(Elohim Attem) in Psalm 82:6 of the Masoretic text and the translation of Moy! Anyame in the Asante Twi Bible.

Abstract

This thesis analyses אֱלֹהִים אַ תם (ELOHIM ATTEM) IN PSALM 82:6 OF THE MASORETIC TEXT AND THE TRANSLATION OF MOY! ANYAME IN THE ASANTE TWI BIBLE. Misinterpretation of biblical texts can lead to incorrect applications and misconceptions. This study examines Psalm 82 of the Masoretic text and Asante Twi translations using form-critical methods and decolonization-critical approaches, emphasizing the importance of considering source and receptor languages and language groups' worldviews in Bible translation. The study highlighted the following findings: Decolonization theory, or the postcolonial critical hermeneutic, as a corrective, dialogic, and liberating hermeneutic to analyse translations and revisions of the Bible that have emerged from a colonial past where bias and misunderstanding of the culture and language have compromised the translation work that was done; the relevance dynamic of translation; theology of that translation; reflection on translation as contextualization, incarnation, and appropriation of the Biblical message in the ‘culture’ of a specific ethnic group; the term anyame coined to define the religion of the Akan people as polytheism, which includes the Asante; and the missiological significance of this rendering and its implications. The thesis recommends that the Asante Twi Bible needs a re-reading of Psalm 82 to provide an appropriate rendering of Elohim for Asante Twi readers.