Different Biblical Translations

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Permalink Reply by deedee310 on June 5, 2009 at 8:31am

I was told to stay away from the NIV bible..... That was the one that I was told not to read.

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Permalink Reply by John Scott on June 30, 2009 at 11:49pm

Hi deedee310,

Our GOD is an awesome GOD and as HE says in HIS WORD, all Scripture is GOD breathed. HE has seen to it that HIS WORD has been translated more times than any other writing on the face of this earth without any major departure from it's intent, content, and meaning. By HIS Spirit HE has guided and inspired reputable Biblical scholars and translators to preserve, translate, and pass HIS WORD to generation after generation. If the translation you are reading is done by reputable sources and you can understand it then it doesn't matter if it is the NIV, King James, Scofield, New King James, Amplified, American Standard, New American Standard, etc. What matters is that it is the WORD and you are reading it, understanding it, and letting GOD speak to you through it. I have four translations, one of them being the NIV. Each has it's own merits. There are some passages, especially in Paul's writings, that are hard for a new Christian to grasp and they become easier to understand when you read them in the NIV. I've been reading the WORD for many years and I still go to the Scofield NIV when I start to struggle with a particular piece of language structure and I want a simplified take on it.

Many people will try to tell you that this Bible or that Bible is the only one to read. The truth is that if there was only one true rendition of Scriptures to read, then a good portion of the world would be excluded from getting the WORD and we would all have to learn Greek as well as Aramaic if we wanted to read it. Fortunately GOD has seen to it that we don't have to do that and has provided us with translations that can speak to everyone. Thank you LORD.

Anyway, that's my thoughts on it. I hope it helps.

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Permalink Reply by AAG Netguy on July 1, 2009 at 8:53am

Hi DeeDee,

Nearly all of the modern translations of the Bible are excellent and are produced with the utmost care and excellent scholarship. It really comes down to a matter of taste and which you prefer. There is nothing magical or particularly sacred about the King James version, but it was an outstanding translation for its time. There is a particular sect (perhaps a cult?) of Christians that insist that any other version beside the King James is corrupted and heretical. For a rebuttal to this please visit: http://www.gotquestions.org/KJV-only.html

I myself use a variety of versions depending on what I'm doing. For in-depth Bible study, New American Standard; to lead a group, New International Version; for personal devotions and reading, New Living Translation.

Stay clear of the New World Translation. That IS a corrupted, heretical version produced by the Jehovah's Witnesses cult.

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Permalink Reply by John Scott on July 1, 2009 at 8:39pm

Hi DeeDee,

Greg is right. You should stay clear of translations that are done by and promoted by cults. Good tip Greg!

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Permalink Reply by deedee310 on July 1, 2009 at 8:56pm

What about the Amplified version?

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Permalink Reply by Natasha Mayes on July 2, 2009 at 11:36am

Ooh yes. I don't know much about the Bible translation you are refering to here (New World) but I do recall being given a book to read some years ago by a well meaning friend. She knew I was studying Revelation at the time and thought I could benefit from this book. It was suposed to be an encyclopedia - type book about Revelation but, man, I tell you by the end of chapter 1 I was so confused by this book, I might as well have been trying to read the original greek Bible for all the "insight" it gave me. That was the 1st time I encountered literature written and distributed by the Jehova's witnesses. Since then I've been very carefull about which books and references I use in my research. Heresy is the devil's favourite way of confusing God's children. It is done so cleverly you don't realize its a crock until it's almost too late.

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Permalink Reply by AAG Netguy on July 2, 2009 at 8:25am

LaBrock,

I agree that the King James can be used with Strongs concordance, but apart from that it has no advantage over a modern version. You are making a lot of unfounded statements such as "the original King James has the fewest mistranslations", modern versions "were altered in many ways to support traditions", "they are twisting it", "King James can even be tracked back to the tribes of Israel". I'm sorry, but you have no factual basis whatsoever to make these kinds of claims.

It is ok to say you prefer the King James version, but to state these kinds of falsehoods without any proof is just not acceptable here. Please stop.

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Permalink Reply by Jeff Randall on July 2, 2009 at 8:57am

