Translations of the Bible

http://biblestudymagazine.com/preview/choosetranslationWeb.pdf
https://bible.org/article/why-so-many-versions
http://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-versions/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_English_Bible_translations



Before 1881, there was only the KJV.   Three types of Translations:  word-for-word (formal equivalence), phrase-for-phrase (dynamic or functional equivalence), and mixture (optimal equivalence)


 up until 1895, biblical scholars had no real parallels to the language of the NT. They often viewed its Greek as invented by the Holy Spirit. They called it "Holy Ghost Greek."  only the spiritual elite could even hope to understand the NT.  but in the 1800s, a German pastor by the name of Adolf Deissmann researched the papyrus found in a 2,000 year old Egyptian dump.  Through this, he realized that this greek was actually common greek of the first century AD. In 1895, He published a rather innocent-sounding volume: Bible Studies.  
1. if the apostles wrote in easy to understand language, we should do the same
2. it help to translate words that before were only guessed at before.


word-for-word translation - formal equivalence:  KJV, ASV, NASB


Idioms and colloquialisms in a language need to be paraphrased to make sense in another language.
Is it faithful to the original? Is it faithfulness to form? Or, faithfulness
to meaning? Sometimes faithfulness to one involves
lack of fidelity to the other. There are problems with
each of the translation philosophies. The kjv, with
its attempted fidelity to form, does not make sense
in some passages. (In 1611, these instances did not
make sense either). Likewise, The nasb often contains
wooden, stilted English.


Latin Vulgate
The Latin Vulgate is an early 5th century version of the Bible in Latin which is largely the result of the labors of Jerome, who was commissioned by Pope Damasus I in 382 to revise the older Latin translations.  The Latin Vulgate's Old Testament is the first Latin version translated directly from the Hebrew Tanakh rather than from the Greek Septuagint.  It became the definitive and officially promulgated Latin version of the Bible of the Roman Catholic Church.

KJV - King James Version 


  • first version of Scripture authorized by the Protestant church and commissioned by England's King James I.
  • was authorized by King James I and is sometimes referred to as the “Authorized Version”. It was translated by the Church of England and was first published in 1611.
  • Built off of Wycliffe bible
  • Published in 1611, criticized for being too easy to understand
  • Translated by Erasmus
  •  translated from the Textus Receptus
  • However, the majority of the book of Revelation seems to have been translated from the Latin Vulgate. 
  • The KJV Old Testament was translated from the Masoretic Hebrew text, and the Apocrypha was translated from the Greek Septuagint.
  • Several versions of the King James Bible (KJV) were produced in 1611,1629, 1638, 1762, and 1769. The 1769 edition is most commonly cited as the King James Version (KJV). 
  • today's KJV not the same as the KJV of 1611.  It has been changed.  
  • Additionally, the KJV has not been modified based on new evidence from new manuscript discoveries.
  • KJV was translated from later ( Byzantine text) manuscripts, so it is assumed to not be as accurate. 
  • Over 300 words in KJV no longer mean what they used to mean.
  • on a few occasions, there were gaps in the text, so Erasmus had to translate latin back to greek to fill in the gaps ( 'book of life' in Rev 22:19or the wording of I John 5:7-8, which are not found either in the majority of MSS or the most ancient MSS. ) It is true that in certain places the ancient MSS do not explicitly affirm the deity of Christ--such as in I Tim 3:16. But neither do they deny it! Besides this, in some passages these ancient MSS make Christ's deity explicit where the King James does not! In John 1:18, the modern versions read "the unique one, God" while the King James has "the only begotten Son." 
  • http://www.biblestudytools.com/concordances/strongs-exhaustive-concordance/


Since 1895, archaelogical and manuscript discoveries proved some of the translation of the KJV as inaccurate.

NKJV - New King James Version


  • follows same greek and hebrew texts as KJV
  • commissioned in 1975 by Thomas Nelson Publishers
  • One-hundred-and-thirty respected Bible scholars, church leaders, and lay Christians worked for seven years with the goal of updating the vocabulary and grammar of the King James Version, while preserving the classic style of the of the 1611 version.


RSV- Revised Standard Version http://www.ncccusa.org/newbtu/aboutrsv.html 

  • 1952
  • intended to be a revision of KJV  (translation of a translation), translated from ASV (1946-1952/1971), 
  •  comprehensive revision of the King James Version, the Revised Version of 1881-1885, and the American Standard Version of 1901, published in stages around the middle of the 20th century.
  • The panel of scholars who worked on the translation used the 17th edition of the Nestle-Aland Greek text for the New Testament, and the traditional Hebrew Masoretic Text for the Old Testament. However, they amended the Hebrew in a number of places. In the Book of Isaiah, they sometimes followed readings found in the then newly discovered Dead Sea Scrolls.
  • literal, so it can be archaic
  • NRSV, added new evidence to make clearer
  • clarity is sometime at the price of accuracy
  • included the so-called "Apocryphal" or "Deuterocanonical" books

NRSV  - New Revised Standard Version

  • 1989
  • thirty men and women who are among the top scholars in America today.
  • Protestant denominations, the Roman Catholic church, and the Greek Orthodox Church.
  • includes a Jewish scholar
  • included the so-called "Apocryphal" or "Deuterocanonical" books
  • endorsement of thirty-three Protestant churches. 

