Reading the Bible

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by David Abel on February 20, 2011 at 9:07am

Hi Choco

 

1. I read the Bible out loud with my family every day, which we started January 01, 2010. I started off by reading 4 chapters from the Old Testament and 1 chapter from the New Testament per day. From the Old Testament, we read 2 from the beginning (Genesis) and 2 from the middle (Psalms and Proverbs), and just kept moving to the next book after finishing one. We finished the whole Bible toward the end of September 2010 (towards the end I had to adjust a lot to finish the Old Testament and New Testament more or less together). My wife started immediately thereafter (and it is still her turn to read out loud at the current time), this time 3 from the Old Testament and 1 from the New Testament per day. I like doing this with my family, as it is family time well spent together, and I figure that by the time the children (they are still young now) leave home one day, they would have gone through the Bible a few times already, which can only do them good in their lives later on in life. Our eldest, Sarah (10), follows diligently each day and has consequently finished reading the Bible once already (and it is her turn next time round to read out loud). The other two, Blaide (7) and Noelle (3) just sit and listen till they can read properly later on / in future years. This daily reading program is over and above personal reading and study of God's Word during our personal time. The daily reading with the family is very formal (but made such a difference in our lives!) while the personal reading is very free and flexible. Also, I prefer reading whole chapters at a time, instead of breaking it down to verses / part chapters as per some Bible reading plans.

 

2. We read from the New King James Version, which is closest to the King James Version but in English much easier to read and understand. I do not like many other versions due to many scriptures either missing completely or the meanings changed. For my personal reading and study, I use many different versions (including the ones I don't like), but my favourites are NKJV and Amplified.

 

God Bless,

David A.

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Permalink Reply by David Abel on February 20, 2011 at 11:26am

Hi Choco

 

 

The Amplified Version is a whole version on its own. The following info is from BibleGateway.com (http://www.biblegateway.com/versions/Amplified-Bible-AMP/), which has many versions available on-line:

 

"Amplified Bible (AMP)

Version » Amplified Bible

Publisher The Lockman Foundation 

Testaments OT/NT

Version Information

The Amplified Bible was the first Bible project of The Lockman Foundation. It attempts to take both word meaning and context into account in order to accurately translate the original text from one language into another. The Amplified Bible does this through the use of explanatory alternate readings and amplifications to assist the reader in understanding what Scripture really says. Multiple English word equivalents to each key Hebrew and Greek word clarify and amplify meanings that may otherwise have been concealed by the traditional translation method. The Amplified Bible present on the Bible Gateway matches the 1987 printing."

 

 

To give an example of some verses between the NKJV and the Amplified Bible:

 

NKJV:

14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

 

Amplified:

¹⁴And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert [on a pole], so must [so it is necessary that] the Son of Man be lifted up [on the cross],^(B)

    ¹⁵In order that everyone who believes in Him [who cleaves to Him, trusts Him, and relies on Him] may ^[c]not perish, but have eternal life and [actually] live forever!

    ¹⁶For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (^[d]unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.

    ¹⁷For God did not send the Son into the world in order to judge (to reject, to condemn, to pass sentence on) the world, but that the world might find salvation and be made safe and sound through Him.

 

 

Also, the reason why I don't like the NIV, is that some key verses are either missing much or missing entirely, example as follows (notice that the most important part of vs 7 is missing from the NIV):

 

NKJV:

⁶ This is He who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. ⁷ For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. ⁸ And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.

 

Amplified:

⁶This is He Who came by (with) water and blood [^[a]His baptism and His death], Jesus Christ (the Messiah)--not by (in) the water only, but by (in) the water and the blood. And it is the [Holy] Spirit Who bears witness, because the [Holy] Spirit is the Truth.

    ⁷So there are three witnesses ^[b]in heaven: the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit, and these three are One;

    ⁸and there are three witnesses on the earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree [are in unison; their testimony coincides].

 

NIV:

 ⁶ This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. ⁷ For there are three that testify: ⁸ the^[a] Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.

 

God Bless,

David A.

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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on February 20, 2011 at 1:31pm

David A.,

 

The verses are not missing, they are footnoted. The NIV explains why they are footnoted as well.

 

Lord Bless,

LT

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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on February 20, 2011 at 5:48pm

Amanda,

 

Flagon/Cakes of Raisins: 809. ash-ee-shaw’; fem. of 808; something closely pressed together, i.e. a cake of raisins or other comfits:— flagon.

Good piece of flesh/Cake of Dates: 829. esh-pawr’; of uncert. der.; a measured portion:— good piece (of flesh).

 

Some things are not really clear because they simply don’t really know what it is.

 

Below are how various translations handle it.