I do not think in all reality that we have a bible today, other than the original Hebrew Bible that follows the Scriptures as they were intended. The Hebrew language is very complex and most single words mean three or four of ours so like has been mentioned it is all in how the translator interprets the scripture. Most people do not realize that when you read Hebrew you read it from right to left instead of our traditional way of left to right. This in itself represents its own set of problems. There are also some words in Hebrew that we have no definition for in our language so alt of the Bible and the scriptures we have are in fact interpretations not actual word for word books. I believe and please do not quote me on this for I may be wrong but I believe there are about 35,000 grammatical errors in th New Testament alone, most are small such as saying Christ Jesus instead of Jesus Christ. I personally own a number of Bibles of different translations, The New American Standard, King James, New King James, King James with Concordance(not much different), NIV, NLT, Life Study Bible, The Recovery Bible, The New English Bible,The Original Hebrew Bible which I admit cannot read(tried but it is very difficulty) as well as many reference books, Strongs Extensive Concordance, Douglas's Bible Dictionary, Outline and studies of the Christian Doctrine, The Harmony of the Gospels,and I am pretty sure that if I lined them all up there would not be one other than the NKJ versions I have that would agree word for word. I even got to the point of finding a book covering 8 translations of the New Testament. Most Evangelical Preachers including myself use the NIV Bible just for the simple fact that most of the Congregation uses it. In order to prepare a Sermon I usually line up to 4 versions in front of me in order to cover all points. I guess it comes down to this, we will read the original when we go home to meet the Father, until then we deal with what we have.

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Permalink Reply by deedee310 on July 2, 2009 at 6:29pm

Where can I find an original Hebrew Bible?

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Permalink Reply by Rick Kelly on July 12, 2009 at 3:44am

Hi Deedee,

You can go to www.searchgodsword.org for a free online study of God's word, Hebrew & Greek to English.
If you wish to purchase a Interlinear Bible, I suggest Amozon.com , they have the best prices. You can buy new or used.

Love Ya
In JESUS
.Rick.

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Permalink Reply by Natasha Mayes on July 3, 2009 at 6:16am

Maybe I'm just really naive and/or stupid but I've always thought that the function of Bible translators were to make the Bible understandable to EVERYBODY. It is obviously wrong to take any of the original meaning or facts away or to add things that were not in the original text. In the Middle ages, Average Joe in the streets were not allowed access to the Bible (which were in Latin in those days). They were led to believe that the Bible is meant to be read and interpreted only by the Church. Since few people back then were litterate, it was accepted practice that the Bible be handled only by people who could read and write. I might be sticking my head into a wasps-nest now, but it is my oppinion that reputeble translators like Scoffield, Wycliff and the like should continue to translate the Bible into more understandable language. For the simple reason that the better you understand the Bible the better you are able to spread the Word and explain it to people that has never heard it. Why else are there things like children's Bibles? The Bible was not just written for linguistic geniuses. It was written for all.

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Permalink Reply by John Scott on July 9, 2009 at 3:19pm

You are absolutely right and you're on target with your opinion. You also made a good point about linguistic geniuses. If JESUS taught us that we must become as "little children in our faith" then why would HE demand a Greek or Hebrew language degree so we could understand HIS WORD so that we may become as "little children in our faith"? That is a contradiction and GOD does not contradict HIMSELF. JESUS also said go and preach the "Good News" to the world. HE didn't say go and teach Greek and Hebrew to the world and then preach the "Good News" to it. If that was the case, HIS WORD would not have reached the world as it has. If that was the case, HIS WORD and knowledge of HIS salvation would be exclusive to just a few. That's why Martin Luther nailed his statement of faith to the church door. It was his reaction to a system set up by people who saw themselves as the only ones to be privileged to GOD's truth and wanted to keep the populace dumb and stupid to the realities of GOD. The same thing happens somewhat when you have people saying only this translation is acceptable and all the other reputable ones are not. My question is, how do they know? Who told them that?

Anyone who tries to split hairs on which translation is the true WORD of GOD is not really understanding the greatness of GOD. HE is all powerful and has insured that HIS WORD has been handed down from generation to generation intact and complete. This does not mean that Translations by sects or cults are valid. Those groups have perverted GOD's WORD into what they want it to say. But it does mean that we can trust the Christian Bible scholars that GOD has endowed and inspired, such as Scofield, Wycliffe, and such to translate HIS WORD. You don't need to learn Greek, Hebrew, or Aramaic to get GOD's WORD. Anyone who tries to create exclusionary barriers by saying only this or that is the correct version should spend more time reading and comparing various translations so they can better understand the overall thrust of GOD's message to the world. Sure, certain words used in the original Greek and Hebrew have different meanings, in fact each word may have multiple meanings depending on context and how it is used. The Hebrew language is not only made up of an alphabet that they use to creates words, but if I'm not mistaken, the alphabet is also used for their numerical system. So you have to understand those things as well as context when reading those languages so that you get it right. That's why the Bible Scholars and Translators look at context and usage, compare it to other usage applications and then translate it accurately based on context and usage. If you knew Greek and were reading the original Greek texts you would have to do the same to get the true meaning of what was being said. Fortunately, there are others who have already done it, made the translations for us, and passed it on for the world to have. Now, add to that the fact that GOD is guiding the process and you can trust that what you are getting is of GOD.

Anyway, that's my take on it and I'm sticking to it.

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