Translating Psalms for Performance and Their Use in Various Ministries within the Church: Examples from South Africa

The Psalms were composed for oral performance, and many today believe they should be restored to their performance vitality. “Translation for performance” requires many concepts to be considered, one of which is how the audience (or receptor community) will use the translated text. In the case of translating poetry, these considerations often point to the value of literary-rhetorical translation, which captures the poetical beauty and persuasive power of the original. Also, translating from an oral text and following the form of local poetic genres facilitates ready application of psalms. In this paper, empirical studies illustrate some ways in which psalms have been used recently with communities in South Africa: in corporate worship, in personal prayer, and with sectoral groups. Translators need constantly to keep their eye on the end game, to ensure the translated psalms facilitate a living conversation between people and God, as the ancient poems did.