English Bibles Whitewash This Guy

In this video, we explore how the character of Esau is whitewashed in English translations of the Bible. In Genesis, when Esau asks his brother Jacob for food, he speaks in a gruff and aggressive manner, using language that is considered vulgar in Hebrew. However, English translations soften his words to make him sound more polite and refined. This revision reflects a cultural bias towards an arbitrary standard of decorum and a desire to present biblical characters in a certain way. By examining this linguistic shift, we can gain a deeper understanding of how translation shapes our perception of the Bible and its characters.

[Observer-fk]

Correcting grammar alone is not inherently an act of whitewashing. However, when it comes to translating and localizing works of literature, it is important to consider the cultural and historical context of the original text, including the language and speech patterns used by the characters.

In the case of Esau, the original Hebrew text may have intentionally used non-standard grammar and speech patterns to convey important cultural and social information about his background and upbringing. By changing his speech patterns to match standard English grammar, the localization may have inadvertently erased important cultural context and nuances from the character's portrayal, which could be seen as a form of whitewashing.

It's important to understand that localization changes are made with the goal of making a text more accessible to a wider audience, but it's also important to consider the potential impact of these changes on the original intent and cultural context of the text. So, while correcting grammar itself is not necessarily an act of whitewashing, it is important to evaluate localization changes on a case-by-case basis and consider the potential impact on cultural context and accuracy.

[SquiddyHiggenbottom]

English translation Esau: "O my dearest brother, wilt thou please share thy delectable stew?"
OG Esau: "G I V E S O U P"

[spookysugar]

Therapist: "Refined Esau doesn't exist, no one is after your stew!"
Refined Esau: "Do share that scrumptiously vermillion concoction, brother"

[Bllue]

Also, I'd never be so polite to my siblings

[zorber]

Native Hebrew speaker here.
The direct hebrew translation would be -
"Feed me (the connotation here is rather crude, but not in a caveman sense. The verb הלעיטיני is elsewhere used with regards to feeding animals like camels) please (נא is translated here to please, but think of it as more of a demand stated in a requesting form), of the red (literally just taken from the color of the stew), for I am tired.
The overall sound is brute, but not in any way demeaning, standoffish, or caveman like.

[יוכבדשםבדוי]

In Hebrew, it's actually not so grammatically incorrect, except for the “red red stuff” part. He says something like “Feed me (means to literally feed him or pour the soup into his mouth) this red red [stuff] since I am tired”. While not being that incorrect, this sentence still represents his personality and characteristics as a wild hunter, that is also tired at the moment.

[minasamir]

Actually, in the Lebanese Arab translation which we use in Egypt and our Coptic translation, litteraly says:
Give me from this red!
Never thought it was different in english version

[jademonas]

this is so funny
they transformed ungabunga here into shakespeare

[WallySketch]

That AI art at the end is giving me nightmares

[PixelTrainer.]

From *"Hey, can you pass me some soup? I'm hungry AF"* to

"Good day my fellow brother. As the one and only person in the near vicinity to be related to you by blood, i humbly ask you to provide me with the rich food you cooked with the upmost effort. For i, unfortunately enough, am reaching the point where hunger stops being just an inconvenience. So i hope you can reach into the kindness of your heart, and provide me with some of your delicious food to sustain myself with"

[asafrokni]

Hey, Hebrew speaker here.
In Hebrew he says "give me please a bit of that red red stuff, for I am tired".
Try imagining yourself really really tired, that's pretty much the deal here I think, not because he's dumb. The translation pretty much nails it..

[alexross]

English Esau: Brother, I wish to partake in some comestibles. A fine stew, perhaps?
Hebrew Esau: Hmmm funckin' *_S O U M P_*

[sosme]

Youngest sibling: “me gulp down some red red stuff”

Oldest sibling: “for I am famished.”

[Lutheranguy]

Esau’s words in Genesis 25:30 (“the red, the red”) are an example of ellipsis which are a common feature in Biblical Hebrew where obvious words are omitted. This doesn’t mean he was speaking like a “caveman” but rather that he was speaking urgently and informally. Hebrew allows colors to function as stand-alone nouns, so his phrase naturally implies “the red stew.” English translations aren’t hiding anything. They clarify the meaning for modern readers while keeping the urgency of Esau’s speech. Some literal translations keep the unusual phrasing, while others make it smoother for readability, but the core meaning remains the same. If you want the most literal translation of the text, it would be something like: “Please let me gulp down some of this red, this red, for I am exhausted”

[merlijnwiersma]

The Dutch translation is more or less: 'Let me gulp from that red stuff, that red stuff there. Because I'm hungry'. Therefore, at our Scout troop, we used to rever to a pasta dish with tomato (red) sauce as a 'Genesis 25:30'

[mtarkes]

"Nigga gimme somotha red red stuff."

[Littleknockoutkidmac]

A cool hybrid translation would have been: “bro gimme some of that red stuff, I’m starved”

[Mr.Anemone]

"Bruh, gimme that red shit. I'm hungry asf."

[VictiZee]

Additionally Rashi(one of the main commentators on Tanach) says that the food was lentils, which isn’t ready yet while it is red, which seems to imply further that Esau was crude and uncultured

[remnock]

Or the translator translated that literally, scratched his head and said. "Well that can't be right, this must be a transcription error. I'll just put down what I think it's trying to say."