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March 19, 2005
Biblical Translation
We all know that there are a lot of Bible translations out there. There are a few that are pretty good. How do you choose? And what do you do when they disagree?
One side of the argument says that we all should not trust others translations. We need to learn the original languages. This is a fine idea and can really teach you a lot if you have 10 years to invest which most of us don’t.
In reality God doesn’t speak Hebrew or Greek but he does speak to us through his word, can illuminate our thoughts and bring us to conclusions. Also there are people out there who spend their live learning this stuff and they have translated the Bible in the best way that they possibly can. They are the best in the world at what they do and they have the utmost respect for the Bible and translating it as accurately as they can.
Take that to the extreme and you can end up putting to much trust in the translators and even (gasp) make it seem as though the translation itself was inspired and therefore there is only one that is “authorized” and should be used.
I myself often lean toward trusting the translators and not digging into it, I do however struggle when say the NAS and the NIV differ…
Posted by paul at March 19, 2005 12:05 PM
Comments
I only read swahili bibles. They are by far the most accurate translations.
Posted by: Matt at March 19, 2005 03:38 PM
great matt, you are a bastion of spirituality in my life.
Posted by: paul at March 19, 2005 04:00 PM
A cent's worth.
For daily/casual reading (if there is such a thing), I suppose it makes sense to just read whatever is easiest or most comfortabl or speaks to you. I like the NIV for that. But when I want to really get into a verse, I go to the NAS next, partly because it has the most thorough cross reference, and then I compare to other translations/paraphrases to get additional nuances. You also can go to Greek and Hebrew easily enough online or with software that's out there. I go to crosswalk.com a lot, which has the Strongs Concordance with Greek adn Hebrew for the NAS and KJV.
A lot of times, I end up sort of memorizing the verse in my own translation, if you know what I mean. So Psalm 139:23-24 to me says, "Search me O God and reveal my heart. Try me and expose my anxious thoughts. Show me my hurtful ways and lead me in the eternal way." I think that is what that verse is really saying and also follows the rest of the psalm more logically. Since David has already established in the course of the Psalm that God already knows him thoroughly, David is asking that God teach him about himself.
Posted by: Dan Benson at March 20, 2005 02:42 AM
Thanks Dan. I also frequent crosswalk.com and end up memorizing my own "translation". (Sometimes I feel guilty though because I don't know what it says word for word I just know the idea. Which is great for me but when I am quoting it to someone else I think that they should get a more accurate translation then the PJSV.)
Posted by: paul at March 21, 2005 10:13 AM
So, a controversy about the whole "word for word" memorization thing.
Honestly, in order to do that you WOULD have to memorize greek. So, what is the problem in memorizing in your "own version" if it helps? (As long as you have the correct idea and proper hermaneutics of course...)
Posted by: Matt Heerema at March 21, 2005 01:40 PM