your hand over your mouth mean similar things. The men are using the two terms together for emphasis. They are emphasizing specifically that the Levite should not express any objections to what they are doing. If it would be clearer for your readers, you could express the emphasis with a single phrase. Alternate translation: “Keep completely silent!”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

Put your hand over your mouth

(Some words not found in UHB: and=they_said to=him/it keep_quiet put hand,your on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in mouth,your and,come with,us and,be to/for=us as,father and,as,priest ?,better be,you priest to,house (a)_man one(ms) or be,you priest to,tribe and,for,clan in/on/at/with,Israel )

The men are speaking as if the priest would actually cover his mouth to keep from speaking. If it would be clearer in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “Do not say anything”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

for a father

(Some words not found in UHB: and=they_said to=him/it keep_quiet put hand,your on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in mouth,your and,come with,us and,be to/for=us as,father and,as,priest ?,better be,you priest to,house (a)_man one(ms) or be,you priest to,tribe and,for,clan in/on/at/with,Israel )

The men are speaking as if the priest would become their actual father. If it would be clearer in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. See how you translated the similar expression in 17:10. Alternate translation: “as our spiritual advisor”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion

{Is} the good your being a priest for the house of one man or your being a priest for a tribe and for a clan in Israel?

(Some words not found in UHB: and=they_said to=him/it keep_quiet put hand,your on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in mouth,your and,come with,us and,be to/for=us as,father and,as,priest ?,better be,you priest to,house (a)_man one(ms) or be,you priest to,tribe and,for,clan in/on/at/with,Israel )

The men are using the question form for emphasis. If a speaker of your language would not use the question form for that purpose, you could translate this as a statement or as an exclamation. Alternate translation: “Surely it would be better for you to be a priest for a tribe and clan in Israel than for the house of one man!”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / nominaladj

{Is} the good

(Some words not found in UHB: and=they_said to=him/it keep_quiet put hand,your on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in mouth,your and,come with,us and,be to/for=us as,father and,as,priest ?,better be,you priest to,house (a)_man one(ms) or be,you priest to,tribe and,for,clan in/on/at/with,Israel )

The men are using the adjective good as a noun to mean what would be better. Your language may use adjectives in the same way. If not, you can use this adjective in such a way that it is not a noun. It may be natural in some languages to use the comparative form where Hebrew uses the positive form. Alternate translation: “What would be good for you,” or “What would be better for you,”

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

the house of one man

(Some words not found in UHB: and=they_said to=him/it keep_quiet put hand,your on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in mouth,your and,come with,us and,be to/for=us as,father and,as,priest ?,better be,you priest to,house (a)_man one(ms) or be,you priest to,tribe and,for,clan in/on/at/with,Israel )

The men are using the term house by association to mean household. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression or plain language. Alternate translation: “one man’s household”

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / doublet

for a tribe and for a clan in Israel

(Some words not found in UHB: and=they_said to=him/it keep_quiet put hand,your on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in mouth,your and,come with,us and,be to/for=us as,father and,as,priest ?,better be,you priest to,house (a)_man one(ms) or be,you priest to,tribe and,for,clan in/on/at/with,Israel )

The terms tribe and clan mean similar things. The men are using the two terms together for emphasis. If it would be clearer for your readers, you could express the emphasis with a single phrase. Alternate translation: “for an entire Israelite tribe”