ASV/NASB - American Standard Version 

  • 1885, edited 1901
  • intended to be revision of KJV  (translation of a translation)
  • less archaic than RSV
  • translators more conservative than RSV
  • stilted english
  • The ASV was the basis of several later Bible revisions. RSV,AMP, NASB (1963-1971/1995), RV, WEB, TLB

NASB -  New American Standard Bible

  • completed in 1971
  • a revision of ASV 
  • true to the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
  • grammatically correct and understandable
  • In 1995, the Lockman Foundation reissued the NASB text as the NASB Updated Edition (grammatical)replacing literal renderings of antiquated phrases and words, and many conjunctions, the current edition is slightly less literal than the original. It has introduced inclusive language in about 85 places. The NASB remains, however, the most literal version of the English Bible commonly used in churches today.



RHE - Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible
  • 1568
  • revised 1749 to update for modern diction
  • nearly all english catholic bibles are based
  • contains Deutero-Canonical books
  • translated from Latin Vulgate




  • 2001
  • eliminated slilted english of NASB
  • literary excellence of KJV
  • To this end each word and phrase in the ESV has been carefully weighed against the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, to ensure the fullest accuracy and clarity and to avoid under-translating or overlooking any nuance of the original text. 
  • The ESV is an "essentially literal" translation that seeks as far as possible to capture the precise wording of the original text and the personal style of each Bible writer.

NWT - New World Translations
  • Jehovah Witness Bible 
  • word-for-word with actual twisting and inserting and removing of words

phrase-for-phrase (thought-for-though) translation - dynamic or functional equivalence:  NIV, NEB


sometimes go too far in their interpretation, which changes the intended meaning.

NEB/REB - New English Bible / Revised English Bible


  • strictly British 
  • 1971 
  • 25 years to complete
  • not a revision of KJV, brand new translation
  • sometimes bias' of translators creep in
  • excellent english, not always faithful to original greek/hebrew text

NIV/TNIV - New International Version / Today's New International Version

  • In 1967, the New York Bible Society (now Biblica)
  • produced by more than one hundred scholars 
  • working from the best available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts.
  • 1978 - first published in 1973, with revisions published in 1978 and 1983. 
  • international
  • more conservative translators than NEB
  • authors sometimes sacrificed accuracy for readability

NET - New English Translation

    • 2005
  • highly recommended

GW (God's Word)

  • accurately translates the meaning of the original texts into clear, everyday language. Readable and reliable, GW is living, active, and life-changing

GNT - Good News Translations

  • 1976
  • incorporates new manuscript discoveries

optimal equivalence - word-for-word unless phrase-for-phrase is needed for clarity



HCSB

  • 1999
  • incorporates new manuscript discoveries
  • translational footnotes
  •  international, interdenominational team of 100 scholars, editors, stylists, and proofreaders

  • new translation
  • 120+ scholars
  • more than a dozen denominations


NLT - New Living Translation

  • 1996
  • large interpretative decisions being made by reader
  • More than 90 Bible scholars, along with a group of accomplished English stylists

Literal

LEB - Lexham English Bible - NT only

  • The LEB complements your primary translation with it's transparent design and literal rendering. It helps you see the text of God’s Word from another angle.
  • had as its starting point the Lexham Greek-English Interlinear New Testament.

 



Young's Literal Translation (YLT) was created by Robert Young who also compiled Young's Analytical Concordance. Produced and printed in the late 19th century, Young's Literal Translation was designed to assist students in the close study of the Biblical text by reproducing in English the Hebrew and Greek language and idioms in an exceedingly literal translation.



Paraphrase

MSG - The Message


The Message is a paraphrase from the original languages written by Eugene, H. Peterson. The Message provides a fresh and unique Bible-reading experience.

thought-for-thought; paraphrase





OTHERS

The ASV was the basis of several later Bible revisions. 

Amplified Bible (1965), 
  • from ASV
 the Recovery Version (1999). 

  • from ASV
 World English Bible and 

  • from ASV

 The Living Bible, which was published in 1971. Kenneth N. Taylor's Bible paraphrase,
  • from ASV

CJB - Complete Jewish Bible Bible 

http://www.messianicjewish.net/jntp/complete-jewish-bible.html 


WEB - World English Bible Bible


Historical

TYN - Tyndale Bible

  • from greek and hebrew manuscripts
  • translations of various books of the Bible by William Tyndale in the 1500s. His work is credited with being the first English translation from the original Hebrew and Greek texts and the first English biblical translation that was mass-produced as a result of new advances in the art of printing. 
  • executed before  he could finish

WYC - Wycliffe Bible

  • which first appeared in 1382
  • literal translation of the Latin Vulgate.
  • It was the first time the common people had access to Scripture in their language in more than 1,300 years. By 1395, Wycliffe’s friend John Purvey had amended the often-unwieldy translation into a "Later Version," which was easier to read but kept much of the poetry of the Early Version. This version, known today as the Wycliffe Bible, was widely distributed throughout England – all more than half a century before Gutenberg invented his printing press. 

Some translations have literally and purposely changed the meaning.

Suggest you use one of each:  formal and functional.   And maybe even better, two functional.


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