I wrote this post on the 31st of December 2023.
NJV. This is what he showed me: the Lord standing by a wall, with a plumb-line in his hand.
Wardaman. Jurdba ŋambundiya: Jinjiyujban yurrba jiŋindi galulul barndawarra, garlbaŋwaraŋ nuŋguruya.
this is what he showed me = jurdba ŋambundiya
jurdba = point to
ŋambundiya = He hit me, and thus
If you remove the /b/ in jurdba, you get *jurda. This is very close to the word juda, which means short.
This verse is about how we all fall short of God’s glory.
If you take the /d/ in jurdba and place it on the end, you get jurbad. This is very close to the word jubad, which means deaf person.
All too often, we are deaf to the word of the Lord.
In addition, ŋa-m-bundiya should actually be ŋa-n-bundiya.
Why did I change the /n/ to an /m/?
bu means hit, and this vision is a strong strike.
/b/ and /m/ are both Bilabials – you move both your lips to pronounce them.
the Lord stood on a wall made with a plumb-line = Jinjiyujban yurrba jiŋindi galulul barndawarra
Jinjiyujban = the Lord
yurrba = to stand
jiŋindi = sat
galulul = up on top
barndawarra = from an axe
Wardaman does not have a word for wall, so I chose galulul, which means up on top.
Similarly, Wardaman has no word for plumb-line – a string with a weight on the end, used for measuring pipes from the inside.
It comes from the Hebrew anawk’ (אנך), which means to plummet.
I had to get creative.
Wardaman has two words meaning axe, and I use them both.
In this section, I use barndan.
This is similar to the following words:
barnarr = Owenia vernicosa (aka. Marble Tree or Emu Apple).
barnam = hide behind a tree/fasten to a tree.
barnbarnin = naked.
Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. This was not only the first judgement in human history – it is the Judgment that began human history.
Genesis 3:7 (BSB): And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; so they sewed together fig leaves and made coverings for themselves.
This was the beginning of God’s promise of salvation. This culminates in the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Many times in the New Testament, the Cross is called a “tree”.
The vertical part of the cross was the permanent part. It was used for many crucifixions, and so had to bear the weight of many full-grown men. It represented Roman power, so was not allowed to fall over.
Thus, it was probably a cleaned-up tree-trunk.
with a plumb-line in His hand = nuŋguruya garlbaŋwaraŋ
nuŋguruya = in His hand
garlbaŋwaraŋ = having an axe
Before we continue, I shall clarify that the original Hebrew uses the exact same word for plumb-line both times.
The other Wardaman word for axe is garlbaŋ. It is similar to a number of other words, but for dramatic effect, I shall only include three:
1. garlay = be smitten (by fear or surprise).
2. garlaŋ = burial platform.
3. garlambaŋ = headband.
God is passing judgement on Israel. He will smite many with the Exile in Babylon.
Later, the Son will come in flesh.
His enemies will smite him and put a crown made of thorns around his forehead. His friends will bury him.
KJV. Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand.
Wardaman. Jurdba ŋambundiya: Jinjiyujban yurrba jiŋindi galulul barndawarra, garlbaŋwaraŋ nuŋguruya.