 

New International Version Then he gave a loaf of bread, a cake of dates and a cake of raisins to each person in the whole crowd of Israelites, both men and women. And all the people went to their homes. New Living Translation Then he gave to every Israelite man and woman in the crowd a loaf of bread, a cake of dates, and a cake of raisins. Then all the people returned to their homes. English Standard Version and distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, a cake of bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed, each to his house. New American Standard Bible Further, he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, both to men and women, a cake of bread and one of dates and one of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed each to his house. GOD'S WORD® Translation He also distributed to all the people-to the whole crowd of Israelites, both men and women-one loaf of bread, one date cake, and one raisin cake. Then all the people went home. King James Bible And he dealt among all the people, [even] among the whole multitude of Israel, as well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread, and a good piece [of flesh], and a flagon [of wine]. So all the people departed every one to his house. American King James Version And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, as well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine. So all the people departed every one to his house. American Standard Version And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, both to men and women, to every one a cake of bread, and a portion of flesh , and a cake of raisins. So all the people departed every one to his house. Bible in Basic English And he gave to every man and woman among all the people, among all the masses of Israel, a cake of bread and a measure of wine and a cake of dry grapes. Then all the people went away, every man to his house. Douay-Rheims Bible And he distributed to all the multitude of Israel both men and women, to every one, a cake of bread, and a piece of roasted beef, and fine flour fried with oil: and all the people departed every one to his house. Darby Bible Translation And he dealt to all the people, to the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, to every one a cake of bread, and a measure of wine, and a raisin-cake. And all the people departed every one to his house. English Revised Version And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, both to men and women, to every one a cake of bread, and a portion of flesh, and a cake of raisins. So all the people departed every one to his house. Webster's Bible Translation And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, as well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine. So all the people departed every one to his house. World English Bible He dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, both to men and women, to everyone a cake of bread, and a portion [of flesh], and a cake of raisins. So all the people departed everyone to his house. Young's Literal Translation and he apportioneth to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, from man even unto woman, to each, one cake of bread, and one eshpar, and one ashisha, and all the people go, each to his house.

 

I like how Young’s Literal Translation handles it. He does not try to tell us what it is. He simply uses the Hebrew word since they don’t really know what it is for sure.

 

Lord Bless,

LT

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Permalink Reply by David Abel on February 20, 2011 at 11:26pm

Hi LT. That's all well and good, but doesn't change the fact that they are excluded from the main text. For me it is not a big issue, as I use many versions anyway (including the ones I dislike), to get a clearer understanding of what a verse/chapter is saying.

 

P.S. I do not see how anyone will be able to answer Choco's question no. 2 adequately without giving reasons why one likes a version / certain versions more than others.

 

God Bless,

David A.

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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on February 21, 2011 at 6:23am

David A.,

 

The NIV explains why they are footnoted.

 

This question can be addressed without bashing other versions of Christian translations. You are rather new here. Every time this subjecthas comes up people have been less that friendly (that is putting it nicely). It turns ugly to the point of the forums having to be shut down and in extreme cases people banned for their actions towards others. This is one of several subjects that we have determined as a "hot topic" and not allowed anymore. That is a leadership decision based on repeated experience on this topic and the purpose of AAG.

 

Lord Bless,
LT

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Permalink Reply by David Abel on February 21, 2011 at 6:42am

Hi LT. Thanks for that, I fully understand and will be more careful. I hope I didn't come across as bashing any other version (NIV in particular). In response to a question, I said I disliked them and mentioned why, and also that I still use them anyway.

 

I cannot speak for others, but I stick to the topics at hand and answer honestly. If I feel something is getting too contentious / out of hand, I leave it at that.

 

God Bless,

David A.

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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on February 21, 2011 at 6:49am

David A.,

 

You did not come acrss as bashing in any way and I have not had any problems with your approach on AAG. You asked the most common question regarding the NIV. Nothing wrong with that. The problem is that in the past that innocent question has been taken by some to open a door to bash the NIV, NASB, and others.

 

All is good :-)

 

Lord Bless,
LT

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Permalink Reply by David Abel on February 21, 2011 at 7:00am

Whew, thanks! I find this site very interesting, enjoyable, and thought provoking, to say the least, and do not want to offend anyone.

Permalink Reply by David Abel on February 21, 2011 at 4:12am

Hi Choco

 

It is not a lot to go through daily with the family, as a sit-com, series or movie takes anything from 30 minutes to 90 minutes or more, so for us, we "sacrifice" some daily TV time, so to speak, for the Word of God. It has been the best exercise in family discipline that we have taken. Even if we go out for the day, or are on holiday, we make sure we read the Word of God for that day, either in the morning or in the evening. If we miss a day, we double-up the next day. We are still 100% on track from when we started on Jan 01, 2010. We are seeing good results in our lives as a result of this daily exercise.

 

It takes 20-40 minutes. We keep it simple and just read, one reading out loud while the others follow. But sometimes we have some fun just chatting before we read, and/or sometimes discuss briefly what we have read after a chapter or after the complete reading. This then takes it up to +-40 minutes or more. We also read a brief intro to each book as we begin a new book, just to have some background info.

 

I am thinking of taking it more to a daily Bible Study approach in later years, but for now, just keeping it simple. The Holy Spirit is giving direction as we go along with this as a family.

 

As we read daily, I sometimes follow up later with what we've read in further private reading/study, or carry on with other topics/subjects that I am busy with.

 

God Bless,

David A.

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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on February 20, 2011 at 6:04pm

To all,

 

Just a word in advance to all who would like to discuss the versions of the Bible. We can discuss the version we like, but do not get into trying to tell others why this or that version is unaccepatable. Every discussion that has taken that path has required me closing it.

 

Lord Bless,

LT

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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on February 21, 2011 at 6:30am

Choco,

 

My comment was not directed at you or your question. Your question is a good one, but there are those in the past that have taken an innocent question and turned it into a Bible bashing. I am confident that if left unchecked this will happen again. My comments were precautionary and proactive to head off a return of an ugly situation.

 

Lord Bless,
LT

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